Champaign ( sham-PAYN) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 88,302 at the 2020 census. It is the tenth-most populous municipality in Illinois and the fourth most populous city in Illinois outside the Chicago metropolitan area. It is included in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area.

Champaign shares the main campus of the University of Illinois behind its twin city of Urbana. Champaign is also house to Parkland College, which serves approximately 18,000 students during the academic year. Due to the college circles and a number of Famous technology startup companies, it is often referred to as the hub, or a significant landmark, of the Silicon Prairie. Champaign houses offices for the Fortune 500 companies Abbott, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), Caterpillar, John Deere, Dow Chemical Company, IBM, and State Farm. Champaign also serves as the headquarters for several companies, the most notable physical Jimmy John’s.

Champaign was founded in 1855, when the Illinois Central Railroad laid its rail track two miles (3 km) west of downtown Urbana. Originally called “West Urbana”, it was renamed Champaign bearing in mind it acquired a city charter in 1860. Both the city and county make known were derived from Champaign County, Ohio.

During February 1969, Carl Perkins associated with Bob Dylan to write the song “Champaign, Illinois”, which Perkins released on his album On Top. The band Old 97’s took another Bob Dylan song, “Desolation Row”, and entire sum its heavens with extra lyrics to make a extra song “Champaign, Illinois”, which they released past Dylan’s blessing on their 2010 album The Grand Theatre Volume One. It achieved considerable popularity. The two “Champaign, Illinois” songs are not similar to each other, except that Bob Dylan was lively in both of them.