a department in France, in the central part of the Paris Basin. Area, 2,300 sq km. Population, 944,000 (1971). Administrative center, Versailles. Yvelines is one of the departments of Greater Paris, embracing the western outer suburbs. More than 90 percent of the population is urban and for the most part does industrial or service work. The industrial centers are Poissy and Flines (automobile plants), and other important cities are Mantes-la-Jolie and Versailles. There are extensive forest parks and palace grounds preserved in the department.