Arrondissements of the Manche department

Arrondissements of the Manche département

In France, the chief town of an arrondissement is known as the sous-préfecture. When an arrondissement contains the préfecture (capital) of the département, that préfecture is the capital of the arrondissement, acting both as a préfecture and as a sous-préfecture. The Manche département of France has 4 arrondissements. These are:

1. Arrondissement of Avranches, (sous-préfecture: Avranches) with 16 cantons and 160 communes. The population of the arrondissment was 117,460 in 1990, and was 117,431 in 1999, a decrease of 0.02%.
2. Arrondissement of Cherbourg-Octeville, (sous-préfecture: Cherbourg-Octeville) with 15 cantons and 189 communes. The population of the arrondissment was 191,593 in 1990, and was 190,973 in 1999, a decrease of 0.32%.
3. Arrondissement of Coutances, (sous-préfecture: Coutances) with 10 cantons and 130 communes. The population of the arrondissment was 74,212 in 1990, and was 76,861 in 1999, an increase of 3.57%.
4. Arrondissement of Saint-Lô, (préfecture of the Manche département: Saint-Lô) with 11 cantons and 123 communes. The population of the arrondissment was 96,371 in 1990, and was 96,206 in 1999, a decrease of 0.17%.

In tabular format:

Arrondissement	Chief town	Population (as of 1999)	Area (km2)	Population density (hab/km2)	Number of cantons	Number of communes
Arrondissement of Avranches	Avranches	117,431	1,762	67	16	160
Arrondissement of Cherbourg-Octeville	Cherbourg-Octeville	190,973	1,639	116	15	189
Arrondissement of Coutances	Coutances	76,861	1,301	59	10	130
Arrondissement of Saint-Lô	Saint-Lô	96,206	1,235	78	11	123