Palaiseau

Palaiseau is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 16.9 km from the centre of Paris. Palaiseau is a sub-prefecture of the Essonne department and the seat of the Arrondissement of Palaiseau.

Palaiseau was a royal domain in the 6th century then again in the 18th century on the important road from Chartres to Paris. The population grew from the 19th century with the arrival of the railway connecting the town to Paris. Palaiseau then became a vacation spot, writers such as George Sand, Alexandre Dumas, Charles Péguy built their villas near the stations. A ranking from the newspaper Le Parisien in 2018 ranks Palaiseau as the third town in Essonne where it is good to be a parent.

The town is home to several major French "Grandes écoles" on its territory: the École Polytechnique, the Institut d'optique Graduate School, ENSTA ParisTech, ENSAE ParisTech, the Institut Mines-Télécom, AgroParisTech as well as research centers Onera, Danone, Thales and EDF.

Inhabitants of Palaiseau are known as Palaisiens.

Education
, the primary schools in Palaiseau have 2,770 students. There are 12 public preschools (maternelles) and 10 public elementary schools.

Public secondary schools:
 * Junior high schools: Collège César-Franck, Collège Charles-Péguy, Collège Joseph-Bara
 * Senior high schools: Lycée professionnel Henri-Poincaré, Lycée Camille Claudel

The Institution Saint-Martin is a private school from preschool to high school.

Colleges and universities
ParisTech has a strong presence in Palaiseau, with four member institutes: the École Polytechnique (one of the most prestigious engineering schools in France), École nationale de la statistique et de l'administration économique, École nationale supérieure de techniques avancées, and Institut d'optique Graduate School which are now located in Palaiseau, on the Plateau de Saclay. The first three institutes are now grouped together in the Polytechnic Institute of Paris and the last one is a member of the Paris-Saclay University.

Transport
Palaiseau is served by 3 stations on Paris RER line B: Palaiseau, Palaiseau – Villebon and Lozère (this last station is the closest to École Polytechnique). The station Massy-Palaiseau (RER B, RER C and also TGV, the French high-speed rail) is located in the nearby town of Massy.

Twin towns
Palaiseau is twinned with Unna, Germany.