Nancy [nɑ̃.si] is a French commune located in Lorraine on the banks of the Meurthe a few kilometers upstream from its point of confluence with the Moselle, 281 kilometers east of Paris and 116 kilometers west of Strasbourg . It is the prefecture of the Meurthe-et-Moselle department, in the Grand Est region. Its inhabitants are called the Nancyans.
Capital of the Duchy of Lorraine until its attachment to the Kingdom of France in 1766, bishopric since 1777, Nancy is the chief town of the department of Meurthe from 1790 to 1871 then of Meurthe-et-Moselle from 1871 . It is also famous for its Place Stanislas, named after the last Duke of Lorraine, which is part of an 18th century complex listed as World Heritage by UNESCO. It also has many buildings classified as historic monuments and it is one of the European centers of Art Nouveau thanks to the School of Nancy.