| Tarn | |
| Type: | Department of France |
| Coordinates: | 43.8167°N 14°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | France |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Occitanie |
| Established Title: | Departement |
| Established Date: | 4 March 1790 |
| Seat Type: | Prefecture |
| Seat: | Albi |
| Parts Type: | Subprefecture |
| Parts Style: | para |
| P1: | Castres |
| Leader Party: | PS |
| Leader Title: | President of the Departmental Council |
| Leader Name: | Christophe Ramond[1] |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Area Footnotes: | [2] |
| Area Total Km2: | 5758 |
| Population Rank: | 61st |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Demonym: | Tarnais |
| Blank Name Sec1: | Department number |
| Blank Info Sec1: | 81 |
| Blank Name Sec2: | Arrondissements |
| Blank Info Sec2: | 2 |
| Blank1 Name Sec2: | Cantons |
| Blank1 Info Sec2: | 23 |
| Blank2 Name Sec2: | Communes |
| Blank2 Info Sec2: | 314 |
| Timezone1: | CET |
| Utc Offset1: | +1 |
| Timezone1 Dst: | CEST |
| Utc Offset1 Dst: | +2 |
| Iso Code: | FR-81 |
| Website: | http://www.tarn.fr |
Tarn (in French pronounced as /taʁn/ or in French pronounced as /ta:ʁ/; in Occitan (post 1500); pronounced as /taɾ/) is a department in the Occitania region in Southern France. Named after the river Tarn, it had a population of 389,844 as of 2019.[3] Its prefecture and largest city is Albi; it has a single subprefecture, Castres. In French, the inhabitants of Tarn are known as French: Tarnais (masculine) and French: Tarnaises (feminine).[4] Its INSEE and postcode number is 81.
Tarn is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790, through application of the Law of 22 December 1789. It was created from part of the former province of Languedoc, and comprised the dioceses of Albi and Castres (which found themselves merged in 1817).
The new department had five districts: Albi, Castres, Lavaur, Gaillac, Lacaune. The capitals (now prefectures) were, alternatively, Albi and Castres but, from 1790 to 1797, the capital was only Albi; in 1797, the capital was moved to Castres.[5] In 1800, Albi became again the capital of the department and the arrondissements were created; the department had four arrondissements: Albi, Castres, Gaillac and Lavaur. In 1926, the arrondissements of Gaillac and Lavaur were eliminated.
By the law of 28 Pluviôse Year 5, the departments of Hérault and of Tarn exchanged the canton of Anglès (which had been part of the diocese of Saint-Pons, but which has remained in Tarn) for that of Saint-Gervais-sur-Mare (which had been part of the diocese of Castres, but which today remains in Hérault).
Tarn is part of the Occitanie region and has an area of 5757.90NaN0. The department is surrounded by 5 departments, all belonging to the region Occitanie: Hérault to the southeast, Aude to the south, Aveyron to the north and east, Haute-Garonne to the southwest and west, as well as Tarn-et-Garonne to the northwest. It is one of two French departments surrounded entirely by other departments of the same region.
The slope of the department is from east to west, and its general character is mountainous or hilly. Tarn's three principal ranges lying to the south-east are: the Mountains of Lacaune, the Sidobre and the Montagne Noire, belonging to the Cévennes.
The stony and wind-blown slopes of the Mountains of Lacaune (Monts de Lacaune) are used for pasture. The highest point of the range and of the department is the Puech Montgrand, 12670NaN0 high; several other summits are not much short of this. The granite-strewn plateaux of the Sidobre, from 1600to high, separate the valley of the river Agout from that of its western tributary, the Thoré River. The Montagne Noire, on the southwestern border of the department, derives its name from the forests on its northern slope. Its highest point is the Pic de Nore at 12110NaN0 high.
The limestone and sandstone foot-hills are clothed with vines and fruit trees, and are broken by deep alluvial valleys of particular fertility. With the exception of a small portion of the Montagne Noire, which drains into the river Aude, the whole department belongs to the basin of the Garonne.
Tarn has a population, in 2019, of 389,844, for a population density of inhabitants/km2.[3]
Population development since 1801:
The most populous commune is Albi, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 10 communes with more than 6,000 inhabitants:[3]
| Commune | Population (2019) | |
|---|---|---|
| 48,902 | ||
| 42,079 | ||
| 15,265 | ||
| 12,844 | ||
| 10,879 | ||
| 9,996 | ||
| 9,782 | ||
| 9,336 | ||
| 6,694 | ||
| 6,506 |
There are 2 arrondissements, 23 cantons and 314 communes in Tarn.
| Arrondissement | Population (2019) | Area (km2) | Density (inhabitants/km2) | Communes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 811 | Albi | 193,307 | 2,732 | 163 | |||
| 812 | 196,537 | 3,026 | 151 |
The Departmental Council of Tarn has 46 seats. In the 2015 departmental elections, the Socialist Party (PS) won 26 seats and The Republicans (LR) and Union of Democrats and Independents (UDI) alliance won 18 seats; two miscellaneous right candidates complete the assembly composition. Christophe Ramond (PS) has been President of the Departmental Council since 2017.
In the 2017 legislative election, Tarn elected the following members of the National Assembly:
See also: Tourism in Tarn.