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Montérégie is an administrative region in southwest Québec. It includes the cities of Boucherville, Brossard, Granby, Longueuil, Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Saint-Hyacinthe, Sorel-Tracy, and Vaudreuil-Dorion.
The majority of the population lives near the Saint Lawrence River, on the south shore of Montreal.
The region has a population of 1,442,433 (2011) on 11,131.32 square kilometres (4,297.83 sq mi) of land, giving a population density of 129.6 hab/km² (336/sq mi). This is the largest population of any of Québec's regions after Montréal.
Montérégie is named for the Monteregian Hills, which are in turn named for Mount Royal.
Montérégie was populated by the Iroquois when the Europeans first came here in the beginning of the 17th century. Samuel de Champlain built several forts to protect the colonists against the Iroquois and against the British. Some of the battles which decided the destiny of Canada took place in Montérégie.
Montérégie is also well known for its vineyards, orchards, spectacular panoramas, delicious products, and, of course, for the Monteregian Mountains or Hills, which gave this land its name.
The region is both urban (second in terms of population) and rural. The Montérégie's economy is based on agriculture and the production of goods and services. Tourism also makes up a significant portion of the economy.
Originally, the administrative territory of the Montérégie parishes were taken from the territory of the canonical Diocese of Saint-Jean-Longueuil
