Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette

Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette (Basque: Altzai-Altzabeheti-Zunharreta) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwestern France.

Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette Altzai-Altzabeheti-Zunharreta
Commune
The church of Alçabéhéty
Coat of arms
Location of Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette
Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette
Coordinates: 43°05′46″N 0°54′27″W
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Arrondissement	Oloron-Sainte-Marie
Canton	Montagne Basque
Intercommunality	Pays Basque
Government
• Mayor (2014-2020)	Anicet Erreçarret
Area ^1	34.40 km^2 (13.28 sq mi)
Population  (Jan. 2017)[1]	226
• Density	6.6/km^2 (17/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 km^2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Geography

Location

Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette is located in the former province of Soule. It is located some 35 km west by south-west of Oloron-Sainte-Marie and 10 km north of Larrau.

Access

The commune can be accessed by the small D247 road from the village to Tardets-Sorholus in the north-east. The D149 branches off this road in the commune and goes north to Camou-Cihigue. There is also the D117 road which goes west from the village to Mendive.[2]

Hydrography

Located in the drainage basin of the Adour, most of the southern border of the commune is formed by the Alphoura river (18 km long) which also flows through the village and continues northeast to join the Saison near Alos-Sibas-Abense. The Alphoura is fed by many tributaries rising in the commune including the Azaléguy and Ardounc. The Escalérako erreka rises in the south and flows west with its many tributaries.[2]

Paul Raymond[3] mentioned the Arangaïxa, a brook that rises at Alçay and flows into the Alphoura.

Localities and hamlets

• Aguer (Barn)
• Albinzé (cayolar)
• Alçabéhéty
• Alçay
• Ampo
• Andoche (cayolar)
• Arangaitz (Pass)
• Arhansus (cayolar)
• Arhex Borde
• Atheis
• Azaléguy
• Azaléguiko Karbia (Cave)
• Bagadoya
• Bagazaguita (cayolar)
• Bagothusta
• Belhy
• Berrayde
• Bethalia
• Bidalunia
• Bordagagna
• Borda Iribarneko
• Bordapia
• Burdin Olatzé (cayolar)
• Burgance
• Çaro
• Chaldupia
• Chuburu
• Croix Garat (la)
• Elichabeborda
• Eltzegagnia (cayolar)
• Erbinia
• Espoulapia
• Esquirassy (district)[4][5]
• Etcheberri Borda
• Etcheverry[3]
• Etchecopar Borda
• Eyhéraber
• Ezpalako Larria
• Goyheneix Borde
• Gutux Borde
• Habrague (cayolar)
• Handia (Borda)
• Haquits (Mill)
• Harizmendy
• Harristolatzia
• Houretaborda
• Ibarburia (Pass)
• Ibarria
• Illaberria
• Inharchoury
• Irriko Borda
• Kamitchel
• Kharalda
• Lapistoy
• Larramendia
• Laxunia
• Laze
• Lechardoy
• Lecharria (cayolar)
• Lekayborda
• Leziague (fountain)
• Lomendi
• Luchiloa
• Lucu
• Lutogagne
• Maraizolatzé
• Méthola
• Miranda
• Néquézaurborda
• Ourdanberhartia
• Oxapuria
• Oxibar (Pass)
• Pista Uthurria
• Poyuko Borda
• Sallaberriko borda
• Sobieta (Grange)
• Sunharette
• Thipinka
• Ursoy (cayolar)
• Utzidoy
• Uztarila (cayolar)
• Uztubulia

[6]

Toponymy

View of Alçay village

Saint Peter's Church and the cemetery at Alçay

Old Hilarri at Alçabéhéty

The Church at Sunharette

The commune name in Basque is Altzai-Altzabeheti-Zunharreta.[7]

According to Jean-Baptiste Orpustan, the base (h)altz meaning "aulne" was used for the both toponyms Alcay and Alçabéhéty. beheti means "at the bottom".[8]

The name Sunharette comes from the Basque zunhar (Name from Soule meaning "elm" or "poplar") using the romanized locative suffix ette meaning the "place of elm".[8]

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:

• Orpustan: Jean-Baptiste Orpustan, New Basque Toponymy[8]
• Raymond: Topographic Dictionary of the Department of Basses-Pyrenees, 1863, on the page numbers indicated in the table. (in French)[3]
• Cassini1: Alçabéhéty on the Ldh/EHESS/Cassini database[9]
• Cassini2: Sunharette on the Ldh/EHESS/Cassini database[10]

Origins:

• Duchesne: Duchesne collection volume CXIV[11]
• Ohix: Contracts retained by Ohix, Notary of Soule[12]
• Chronicles: Chronicles of Arthez-Lassalle[13]
• Soule: Custom of Soule[14]

History

In 1790 Sunharette was the chief town of a canton which was part of the District of Mauleon. The canton included the communes of Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette, Alos-Sibas-Abense, Camou-Cihigue, Etchebar, Lacarry-Arhan-Charritte-de-Haut, Lichans-Sunhar, and Ossas-Suhare.

In 1833, the three communes of Alçay, Alçabéhéty, and Sunharette merged to form a single joint commune.

Heraldry

Arms of Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette

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.[15]

Administration

List of Successive Mayors[16]

From	To	Name	Party	Position
1983	2001	Arnaud Dascon
2001	Present	Anicet Erreçarret

(Not all data is known)

Inter-communality

The town is part of seven intercommunal organisations:

• the Communauté d'agglomération du Pays Basque
• the association to support Basque culture;
• the SIVOM of the canton of Tardets;
• the intercommunal association of the gaves d'Oloron and Mauléon
• the SIVU for Tourism in Haute-Soule and Barétous;
• the AEP association for Soule Country
• the association for remediation of Soule Country

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
2005	233	—
2006	226	−3.0%
2007	219	−3.1%
2008	223	+1.8%
2009	228	+2.2%
2010	232	+1.8%
2011	231	−0.4%
2012	228	−1.3%
2013	227	−0.4%
2014	227	+0.0%
2015	226	−0.4%
2016	226	+0.0%

Economy

Activity is mainly focused on agriculture (livestock and pasture). The town is part of the Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) zone of Ossau-Iraty cheese.

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

The commune has two sites that are registered as historical monuments:

• The Seven Ibarnaba Tumuli in the Esquirassy district[4]
• The Ten Ibarletta Tumuli in the Esquirassy district[5]

Other sites of interest

• The Gaztelu zahar (Basque meaning "fortified place") of Maide korralea meaning "the enclosure of Maide" is attributed to Maidé, mythological beings incorporating some of the traits of Jentils and Laminak.

Religious Heritage

• The Romanesque Parish Church of Saint-Pierre (Middle Ages) is registered as an historical monument.[17] The church contains a Processional Cross (16th century) which is registered as an historical object.[18]

Environmental heritage

• The Belhygagne peaks (also called the peak of Vultures) and Gaztelia are the highest points in the commune at, respectively, 1,072 and 1,345 metres high.[6]

See also

• Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department

External links

• ALTZAI-ALTZABEHETI-ZUNHARRETA in the Bernardo Estornés Lasa - Auñamendi Encyclopedia (Euskomedia Fundazioa) (in Spanish)
• Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette on Lion1906
• Alçay-Alçabéhéty-Sunharette on Géoportail, National Geographic Institute (IGN) website (in French)
• Sunharete and Alcabehety on the 1750 Cassini Map

References

1. "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
2. Google Maps
3. Topographic Dictionary of the Department of Basses-Pyrenees, Paul Raymond, Imprimerie nationale, 1863, Digitised from Lyon Public Library 15 June 2011 (in French)
4. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée PA00084309 Seven Ibarnaba Tumuli (in French)
5. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée PA00084308 Ten Ibarletta Tumuli (in French)
6. Géoportail, IGN (in French)
7. Brigitte Jobbé-Duval, Dictionary of placenames - Pyrénées-Atlantiques, 2009, Archives and Culture, ISBN 978-2-35077-151-9 (in French)
8. Jean-Baptiste Orpustan, New Basque Toponymy, Presses universitaires de Bordeaux, 2006, ISBN 2 86781 396 4 (in French)
9. Des villages de Cassini aux communes d'aujourd'hui: Commune data sheet Alçabéhéty, EHESS. (in French)
10. Des villages de Cassini aux communes d'aujourd'hui: Commune data sheet Sunharette, EHESS. (in French)
11. Duchesne Collection, volumes 99 to 114, containing the papers of Oihenart, former Imperial Librarian - Bibliothèque nationale de France
12. Manuscripts from the 15th century in the Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques (in French)
13. Titles of the Arthez-Lassalle family at Tardets (in French)
14. Custom of Soule in 1520, printed at Pau in 1760 (in French)
15. Guy Ascarat Archived November 9, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
16. List of Mayors of France
17. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000703 Parish Church of Saint-Pierre (in French)
18. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM64000026 Processional Cross (in French)