Commune in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France
| Blieux Blieus (Occitan) | |
|---|---|
| Commune | |
 A ravine in the territory of the Blieux commune | |
 Coat of arms | |
| Location of Blieux | |
  BlieuxShow map of France BlieuxShow map of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur | |
| Coordinates: 43°52′24″N 6°22′18″E / 43.8733°N 6.3717°E / 43.8733; 6.3717 | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur |
| Department | Alpes-de-Haute-Provence |
| Arrondissement | Castellane |
| Canton | Riez |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2020–2026) | Gérard Collomp |
| Area | 56.8 km (21.9 sq mi) |
| Population | 52 |
| • Density | 0.92/km (2.4/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 04030 /04330 |
| Elevation | 831–1,921 m (2,726–6,302 ft) (avg. 950 m or 3,120 ft) |
| French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Blieux (French pronunciation: [blijø]; Occitan: Blieus) is a rural commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France.
History
The commune of Blieux first appeared on maps in 1100.
Much later, during the French Revolution, records show that the residents of Blieux had created a political club (patriotic society), which was very common at the time. (See Jacobin Club).
Name of the commune
According to Ernest Nègre, the first recorded name for the commune, Bleus, was derived from the Occitan word bleusse, meaning 'dry'. This was likely a reference to the local soil. By contrast, Charles Rostaing argues that the name derives from the pre-Indo-European root word, *BL, meaning 'mountain in the form of a spur'.
La Melle, the name of a nearby hamlet, comes from the Celtic word, mello, meaning an elevated location.
Economy
Historically, Blieux was a pastoral community, with a yearly alpine grazing cycle known as transhumance. As with much of Provence, tourism the primary source of economic activity today.
Geography
The village is located at an altitude of 950m, in the valley formed by a tributary of the river Asse, known as the 'Asse de Blieux'.
Hamlets
- le Bas-Chadoul
- la Melle
- la Tuilière
- Thon
- La Castelle
Summits and passes
- Mont Chiran (1905 m)
- le Grand Mourre (1898 m)
- Crête de Montmuye (Montmuye ridge) (Highest point: 1621 m)
- Le Mourre de Chanier ( 1930 m)
Demographics
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 59 | — |
| 1975 | 54 | −1.26% |
| 1982 | 59 | +1.27% |
| 1990 | 57 | −0.43% |
| 1999 | 59 | +0.38% |
| 2009 | 56 | −0.52% |
| 2014 | 59 | +1.05% |
| 2020 | 55 | −1.16% |
| Source: INSEE | ||
With the exception of those that have been totally abandoned, Blieux is one of the communities in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department that has experienced the greatest population decline from the mid-19th to the mid-20th centuries.
Inhabitants are known as Blieuxois (masculine) and Blieuxoises (feminine) in French.
See also
References
- "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020.
- "Populations de référence 2022" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 19 December 2024.
- ^ de La Torre, Michel (1989). Deslogis-Lacoste (ed.). Alpes-de-Haute-Provence : le guide complet des 200 communes (in French). Paris. p. 72. ISBN 2-7399-5004-7.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Patrice Alphand, « Les Sociétés populaires», La Révolution dans les Basses-Alpes, Annales de Haute-Provence, bulletin de la société scientifique et littéraire des Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, no. 307, 1989, pp. 296-298
- Ernest Nègre, Toponymie générale de la France : étymologie de 35 000 noms de lieux, Genève : Librairie Droz, 1990. Volume II : Formations dialectales. Notice 23793, p 1281
- Charles Rostaing, Essai sur la toponymie de la Provence (depuis les origines jusqu’aux invasions barbares), Laffite Reprints, Marseille, 1973, p. 85
- Rostaing, p. 206
- Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
