Asson () is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of south-western France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Assonais''.

Geography

Asson is a large commune in the Ouzom Valley some 30 km south by south-east of Pau and 35 km east by south-east of Oloron-Sainte-Marie which almost completely surrounds the commune of Arthez-d'Asson. The south-eastern border of the commune is the border between the departments of Pyrenees-Atlantiques and

Hautes-Pyrénées Hautes-Pyrénées (; Gascon/Occitan: ''Nauts Pirenèus / Hauts Pirenèus'' awts piɾeˈnɛʊs es, Altos Pirineos; ca, Alts Pirineus alts piɾiˈneʊs English: Upper Pyrenees) is a department in the region of Occitania, southwestern France. ...

. Access to the commune is by the D 35 road from Igon in the east which passes through the village and continues west to Bruges-Capbis-Mifaget. The D 36 road comes from

Nay Nay or NAY may refer to: *Nay (name) *Ney (also nay, nye, nai), a wind instrument *Nay, Manche, a place in the Manche ''département'' of France *Nay, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, a place in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques ''département'' of France *Nay-y ...

in the north to join the D 35 just west of the village. The D 126 road goes south from the village to Arthez-d'Asson. The D 226 branches from the D 126 and goes east by a circuitous route to Lestelle-Betharram. The southern half of the commune is mountainous and heavily forested while the north is farmland with scattered small patches of forest.Google Maps
/ref> The Pyrénées-Atlantiques Interurban Network of buses has a stop in the commune on route 810 from Lys to Pau

Hydrography

The river Gave de Pau (

Adour The Adour (; eu, Aturri; oc, Ador) is a river in southwestern France. It rises in High-Bigorre (Pyrenees), in the commune of Aspin-Aure, and flows into the Atlantic Ocean (Bay of Biscay) near Bayonne. It is long, of which the uppermost ca. i ...

basin) and its tributaries the Ouzoum and the Béez flow through the commune. The Ouzoum is fed in Asson by the Ruisseaux of Gerse, Turonnet, de Thouet, le Goulet, d'Incamps, de Berdoulat, and the Arrieucourt which forms the eastern border of the commune (itself fed by the ''Ruisseau de la Fontaine Béra''), and the Hèche, Hau, and Gat. Paul Raymond mentioned in the 1863 dictionary on p. 168 another tributary of the Ouzoum called ''le Touchet'' which rose in Asson and Arthez-d'Asson. The Béez is joined in the commune by the Ruisseaux of Landistou, Trubés (itself fed by the ''Ruisseau de Marlies''), Toupiette, Arrouy, Mourté, Lacot (joined in the commune by the ''Ruisseau de la Sègue''), Jupé, Picas, Coudé, and Soulens.

Places and hamlets

* Arnaude * Arrestouilh * Arrioucourt * Arrouaus * Aubuchou * Ausone * Barrabourg * Bascou * Batailles * Bélile * Bellocq (Pass - 437 metres) * Berdeu * Berdoulat * Berduc * Bernadou * Bernatas * Betbeu * Betcabe * Betpède * Bonnehon * Bourdila * Bourié * Brau * Brouquet * Brune * Busoc * Cabalou * Carache * Cassagne * Cassou * Castella * Castet Mauheit * Castet-Oussès * Catala * Cayeré * Cotbracq * Cot de Hosse * Les Courades * La Courgue * Les Crabes * Crouseilles * Dagues * Donzelot * Douasous * Dourron * Ermitage d'Asson * Espagna (ruins) * Espoune-Carbou * Estradère * Fradi * Gabouil * Galibet * Le Garroc Blanc * Gestou * Gourgues (vale of) * Grabot * Gracié * Guillamasse * Herran * Hourc * Hourcségou * Hourquet * Labarrère (mill) * Labat * Labedays * Labielle * Lacoume * Lalanne * Lamothe * Lanardonne * Larban * Larruhat * Lartigue * Lasque * Latapie (bridge) * Loustalot * Luppé (château) * Mandrou * Mansiou * Marcadet * Massey * Matocq * Mesplé * Milhet * Monge * Montguillalou * Montguillet * Jean Moulié * Mounicou * Nabarrà * Naspret * Nérios * Nougué * L’Oustau * Pabine * Palu * Pédeprade * Péré * Peyrade * Peyroutet * Pladepousaux * Pousaux * Pradou * Regourt * Rouby * Sanguinet * Sanguinet (pass - 512 metres) * Sarrailhé * Sarraméda * Sendou * Teich (pass - 1034 metres) * Teulère * Thou * Thouet * Touyarou * Trencade (pass - 1273 metres) Géoportail
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Neighbouring communes and villages

Toponymy

The commune name in béarnais is also ''Asson''. Michel Grosclaude said that the name probably comes from the basque ''aitz/as'' ("rocky point") with the locative suffix ''-on'', giving "place where there is a high point". The following table details the origins of the commune name and other names in the commune. ;Sources: * Raymond: ''Topographic Dictionary of the Department of Basses-Pyrénées'', 1863, on the page numbers indicated in the table. ''Topographic Dictionary of the Department of Basses-Pyrénées''
Paul Raymond, Imprimerie nationale, 1863, Digitised from Lyon Public Library 15 June 2011 *Grosclaude: ''Toponymic Dictionary of communes, Béarn'', 2006 Michel Grosclaude, ''Toponymic Dictionary of communes, Béarn'', Edicions reclams & Édition Cairn - 2006, 416 pages, *Saint-Pé: Cartulary of the Abbey of Saint-Pé Pierre de Marca, ''History of Béarn'' *Reformation: Reformation of BéarnManuscript from the 16th to 18th centuries - Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques *Lescar: Cartulary of LescarCartulary of the Bishop of Lescar, published in the proofs of the ''History of Béarn'' by Pierre de Marca *Census: Census of BéarnManuscript from the 14th century - Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques * Fors de Béarn *Intendance: Intendance of PauTitles of the intendance of Pau - Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques *Cour Majour: Regulations of the Cour MajourCour Majour of Béarn, register manuscripts from the 15th century - Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques *Notaries of

Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques *Cassini: Cassini Map from 1750Cassini Map 1750 - Asson
/ref>

History

Paul Raymond noted on p. 14 that before 1232 Asson was localised near the place called the Hermitage and that there was a Lay Abbey, vassal of the Viscounts of Béarn. The village signed a

Charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...

of Emancipation on 4 January 1282 with the consent of

Gaston VII, Viscount of Béarn Gaston VII de Montcada ( la, Guasto de Biarde) (1225 – 26 April 1290), called ''Froissard'', was the twentieth Viscount of Béarn from 1229. He was the son and heir of Guillermo II de Montcada and of Garsenda, daughter of Alfonso II of Provence ...

. In 1385, Asson had 57 fires and depended on the

bailiwick A bailiwick () is usually the area of jurisdiction of a bailiff, and once also applied to territories in which a privately appointed bailiff exercised the sheriff's functions under a royal or imperial writ. The bailiwick is probably modelled on th ...

. Asson came under the Notary of

as did

Angaïs Angaïs (; oc, Angais, ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques Departments of France, department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of south-western France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Angaïsais'' or ''A ...

, Arros, Arthez-d'Asson, Baliros, Baudreix,

Bénéjacq Bénéjacq (; oc, Benejac) is a commune of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in southwestern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas ...

Beuste Beuste () is a commune of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in southwestern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas r ...

, Boeil, Bordères, Bosdarros, Clarac, Coarraze, Igon, Lagos, Lestelle, Mirepeix, Montaut, Nay, Pardies, and Saint-Abit.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

Inter-communality

The commune is part of five inter-communal structures: * the Communauté de communes du Pays de Nay; * the association for water and sanitation of Pays de Nay; * the Energy association of Pyrénées-Atlantiques; * the inter-communal association of Gave de Pau; * the joint association for the basin of the Gave de Pau;

Demography

In 2017 the commune had 2,031 inhabitants.

Economy

The commune is part of the Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) zone of Ossau-iraty and has ''protected geographical indications'' (PGI) namely: Tarbais haricots, Tomme des Pyrénées, Duck foie gras of the South-west, and

Bayonne ham Bayonne ham or is a cured ham that takes its name from the ancient port city of Bayonne in the far southwest of France, a city located in both the cultural regions of Basque Country and Gascony. It has PGI status. Production The area conc ...

Culture and heritage

The local language is ''occitan-gascon'', called locally '' béarnais''. A bilingual class offers courses in béarnais in the commune school from kindergarten to CM2.

Civil heritage

There is a Metallic Glasshouse at Lalanne in the Asson zoo built in 1900. The owners of the Château of Abère have been known since the 12th century.

Religious heritage

The Church of Saint-Martin, partially dating from the 15th century, contains a Triptych of the Crucifixion from the 16th century. Asson is a stage on the ''Chemin du piémont pyrénéen'' (or ''el cami deu pé de la coste''), a secondary itinerary on the

Way of St. James The Camino de Santiago ( la, Peregrinatio Compostellana, "Pilgrimage of Compostela"; gl, O Camiño de Santiago), known in English as the Way of St James, is a network of pilgrims' ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the Twelve Apostle ...

.Asson, Stage of the Chemin du Piémont on the commune website

Environmental heritage

;The Bétharram Caves :The ''Grottes de Bétharram'' (Bétharram Caves) are a series of Caves located on the border between the departments of Pyrénées-Atlantiques and

. :Their extent cover some of the communes of Asson and

Lestelle-Bétharram Lestelle-Bétharram is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. History In 1832, St. Michel Garicoits established the Society of Priests of the Sacred Heart of Betharram. On 5 July 1940, Carl Einstein, ...

in Pyrénées-Atlantiques and Saint-Pé-de-Bigorre in Hautes-Pyrénées. They can be explored on foot, by boat, or by a small train. ;Asson Zoo :Covering five hectares, Asson zoo displays a zoological collection composed of endangered or unusual species in zoos. ;Mountains The following mountain peaks are found in the commune: *The ''Castet-Ousset'' (718 metres) *The ''Soum de Camlong'' (881 metres) *The ''Céberi'' (891 metres) *The ''Soum d’Arangou'' (892 metres) *The ''Soum de la Bécole'' (947 metres) *The ''Pène de la Hèche'' (1,326 metres) *The ''Toupiettes'' (1,357 metres) *The ''Soum de Martî-Peyras'' (1,464 metres) *The ''Soume de Moulle'' (1,544 metres) *The ''Peak of Monbula'' (1,583 metres)

Facilities

Éducation

Asson has two primary schools (The ''école du Bourg'' and the ''école du Pont Latapie'').

Sport

Sports in Asson revolve around the Ladies Handball Championship of France, National 3.

References

{{Authority control Communes of Pyrénées-Atlantiques