Rivesaltes

For the French wine grape also known as Rivesaltes, see Rivesaltes AOC. For the Portuguese wine grape also known as Rivesaltes, see Alicante Bouschet.

Rivesaltes (French pronunciation: [ʁivzalt] ^ⓘ; Catalan: Ribesaltes, which means the high shores) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.^[3]

Rivesaltes
Commune
General view of Rivesaltes
Coat of arms
Location of Rivesaltes
Rivesaltes Show map of France Rivesaltes Show map of Occitanie
Coordinates: 42°46′11″N 2°52′29″E
Country	France
Region	Occitania
Department	Pyrénées-Orientales
Arrondissement	Perpignan
Canton	La Vallée de l'Agly
Intercommunality	Perpignan Méditerranée Métropole
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	André Bascou[1] (DVD)
Area 1	28.76 km2 (11.10 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	9,151
• Density	320/km2 (820/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	66164 /66600
Elevation	11–70 m (36–230 ft) (avg. 29 m or 95 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Geography

Rivesaltes is in the canton of La Vallée de l'Agly and in the arrondissement of Perpignan.

Map of Rivesaltes and its surrounding communes

Politics and administration

Mayors

Twin towns

Rivesaltes is twinned with:

• - Calgary, Canada
• - Chennai, India
• - Rangoon, Myanmar
• - Yaren, Nauru
• - Ramallah, Palestine
• - Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
• - Chipping Norton, United Kingdom
• - Clitheroe, United Kingdom
• - Whalley, United Kingdom
• - Wilpshire, United Kingdom

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	6,442	—
1975	6,589	+0.32%
1982	6,781	+0.41%
1990	7,110	+0.59%
1999	7,940	+1.23%
2007	8,625	+1.04%
2012	8,201	−1.00%
2017	8,610	+0.98%
Source: INSEE[4]

Economy

Fortified wine is produced around Rivesaltes, as Rivesaltes AOC.

Sites of interest

• The Camp de Rivesaltes is situated on the outskirts of the city. The Rivesaltes memorial museum is now fully open and commemorates the history of this major French concentration camp from 1939 to 2007.

Notable people

• Joseph Joffre (1852–1931), general, born in Rivesaltes, who became prominent in the battles of World War I
• Michel Parès (1887–1966), politician, born in Rivesaltes

See also

• Perpignan–Rivesaltes Airport
• Communes of the Pyrénées-Orientales department