Le Havre

Le Havre (/lə ˈhɑːv(rə)/ lə HAHV(-rə),[5][6][7] French: [lə ɑvʁ(ə)] ; Norman: Lé Hâvre [lɛ ˈhɑvʁ(ə)]) is a
major port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is
situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays
de Caux, very close to the Prime Meridian. Le Havre is the most populous commune of Upper
Normandy, although the total population of the greater Le Havre conurbation is smaller than that
of Rouen. After Reims, it is also the second largest subprefecture in France. The name Le Havre
means "the harbour" or "the port". Its inhabitants are known as Havrais or Havraises.[8]

The city and port were founded by King Francis I in 1517. Economic development in the early
modern period was hampered by religious wars, conflicts with the English, epidemics, and
storms. It was from the end of the 18th century that Le Havre started growing and the port took
off first with the slave trade then other international trade. After the 1944 bombings the firm of
Auguste Perret began to rebuild the city in concrete. The oil, chemical, and automotive industries
were dynamic during the Trente Glorieuses (postwar boom) but the 1970s marked the end of the
golden age of ocean liners and the beginning of the economic crisis: the population declined,
unemployment increased and remains at a high level today.

Changes in years 1990–2000 were numerous. The right won the municipal elections and
committed the city to the path of reconversion, seeking to develop the service sector and new
industries (aeronautics, wind turbines). The Port 2000 project increased the container capacity to
compete with ports of northern Europe, transformed the southern districts of the city, and ocean
liners returned. Modern Le Havre remains deeply influenced by its employment and maritime
traditions. Its port is the second largest in France, after that of Marseille, for total traffic, and the
largest French container port.

In 2005, UNESCO inscribed the central city of Le Havre as a World Heritage Site because of its
unique post-WWII reconstruction and architecture.[9] The André Malraux Modern Art Museum is
the second of France for the number of impressionist paintings. The city has been awarded two
flowers by the National Council of Towns and Villages in Bloom in the Competition of Cities and
Villages in Bloom.[10]

Toponym

The name of the town was attested in 1489, even before it was founded by François I in the form
le Hable de Grace then Ville de Grace in 1516, two years before its official founding.[11] The
learned and transient name of Franciscopolis in tribute to the same king, is encountered in some
documents then that of Havre Marat, referring to Jean-Paul Marat during the French Revolution
but was not imposed. However it explains why
Le Havre
the complementary determinant -de-Grace was
Lé Hâvre (Norman)
not restored.[11] This qualifier undoubtedly
referred to the Chapel of Notre Dame located Subprefecture and commune

at the site of the cathedral of the same name.

The chapel faced the Chapel Notre Dame de
Grace of Honfleur across the estuary.[11] The
common noun havre meaning "port" was out
of use at the end of the 18th or beginning of
the 19th centuries but is still preserved in the
phrase havre de paix meaning "safe haven". It
is generally considered a loan from Middle
Dutch from the 12th century.[12] A Germanic
origin can explain the "aspiration" of the initial
h. Havre de Grace, Maryland, in the United
States retains the "de Grace" from colonial
times.

New research however focuses on the fact

that the term was attested very early (12th
century) and in Norman texts in the forms
Hable, hafne, havene, havne, and haule makes a
Dutch origin unlikely. By contrast, a
Scandinavian etymology is relevant given the
old Scandinavian höfn (genitive hafnar) or hafn
meaning "natural harbour" or "haven" and the
phonetic evolution of the term étrave which is
assuredly of Scandinavian origin is also
attested in similar forms such as estable and
probably dates back to the ancient
Scandinavian stafn.[13]

Flag Coat of arms

Location of Le Havre [show]