Jura (department)

Jura is a department in the east of France in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region. It is named after the Jura mountains.

For other places with the same name, see Jura.
Jura
Department
City hall of Lons-le-Saunier
City hall of Lons-le-Saunier.
Flag of Jura
Flag
Coat of arms of Jura
Coat of arms
Location of Jura in France
Location of Jura in France
Coordinates: 46°40′31″N 5°33′16″E
CountryFrance
RegionBourgogne-Franche-Comté
PrefectureLons-le-Saunier
SubprefecturesDole, Saint-Claude
Government
 • PresidentClément Pernot[1]
Area
[2]
 • Total4,999.2 km2 (1,930.2 sq mi)
Highest elevation
1,200 m (3,900 ft)
Lowest elevation
200 m (700 ft)
Population
 (2014)[3]
 • Total260,681
 • Density52/km2 (140/sq mi)
DemonymJurassiens
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeFR-39
Arrondissements3
Cantons17
Communes509
Websitewww.jura.fr

The largest city in the department is Dole but its prefecture (capital) is the city of Lons-le-Saunier.

History

Historically, Jura belonged to the Free County of Burgundy, known in French as the Franche-Comté. Dole was the capital until the region was conquered by Louis XIV. Louis XIV moved the capital to Besançon and Dole is now a sous-préfecture of Jura.

As early as the 13th century, inhabitants of the southern 2/3 of Jura spoke a dialect of Arpitan language. It continued to be spoken in rural areas into the 20th century.

Jura is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Free County. The department was created with six districts: Dole, Lons-le-Saunier, Orgelet, Poligny, Saint-Claude and Salins; the capital was Lons-le-Saunier alternating with Dole, Poligny and Salins but from 1794 only Lons-le-Saunier remained as the capital.[4]

In 1800, with the creation of the arrondissements in France, the six districts were changed into four arrondissements: Lons-le-Saunier, Dole, Poligny and Saint-Claude. On 10 September 1926, the arrondissement of Poligny was eliminated.[4]

Geography

Jura is part of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region. It has an area of 4,999.2 km2 (1,930 sq mi).[2]

The department borders with 5 departments in two regions. The Swiss canton of Vaud is to the southeast.

The highest point in the department is Crêt Pela (46°24′50″N 6°1′19″E), 1,495 m (4,905 ft) high; it is also the highest mountain of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region.[5] The Crêt Pela mountain is in the Forêt du Massacre, Jura mountain range.

Many lakes can be found throughout the Jura department. The largest natural lake in the department is the Lac De Chalain. It is 3 km (1.9 mi) long and 1 km (0.6 mi) wide. Lac de Vouglans was formed after the building of a hydro-electric dam; it is one of the largest man-made lakes in France.

The Ain river starts in the Jura department but it is the main river of the Ain department. The Doubs also flows through a part of the department. Many tributaries of both rivers flow, partially or completely, in the Jura department.

Climate

The climate of the Jura varies greatly by elevation. The lower valleys are temperate and pleasant, but the high mountain valleys have bitterly cold winters.

Administration

Jura is managed by the Departmental Council of Jura in Lons-le-Saunier. The department is part of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region.

Administrative divisions

There are 3 arrondissements (districts), 17 cantons and 509 communes (municipalities) in Jura.[6]

INSEE
code		ArrondissementCapitalPopulation[7]
(2014)		Area[8]
(km²)		Density
(Inh./km²)		Communes
391DoleDole83,7011,171.271.5191
392Lons-le-SaunierLons-le-Saunier126,0712,825.444.6258
393Saint-ClaudeSaint-Claude50,9091,002.650.860

The following is a list of the 17 cantons of the Jura department (with their INSEE codes), following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:[9]

  • Arbois (3901)
  • Authume (3902)
  • Bletterans (3903)
  • Champagnole (3904)
  • Dole-1 (3905)
  • Dole-2 (3906)
  • Lons-le-Saunier-1 (3907)
  • Lons-le-Saunier-2 (3908)
  • Moirans-en-Montagne (3909)
  • Mont-sous-Vaudrey (3910)
  • Morez (3911)
  • Poligny (3912)
  • Saint-Amour (3913)
  • Saint-Claude (3914)
  • Saint-Laurent-en-Grandvaux (3915)
  • Saint-Lupicin (3916)
  • Tavaux (3917)

Demographics

Jura had a population, in 2014, of 260,681,[3] for a population density of 52.1 inhabitants/km2. The arrondissement of Lons-le-Saunier, with 126,071 inhabitants, is the arrondissement with more inhabitants.[7]

Evolution of the population in Jura

The cities with more than inhabitants in the department are:[7]

City Population[7]
(2014)		 Arrondissement
Dole23,312Dole
Lons-le-Saunier17,311Lons-le-Saunier
Saint-Claude10,096Saint-Claude
Champagnole7,908Lons-le-Saunier
Hauts de Bienne5,457Saint-Claude
Poligny4,146Lons-le-Saunier
Tavaux3,957Dole
Arbois3,463Lons-le-Saunier
Les Rousses3,276Saint-Claude
Montmorot3,019Lons-le-Saunier

Economy

Jura is a wine-growing region. The Jura wines are very distinctive and unusual wines, such as vin jaune, which is made by a similar process to sherry. It develops under a flor of yeast. This is made from the local Savagnin grape variety. Other grape varieties include Poulsard, Trousseau, and Chardonnay.

Tourism

The Jura mountains provide ample opportunities for hiking, skiing, mountain biking and other winter sports.

References
  1. "Les élus et commissions" (in French). Le Conseil départemental du Jura. Archived from the original on 12 November 2017. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  2. "Département du Jura (39)". Comparateur de territoire (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  3. "Populations légales 2014: Recensement de la population - Régions, départements, arrondissements, cantons et communes" (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
  4. "Historique du Jura". Le SPLAF (in French). Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  5. "Crêt Pela, France/Spain". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
  6. "Département du Jura (39)". Géographie administrative et d'étude (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  7. "Régions, départements, arrondissements, cantons et communes" (PDF). Populations légales 2014 (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  8. "Département du Jura (39)". Comparateur de territoire (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  9. "Décret n° 2014-165 du 17 février 2014 portant délimitation des cantons dans le département du Jura" (in French). Legifrance.gouv.fr. 22 February 2014. Retrieved 1 July 2017.

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