Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette Altzai-Altzabeheti-Zunharreta | |
|---|---|
_%25C3%25A9glise_et_cimeti%25C3%25A8re_avec_st%25C3%25A8les_basques.JPG) The church of Alçabéhéty | |
.svg) Coat of arms | |
 Location of Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette | |
  Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette  Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette | |
| Coordinates:43°05′46″N0°54′27″W / 43.0961°N 0.9075°W /43.0961; -0.9075 | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Nouvelle-Aquitaine |
| Department | Pyrénées-Atlantiques |
| Arrondissement | Oloron-Sainte-Marie |
| Canton | Montagne Basque |
| Intercommunality | Pays Basque |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2020–2026) | Anicet Erreçarret[1] |
Area 1 | 34.40 km2 (13.28 sq mi) |
| Population (2022)[2] | 207 |
| • Density | 6.02/km2 (15.6/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 64015 /64470 |
| Elevation | 217–1,535 m (712–5,036 ft) (avg. 344 m or 1,129 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette (French pronunciation:[alsajalsabe.etisynaʁɛt];Occitan:Aucet-Aucet Juson-Sunarreta;Basque:Altzai-Altzabeheti-Zunharreta)[3] is acommune in thePyrénées-Atlantiquesdepartment in theNouvelle-Aquitaineregion in southwesternFrance.
Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette is located in theformer province ofSoule.[3] It is located some 35 km west by south-west ofOloron-Sainte-Marie and 10 km north ofLarrau.
The commune can be accessed by the small D247 road from the village toTardets-Sorholus in the north-east. The D149 branches off this road in the commune and goes north toCamou-Cihigue. There is also the D117 road which goes west from the village toMendive.[4]
Located in thedrainage basin of theAdour, most of the southern border of the commune is formed by theAlphoura river (18 km long) which also flows through the village and continues northeast to join theSaison nearAlos-Sibas-Abense. The Alphoura is fed by many tributaries rising in the commune including theAzaléguy andArdounc. TheEscalérako erreka rises in the south and flows west with its many tributaries.[4]
Paul Raymond[5] mentioned theArangaïxa, a brook that rises at Alçay and flows into the Alphoura.
Neighbouring communes and villages[4] | ||||||||||||||||
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The commune name inBasque isAltzai-Altzabeheti-Zunharreta.[3][9]
According to Jean-Baptiste Orpustan, the base(h)altz meaning "aulne" was used for both the toponymsAlcay andAlçabéhéty.beheti means "at the bottom".[10]
The nameSunharette comes from theBasquezunhar (Name fromSoule meaning "elm" or "poplar") using the romanized locative suffixette meaning the "place of elm".[10]
The following table details the origins of the commune name and other names in the commune.
| Name | Spelling | Date | Source | Page | Origin | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alçay | Aucet Suson | 1337 | Orpustan | 196 | Village | |
| Alsay | 1385 | Raymond | 4 | Duchesne | ||
| Ausset-Suson | 1479 | Raymond | 4 | Ohix | ||
| Alçay | 1520 | Orpustan | 196 | |||
| Aucet Suson | 1690 | Orpustan | 196 | |||
| Auset Suson | 1690 | Orpustan | 196 | |||
| Alsai | 17th century | Raymond | 4 | Chronicles | ||
| Alçabéhéty | Aucet Juson | 1337 | Orpustan | 196 | Village | |
| Ausec-Juson | 1385 | Raymond | 4 | Duchesne | ||
| Auset Juzon | 1385 | Orpustan | 196 | |||
| Auzat Juzon | 1385 | Orpustan | 196 | |||
| Aucet Juzon | 1690 | Orpustan | 196 | |||
| Alcabehety | 1793 | Cassini1 | ||||
| Alçabehety | 1801 | Cassini1 | Bulletin des lois | |||
| Sunharette | Sunarte | 1337 | Orpustan | 196 | Village | |
| Sunharrete | 1475 | Raymond | 165 | Ohix | ||
| Sunharrette | 1690 | Orpustan | 196 | |||
| Sunarrette | 1690 | Orpustan | 196 | |||
| Sonharette | 1793 | Cassini2 | ||||
| Sunharrette | 1801 | Cassini2 | Bulletin des lois | |||
| Arangaïxa | L'Arangaïxa | 1863 | Raymond | 8 | Stream | |
| Arhansus | Arhansus | 1863 | Raymond | 10 | Wood | |
| Athaguy | Athagui | 1520 | Raymond | 16 | Soule | Farm |
| Atagui | 1520 | Raymond | 16 | Soule | ||
| Belhy | Belhy | 1863 | Raymond | 27 | Mountain | |
| Burunolatxé | Le Col de Burunolatxé | 1863 | Raymond | 37 | Pass | |
| Couhourre | Couhourre | 1863 | Raymond | 53 | Wood | |
| Esquirassy | Esquirassy | 1863 | Raymond | 62 | Mountain | |
| Etcheverry | Etcheberri | 17th century | Raymond | 63 | Chronicles | Fief, under the Viscounts of Soule |
| Handiague | Handiague | 1863 | Raymond | 75 | Mountain |
Sources:
Origins:
In 1790 Sunharette was the chief town of a canton which was part of the District ofMauleon. The canton included the communes of Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette,Alos-Sibas-Abense,Camou-Cihigue,Etchebar,Lacarry-Arhan-Charritte-de-Haut,Lichans-Sunhar, andOssas-Suhare.
In 1833, the three communes of Alçay, Alçabéhéty, and Sunharette merged to form a single joint commune.
| Blazon: Azure, a wolf argent passant at dexter in front of a beehive of Or to sinister and accompanied by 6 bees at dexter chief, 3 bees at sinister chief, one bee at sinister, and 4 bees in base the same.[17] |
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List of Successive Mayors[18]
| From | To | Name |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | 2001 | Arnaud Dascon |
| 2001 | 2026 | Anicet Erreçarret |
The town is part of seven intercommunal organisations:
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 298 | — |
| 1975 | 262 | −1.82% |
| 1982 | 283 | +1.11% |
| 1990 | 273 | −0.45% |
| 1999 | 246 | −1.15% |
| 2007 | 219 | −1.44% |
| 2012 | 228 | +0.81% |
| 2017 | 226 | −0.18% |
| Source: INSEE[19] | ||
Activity is mainly focused on agriculture (livestock and pasture). The town is part of theAppellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) zone ofOssau-Iraty cheese.
The commune has two sites that are registered as historical monuments:
[6][7] is registered as an historical monument.[20] The church contains a Processional Cross (16th century)
which is registered as an historical object.[21]
