The locality is one of the oldest areas in Paris, the Île de la Cité having been the heart of the city of Lutetia, conquered by the Romans in 52 BC, while some parts on the right bank (including Les Halles) date back to the early Middle Ages.

The area now occupied by the first arrondissement attained its peak population in the period preceding the re-organization of Paris in 1860.

2 An immigrant is a person born in a foreign country not having French citizenship at birth.

[8] Collège Jean-Baptiste Poquelin is the sole state-operated high school in the arrondissement.

[9] Lycée Professionnel Commercial Pierre Lescot is the sole state-operated sixth-form college in the first arrondissement.