Demography of the Pas-de-Calais
The Pas-de-Calais is one of the most populated departments and most urbanized France. However it does not have any very big city: Calais reaches only 80.000 inhabitants, followed by Arras (whose population increases contrary to Calais and Boulogne on Mer) and Boulogne on Mer; Saint-Omer constitutes also an important agglomeration of more than 50.000 inhabitants.
The part densément populated corresponds to the mines of Houille which developed much during the 19th century and during first half of the 20th century, in the east of the department. Truly a big city there is not found, but around the centers like (Lens, Liévin, Béthune, Bruay-la-Buissière, Hénin-Beaumont) a multitude of small towns are coupled the ones with the others, forming vast a Conurbation which is prolonged in the department of the Northern until Valencian Douai and . These agglomerations form an almost continuous whole of more than 1,2 million inhabitants (of which more half in the Pas-de-Calais). By contrast, the center and the south of the department very rural (but all the same relatively dense), are strewn with very many small villages and some small towns.
To the First World War, the mining activity maintained a high population growth (700 000 inhabitants about 1850, almost 1.000.000 in 1900). The First World War directly affected the department (which knew the German occupation and was one of the principal battle fields), but the population réaugmenta strongly as of the shortly after the war, to reach 1.200.000 inhabitants. After the economic crisis of 1929, another period of decrease amorça, prolonged by the Second world war. After 1945, the growth returned with the recontruction and the population increased clearly during a score by years, of 1.168.545 in 1946 to 1.397.159 in 1968. Since, the number of inhabitants stagnated (1 441.568 in 1999): the population remains young and the births are largely surplus on the deaths, but migratory balance is strongly negative because of the decline of the mining activities and dependant industries. Certain cities which did not live that mines lost until half of their population during the last half-century
The Gentilé of the Pas-de-Calais is Not-of-Calaisian.
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