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Pamiers | |
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 A general view of Pamiers | |
 Coat of arms | |
 Location of Pamiers | |
  Pamiers  Pamiers | |
| Coordinates:43°07′03″N1°36′42″E / 43.1175°N 1.6117°E /43.1175; 1.6117 | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Occitania |
| Department | Ariège |
| Arrondissement | Pamiers |
| Canton | 2 Cantons (Pamiers-1 and2) |
| Intercommunality | Portes d'Ariège Pyrénées |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2020–2026) | Frédérique Thiennot[1] (DVC) |
Area 1 | 45.85 km2 (17.70 sq mi) |
| Population (2023)[2] | 16,473 |
| • Density | 359.3/km2 (930.5/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 09225 /09100 |
| Elevation | 256–473 m (840–1,552 ft) (avg. 298 m or 978 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Pamiers (French pronunciation:[pamje]ⓘ;Occitan:PàmiasOccitan pronunciation:[ˈpamjɔs]) is acommune and largest city in theAriègedepartment in theOccitanieregion in southwestern France. It is asub-prefecture of the department. It is the most populous commune in the Ariège department, although it is not the capital which is the smaller town ofFoix. The seat of theBishop of Pamiers is at thePamiers Cathedral. The current mayor of the town is Frédérique Thiennot, who succeededAndré Trigano in 2020 after he had held the post for 25 years.[3]
Pamiers is located on the riverAriège.
The town of Pamiers is famous for its threebell towers and for being the birthplace ofGabriel Fauré, one of the greatest French musicians and composers of the late 19th and early 20th century. It also boasts awards forVille fleurie, the equivalent of "town in bloom".Local facilities include good restaurants, bars, supermarkets, large public indoor and outdoor swimming pools (one of which is 50m).Pamiers lies in an ancient alluvial plain of theAriège in the area calledLa Basse Ariège, noted for its rich fertile soil ideal for agriculture. Pamiers has 17,000 inhabitants, theAppaméens, and is the economic capital of the Ariège, being the most important town in the department.
The town itself dates back to the 5th century. The origin of its name is subject to debate. A certain school of linguists tends to believe that it was derived from the fact that, when Pamiers was founded, its new inhabitants were given land parcels measured inpams', fromempan (from the Latin "pannus" meaning "piece of cloth"). Originally it was calledVille de Pams. Another explanation is one involvingRoger II de Foix, who had gone to a crusade in the region ofApamea inSyria and who, upon his return to France, gave his castle and domain the name of one of his battles:Castrum Appamiae, name later on given to the town. The fact that Pamiers' inhabitants are calledAppaméens would seem to favour this hypothesis. In the 18th century a plural stance on the word was introduced making the name "Apamias" derived from ecclesiastical language and also similar to theOccitan language. The Occitan name "Pamias" can be seen on the town sign, alongside the French name Pamiers, as one enters the town via the old route from Toulouse, RN20.
The main square of Pamiers,Place de la République, is paved in red marble. Every week, three large open-air farmers' markets are held, plus aflea market every Sunday morning. Nearby are the oldTour des Cordeliers and the large Church ofNotre-Dame-du-Camp.
Pamiers was the birthplace or hometown of:
Pamiers station has rail connections to Toulouse, Foix and Latour-de-Carol.
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| Source: EHESS[4] and INSEE (1968-2017)[5] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Climate data for Pamiers (Montaut), elevation 295 m (968 ft), (2002–2020 normals, extremes 2002–present) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 20.8 (69.4) | 24.1 (75.4) | 24.3 (75.7) | 28.6 (83.5) | 31.4 (88.5) | 38.6 (101.5) | 38.9 (102.0) | 41.1 (106.0) | 33.7 (92.7) | 31.2 (88.2) | 25.1 (77.2) | 20.1 (68.2) | 41.1 (106.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 9.2 (48.6) | 10.3 (50.5) | 13.9 (57.0) | 17.2 (63.0) | 20.2 (68.4) | 25.0 (77.0) | 27.4 (81.3) | 27.5 (81.5) | 24.3 (75.7) | 19.5 (67.1) | 13.5 (56.3) | 10.3 (50.5) | 18.2 (64.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 5.9 (42.6) | 6.4 (43.5) | 9.5 (49.1) | 12.5 (54.5) | 15.5 (59.9) | 19.8 (67.6) | 21.9 (71.4) | 21.9 (71.4) | 18.9 (66.0) | 15.0 (59.0) | 9.8 (49.6) | 6.8 (44.2) | 13.7 (56.7) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 2.6 (36.7) | 2.5 (36.5) | 5.0 (41.0) | 7.8 (46.0) | 10.7 (51.3) | 14.5 (58.1) | 16.4 (61.5) | 16.2 (61.2) | 13.5 (56.3) | 10.5 (50.9) | 6.2 (43.2) | 3.3 (37.9) | 9.1 (48.4) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −7.4 (18.7) | −11.7 (10.9) | −8.7 (16.3) | −1.4 (29.5) | 0.4 (32.7) | 5.9 (42.6) | 9.7 (49.5) | 7.6 (45.7) | 4.7 (40.5) | −1.4 (29.5) | −5.2 (22.6) | −8.1 (17.4) | −11.7 (10.9) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 67.8 (2.67) | 45.2 (1.78) | 55.9 (2.20) | 68.4 (2.69) | 78.8 (3.10) | 54.4 (2.14) | 46.0 (1.81) | 43.1 (1.70) | 42.3 (1.67) | 55.6 (2.19) | 63.4 (2.50) | 56.2 (2.21) | 677.1 (26.66) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 10.5 | 8.3 | 9.7 | 9.3 | 9.9 | 7.9 | 6.3 | 6.1 | 6.3 | 7.2 | 9.8 | 9.2 | 100.5 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 100.1 | 128.8 | 170.3 | 195.4 | 210.2 | 237.7 | 259.5 | 241.7 | 212.0 | 170.7 | 118.7 | 113.2 | 2,158.2 |
| Source: Meteociel[6] | |||||||||||||
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