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Commune of Colombes
Location
Paris and inner ring départements
Coordinates	48°55′23″N, 2°15′18″E
Administration
Country	France
Region	Île-de-France
Department	Hauts-de-Seine
Arrondissement	Nanterre
Intercommunality	none as of 2005
Mayor	Nicole GOUETA
Statistics
Land area¹	7.81 km²
Population² (Jan. 1, 2005 estimate) (March 8, 1999 census)	82,300 76,757
- Density (2005)	10,538/km²
Miscellaneous
INSEE/Postal code	92019/ 92700
¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 mi² or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
² Population sans doubles comptes: single count of residents of multiple communes (e.g. students and military personnel).

Colombes is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 10.6 km. (6.6 miles) from the center of Paris.

Contents 1 Name 2 History 3 Demographics 3.1 Immigration 4 Administration 5 Transport 6 Sport 7 External links

The name Colombes comes from Latin columna (Old French colombe), meaning "column". This is interpreted as referring either to a megalithic column used in ancient times for druidic cult which stood in Colombes until its destruction during the French Revolution, or to the columns of an atrium in a ruined Gallo-Roman villa that also stood in Colombes.

On March 13, 1896, 17% of the territory of Colombes was detached and became the commune of Bois-Colombes (literally "Colombes Woods").

On May 2, 1910, 19% of the (reduced) territory of Colombes was detached and became the commune of La Garenne-Colombes.

Thus, the commune of Colombes is now only two-third the size of its territory before 1896.

Place of birth of Colombes's residents in 1999 Born in Metropolitan France Born outside of Metropolitan France 78.9% 21.1% Born in Overseas France Born in foreign countries with French citizenship at birth¹ EU-15 immigrants² Non-EU-15 immigrants 2.1% 2.6% 3.6% 12.8% ¹This group is made up in large part of pieds-noirs from Northwest Africa, then also of former colonial citizens who had French citizenship at birth (such as was often the case for native elites in the French colonies), and in a smaller measure of foreign-born children of French expatriates. Note that a foreign country is understood as a country not part of France as of 1999, so a person born for example in 1950 in Algeria, at which time Algeria was an integral part of France, is nonetheless listed as a person born in a foreign country by French statistics. ² An immigrant is a person born in a foreign country and who did not have French citizenship at birth. Note that an immigrant may have acquired French citizenship since moving to France, but is still considered an immigrant by French statistics. On the other hand, persons born in France with a foreign citizenship (the children of immigrants) are not listed as immigrants.

The city is divided into three cantons:

• Colombes-Nord-Est (northeast): 24,425 (31.82% of the total population)
• Colombes-Nord-Ouest (northwest): 24,606 (32.06% of the total population)
• Colombes-Sud (south): 27,726 (36.12% of the total population)

Colombes is served by three stations on the Transilien Paris – Saint-Lazare suburban rail line: Colombes, Le Stade, and La Garenne-Colombes.

The stadium was built in 1907. Officially named the Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir, the Olympic Stadium of Colombes was the site of the opening ceremony and several events of the 1924 Summer Olympics. The arena's capacity was increased to 60,000 for the 1938 World Cup. The stadium lost its importance after the restoration in 1972 of Paris' 49,000-seat Parc des Princes. In the 1990s, three of the four grandstands were torn down due to decay and the stadium's capacity is now down to 7,000.

• Official website
• Unofficial city website (in French)
• Colombes in postal card (Colombes philatelic society - in french)
• History of the Olympic Stadium (in French)
• Article: Chariots of Fire stadium reprieved