Its metropolitan area aire d'attraction had , inhabitants at the census. Olivier Bianchi is its current mayor. Clermont-Ferrand sits on the plain of Limagne in the Massif Central and is surrounded by a major industrial area. One of the oldest French cities, it was known by Greeks as the capital of the Arvernie tribe before developing in the Gallo-Roman era under the name of Augustonemetum in the 1st century BC.
The forum of the Roman city was located on the top of the Clermont mound, on the site of the present cathedral. During the decline of the Western Roman Empire it was subjected to repeated looting by the peoples who invaded Gaul , including Vandals , Alans , Visigoths and Franks.
In , Clermont became a royal town, and was declared an inseparable property of the Crown in It is also home to the corporate headquarters of Michelin , the global tyre company founded in the city more than years ago. Along with its highly distinctive black lava stone Gothic styled Cathedral , Clermont-Ferrand's other famous sites include the public square Place de Jaude , in which stands a grand statue of Vercingetorix astride a warhorse and brandishing a sword.
Clermont-Ferrand's first name was Augusto nemetum , Latin for " sanctuary for Augustus ", or Civitas Arvernorum town of the Arverni people. The fortified castle of Clarus Mons gave its name to the whole town in , to which the small episcopal town of Montferrand was attached in , together taking the name of Clermont-Ferrand.
Clermont ranks among the oldest cities of France. The first known mention was by the Greek geographer Strabo , who called it the "metropolis of the Arverni " meaning their oppidum civitas or tribal capital.
