Île-de-France has a land area of 12,011 sq kms (4,637 sq mi). It is composed of eight departments (Paris, Essonne, Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, Seine-et-Marne, Val-de-Marne, Val-d'Oise and Yvelines) centered on its innermost department and capital, Paris.

Around the department of Paris, urbanization fills a first concentric ring of three departments commonly known as the petite couronne ("small ring" - consisting of the departments of Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, and Val-de-Marne), and extends into a second outer ring of four departments known as the grande couronne ("large ring" - consisting of Seine-et-Marne, Yvelines, Essonne, and Val-d'Oise). The former department of Seine, abolished in 1968, included the city proper and parts of the petite couronne.

The river Seine runs through the region. The Seine has many tributaries, including the rivers Oise and Aube. It is France's second largest river after the Loire.

The region is in an area of lowland called the Paris Basin. South of this region lies the Massif Central, an area of highlands that are higher than the surrounding countryside but far lower than the Alps.

Although the modern name "Île-de-France" literally means "Island of France", the etymology is in fact unclear. The "island" may refer to the land between the rivers Oise, Marne and Seine, or it may also have been a reference to the Île de la Cité, in which case "Island of France" was originally a pars pro toto or perhaps a metonym.

Yet another possibility is that the term is a corruption of a hypothesized Frankish language term "Liddle Franke" meaning "Little France" or "little Frankish land", so the modern reference to an "island" may be coincidental. However, this theory might be anachronistic, since the name "L'Île-de-France" is not documented prior to 1387.

The ancient regime Isle of France (then referred as such in English) is one of the historical provinces of France, and the one at the centre of power during most of French history. The province was centred on Paris, seat of the Crown of France. The area around Paris was the original personal domain of the king of France, as opposed to areas ruled by feudal lords of whom he was the suzerain. This is reflected by divisions such as the Véxin Français and the Véxin Normand, the former being within the King of France's domain, the latter being within the Duke of Normandy's fief.

The old provinces were abolished during the French Revolution in the late 18th century and divided between newly devised subdivisions called departments. An area not entirely corresponding to the historical Île-de-France province was created in 1959 as district de la région de Paris ("District of the Paris Region"). The district was reconstituted as the Île-de-France region on 6 May 1976 and increased administrative and political powers devolved in the process of regionalisation in the 1980s and 1990s.

The re-division of France in 2016 made L'Île-de-France an autonomous region on its own.

In deciding which communes to include here, I chose not to include suburban areas whose grandest feature was the Metro station.

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