Charlie Hebdo (French pronunciation: [ʃaʁli ɛbdo]; French for 'Charlie Weekly') is a French satirical weekly magazine founded by François Cavanna and Professeur Choron in 1970, featuring cartoons, reports, polemics, and jokes. The publication has been described as anti-racist, sceptical, secular, libertarian, and within the tradition of left-wing radicalism, publishing articles about the far right (especially the French nationalist National Rally party), religion (Christianity, Islam, and Judaism), politics and culture.

Charlie Hebdo has been the target of three terrorist attacks: in 2011, 2015, and 2020. All of them were presumed to be in response to a number of cartoons that it published controversially depicting Muhammad. In the second of these attacks, 12 people were killed, including publishing director Charb and several other prominent cartoonists. In the aftermath, Charlie Hebdo and its publications became internationally recognized as symbols of free speech, culminating in the "Je Suis Charlie" ("I am Charlie") movement, which underscored the global defense of freedom of expression and opposition to censorship.

Since its founding, Charlie Hebdo has been a vocal advocate for free expression and secularism, using satire to critique organized religion, political movements, and other centers of power. Charlie Hebdo first appeared in 1970 after the monthly Hara-Kiri magazine was banned for mocking the death of a former French president, Charles de Gaulle. In 1981, publication ceased, but the magazine was resurrected in 1992. The magazine is published every Wednesday, with special editions issued on an unscheduled basis sporadically. Gérard Biard is the current editor-in-chief of Charlie Hebdo. The previous editors were François Cavanna (1970–1981) and Philippe Val (1992–2009).

In 1960, Georges "Professeur Choron" Bernier and François Cavanna launched a monthly magazine entitled Hara-Kiri. Choron acted as the director of publication and Cavanna as its editor. Eventually Cavanna gathered together a team which included Roland Topor, Fred, Jean-Marc Reiser, Georges Wolinski, Gébé, and Cabu. After an early reader's letter accused them of being "dumb and nasty" ("bête et méchant"), the phrase became an official slogan for the magazine and made it into everyday language in France.

Hara-Kiri was briefly banned in 1961, and again for six months in 1966. A few contributors did not return along with the newspaper, such as Gébé, Cabu, Topor, and Fred. New members of the team included Delfeil de Ton [fr], Pierre Fournier [fr; it; pms], and Willem. In 1969, the Hara-Kiri team decided to produce a weekly publication – on top of the existing monthly magazine – which would focus more on current affairs. This was launched in February as Hara-Kiri Hebdo and renamed L'Hebdo Hara-Kiri in May of the same year. (Hebdo is short for hebdomadaire – "weekly")

In November 1970, the former French president Charles de Gaulle died in his home village of Colombey-les-Deux-Églises, eight days after a disaster in a nightclub, the Club Cinq-Sept fire, which had caused the death of 146 people. The magazine released a cover spoofing the popular press's coverage of this disaster, headlined "Tragic Ball at Colombey, one dead". As a result, the weekly was banned.

In order to sidestep the ban, the editorial team decided to change its title, and used Charlie Hebdo. The new name was derived from a monthly comics magazine called Charlie (later renamed Charlie Mensuel, meaning Charlie Monthly), which had been started by Bernier and Delfeil de Ton in 1969. The monthly Charlie took its name from the lead character of one of the comics it originally published, Peanuts's Charlie Brown. Using that title for the new weekly magazine was also an inside joke about Charles de Gaulle. The first issue featured a Peanuts strip, as the editors were fans of the series. In December 1981, the publication ceased.

In 1991, Gébé, Cabu, and others were reunited to work for La Grosse Bertha, a new weekly magazine resembling Charlie Hebdo, created in reaction to the First Gulf War and edited by singer and comedian Philippe Val. However, the following year, Val clashed with the publisher, who wanted apolitical humour, and was fired. Gébé and Cabu walked out with him and decided to launch their own paper again. The three called upon Cavanna, Delfeil de Ton, and Wolinski, requesting their help and input. After much searching for a new name, the obvious idea of resurrecting Charlie Hebdo was agreed on. The new magazine was owned by Val, Gébé, Cabu, and singer Renaud. Val was editor; Gébé was publication director.