Concarneau (, meaning ''Bay of

Cornouaille Cornouaille (; br, Kernev, Kerne) is a historical region on the west coast of Brittany in West France. The name is cognate with Cornwall in neighbouring Great Britain. This can be explained by the settlement of Cornouaille by migrant princ ...

'') is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Finistère Finistère (, ; br, Penn-ar-Bed ) is a department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090.

department of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

in north-western

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. Concarneau is bordered to the west by the Baie de La Forêt. The town has two distinct areas: the modern town on the mainland and the medieval Ville Close, a walled town on a long island in the centre of the harbour. Historically, the old town was a centre of shipbuilding, and its ramparts date from the 14th century. The Ville Close is now devoted to tourism with many restaurants and shops aimed at tourists. However restraint has been shown in resisting the worst excesses of souvenir shops. Also in the Ville Close is the fishing museum. The Ville Close is connected to the town by a bridge and at the other end a ferry to the village of Lanriec on the other side of the harbour.

Events

In August the town holds the annual ''Fête des Filets Bleus'' (Festival of the blue nets). The festival, named after the traditional blue nets of Concarneau's fishing fleet, is a celebration of Breton and pan-Celtic culture. Such festivals can occur throughout

but the Filets Bleus is one of the oldest and largest, attracting in excess of a thousand participants in traditional dress with many times that number of observers. In 2005, the 100th festival was celebrated.

Literature

Concarneau was the setting for Belgian mystery writer

Georges Simenon Georges Joseph Christian Simenon (; 13 February 1903 – 4 September 1989) was a Belgian writer. He published nearly 500 novels and numerous short works, and was the creator of the fictional detective Jules Maigret. Early life and education ...

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

novel ''Le Chien jaune'' ('' The Yellow Dog''), featuring his celebrated sleuth

Maigret Jules Maigret (), or simply Maigret, is a fictional French police detective, a '' commissaire'' ("commissioner") of the Paris ''Brigade Criminelle'' ('' Direction Régionale de la Police Judiciaire de Paris:36, Quai des Orfèvres''), created b ...

Economy

Fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

, particularly for

tuna A tuna is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae ( mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bullet tuna (max len ...

, has long been the primary economic activity in Concarneau. The Les Mouettes d'Arvor is one of the last traditional canning factories in Concarneau. Concarneau is one of the biggest fishing ports in France. Since the 1980s, other industries have arisen, such as boat construction and summer tourism. The Ville Close separates the working port from the yacht basin. Concarneau - Panoramique

Population

Inhabitants of Concarneau are called in French ''Concarnois''.

Breton language

In 2008, 2.16% of primary-school children attended

bilingual schools Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...

, where Breton language is taught alongside French. ''Ofis ar Brezhoneg''
''Enseignement bilingue''
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Sport

The football club

US Concarneau US Concarneau (french: Union Sportive Concarnoise) is a French football club based in Concarneau (Finistère). It was founded in 1911. They play at the Stade Guy Piriou, named in honour of the former club president, which has a capacity of 7,000. ...

is based in the town.

Personalities

Michel Desjoyeaux Michel Desjoyeaux (born 16 July 1965 in Concarneau) is a French sailor, known for competing successfully in several long-distance single-handed races. He won the Vendée Globe race in 2000-01 and 2008–09, making him the only person to win t ...

, navigator * Samantha (Sam) Davies, sailor *

Guy Cotten Guy Cotten is a French outdoor clothing manufacturer founded in 1964.Fiche Guy Cott ...

, founder of a clothes factory *

Stéphane Guivarc'h Stéphane Pierre Yves Guivarc'h (born 6 September 1970) is a French former professional footballer who played as striker. He featured in the France squad that won the 1998 FIFA World Cup on home soil. His early career was spent in France with ...

, French footballer, won the

FIFA World Cup 1998 The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for the ...

with the French national side *

Théophile Deyrolle Théophile-Louis Deyrolle (16 December 1844, Paris - 14 December 1923, Concarneau) was a French painter, illustrator and ceramicist. Biography He came from a family of entomologists and naturalists who owned a well-known taxidermy shop in Pa ...

and

Alfred Guillou Alfred Guillou (12 September 1844, Concarneau - 1926, Concarneau) was a French painter of Breton heritage. Biography His father was a fisherman and farmer who served as mayor of Concarneau for fifteen years.

, founders of the Concarneau Art Colony. *

Valérie Hermann Valérie Hermann is a French businesswoman. She is the managing director of the fashion and luxury division of EPI, a private investment fund based in Paris. Early life Valérie Hermann was born and raised in Concarneau. Her parents and older ...

President of Ralph Lauren

International relations

Twinned towns: *

Bielefeld Bielefeld () is a city in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe Region in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population of 341,755, it is also the most populous city in the administrative region (''Regierungsbezirk'') of Detmold and the ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

since 1969 *

M'bour M'Bour or Mbour ( ar, مبور; Wolof: ''Mbuur''), is a city in the Thiès Region of Senegal. It lies on the Petite Côte, approximately eighty kilometers south of Dakar. It is home to a population of nearly 233,000 (2013 census). The city's ma ...

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

since 1974 * Penzance,

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

since 1982

Gallery

File:Ville Close de Concarneau (1.1).jpg, The medieval Ville Close File:Bretagne Finistere Concarneau1 tango7174.jpg, The medieval Ville Close File:Bretagne Finistere Concarneau2 tango7174.jpg, The commercial harbour File:Bretagne Finistere Concarneau3 tango7174.jpg, The yachting harbour File:Bretagne Finistere Concarneau4 tango7174.jpg, At dusk File:Port de Concarneau.jpg, The port File:Concarneau - Port de plaisance.jpg, The yachting harbor File:Château de Kériolet (0).jpg, Château de Kériolet File:La plage des Sables Blancs.jpg, Les Sables Blancs File:La Ville Close.jpg, The Ville Close File:Statue de Duquesne à Concarneau.jpg,

Abraham Duquesne Abraham Duquesne, marquis du Bouchet (2 February 1688) was a French naval officer, who also saw service as an admiral in the Swedish navy. He was born in Dieppe, a seaport, in 1610, and was a Huguenot. He was the son of a naval officer and there ...

File:Localisation Concarneau dept29.png, Concarneau's location in Finistère

References

External links

Official website
* {{Authority control Communes of Finistère Populated coastal places in Brittany Port cities and towns on the French Atlantic coast Seaside resorts in France