Île d'Orléans is an island located in the Saint Lawrence River about 5 kilometres east of downtown Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It was one of the first parts of the province to be colonized by the French, and a large percentage of French Canadians can trace ancestry to early residents of the island. The island has been described as the "microcosm of traditional Quebec and as the birthplace of francophones in North America."It has about 7,000 inhabitants, spread over 6 villages.