Aventignan (; oc, Aventinhan) is a
commune in the
Hautes-Pyrénées 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 southwestern
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 ar ...
.
Geography
Close to Aventignan are the
Gargas caves, a natural underground formation of
stalactite
A stalactite (, ; from the Greek 'stalaktos' ('dripping') via
''stalassein'' ('to drip') is a mineral formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or man-made structures such as bridges and mines. Any material that is soluble an ...
s and
stalagmite
A stalagmite (, ; from the Greek , from , "dropping, trickling")
is a type of rock formation that rises from the floor of a cave due to the accumulation of material deposited on the floor from ceiling drippings. Stalagmites are typically ...
s. The caves are sometimes described as the Grotto of Gargas, in reference to an ancient chieftain who used the place as a prison.
Population
See also
*
Communes of the Hautes-Pyrénées department
An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to have a high degree of group cohesiveness, social cohesion and teamwork from the start. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, po ...
References
Communes of Hautes-Pyrénées
{{HautesPyrénées-geo-stub