Le Blanc-Mesnil, Seine-Saint-Denis Département, Île-de-France Region, France

🇫🇷 Le Blanc-Mesnil is a commune in the north-eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 12.6 km (7.8 mi) from the centre of Paris, between Charles de Gaulle Airport and Le Bourget Airport.

Name The name Le Blanc-Mesnil was recorded for the first time in the 11th century as Mansionile Blaun. This name is a compound of Medieval Latin Mansionile, meaning 'little houses', from Latin mansio (accusative mansionem), and of Germanic (Old Frankish) blanch, blaun, meaning 'glossy, shining, white', which gave French blanc ('white') and English blank.

The name is interpreted by some as a reference to the houses of Le Blanc-Mesnil which were whitened due to the flour dust coming from the windmills located there in ancient times. One researcher, however, thinks that blanc had also the meaning of 'free' in Old French, and so the name would mean 'free mesnil, free village', perhaps because the villagers had been freed from serfdom. None of these interpretations is certain.

Nearest municipalities • Bondy • Aulnay-sous-Bois • Drancy • Le Bourget • Dugny • Bonneuil-en-France in Val d'Oise and Gonesse.

History French Revolution On 2 December 1792, a third of the territory of Aulnay was detached and became the commune of Le Blanc-Mesnil.

Economy • Parc d'activité du Coudray • Zone industrielle de la Molette in Blanc-Mesnil, Bourget and Drancy. It includes Centre Albert Einstein, created in 1987. • Parc Modus • Garonor • Pont-Yblon • Centre d'affaires international Paris Nord II • Carré des Aviateurs • Espace Descartes, for tourism business. Three hotels three stars, a Novotel hotel.

French and international companies Several French companies have their world headquarters in Blanc-Mesnil, such as Forclum and Sicli.

Transport Le Blanc-Mesnil is served by Le Blanc-Mesnil station on Paris RER line B.

Le Blanc-Mesnil is also served by Drancy station on Paris RER line B. This station (formerly called Blanc-Mesnil-Drancy), although administratively located on the territory of the neighboring commune of Drancy, is the closest from the town centre of Le Blanc-Mesnil and is thus used by people in Le Blanc-Mesnil.

The bus company provides 17 lines of buses to travel within the city.

Ideally placed at the junction between the A1 and the A3.

2.5 km (1.6 mi) from Le Bourget airport, 7 km (4.3 mi) from Charles de Gaulle Airport and 4.5 km (2.8 mi) from Parc des Expositions de Villepinte, one can easily get to Parc Astérix and Disneyland as well as the centre of Paris and the Stade de France.

Religion Catholic churches: Église Notre-Dame, Église Saint-Charles, Église Sainte-Thérèse. Evangelic churches: Charisma Église Chrétienne

Education The commune has the following schools: four preschools in the south, seven preschools in the centre of town, and six preschools in the north. It has four elementary schools in the south, six elementary schools in the centre, and six elementary schools in the north.

Junior high schools: • Collège Aimé et Eugénie Cotton • Collège Descartes • Collège Marcel Cachin • Collège Nelson Mandela

Senior high schools: • Lycée Jean Moulin  • Lycée professionnel Aristide Briand • Lycée Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

The Médiathèque Edouard Glissant/Bibliothèque Jacques Prévert serves as the municipal library.

Parks and gardens • Jacques-Duclos Park • Vineyards produces Clos blanc-mesnilois, a Chardonnay • Vegetal wall of Forum culturel by Patrick Blanc • Place de l'eau • Jardin de Montillet • Square Stalingrad

Sport Blanc-Mesnil Sports (BMS), founded in 2005, is the city's sport club.