Rue, Somme

Commune in Hauts-de-France, France

Coat of arms

Location of Rue

(2020–2026) Jacky Thueux^[1]Area

29.06 km² (11.22 sq mi)Population

(2021)^[2]

3,111 • Density110/km² (280/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)INSEE/Postal code

80688 /80120

Elevation2–12 m (6.6–39.4 ft)
(avg. 9 m or 30 ft)¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Rue (French pronunciation: [ʁy] ^ⓘ) is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France.

Geography

Rue is situated some 15 miles (24 km) north of Abbeville, on the junction of the D938, D4 and D85 roads. Rue station has rail connections to Amiens, Calais and Paris.

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	2,952	—
1975	3,122	+0.80%
1982	3,170	+0.22%
1990	2,942	−0.93%
1999	3,075	+0.49%
2007	3,102	+0.11%
2012	3,121	+0.12%
2017	3,101	−0.13%
Source: INSEE^[3]

Toponymy

The place is first mentioned as Rua in 1042 (diplôme Henrici Regis Gall. Christ, then Rugua in 1090 - 1110, Rue in 1184.^[4]^[5]

Medieval place name meaning "street" in French (French word rue is ultimately from Latin ruga).^[6]

Places of interest

The chapel of the Holy Spirit (1440–1514) is one of the finest examples of flamboyant gothic in Picardie.
The bell tower, which in 2005 was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List along with other belfries of Belgium and France because of their architecture and testimony to the rise of municipal power in the region.^[7]

References

^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
^ "Populations légales 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
^ Jacques Garnier, Dictionnaire topographique du département de la Somme, tome 2, Archives départementales de la Somme, p. 242, vue 124/267.
^ Lire le dictionnaire topographique en ligne sur le site des archives départementales de la Somme.
^ Dictionnaire étymologique des noms de lieu en France, Albert Dauzat and Charles Rostaing, 1979, Paris, ISBN 2-85023-076-6, p. 579a.
^ "Belfries of Belgium and France". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. Retrieved 5 November 2021.