Thiers is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne in central France. Thiers is a French municipality situated in the department of Puy-de-Dôme in region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.It is one of the four sub-prefectures of the department with Ambert, Issoire and Riom. The district of Thiers consists of forty-three municipalities distributed between six cantons. The inhabitants are known as Thiernois or Bitords.Thiers is the world capital of knife manufacturing, with about one hundred companies in this domain and a museum of the cutlery industry; seventy percent of knives produced in France for the pocket, the kitchen or the table are made by companies in Thiers. The know-how of the thiernois cutlers draws its origins from a continuous tradition over more than seven centuries.The city is divided into two different parts: the low city (where we find hypermarkets) and the upper city (the medieval city). "Stretched" on more of 7km of length on a rocky spur overhanging the nearby mountains and the nearby villages, Thiers was for a long time a very tourist city thanks to its city center, very picturesque, and its cutlery industry. The city nowadays is the sixth tourist destination in Auvergne.Town planningUrban morphology and neighborhoodsThe geography of Thiers is marked by its staggering along the steep hills overlooking the Durolle valley. The high gradient provides the water-driven force needed for grinding mill and knives. The city is divided into many neighborhoods.The high cityThe upper town consists of several neighborhoods such as the medieval center, Boulay, the Pontel the Jaiffours. Much of the city's history took place in the hills of the city given the long history of human implementation. In fact, the lower city developed from 50–60 years.