A city of western Switzerland on the northern shore of Lake Geneva. Originally a Celtic settlement, Lausanne became a center of Calvinism after the 1530s and was home to Voltaire, Gibbon, and Rousseau in the 18th century. Population: 118,000.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.