French Cerdagne
Encyclopedia
Cerdanya
Cerdanya is a natural comarca and historical region of the eastern Pyrenees divided between France and Spain. Historically it has been one of the counties of Catalonia....
, which came under French control as a result of the Treaty of the Pyrenees
Treaty of the Pyrenees
The Treaty of the Pyrenees was signed to end the 1635 to 1659 war between France and Spain, a war that was initially a part of the wider Thirty Years' War. It was signed on Pheasant Island, a river island on the border between the two countries...
in 1659, while the southern half remained in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(as part of Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
). Catalonians
Catalan people
The Catalans or Catalonians are the people from, or with origins in, Catalonia that form a historical nationality in Spain. The inhabitants of the adjacent portion of southern France are sometimes included in this definition...
often refer to French Cerdagne as Upper Cerdanya . It is the only French territory in the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
, as it is in the south side of the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
range between Spain and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. For example, the Segre river, which goes west and then south to meet the Ebro
Ebro
The Ebro or Ebre is one of the most important rivers in the Iberian Peninsula. It is the biggest river by discharge volume in Spain.The Ebro flows through the following cities:*Reinosa in Cantabria.*Miranda de Ebro in Castile and León....
, has its source in the French Cerdagne.
French Cerdagne has no special status inside France, simply forming an area within the department of Pyrénées-Orientales
Pyrénées-Orientales
Pyrénées-Orientales is a department of southern France adjacent to the northern Spanish frontier and the Mediterranean Sea. It also surrounds the tiny Spanish enclave of Llívia, and thus has two distinct borders with Spain.- History :...
, unlike the Spanish part of Cerdanya, which is officially a Catalan comarca
Comarques of Catalonia
This is a list of the comarques of Catalonia . A comarca is roughly equivalent to a US "county" or a UK "district". However, in the context of Catalonia, the term "county" can be a bit misleading, because in medieval Catalonia, the most important rulers were counts, notably the Counts of Barcelona...
called simply Cerdanya
Cerdanya (comarca)
Cerdanya is a comarca in northern Catalonia, north-eastern Spain, in the Pyrenees, on the border of Catalonia with France and Andorra. Within Catalonia. Cerdanya is divided between Catalonian provinces of Lleida and Girona...
. In France, the French area is referred to as either Cerdagne française (i.e. "French Cerdagne"), Haute Cerdagne (i.e. "Upper Cerdagne") or just Cerdagne.
French Cerdagne has a land area of 539.67 km² (208.37 sq. miles). Its 1999 population was 12,035, resulting in a density of only 22 people per km² (58 per sq. mile).
French Cerdagne has the most cloud-free days in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and was therefore chosen as the place to build:
- the solar furnaceSolar furnaceA solar furnace is a structure that captures sunlight to produce high temperatures, usually for industry. This is done with a curved mirror that acts as a parabolic reflector, concentrating light onto a focal point...
of Odeillo (official site), used for high-temperature scientific experiments; - the ThémisThemis (solar power plant)The THEMIS solar power tower is a research and development centre focused on solar energy. It is located near the village of Targassonne, in the department of Pyrénées-Orientales, south of France, 3 kilometres from the world's largest solar furnace in Odeillo.-Siting of the plant:THEMIS Solar...
experimental solar power plant (operated by EDFÉlectricité de FranceÉlectricité de France S.A. is the second largest French utility company. Headquartered in Paris, France, with €65.2 billion in revenues in 2010, EDF operates a diverse portfolio of 120,000+ megawatts of generation capacity in Europe, Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa.EDF is one of...
from 1983 to 1986); it is now decommissioned as a power plant, but is being used as a Cerenkov telescopeIACTThe IACT or Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Technique is the method whereby very high energy gamma-ray photons in the 50 GeV to 50 TeV range can be detected by ground based telescopes. There are currently four major ground based telescopes including CANGAROO III, MAGIC, HESS and VERITAS...
for the detection of Gamma rayGamma rayGamma radiation, also known as gamma rays or hyphenated as gamma-rays and denoted as γ, is electromagnetic radiation of high frequency . Gamma rays are usually naturally produced on Earth by decay of high energy states in atomic nuclei...
s http://www.lal.in2p3.fr/recherche/celeste/Celeste1.html
Communes
Population as of 1999 French census.- Angoustrine-Villeneuve-des-EscaldesAngoustrine-Villeneuve-des-EscaldesAngoustrine-Villeneuve-des-Escaldes is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-Demographics:-References:*...
(Catalan: Angostrina) - pop. 549 - BolquèreBolquèreBolquère is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.Bolquère railway station is the highest SNCF station in France at an elevation of 1593 metres...
(Catalan: Bolquera) - pop. 730 (779 at 2004 census) - Bourg-MadameBourg-MadameBourg-Madame is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.It lies right on the border with Spain. It abuts directly onto the Spanish town of Puigcerdà, and is near the Spanish exclave of Llívia....
(Catalan: La Guingueta d’Ix) - pop. 1,166 (1,198 at 2004 census) - DorresDorresDorres is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.This place is known for its sulphurous hot spring that gushes out at 42 ° C, and in which there is little swim in summer and winter. Being almost naked in the middle of the snow provides some amazing sensations...
- pop. 219 - ÉgatÉgatÉgat is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
(Catalan Èguet) - pop. 494 (475 at 2004 census) - EnveitgEnveitgEnveitg is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.It is close to Latour-de-Carol train station.-References:*...
(Catalan Enveig) - pop. 621 - ErrErr, Pyrénées-OrientalesErr is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
(Catalan Er) - pop. 551 - EstavarEstavarEstavar is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
- pop. 409 - EyneEyneEyne is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:**...
(Catalan Eina) - pop. 127 (161 at 2004 census) - Font-Romeu-Odeillo-ViaFont-Romeu-Odeillo-ViaFont-Romeu-Odeillo-Via , or Odeillo, is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales and Cerdagne near the Spanish border in the south of France.It also is one of the oldest ski resorts in France and the oldest in the Pyrenees.- Solar Power :...
(Catalan Font-Romeu, Odelló i Vià) - pop. 2,003 - La CabanasseLa CabanasseLa Cabanasse is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
(Catalan La Cabanassa) - pop. 622 (756 at 2004 census) - Latour-de-CarolLatour-de-CarolLatour-de-Carol is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-Transport:The village's main claim to fame is as the site of the international railway station, Gare de Latour-de-Carol-Enveitg...
(Catalan La Tor de Querol) - pop. 367 - LloLloLlo is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
- pop. 133 - Mont-LouisMont-LouisMont-Louis is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.In 2008, the citadel and the city walls of Mont-Louis were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Sites, as part of the "Fortifications of Vauban" group....
(Catalan Montlluís) - pop. 270 - NahujaNahujaNahuja is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
(Catalan Naüja) - pop. 63 - OsséjaOsséjaOsséja is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
(Catalan Osseja) - pop. 1,282 - Palau-de-CerdagnePalau-de-CerdagnePalau-de-Cerdagne is a commune in the eastern Pyrenees , bordering with the Spanish Catalonia.The people of the town celebrate the Xicolatada, every year, on the 16th of August.-References:*...
(Catalan Palau de Cerdanya) - pop. 424 (496 at 2004 census) - PlanèsPlanèsPlanès is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
- pop. 27 - PortaPorta, Pyrénées-OrientalesPorta is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
- pop. 98 - Porté-PuymorensPorté-PuymorensPorté-Puymorens is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
(Catalan Portè) - pop. 147 - SaillagouseSaillagouseSaillagouse is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.The inhabitants are called Saillagousains.-References:* -External links:*...
(Catalan Sallagosa) - pop. 820 - Saint-Pierre-dels-ForcatsSaint-Pierre-dels-ForcatsSaint-Pierre-dels-Forcats is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
(Catalan Sant Pere dels Forcats) - pop. 213 - Sainte-LéocadieSainte-LéocadieSainte-Léocadie is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
(Catalan Santa Llocaia) - pop. 140 - TargassonneTargassonneTargassonne is a commune of Cerdanya in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in south of France. It is located at 1,600 meters near the villages of Égat and Font-Romeu-Odeillo-Via....
(Catalan Targasona) - pop. 203 (194 at 2004 census) - UrUr, Pyrénées-OrientalesUr is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
- pop. 308 - ValcebollèreValcebollèreValcebollère is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
(Catalan: Vallsabollera) - pop. 49
External links
- L'Alta Cerdanya in Catalan Encyclopaedia.