Pyrénées-Atlantiques

Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; ) is a department located in the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine in the southwest corner of metropolitan France. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlantic Ocean, it covers the French Basque Country and the Béarn. It is divided in three arrondissements and its prefecture is Pau. In 2019, it had a population of 682,621.Populations légales 2019: 64 Pyrénées-Atlantiques
INSEE

History

Originally named Basses-Pyrénées, it was one of the 83 departments of France created during the French Revolution, on 4 March 1790. It comprised the territories of Labourd and Soule (in the provinces of Guyenne and Gascony), as well as Lower Navarre (still, at least nominally, part of the Kingdom of Navarre) and the Béarn. It was initially divided in six districts, with the prefecture at Navarrenx, before being moved to Pau on 14 October 1790.

The 1790 administrative reform brought about the end of native institutions and laws. All Basque estates representatives from Labourd overtly opposed the new administrative layout since it suppressed their institutions and laws. The representatives of Lower Navarre refused to vote in Paris arguing that they were not part of the Kingdom of France; those of Soule voted against. The brothers Garat, representing Labourd, eventually voted yes, thinking that it would give them a say in upcoming political decisions.

In 1800, during the Consulate, the six initial districts were replaced by five arrondissements: Pau, Orthez, Bayonne, Mauléon and Oloron.

In 1926, as part of a vast reform launched by the government of Raymond Poincaré, the arrondissements of Orthez and Mauléon were abolished, resulting in the three current arrondissements.

In the 1950s, the Basses-Pyrénées were one of the departments composing the newly created region of Aquitaine.

In 1969, the name of the department was changed to "Pyrénées-Atlantiques", because the inhabitants of the department found the name of the Basses-Pyrénées pejorative compared to that of the Hautes-Pyrénées.This process occurred in almost all departments whose name included the word "bas" or "inférieur", for example Loire-Inférieure, which became Loire-Atlantique in 1957. Exception: Bas-Rhin.

On January 1, 2016, the regions of Aquitaine, Poitou-Charentes and Limousin merged to form the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region.

Geography

The southernmost department of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, it is bordered by the departments of Landes, Hautes-Pyrénées and Gers (to the north, east and northeast, respectively), by the Bay of Biscay to the west and by the Spanish provinces of Huesca, Navarre and Gipuzkoa to the south. Lac Gentau is located in Pyrénées-Atlantiques, as are the Lacs de Carnau.

The Pyrenees mountain range crosses the department from east to west from the Col d'Aubisque to the mouth of the Bidasoa at Hendaye