The commune of Grigny, 30 minutes from Lyon, has been fighting a strange battle for the past 8 years. Because of two other French towns of the same name, located in Essonne and Pas-de-Calais, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes town has finally managed to obtain permission to change its name as of January 2025. It will then be known as Grigny-sur-Rhône.
Grigny becomes Grigny-sur-Rhône
Good news for the small commune of Grigny, located 30 minutes south of Lyon. On August 8, 2024, it officially obtained the signature of the decree allowing it to change its name as of next year. This victory comes 8 years after the Town Hall’s first request, which was refused at the time.
“Our history was linked to the Rhône, our future will be too. Thank you to all those involved in this development!” Xavier Odo enthused on Twitter.
So why was the town so keen to change its name? Xavier Odo, the town’s mayor, justifies the choice by administrative reasons. Because of the two other towns in France with the same name, Grigny was regularly receiving letters (and even invoices) addressed to other towns with the same name.
The mayor points out that mistakes were made almost every other day. It’s easy to see why it became imperative to rename!