Somme (department)

Somme
Department of France
Prefecture building of the Somme department, in Amiens
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Somme in France
Coordinates: 49°53′N 02°25′E / 49.883°N 2.417°E / 49.883; 2.417
Country	France
Region	Hauts-de-France
Prefecture	Amiens
Subprefectures	Abbeville Montdidier Péronne
Government
• President of the Departmental Council	Stéphane Haussoulier[1]
Area 1
• Total	6,170 km2 (2,380 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[2]
• Total	566,252
• Rank	44th
• Density	92/km2 (240/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
ISO 3166 code	FR-80
Department number	80
Arrondissements	4
Cantons	23
Communes	772
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

Somme (French pronunciation: [sɔm] ^ⓘ; Picard: Sonme) is a department of France, located in the north of the country and named after the Somme river. It is part of the Hauts-de-France region. It is bordered by Pas-de-Calais and Nord to the north, Aisne to the east, Oise to the south and Seine-Maritime to the southwest. To the northwest, its coastline faces the English Channel and it shares maritime borders with Kent and East Sussex in the United Kingdom. It had a population of 570,559 in 2019.^[3]

The north central area of the Somme was the site of a series of battles during World War I, including the particularly significant Battle of the Somme in 1916. As a result of this and other battles fought in the area, the department is home to many military cemeteries and several major monuments commemorating the many soldiers from various countries who died on its battlefields. The 1346 Battle of Crécy, a major English victory early in the Hundred Years' War, also took place in this department.