Cher (department)

Cher is a department in the centre of France in the Centre-Val de Loire region. It is named after the Cher river, the most important river in the department.
Its prefecture is Bourges.
History.
The department is one of the 83 French departments made during the French revolution, on 4 March 1790. The department was created from part of the former province of Berry.
The new department had seven districts: Aubigny, Sancerre, Sancoins, Saint-Amand, Châteaumeillant, Bourges and Vierzon. The capital (now prefecture) was Bourges.
In 1800, with the creation of the "arrondissements" in France, the seven districts were changed into three "arrondissements": Bourges, Saint-Amand-Mont-Rond and Sancerre.
On 10 September 1926, the "arrondissement" of Sancerre was eliminated. In 1984, a new "arrondissement" was created: Vierzon.
Geography.
Cher is part of the Centre-Val de Loire region. It has an area of .
The highest point of the department is "Le Magnoux" (), in the south end of the department in the "commune" of Préveranges, and that is above sea level.
The department is bordered by 6 departments in 4 regions:
The main rivers are:
Climate.
The Köppen climate classification type for the climate at Bourges is an "Oceanic climate" (also known as Marine West Coast Climate) and of the subtype Cfb.
The average amount of precipitation for the year in Bourges is . The month with the most precipitation on average is November with of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is February with an average of .
The average temperature for the year in Bourges is . The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of . The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of .
Administration.
The department is managed by the "Departmental Council of the Cher" in Bourges. Cher is part of the region of Centre-Val de Loire.
Administrative divisions.
There are 3 "arrondissements" (districts), 19 "cantons" and 290 "communes" (municipalities) in Cher.
The following is a list of the 19 cantons of the Cher department, following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:
Demographics.
The inhabitants of Cher are known, in French, as "Chériens" (women: "Chériennes") or "Berrichons" (women: "Berrichonnes").
Cher has a population, in 2014, of 310,270, for a population density of inhabitants/km2. The "arrondissement" of Bourges, with 173,889 inhabitants, is by far the largest.
Evolution of the population in Cher
The main cities in the department are: