Azet

Azet is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region of south-western France.

Geography

Azet is located some 55 km south by south-east of Tarbes and 20 km west of Bagnères-de-Luchon. Access to the commune is by road D225 from Estensan in the west to the village. The public square of the village is 1,172 metres above sea level at the intersection of the Aure and Louron valleys with the Col de Val Louron-Azet to the south-east. The commune is very rugged and inaccessible with extensive forests in the south.^[3]

The Ruisseau de Lustau flows north from the Lustou Lake in the south of the commune, gathering many tributaries including the Ruisseau de Sarrouyes which flows from lakes in the south-east of the commune, and becoming the Mousquere before passing the village and continuing north to join the Neste d'Aure north of Vielle-Aure.^[3]

Climate

Azet has a mountain climate with high temperatures in summer.

Neighbouring communes and villages

^[3]

Toponymy

The probable etymology of the name is Adet, adou, ados, âne, asou, then Azet meaning a place marking the end of the terrain which could only be crossed by donkey or horse.

History

There is little evidence to trace the origin of the village except the church, which dates from the fourth quarter of the 12th century^[4] In 1887 the village had two primary schools. Village resources were mainly pastoralism with livestock farming of sheep, cows, horses, and donkeys as well as crops such as wheat, rye, meslin, barley, buckwheat, beans, peas, potatoes, turnips, flax sprouts, and hay.

From the 1880s the population decreased due to the waves of typhoid fever during 1886-1887 and the rural exodus of young people.

Heraldry

These arms do not respect the rule of tincture and are therefore faulty. Blazon: Azure, a fir proper between two donkeys Sable facing fess point all on a terrace in base Vert, in chief a crosslet Argent.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors^[5]

From	To	Name	Party
2001	2020	Jean-Michel Carrot	PS
2020	2026	Maryse Puyau

Population

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

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 406 —     1800 398 −0.28% 1806 430 +1.30% 1821 491 +0.89% 1831 480 −0.23% 1836 505 +1.02% 1841 471 −1.38% 1846 500 +1.20% 1851 505 +0.20% 1856 465 −1.64% 1861 476 +0.47% 1866 437 −1.70% 1872 438 +0.04% 1876 413 −1.46% 1881 412 −0.05% 1886 386 −1.30% 1891 411 +1.26% 1896 402 −0.44%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 401 −0.05% 1906 416 +0.74% 1911 415 −0.05% 1921 275 −4.03% 1926 260 −1.12% 1931 243 −1.34% 1936 228 −1.27% 1946 198 −1.40% 1954 190 −0.51% 1962 185 −0.33% 1968 174 −1.02% 1975 163 −0.93% 1982 146 −1.56% 1990 135 −0.97% 1999 146 +0.87% 2007 161 +1.23% 2012 155 −0.76% 2017 148 −0.92%
Source: EHESS[7] and INSEE[8]

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

The commune has a number of sites that are registered as historical monuments:

• Houses and Farms (18th-19th century)
  ^[9]
• A Farmhouse (1865)
  ^[10]

Other sites of interest

• The Pyrenean House of Pastoralism is an educational and tourist centre on pastoralism in the mountains. The museum traces the history and development of pastoralism in France and worldwide.

Religious heritage

The Church of Our Lady of the Assumption (12th century)

is registered as an historical monument.^[4][11] The Church contains a very large number of items that are registered as historical objects.^[4][11]

See also

• Communes of the Hautes-Pyrénées department

References

External links

• Azet on the old IGN website (in French)
• Azet on Géoportail, National Geographic Institute (IGN) website (in French)
• Azet on the 1750 Cassini Map