Caen (; ;
Norman:
Kaem) is a
commune in northwestern France. It is the
prefecture of the
Calvados department. The city proper has 108,365 inhabitants (as of 2012), while its urban area has 420,000, making Caen the largest city in former Lower Normandy. It is also the second largest municipality in all of Normandy after
Le Havre and the third largest city proper in Normandy, after
Rouen and
Le Havre. The metropolitan area of Caen, in turn, is the second largest in Normandy after that of Rouen, the 21st largest in France.