Arnac-sur-Dourdou

Arnac-sur-Dourdou
Commune
Old bread oven
Location of Arnac-sur-Dourdou
Arnac-sur-Dourdou Arnac-sur-Dourdou
Coordinates: 43°43′38″N 2°56′00″E
Country	France
Region	Occitania
Department	Aveyron
Arrondissement	Millau
Canton	Causses-Rougiers
Intercommunality	Monts, Rance et Rougier
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Guy Sales
Area 1	16.57 km2 (6.40 sq mi)
Population  (2021)	41
• Density	2.5/km2 (6.4/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	12009 /12360
Elevation	506–1,000 m (1,660–3,281 ft) (avg. 560 m or 1,840 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Arnac-sur-Dourdou (French pronunciation: [aʁnak syʁ duʁdu], literally Arnac on Dourdou; Occitan: Arnac) is a commune in the Aveyron department in the Occitanie region of southern France.

Geography

Arnac-sur-Dourdou is a sparsely populated commune in the extreme southern corner of Aveyron some 50 km west by north-west of Saint-André-de-Sangonis and 8 km east by north-east of Murat-sur-Vèbre in the heart of the Lacaune mountains. The western border of the commune is also the border between the departments of Aveyron and Tarn while the southern border is the border between Aveyron and Hérault. Access to the commune is by the D92 road from Brusque in the north which is a tortuous mountain road going to the village and continuing west to change to the D162 at the commune border then south to join the D622 to Murat-sur-Vèbre. The D12 road from Brusque to the south forms the eastern border of the commune and road D174 connects the village to this road. The commune is mountainous and heavily forested.

The Dourdou de Camarès river flows through the commune and the village from east to west gathering numerous tributaries flowing from all corners of the commune.

History

Until the French Revolution the Parish of Arnac was part of the community of Brusque. Saint-Benoît-d'Arnac was then an annex of the Parish of Saint-Pierre-des-Cats (currently the commune of Mélagues). After the Revolution Arnac was part of the commune of Mélagues. It was in 1872 that the commune of Arnac-sur-Dourdou was founded. Today the village consists of many second homes which are often the properties of descendants of the past inhabitants of the village.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

From	To	Name	Party
1872	1892	Barthélémy Garenq
1892	1929	Jacques Roques
1929	1935	Hyppolyte Garenq
1935	1945	Jacques Roques
1945	1947	Jean Bertrand
1947	1995	Louis Maury
1995	1997	Pierre Garrencq
1997	2008	Henri Riac
2008	2020	Fernande Singer	DVG
2020	2026	Guy Sales

Population

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Arnacois or Arnacoises in French.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	87	—
1975	66	−3.87%
1982	48	−4.45%
1990	55	+1.72%
1999	30	−6.51%
2007	23	−3.27%
2012	37	+9.98%
2017	34	−1.68%
Source: INSEE

Cultural Events and Festivals

• Arnac Festival in traditional clothes

• 
• 
• 
• 

Sites and monuments

• The Church of Saint-Benoît
• The Bread oven at the Arnac Mill
• The GR 71 passes through the commune

• 
  Church of Saint-Benoît.
• 
  Church of Saint-Benoît.
• 
  Wayside Cross.
• 
  The bread oven in the Mill of Arnac.

See also

• Communes of the Aveyron department

Bibliography

• Christian-Pierre Bedel, Lo Pont - Arnac, Brusca, Faiet, Gissac, Melagas, Montanhòl, Pèus-e-Cofolèus, Silvanés, Tauriac, preface by the General Counsel, Christian-Pierre Bedel e los estatjants del canton de Camarés, Rodez, Mission départementale de la culture, 2000, Al canton collection, 320 pages, ill., cover ill., 28 cm, ISBN 2-907279-50-5, ISSN 1151-8375, BNF 37657611d (Occitan/French)

External links

• Arnac-sur-Dourdou on Géoportail, National Geographic Institute (IGN) website (in French)
• Arnac on the 1750 Cassini Map