Mende, Lozère

Mende (mɑ̃d, ˈmende) is a commune and the prefecture of the department of Lozère, in the region of Occitania, Southern France. Its inhabitants are called the Mendois. The city, including the first traces of dwellings date back to 200 BC, was originally named Mimata, probably in reference to the mountains that surround it. Mende is located between Clermont-Ferrand and Montpellier, but also on the axis of Lyon–Saint-Étienne–Albi–Toulouse. The other important nearby towns are Aurillac and Saint-Flour (Cantal), Le Puy-en-Velay (Haute-Loire), Rodez, Millau (Aveyron) and Alès and Nîmes (Gard). Even though Mende remains a relatively sparsely populated city (approximately 12,000 inhabitants), it remains the most important of the Lozère Department. In addition, it is the city-centre of the unique urban area of this department. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Mende. Mende is situated in the high valley of the Lot, in a mountainous area, in the Pays du Gévaudan, the Rieucros stream joins to it on its right bank. The city is overlooked (on the left bank of the Lot) by fr and its fr. Access is by the fr. On the right bank, residential areas extend over different causses, including the Causse d'Auge. Located on the axis of Lyon-Toulouse, the city has long been a commercial crossroads between the Auvergne, Rhone and the Languedoc. The commune is bordered by Chastel-Nouvel to the north, Badaroux to the east, Lanuéjols to the southeast, Brenoux and Saint-Bauzile to the south, Balsièges to the southwest, and Barjac and Servières to the west. Mende is one of the "gateway cities" (along with Millau, Lodève, Alès and Ganges) for the site of the Causses and Cévennes, of world heritage by UNESCO under the inscription "Les Causses and Cevennes, Mediterranean agro-pastoral cultural landscape". According to the INSEE, Mende is an urban commune without suburbs (ville isolée [isolated town]). It lies at the centre of an functional urban area composed of 31 communes, the only one in the department of Lozère.