Arrien-en-Bethmale

Commune in Occitanie, France

Commune in Occitania, France

(2020–2026) Jean-Pierre Gaston^[1]Area14.59 km² (5.63 sq mi)Population112 • Density7.7/km² (20/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)INSEE/Postal codeElevation598–2,085 m (1,962–6,841 ft)
(avg. 620 m or 2,030 ft)¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Arrien-en-Bethmale (French pronunciation: [aʁjɛ̃ ɑ̃ bɛtmal]; Occitan: Arrienh de Vathmala) is a commune in the Ariège department in the Occitanie region of south-western France.

Geography

Arrien-en-Bethmale consists of the villages of Aret, Arrian, Tournac, and Villargein, all located in the Pyrenees mountains in the Bethmale valley in the former province of Couserans some 12 km south-west of Saint-Girons and 3 km south of Castillon-en-Couserans. It is part of the Regional Natural Park of Pyrenees Ariège. Access to the commune is by the D17 road from Les Bordes-sur-Lez in the north-west passing through the commune and the village and continuing south-east to Bethmale. The commune is a rugged alpine commune heavily forested in many parts.^[3]

The Ruisseau de Cournelliere and the De Leaude rise north-east of the village and flow down to the south-west to join the Balamet river which flows down the valley to join the Lez north-west of the commune just south of Les Bordes-sur-Lez. The Ruisseau de Mourtis flows through the south of the commune also into the Lez.^[3]

Neighbouring communes and villages

^[3]

History

The commune was created in 1931 when it separated from the commune of Bethmale.^[4]

Arrien-en-Bethmale has a very ancient history, as evidenced by the discovery of a funerary inscription dating probably from the 1st century.

Administration

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (April 2021)

List of Successive Mayors^[5]

From	To	Name
2001	2008	Robert Soubie
2008	2020	Gérard Pons
2020	2026	Jean-Pierre Gaston

Demography

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Arrienois or Arrienoises in French.^[6]

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1931 551 —     1936 430 −4.84% 1946 358 −1.82% 1954 273 −3.33% 1962 242 −1.50% 1968 186 −4.29% 1975 143 −3.69%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1982 89 −6.55% 1990 89 +0.00% 1999 110 +2.38% 2007 102 −0.94% 2012 106 +0.77% 2017 111 +0.93%
Source: EHESS[4] and INSEE[7]

Culture and heritage

Religious heritage

The Church contains several items that are registered as historical objects:

• An Altar, Retable, Tabernacle, 3 Statues, and a Painting (18th century)^[8]
• 2 Candlesticks (18th century)^[9]
• An Altar, Retable, Tabernacle, 2 Paintings, and 2 Bas-Reliefs (18th century)^[10]
• An Altar, Retable, Tabernacle, 3 Statues, and a Painting (18th century)^[11]

Notable people linked to the commune

• Roman Caramalli as monk for the Parish from 1999 to 2005 contributed to the recognition of the commune by promoting local culture.

See also

• Communes of the Ariège department

References

External links

• Arrien-en-Bethmale on the National Geographic Institute website (in French)
• Arrien-en-Bethmale on Géoportail, National Geographic Institute (IGN) website (in French)
• Arrieu on the 1750 Cassini Map