Summary
Arancou (French pronunciation: [aʁɑ̃ku]; Basque: Erango;[3] Occitan: Aranco) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in southwestern France.
Arancou
Erango | |
|---|---|
 Coat of arms | |
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| Coordinates: 43°26′41″N 1°02′59″W / 43.4447°N 1.0497°W | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Nouvelle-Aquitaine |
| Department | Pyrénées-Atlantiques |
| Arrondissement | Bayonne |
| Canton | Pays de Bidache, Amikuze et Ostibarre |
| Intercommunality | CA Pays Basque |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2020–2026) | Alexandre Bordes[1] |
| Area 1 | 5.30 km2 (2.05 sq mi) |
| Population (2021)[2] | 178 |
| • Density | 34/km2 (87/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 64031 /64270 |
| Elevation | 12–142 m (39–466 ft) (avg. 61 m or 200 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
It is located in the former province of Lower Navarre.[3]
Geography edit
Hydrography edit
The Lauhirasse, a tributary of the Bidouze,[4] and the Baniou, a tributary of the Gave de Pau[5] cross this commune.
Hamlets edit
- Garai
- Le Burrou
- Xabai
Bordering communes edit
- Came to the Northwest
- Labastide-Villefranche to the East
- Bergouey-Viellenave to the Southwest
Toponymy edit
The Gascon name for "Arancou" is Arancon; the Basque name is Erango.[3]
The name Arancou appears in the forms Arranque (1119–1136),[6] Arancoen (13th century), Arancoey,[7] Arancoenh[7] (around 1360), Arrancoeynh,[7] Arancoinh[7] (1372), Aranquoen (1403, titles of Came[7]), and Aranco (1584, alienation of the Diocese of Dax[8]).
The name of Arancou comes from the Basque arangoien, for "higher valley".[9]
History edit
Prehistory edit
Tools from the Magdalenian era, one of the later cultures of the Upper Paleolithic era of Western Europe, were found in the Bourrouillan cave in the territory of Arancou. Several thousand bones from hunted animals were found in the cave, as well as thousands of flint and bone tools.[10]
Modern history edit
On January 1, 1973, the communes of Arancou, Bergouey, and Viellenave-sur-Bidouze were joined. On 15 November 1977, Arancou regained its independent status, while Bergouey and Viellenave-sur-Bidouze remained together.
Arancou and Basque country edit
Jean-Baptiste Orpustan mentions Arancou in 1309 in a list of parishes paying dues to the royal power in Navarrenx.[11] Arancou was also mentioned by Eugène Goyheneche towards the end of the Middle Ages. He wrote that "because of the Gramont's power, [the situation of the neighboring parishes, including Arancou] is ambiguous."[12]
However, starting with the modern age, no evidence of Arancou's allegiance to the Kingdom of Navarre can be found. Nor is there evidence of any links to the dukedom of Gramont or of the sovereign principality of Bidache. The chapter of the collegiate Saint-Jacques de Bidache was the lord of the lands; the parish was situated in France in the administrative district of Lannes, where it came under the control of the administrative region of Hastingues.[13]
Although Arancou falls without a doubt within modern districting, it is nonetheless included in a list of the communes of Basse-Navarre.[14] While presenting the town in 2009 on his website, the mayor, Alexandre Bordes, did not take sides. Rather, he emphasized the "mix of deep-rooted cultures" and the "location of the town at the borders of Gascogne, Béarn, Basque Country, and the Navarre." His website describes the town as "basquo-béarnais."[15]
Administration edit
List of Mayors
| Elected | End of term | Name |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 2001 | Alexandre Bordes |
| 2001 | 2008 | Alexandre Bordes |
| 2008 | 2014 | Alexandre Bordes |
Intercommunality edit
Arancou belongs to four different intercommunal territories:
- The Communauté d'agglomération du Pays Basque
- The Adour Syndicate
- Syndicate AEP of Arancou - Bergouey-Viellenave - Bidache - Labastide-Villefranche
- Syndicate for the department of electricity
Population edit
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 145 | — |
| 1975 | 124 | −2.21% |
| 1982 | 122 | −0.23% |
| 1990 | 122 | +0.00% |
| 1999 | 108 | −1.35% |
| 2007 | 101 | −0.83% |
| 2012 | 134 | +5.82% |
| 2017 | 162 | +3.87% |
| Source: INSEE[16] | ||
Economy edit
Arancou's economy is primarily agricultural. Arancou is part of the Appellation d'origine contrôlée (a French regional certification) of the cheese, Ossau-Iraty.
There is a limestone quarry in Arancou. Until 1993, it provided the stone for the cemetery, Ciments de l'Adour, in Boucau. The stone was carried in barges down the Bidouze and Adour rivers.
Sights edit
Civil Heritage edit
- Farms and houses from the 17th and 18th centuries,[17]
- A farm from the 18th century in the lieu-dit Chabay,[18]
- The well, wash-house, and fountain of Garay.[19]
Religious Heritage edit
The church of l'Assomption-de-la-Bienheureuse-Vierge-Marie from the 13th century is listed as an historical monument. It has characteristics of both Romanesque and Gothic architecture.[20] The church is located on the road, Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle (Via Turonensis). A wellspring runs underneath the church, feeding a washing-place in the basement. An 18th century Madonna statue called Notre-Dame-d'Arancou can be found in the church,[21] as well as an hilarri (a disk-shaped funeral stele) from Labets-Biscay,[22] and different furnishings registered in the inventory of the Minister of Culture (a tabernacle, font, and cross).[23] The church also has a registered stained glass window.[24]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020.
- ^ "Populations légales 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
- ^ a b c ERANGO, Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia (in Spanish)
- ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - Le Lauhirasse (Q8140500)".
- ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - Le Baniou (Q5600500)".
- ^ Paul Raymond, Dictionnaire topographique Béarn-Pays basque
- ^ a b c d e Titles of the commune of Came - Departmental archives of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques
- ^ Registres d'aliénations - ancienne bibliothèque impériale - Bibliothèque nationale de France
- ^ Jean-Baptiste Orpustan, Nouvelle toponymie basque, Presses universitaires de Bordeaux 2006 p. 101
- ^ Christian Normand president of the association Euskarkeologia, a group of archaeological researchers in Basque Country, in Georges Viers (1992), Amikuze - Le Pays de Mixe [Amikuze — the Country of Mixe] (in French), Éditions Izpegi, ISBN 2-909262-05-7, page 50
- ^ Jean-Baptiste Orpustan (1979), "La Basse-Navarre en 1350 - IV - Le Pays de Mixe", Bulletin du Musée Basque (84): 86–88
- ^ Eugène Goyheneche, Le Pays Basque, Société nouvelle d'éditions régionales et de diffusion, Pau, 1979, p. 139.
- ^ Jean Robert (1984), Des travaux et des jours en piémont pyrénéen: Bidache, Barenbach: Éditions Jean-Pierre Gyss, pp. 38 and 241, ISBN 2-902912-42-5
- ^ It can be found, for example, on Euskaltzaindia's list of toponyms of Basque communes: Exonymie - Euskaltzaindia.
- ^ Alexandre Bordes (2009). "Official site of the commune of Arancou". Retrieved 21 August 2009.
- ^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
- ^ Base Mérimée: Maisons et fermes, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
- ^ Base Mérimée: Ferme, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
- ^ Base Mérimée: Puits, lavoir, fontaine de Garay, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
- ^ Base Mérimée: Église paroissiale de l'Assomption-de-la-Bienheureuse-Vierge-Marie, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
- ^ Base Palissy: Statue : Vierge à l'Enfant, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
- ^ Base Palissy: Monument funéraire (stèle discoïdale), Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
- ^ Base Palissy: Le mobilier de l'église paroissiale de l'Assomption-de-la-Bienheureuse-Vierge-Marie, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
- ^ Base Palissy: Verrière (baie 0) : Assomption, saint Joseph, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
