La Seyne-sur-Mer

La Seyne-sur-Mer
La Sanha (Occitan)
Fort Balaguier
Fort Balaguier
Coat of arms of La Seyne-sur-Mer
Location of La Seyne-sur-Mer
La Seyne-sur-Mer is located in France
La Seyne-sur-Mer
La Seyne-sur-Mer
La Seyne-sur-Mer is located in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
La Seyne-sur-Mer
La Seyne-sur-Mer
Coordinates: 43°06′00″N 5°52′59″E / 43.1°N 5.883°E / 43.1; 5.883
CountryFrance
RegionProvence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
DepartmentVar
ArrondissementToulon
CantonLa Seyne-sur-Mer-1 and 2
IntercommunalityMétropole Toulon Provence Méditerranée
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2026) Nathalie Bicais[1] (LR)
Area
1
22.17 km2 (8.56 sq mi)
Population
 (2022)[2]
62,905
 • Density2,800/km2 (7,300/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
83126 /83500
Elevation0–352 m (0–1,155 ft)
(avg. 9 m or 30 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

La Seyne-sur-Mer (French pronunciation: [la sɛjn(ə) syʁ mɛʁ]; lit. "La Seyne on Sea"; Occitan: La Sanha), or simply La Seyne, is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. La Seyne-sur-Mer, which is part of the agglomeration of Toulon, is situated adjacent to the west of the city.

Demographics

The population data in the table and graph below refer to the commune of La Seyne-sur-Mer proper, in its geography at the given years. The commune ceded territory to the new commune of Saint-Mandrier-sur-Mer in 1950.[3]

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1793 3,980—    
1800 4,895+3.00%
1806 4,826−0.24%
1821 5,605+1.00%
1831 6,732+1.85%
1836 6,344−1.18%
1841 7,099+2.27%
1846 6,497−1.76%
1851 7,401+2.64%
1856 8,709+3.31%
1861 11,700+6.08%
1866 11,192−0.88%
1872 10,123−1.66%
1876 10,655+1.29%
1881 12,072+2.53%
1886 13,166+1.75%
1891 14,332+1.71%
1896 16,341+2.66%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1901 21,002+5.15%
1906 19,747−1.22%
1911 22,093+2.27%
1921 23,168+0.48%
1926 24,678+1.27%
1931 26,817+1.68%
1936 27,073+0.19%
1946 26,172−0.34%
1954 26,672+0.24%
1962 33,570+2.92%
1968 43,783+4.53%
1975 51,155+2.25%
1982 57,659+1.72%
1990 59,968+0.49%
1999 60,188+0.04%
2009 61,514+0.22%
2014 64,675+1.01%
2020 62,232−0.64%
Source: EHESS[3] and INSEE (1968-2020)[4]

Economy

A view of the marina and town centre in La Seyne-sur-Mer

In earlier decades, La Seyne-sur-Mer owed its importance to the shipbuilding trade, the Société des Forges et Chantiers de la Mediterranée having here one of the finest shipbuilding yards in Europe (it was a branch of the larger establishment at Marseille), which gave employment to about 3,000 workers.[5]

In recent years the town has moved from its traditional industries to tourism. The docks previously used have had extensive work and now comprise a park, marinas and a new (2010) hotel overlooking Toulon and the marinas.

The population is diverse in origins and the outer suburbs are undergoing a transformation with old multi storey apartments being replaced with modern developments. La Seyne has a railway station, Gare de La Seyne-Six-Fours, on the line from Toulon to Marseille.

Iraq's "Osiris class" nuclear reactors, later destroyed by Israel in Operation Opera, were built in La Seyne-sur-Mer.[6]

Buildings and structures

The Hôtel de Ville
  • The Hôtel de Ville completed in 1959[7]
  • Pont basculant de la Seyne-sur-Mer, a former bascule bridge
  • Institut Michel-Pacha, a building in the néo-mauresque style which hosted a research laboratory in marine biology from 1900 until 2008.

Personalities linked to La Seyne-sur-Mer

  • Jean Gaspard de Vence (1747–1808)
  • Napoléon Bonaparte (1769–1821)
  • George Sand (1804–1876)
  • Michel Pacha (1819–1907)
  • Henri Rieunier (1833–1918)
  • Maurice Tranchant de Lunel (1869-1944), French architect died in La Seyne
  • Jean Marquet (1883–1954)
  • Henri Olive Tamari (1898–1980)
  • Édouard Jauffret (1900–1945)
  • Fernand Bonifay (1920–1993)
  • Gabriel Pérès (1920–2004)
  • Pierre Moustiers (1924–2016)
  • Johannès Galland (1934)
  • Henri Tisot (1937–2011)
  • Andrzej "André" Orliński (1954), Polish adventurer, musician and philosopher
  • Valerie Hirschfield (1964)
  • Léon Loppy (1966)
  • Marcus Malte (1967)
  • Frédéric Meyrieu (1968)
  • Gérald Orsoni (1972)
  • Patrice Collazo (1974)
  • Marc Zanotti (1975)
  • Sylvain Prudhomme (1979), French writer
  • Sébastien Squillaci (1980)
  • Mohamed Sy (1980)
  • Camille Traversa (1981)
  • Pascal Ragondet (1983)
  • John Revox (1983)
  • Sébastien Bisciglia (1984)
  • Alexis Farjaudon (1985)
  • Bafétimbi Gomis (1985), footballer currently playing for Al-Hilal FC
  • Fabien Lamatina (1985)
  • Pier-Nicol Feldis (1986)
  • Jérôme J. Dufourg (1986)
  • Bruno Lancelle (1986)
  • Emmanuel Ragondet (1987)
  • Jonathan Tornato (1989)
  • Mickaël Ivaldi (1990)
  • Nampalys Mendy (1992)
  • Gaël Fickou (1994)

See also

References

  1. ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 6 June 2023.
  2. ^ "Populations de référence 2022" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 19 December 2024.
  3. ^ a b Des villages de Cassini aux communes d'aujourd'hui: Commune data sheet La Seyne-sur-Mer, EHESS (in French).
  4. ^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
  5. ^ One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainChisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Seyne sur Mer". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 24 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 756.
  6. ^ George Russell (June 22, 1981). "Attack--and Fallout". Time. Archived from the original on March 18, 2011.
  7. ^ "La Seyne-sur-Mer (Var): Action sociale et service social de la municipalité 1947–1984" (PDF). L'Association pour L'Histoire et Patrimoine Seynois. Retrieved 23 March 2025.