London, France's sixth biggest city

[Sheilbh]

It could just be old definitions of city limits.  The metro areas might be a better representation.  It is certainly like that in the older parts of the US.

I'm not sure.  I think French cities are very small and provincial, except for Paris.

There's loads of Spaniards in my area now.

[Valmy]

There's loads of Spaniards in my area now.

They have to find work somewhere.

It still just makes no sense to me how you can have a tiny birth rate, early retirement, and yet have no jobs for young people.  I mean more people should be leaving the work force every year than entering yet...

[Duque de Bragança]

I'm not sure.  I think French cities are very small and provincial, except for Paris.

[MadImmortalMan]

They want the evil anglophone economics?

[Warspite]

French people might have beheaded most of their nobles, it's still as fairly entrenched class system if the french who emigrated to Quebec are any indication.

And going to the UK will help them escape that?

London is a country within a country, especially inner London. I don't know what the percentage of the population in zones1-2 are actually from the capital but I'm guessing its way less than 50%. Not necessarily immigrants but lost of folk from other parts of the UK.

Good point. I've always been the only Londoner in all the London flatshares I've lived in.

It's really frustrating having to explain to n00bs the territorial divisions within the capital; for example, I had an hour-long argument with a guy originally from Cambridgeshire, who now lives in trendy east London like they all do, when I tried to explain that someone from Kensal Rise is not a North Londoner. "BUT IT'S NORTH OF THE RIVER!!"

[mongers]

French people might have beheaded most of their nobles, it's still as fairly entrenched class system if the french who emigrated to Quebec are any indication.

And going to the UK will help them escape that?

London is a country within a country, especially inner London. I don't know what the percentage of the population in zones1-2 are actually from the capital but I'm guessing its way less than 50%. Not necessarily immigrants but lost of folk from other parts of the UK.

Yeah, coming from a region of the UK just 100 miles from central London, I'm having difficulty thinking of a single member of my peer group who hasn't lived and worked in London at some stage. 

[Valmy]

It is kind of frightening how both Britain and France have these vast combinations of DC, New York, and LA all rolled into one dominating their countries.  Considering how insufferable any one of those cities are, the dominance of Paris and London over every aspect of life must be almost complete.

[garbon]

Considering how insufferable any one of those cities are

[jimmy olsen]

Considering how insufferable any one of those cities are

He's completely right.

[Duque de Bragança]

London is a country within a country, especially inner London. I don't know what the percentage of the population in zones1-2 are actually from the capital but I'm guessing its way less than 50%. Not necessarily immigrants but lost of folk from other parts of the UK.

Good point. I've always been the only Londoner in all the London flatshares I've lived in.

It's really frustrating having to explain to n00bs the territorial divisions within the capital; for example, I had an hour-long argument with a guy originally from Cambridgeshire, who now lives in trendy east London like they all do, when I tried to explain that someone from Kensal Rise is not a North Londoner. "BUT IT'S NORTH OF THE RIVER!!"

The same applies to Paris and applied to me in Paris and I only was born and living there for most of my life before I moved to Frankfurt. Of course, I still return every now and then to Paris.

As for the noobs or provincials lots of exampls e.g "Île-de-France" is the region, Paris is the city. The concept of Francilien (people from Île-de-France) seems pretty much unknown by provincials. When the countryside starts, it's no longer Paris, not even the Greater Paris.

[Brazen]

I wonder which overseas city has the biggest British population? Dubai?

[Gups]

My guess woudl be one of the Aussie cities - probably Perth. If not, maybe NYC

[Sheilbh]

It is kind of frightening how both Britain and France have these vast combinations of DC, New York, and LA all rolled into one dominating their countries.  Considering how insufferable any one of those cities are, the dominance of Paris and London over every aspect of life must be almost complete.

I think London and Paris are pretty resented.  But I think a lot of British cities have quite strong senses of identity so they don't feel quite so dominated.

[Syt]

It is kind of frightening how both Britain and France have these vast combinations of DC, New York, and LA all rolled into one dominating their countries.  Considering how insufferable any one of those cities are, the dominance of Paris and London over every aspect of life must be almost complete.

I think London and Paris are pretty resented.  But I think a lot of British cities have quite strong senses of identity so they don't feel quite so dominated.

I think you have that in any country where you have a strong center of political/cultural/economic life - e.g. Vienna in Austria. In Germany it's not as pronounced as the country is much more de-centralized.

[garbon]

Considering how insufferable any one of those cities are

He's completely right.

I'm not sure how can make that claim without being whiny. Let's look at each.

NYC - 8mil (city proper) and 19 mil with metro area (note New York state has only 19mil so comparing that to city proper - effectively 40% of the state resides in NYC)
Los Angeles - 4 mil (city proper) and 13 mil with metro area
DC - 600k (city proper) and 5.5mil with metro area

If you add up those metro areas, you're looking at the ~1/8th of the total US population in the orbit of 3 of our most important cities. Why shouldn't they have a strong influence?

Here's an additional fun fact from wiki:

New York City and its eight suburban counties (excluding those in New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania) have a combined population of 13,209,006 people, or 68.42% of the state's population.

Oh and one more:

Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states