The Métropole du Grand Paris (French: [metʁopɔl dy ɡʁɑ̃ paʁi]; "Metropolis of Greater Paris"), or Greater Paris, is a métropole covering the City of Paris and its nearest surrounding suburbs. The métropole came into existence on 1 January 2016; it comprises 131 communes, including Paris and all 123 communes in the surrounding inner-suburban departments of the Petite Couronne (Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val-de-Marne), plus seven communes in two of the outer-suburban departments, including the communes of Argenteuil in Val-d'Oise, Savigny-sur-Orge, Juvisy-sur-Orge, Viry-Châtillon and Paray-Vieille-Poste in Essonne, the latter of which covers part of Orly Airport. Part of the métropole comprises the Seine department, which existed from 1929 to 1968. Grand Paris covers 814 square ki