Alénya (French pronunciation: [aleɲa] ; Catalan: Alenyà) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.[3]
Alénya | |
|---|---|
 The town hall in Alénya | |
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Alénya  | |
  Alénya  Alénya | |
| Coordinates: 42°38′27″N 2°58′57″E / 42.6408°N 2.9825°E | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Occitania |
| Department | Pyrénées-Orientales |
| Arrondissement | Céret |
| Canton | La Plaine d'Illibéris |
| Intercommunality | Sud Roussillon |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2020–2026) | Jean-André Magdalou[1] |
| Area 1 | 5.34 km2 (2.06 sq mi) |
| Population (2021)[2] | 3,619 |
| • Density | 680/km2 (1,800/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 66002 /66200 |
| Elevation | 3–18 m (9.8–59.1 ft) (avg. 5 m or 16 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
The village is surrounded by wine fields. Apricot and peach are also grown here.
Geography
editLocalisation
editAlénya covers an area of 5.34 km2 (2.06 sq mi), with 434 inhabitants per km2. It is located about 10 km (6.2 mi) from Perpignan and borders the municipalities of Saint-Nazaire, Canet-en-Roussillon, Saint-Cyprien, Elne, Corneilla del Vercol, Théza, and Saleilles. Alénya has a Mediterranean climate.
Alénya is located in the canton of La Plaine d'Illibéris and in the arrondissement of Perpignan.
History
editAlénya was first inhabited by the Celts and was conquered by the Romans in c. 121 BC. It was first mentioned in 904 in a document mentioning towns on the Elne.
Before 1214 Alénya was only a small hamlet with little importance. That was the year its first church was built. A second church which still stands today was built in 1593. Among its attractions is a statue of the Virgin Mary from the fifteenth century.[4]
Government and politics
editCanton
editIn 1790, the commune of Alénya is included into the canton of Elne, then part of the Perpignan district. It is moved to the canton of East-Perpignan in 1801, before being included into the canton of Perpignan-3 in 1973 and, finally, into the canton of La Côte Radieuse in 1982.[5] Following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015, Alénya is now part of the canton of La Plaine d'Illibéris.[6]
Mayors
edit| Mayor | Term start | Term end |
|---|---|---|
| Simone Parrot | 1965 | 1983 |
| Jacques Pumareda | 2001 | 2014 |
| Jean-André Magdalou | 2014 | Present |
Population
editThe people of Alénya are called Alényanais.
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 678 | — |
| 1975 | 1,006 | +5.80% |
| 1982 | 1,211 | +2.68% |
| 1990 | 1,562 | +3.23% |
| 1999 | 2,318 | +4.48% |
| 2007 | 2,846 | +2.60% |
| 2012 | 3,283 | +2.90% |
| 2017 | 3,601 | +1.87% |
| Source: INSEE[7] | ||
Sites of interest
edit- The Sainte-Eulalie-et-Sainte-Julie church, built from 1593.
- The Ortaffa medieval house.
- The Pedra Martina, a medieval boundary stone.
- The Pompe Bonne, an old fountain.
- The former castle and Saint-Martin church of Boaça, both medieval and once located to the west of Alénya, were destroyed in 1974 to build a summer camp.
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
- ^ "Populations légales 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
- ^ INSEE commune file
- ^ Alénya History (in French)
- ^ Jean-Pierre Pélissier, Paroisses et communes de France : dictionnaire d'histoire administrative et démographique, vol. 66 : Pyrénées-Orientales, Paris, CNRS, 1986
- ^ Légifrance, Décret n°2014-262 du 26 février 2014 portant délimitation des cantons dans le département des Pyrénées-Orientales.
- ^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
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