Aydius


Aydius is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of south-western France.

Geography

Aydius is located some 25 km south by south-east of Oloron-Sainte-Marie just east of Bedous. Access to the commune is by the D237 road from Bedous which goes to the village and terminates there. The commune is alpine in nature with extensive forests, rugged terrain and snow-capped mountains in the east.
The Gabarret river rises in the east of the commune and flows west gathering a large number of tributaries including the Ruisseau d'Arces, the Ruisseau du Saslars, the Gave de Béranfueil, the Gave de Bouren, the Ruisseau d'Ilhiec, the Ruisseau Sarité, the Ruisseau de Traillère, and the Ruisseau de Sahun before flowing west to join the Gave d'Aspe at Bedous.

Places and Hamlets

Toponymy

The commune name in Gascon is Aidius. Michel Grosclaude said that the name probably comes from the same root as Aydie but its origin and meaning remain obscure.
The following table details the origins of the commune name and other names in the commune.
NameSpellingDateSourcePageOriginDescription
AydiusAydius1385GrosclaudeVillage
Lo temple de Sent Martin d'Aydius1590Raymond
18
Register of Aydius, BB, i, folio 3
Aydius1750Cassini
AnireAmire1385Raymond
6
CensusFarm
Anire1863Raymond
6
Le Col des ArquesLe Col des Arques1863Raymond
11
Pass from Aydius to Gère-Bélesten
Les ArrouyesLes Arrouyes1863Raymond
13
Mountain
BarcaBarca1863Raymond
21
Mountain
Le BéranguetLe Béranguet1863Raymond
28
Stream
Le BourenLe Bouren1863Raymond
35
Stream
Les IchantesLes Ichantes1863Raymond
81
Hamlet
L’IllecqL’Illecq1863Raymond
82
Stream
Les JaupinsLes Jaupins1863Raymond
85
Hamlet
MariebèreMarie-Bère1863Raymond
108
Mountain
Bois de MousquatéMousquété1863Raymond
119
Forest
MoustéMousté1863Raymond
120
Mountain on the border with Sarrance
Col de PianLe Col de Pian1863Raymond
135
Pass to Bedous
Col de PicasLe Col de Picas1863Raymond
135
Mountain Pass
SalarsLes Salars1863Raymond
153
Hamlet

Sources:
Origins:
A rock shelter dating from prehistory called Abri Gandon-Lassus has been discovered in the commune.
Paul Raymond noted on page 18 of his 1863 dictionary that the commune had a Lay Abbey, vassal of the Viscounts of Béarn and that in 1385 there were 30 fires and Aydius depended on the bailiwick of Aspe.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors
FromToNamePartyPosition
19952014Bernard Bourguinat
20142020Bernard Choy

Inter-communality

The commune is part of four inter-communal structures:
In 2010 the commune had 100 inhabitants. The evolution of the number of inhabitants is known from the population censuses conducted in the commune since 1793. From the 21st century, a census of communes with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants is held every five years, unlike larger communes that have a sample survey every year.

Economy

The economy of the commune is mainly focused towards agriculture and livestock. The commune is part of the Appellation d'origine contrôlée zone of Ossau-iraty.

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

The commune has many sites that are registered as historical monuments:
Aydie contains a number of high mountains: