Oyonnax

Oyonnax
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Coat of arms of Oyonnax Coat of arms
Oyonnax
Location within Rhône-Alpes region Oyonnax
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Department	Ain
Arrondissement	Nantua
Intercommunality	Oyonnax
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Michel Perraud (PR)
Area1	35.99 km2 (13.90 sq mi)
Population (2008)2	23,114
• Density	640/km2 (1,700/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	01283 / 01100
Elevation	440–1,082 m (1,444–3,550 ft) (avg. 540 m or 1,770 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Oyonnax (French pronunciation: ​[ɔjɔna]) is the second most populated commune in the Ain department in the Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. Its residents are known as Oyonnaxiens.

Oyonnax lies in a valley of the Jura Mountains in the far north of Ain. It is near the Parc naturel régional du Haut-Jura. The city is on the river Ange. Its prominence in the plastics industry has earned it the name Plastics Valley.

The town was awarded the Médaille de la Résistance on 16 June 1947.

Transport

The town is served by the A404 autoroute.

Oyonnax railway station is located on the railway line between Montréal-la-Cluse and Andelot-en-Montagne.

Tourism

The town has a cultural centre, including cinemas, concert halls, and a "Museum of the Comb and of the Plastics Industry". Tourist activities include hiking, canoeing and cross-country skiing among the forests, hills and lakes of the area.

Sport

The city has a rugby union team, Oyonnax Rugby, that was promoted to the Division 1 Top 14 in 2013. The team plays at the Stade Charles-Mathon.

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1793	1,099	—
1800	1,178	+7.2%
1806	1,275	+8.2%
1821	1,207	−5.3%
1831	1,974	+63.5%
1836	2,279	+15.5%
1841	2,593	+13.8%
1846	2,608	+0.6%
1851	3,245	+24.4%
1856	3,342	+3.0%
1861	3,501	+4.8%
1866	3,547	+1.3%
1872	3,272	−7.8%
1876	3,530	+7.9%
1881	3,847	+9.0%
1886	4,231	+10.0%
1891	4,461	+5.4%
1896	4,652	+4.3%
1901	6,140	+32.0%
1906	7,851	+27.9%
1911	9,557	+21.7%
1921	10,083	+5.5%
1926	11,617	+15.2%
1931	11,336	−2.4%
1936	10,166	−10.3%
1946	10,156	−0.1%
1954	11,773	+15.9%
1962	14,830	+26.0%
1968	19,777	+33.4%
1975	23,007	+16.3%
1982	22,739	−1.2%
1990	23,869	+5.0%
1999	24,162	+1.2%
2008	23,114	−4.3%

Twin towns — Sister cities

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in France

Oyonnax is twinned with Eislingen/Fils, Germany since 2001.

Notable people

• Eric Barone (1960- , sportsman, beat the world speed record descending on a bicycle, both on snow and soil.
• Léger-Félicité Sonthonax (1763–1813), politician and abolitionist during the French Revolution
• Paul Collomb (1921-October 6, 2010), painter

See also

• Communes of the Ain department

References

• INSEE

External links

• Official website (in French)
• Oyonnax tourist office (in French)
• Traiteur Oyonnax (in French)
• Communauté de communes d'Oyonnax website
• Article about the "Plastics valley"
• 'Plastics vallée' (in French)
• 'Photos of Oyonnax'