Brétigny-sur-Orge

Brétigny-sur-Orge (French pronunciation: [bʁetiɲi syʁ ɔʁʒ] ^ⓘ, literally Brétigny on Orge) is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France, 26.7 km (16.6 mi) from the city center.

Brétigny-sur-Orge
Commune
The residential zone of La Fontaine and the eponymous castle in the background.
Coat of arms
Location (in red) within Paris inner and outer suburbs
Location of Brétigny-sur-Orge
Brétigny-sur-Orge Show map of France Brétigny-sur-Orge Show map of Île-de-France (region)
Coordinates: 48°36′41″N 2°18′21″E
Country	France
Region	Île-de-France
Department	Essonne
Arrondissement	Palaiseau
Canton	Brétigny-sur-Orge
Intercommunality	CA Cœur d'Essonne
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Nicolas Méary[1]
Area 1	14.56 km2 (5.62 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	26,658
• Density	1,800/km2 (4,700/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	91103 /91220
Elevation	41–97 m (135–318 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Origin of the city name

The name of the settlement is attested as Britiniacum in 1146, as Bretigniacum in 1548, and subsequently^[when?] as Breteigny.

The origins of Brétigny start in the era of Roman Gaul. The etymology comes from the Latin britiniacum, which means "property of the Breton". The name certifies that this territory was during that period dedicated to a Breton, coming from (Great) Britain, during the period of Briton migration (6th century). Brétigny afterwards belonged to the royal estate of the Merovingian kings (from the 5th century until the 8th century).

At the time of the creation of the commune, the city name was spelled without any accent. This accent was added in 1801, and the name of the river ("on Orge") was added in 1898.

Geography

Climate

Brétigny-sur-Orge has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb). The average annual temperature in Brétigny-sur-Orge is 11.9 °C (53.4 °F). The average annual rainfall is 628.9 mm (24.76 in) with December as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around 20.2 °C (68.4 °F), and lowest in January, at around 4.5 °C (40.1 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded in Brétigny-sur-Orge was 42.0 °C (107.6 °F) on 25 July 2019; the coldest temperature ever recorded was −18.8 °C (−1.8 °F) on 16 January 1985.

Climate data for Brétigny-sur-Orge (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1947−present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	15.8 (60.4)	20.2 (68.4)	25.3 (77.5)	29.4 (84.9)	32.0 (89.6)	37.3 (99.1)	42.0 (107.6)	39.7 (103.5)	34.4 (93.9)	30.3 (86.5)	22.1 (71.8)	16.8 (62.2)	42.0 (107.6)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	7.2 (45.0)	8.5 (47.3)	12.6 (54.7)	16.2 (61.2)	19.8 (67.6)	23.4 (74.1)	26.0 (78.8)	25.9 (78.6)	21.8 (71.2)	16.6 (61.9)	10.9 (51.6)	7.6 (45.7)	16.4 (61.5)
Daily mean °C (°F)	4.5 (40.1)	5.0 (41.0)	8.1 (46.6)	10.9 (51.6)	14.5 (58.1)	17.9 (64.2)	20.2 (68.4)	20.0 (68.0)	16.4 (61.5)	12.4 (54.3)	7.7 (45.9)	4.9 (40.8)	11.9 (53.4)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	1.7 (35.1)	1.5 (34.7)	3.6 (38.5)	5.7 (42.3)	9.2 (48.6)	12.5 (54.5)	14.4 (57.9)	14.1 (57.4)	11.0 (51.8)	8.2 (46.8)	4.5 (40.1)	2.2 (36.0)	7.4 (45.3)
Record low °C (°F)	−18.8 (−1.8)	−17.0 (1.4)	−10.7 (12.7)	−4.7 (23.5)	−1.9 (28.6)	1.4 (34.5)	3.8 (38.8)	3.7 (38.7)	0.2 (32.4)	−4.5 (23.9)	−9.6 (14.7)	−16.4 (2.5)	−18.8 (−1.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	48.2 (1.90)	44.9 (1.77)	45.0 (1.77)	44.6 (1.76)	61.4 (2.42)	55.6 (2.19)	53.1 (2.09)	57.7 (2.27)	48.6 (1.91)	52.6 (2.07)	54.5 (2.15)	62.7 (2.47)	628.9 (24.76)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	10.0	9.7	9.0	8.4	9.1	8.7	7.2	7.6	7.6	9.8	10.6	11.8	109.5
Source: Météo-France[3]

Transport

It is served by Brétigny station on Paris RER line C.

On 12 July 2013 an intercity train derailed shortly after 17.00, killing 7 people.^[4][5]

People

Inhabitants of Brétigny-sur-Orge are known as Brétignolais.

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 700 —     1800 725 +0.50% 1806 789 +1.42% 1821 792 +0.03% 1831 781 −0.14% 1836 729 −1.37% 1841 808 +2.08% 1846 830 +0.54% 1851 829 −0.02% 1856 868 +0.92% 1861 943 +1.67% 1866 1,015 +1.48% 1872 1,093 +1.24% 1876 983 −2.62% 1881 1,065 +1.62% 1886 1,180 +2.07% 1891 1,160 −0.34% 1896 1,134 −0.45%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 1,251 +1.98% 1906 1,329 +1.22% 1911 1,438 +1.59% 1921 2,205 +4.37% 1926 2,640 +3.67% 1931 3,076 +3.10% 1936 3,300 +1.42% 1946 3,673 +1.08% 1954 4,759 +3.29% 1962 6,830 +4.62% 1968 12,688 +10.87% 1975 19,572 +6.39% 1982 18,662 −0.68% 1990 19,671 +0.66% 1999 21,650 +1.07% 2007 22,837 +0.67% 2012 25,214 +2.00% 2017 26,528 +1.02%
Source: EHESS[6] and INSEE (1968-2017)[7]

Notable residents

• Cédric Collet, footballer, was born in Brétigny. He has played for the Guadeloupe national football team.
• Cédric Baseya, footballer, was born in Brétigny. He has played for Le Havre AC and some English clubs, but is now a free agent.
• Antoine-Gaspard Boucher d'Argis, (1708-1791), lawyer and encyclopedist, lived in Brétigny in the Castle of la Fontaine.
• Jean de Boishue (1943- ), politician. He was mayor of Brétigny.
• Patrice Évra, football player, played for CS Brétigny from 1993 to 1997.
• Jérémy Ménez, football player, played for CS Brétigny from 2000 to 2001.