Cantal

Cantal (; or ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France, with its prefecture in Aurillac. Its other principal towns are Saint-Flour (the episcopal see) and Mauriac; its residents are known as Cantalians ( or ). Cantal borders the departments of Puy-de-Dôme, Haute-Loire, Aveyron, Lot, Lozère and Corrèze, in the Massif Central natural region. Along with neighbouring Lozère and Creuse, Cantal is among the most sparsely populated and geographically isolated departments of France and Aurillac is the departmental capital farthest removed from a major motorway. It had a population of 144,692 in 2019, making it the country's 98th most populated department. Of the 96 metropolitan departments, it is the fifth least populated. Etymology The department is named for the Plomb du Cantal, the central peak of the bare and rugged mounts of Cantal (French: Monts du Cantal) mountain chain which traverses the area. Geography