Editing Val-d'Oise (section)

==Geography==
Val-d'Oise is a department in north central France and is part of the region of [[Île-de-France]]. To the south of the department lies the department of [[Hauts-de-Seine]], to the southwest lies [[Yvelines]], to the west lies [[Eure]], to the north lies [[Oise]], to the east lies [[Seine-et-Marne]] and to the southeast lies [[Seine-Saint-Denis]].<ref name=Philips>{{cite book |title=Philips' Modern School Atlas |year=1973 |publisher=George Philip and Son, Ltd. |isbn=0-540-05278-7 |pages=42–43 }}</ref>  The official ''préfecture'' (capital) of the department is the commune of [[Pontoise]], situated in the suburbs of [[Paris]] some {{convert|28|km|mi}} northwest of the centre of the city, but the ''préfecture'' building and administrative offices are in the neighbouring commune of [[Cergy]]. The [[Oise (river)|River Oise]] is a right tributary of the [[Seine|River Seine]], and flows through the province from northeast to southwest.<ref name=Philips/>

The eastern part of the department is part of the [[Pays de France]], an area of fertile plain traditionally used for agriculture (particularly cereals and sugar beet) based on its fine silty soils. This part is progressively diminishing in size as Paris expands. Part of [[Charles de Gaulle Airport]] falls in this eastern region, while other parts are in the departments of Seine-et-Marne and Seine-Saint-Denis. The southernmost region of the department forms part of the [[Seine|Seine Valley]] and occupies the whole of the small [[Vallée de Montmorency]]. These parts are heavily urbanised, but the ancient Roman road, the [[Chaussée Jules César]], which linked Paris and [[Rouen]], passes through the latter. The central and southwestern parts of the department are also largely urbanised and part of the greater Paris sprawl. The western part of the department forms part of the historic county of [[Vexin|Vexin français]], a verdant, largely agricultural plateau. Its capital was [[Pontoise]] on the eastern extremity of the county. This commune is now combining with the neighbouring commune of [[Cergy]] to form the new town of [[Cergy-Pontoise]]. The Vexin area remains largely rural, and across the whole department, one fifth is covered with trees.<ref name=Philips/>

===Principal towns===

The most populous commune is [[Argenteuil]]; the prefecture [[Pontoise]] is the sixth-most populous. As of 2019, the 10 most populous communes are:<ref name=pop2019/>

{| class=wikitable
! Commune
! Population (2019)
|-
| [[Argenteuil]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 111,038
|-
| [[Cergy]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 65,911
|-
| [[Sarcelles]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 59,196
|-
| [[Garges-lès-Gonesse]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 43,239
|-
| [[Franconville, Val-d'Oise|Franconville]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 37,394
|-
| [[Pontoise]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 32,405
|-
| [[Bezons]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 31,671
|-
| [[Herblay-sur-Seine]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 31,314
|-
| [[Goussainville, Val-d'Oise|Goussainville]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 31,068
|-
| [[Ermont]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 28,939
|}