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Capital city (2 125 246 inhabitants - census 1999), North central France, is the commercial, financial, and industrial focus of France, a major transportation hub, and a cultural and intellectual centre of international status.

A beautiful city in which tourism is the main industry, Paris is cut by the River Seine. On the right (northern) bank are many of the most fashionable streets and shops, and such landmarks as the Arc de Triomphe, Place de la Concorde, Louvre, the modern Pompidou Center (Beaubourg) and the Sacré Coeur. The left bank houses governmental offices and is the site of much of the city's intellectual life. It is known for its old Latin Quarter and for such landmarks as the Sorbonne, the Luxembourg Palace and the Panthéon.

The historic core of Paris is the Île de la Cité, a small island occupied in part by the Palais de Justice and the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris. Rising above the city is the Eiffel Tower.