Paris

Paris is the capital and most populous city of France. Situated on the Seine River, in the north of the country, it is in the center of the Île-de-France region, also known as the region parisienne, "Paris region". Paris's urban area is the most populous in the European Union, and third most populous in Europe, behind Moscow and Istanbul.

Paris was founded in the 3rd century BC by a Celtic people called the Parisii, who gave the city its name. By the 12th century, Paris was the largest city in the western world, a prosperous trading center, and the home of the University of Paris, one of the first in Europe. In the 18th century, it was the center stage for the French Revolution, and became an important center of finance, commerce, fashion, science, and the arts, a position it still retains today.