The Goutte d'Or (, lit. 'Drop of Gold') is a neighbourhood in Paris, located in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. The neighbourhood has large numbers of North African and sub-Saharan residents. It is known for its open-air market, le marché Dejean, which sells goods of African origin.

Location

In common terms, the name 'Goutte d'Or' refers to a loosely defined area around the rue de la Goutte d'Or, to the east of Montmartre and to the west of La Chapelle in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. When used for administrative or statistical purposes, the Goutte d'Or may be defined in at least three different ways:

Demographics

This neighbourhood has been working-class since at least the nineteenth century. Émile Zola set the plot of his novel L'Assommoir there, depicting the life of alcoholic employees. From the 1920s, the area witnessed a substantial influx of people moving there from Algeria (then a part of France). Naomi Davidson, the author of Only Muslim: Embodying Islam in Twentieth-Century France, wrote that Goutte d'Or in 1948 "appears to have had" 5,720 North Africans and that the estimates of North Africans in 1952 were 5,500-6,400; it had been perceived to have become North African in the post-World War II period. The Algerian population stabilised in the 1950s, while the populations from other European and African countries increased. Today, a large part of the population is either foreign, or of foreign descent. As of 2006, the INSEE estimated the proportion of foreign nationals at 34.6%. As of 2012, at least 35% of the residents of Goutte d'Or were of immigrant origin, including West African and Algerian, a figure unchanged from 2006.

Notable buildings

Shops

The neighbourhood hosts many African shops and an open-air market, the marché Dejean.

Government and infrastructure

Education

Goutte d'Or has four nursery schools (écoles maternelles), four primary schools (écoles élémentaires), two écoles polyvalentes, and one high school (collège). The nursery schools include École Maternelle de la Goutte d'Or, École Maternelle Marcadet, École Maternelle Richomme, and École Maternelle Saint-Luc. The primary schools include École Élémentaire Pierre Budin, École Élémentaire Cavé, École élémentaire d'Oran, and École Élémentaire Richomme. The écoles polyvalentes include École Polyvalente de la Goutte d'Or and École Polyvalente Emile Duployé. The neighbourhood has Collège Georges Clemenceau, the junior high school in Goutte d'Or. The Goutte d'Or Library (Bibliothèque Goutte d'Or) is located in the neighbourhood.