Arvieu

Arvieu (French pronunciation: [aʁvjø]; Occitan: Arviu) is a commune in the Aveyron department in the Occitanie region of southern France.

Arvieu
Commune
The Lake of Pareloup
Location of Arvieu
Arvieu Show map of France Arvieu Show map of Occitanie
Coordinates: 44°11′29″N 2°39′43″E
Country	France
Region	Occitania
Department	Aveyron
Arrondissement	Millau
Canton	Monts du Réquistanais
Intercommunality	Lévézou Pareloup
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Guy Lacan[1]
Area 1	46.91 km2 (18.11 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[2]	755
• Density	16/km2 (42/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	12011 /12120
Elevation	606–929 m (1,988–3,048 ft) (avg. 730 m or 2,400 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Geography

Arvieu is located some 23 km south by south-east of Rodez and 7 km north of Alrance. Access to the commune is by the D56 road from Pont-de-Salars in the north-east passing through the commune and the village and continuing south to Durenque. The D82 branches off the D56 north of the village and goes north to Flavin. The D577 branches off the D56 in the south of the commune and goes west to Salmiech. The commune is entirely farmland except for some small patches of forest.^[3]

The eastern border of the commune is the Lac de Pareloup. The Céor river rises in the east of the commune and flows west through the village then south forming part of the western border before continuing west to join the Viaur at Saint-Just-sur-Viaur. The Ruisseau de Glauzeilles rises in the north of the commune flowing west then south-west, forming the north-eastern border of the commune, to join the Céor. The Ruisseau de Calieres rises in the east of the commune and flows north to join the Vioulou just north of the commune.^[3]

Places and hamlets

• Les Auglanes
• Aurifeuille
• Beauregard
• Bel-Air
• Bellevue
• Le Besset
• Bois de Nouet
• Bois Grand
• Bonneviale
• Le Bose
• La Brauge
• La Calmette
• Caplongue
• Cayras
• Cayras Bas
• Les Cazals
• Clauzelles
• Clauzellou
• Les Combes
• Le Coutal
• La Croix de l'Ouradou
• Dournets
• Dours
• Espinous
• Espinouset
• Fau du Dours
• Les Faux
• Font Bonne
• Fouleties
• Galinieres
• Gilergues
• Ginestous
• Girman Bas
• Girman Haut
• La Graille
• Grelac
• Lalic
• La Lumiere
• Mas Roux
• Le Mas Roussel
• Le Mas Vayssettes
• Montginoux
• Montredon
• Le Mouli
• Le Moulin d'Aigles
• Le Moulin de la Gineste
• N.-D d'Aures
• Pareloup
• Le Pouget
• La Pendarie
• Pierrefiche
• Pauhle Rouby
• La Pendarie
• La Plane
• Le Puech
• Puech d'Anglas
• Puech Cabane
• Le Puech de Clauzelles
• Puech d'Espinous
• Puech de Girman
• Le Puech Granier
• Puech de Grima
• Puech Grimal
• Le Rhan
• Les Rials
• Rochers du Diable
• le Roucan
• Rougeviale
• Routaboul
• Le Rueillou
• Saint-Martin des Faux (partly in Arvieu and partly in Salles-Curan)
• Serieux
• Les Sottes
• Tredos
• Ventajou

^[4]

Neighbouring communes and villages

^[3]

History

• There are traces of the Gallo-Romans
• In the 16th century the village was besieged
• In the 18th century the Vigouroux family of Rodez bought the Lordship
• The Arvieu Affair: The village was attacked by a band of counter-revolutionaries from the former Army of Charrié who hid in the Palanges Forest. The house of Citizen Bonnefous, the leading citizen of the commune, was pillaged. Many people were accused of supporting the attackers who were from the de Barrau family of Carcenac-Salmiech.^[5]
• The ramparts were destroyed in the 19th century.

Heraldry

Arms of Arvieu

Blazon: Party per bend sinister, at 1 Azure with a Cross of Malta of Or; at 2 Gules, a lion Argent.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors^[6]

From	To	Name	Party	Position
1789	1793	Pierre Lacombe
1793	1796	Jean Blancpauly
1796	1797	Joseph Dufieu
1797	1799	Amans Gaubert
1799	1801	François Robert
1801	1816	Léonard Bonnefous
1816	1821	Pierre Long
1821	1826	Léonard Bonnefous
1826	1830	Pierre Long
1830	1843	Régis Dufieu
1843	1848	Léonard Bonnefous
1848	1851	Hippolyte Bonnefous
1851	1854	Gervais Rigal
1854	1865	Jean Cayron
1865	1879	Hippolyte Bonnefous
1879	1892	Antoine Capron
1892	1901	Hippolyte Bonnefous
1901	1904	Pierre Salbat
1904	1913	Hippolyte Bonnefous
1913	1929	Victor Espinasse
1929	1935	Hervé Canac
1935	1941	Justin Fabie

Mayors from the French Revolution to 1941

Mayors from 1941

From	To	Name
1941	1945	Victor Boudes
1945	1950	Justin Mai
1950	1965	Ernest Thubieres
1965	1983	Raymond Almes
1983	1995	Léonce Terral
1995	2008	Raymond Vaysettes
2008	2014	Claudine Bru
2014	2020	Gilles Bounhol
2020	2026	Guy Lacan

Population

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Arvieunois or Arvieunoises in French.^[7]

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	1,234	—
1975	1,093	−1.72%
1982	1,082	−0.14%
1990	925	−1.94%
1999	880	−0.55%
2007	863	−0.24%
2012	820	−1.02%
2017	783	−0.92%
Source: INSEE[8]

Culture and heritage

Chapel of Notre-Dame d'Aures

Civil heritage

• A Feudal Château Sainte-Famille (a former convent).
• The Château of Saint-Louis (now the Town Hall).
• The Château of Montfranc (Arvieu, private property).
• A Pond, Mill, and Lavoir (Public laundry) at Arvieu.

Religious heritage

The Statue of Saint Foy

• The Church of Notre-Dame d'Aures (12th centuries) is registered as an historical monument.^[9] The church contains a Statue of Saint Foy (15th century) which is registered as an historical object.^[10]
• The Parish Church of Saint-Amans at Arvieu had a Painting: The Assumption of the Virgin (disappeared) (1850) which is registered as an historical object.^[11]
• The Church of Saint-Saturnin or Saint-Sernin at Caplongue.
• The Church of Saint-Martin at Faux.
• The Chapel of Saint-André at Clauzelles.

Notable people linked to the commune

• Jean Dupin, (1936–), former senior Post Office official, wrote seven novels set in Lévézou, originally from Arvieu village.
• Joël Serin, former secretary in the Town Hall.
• Henri Grimal, born in Arvieu in 1910, academic and historian.

See also

• Communes of the Aveyron department

Bibliography

• Christian-Pierre Bedel, preface by Bernard Destours, Cassanhas: Arviu, Auriac, Caumont, La Grand'Vila, Saumièg, Senta-Jaleda or Christian-Pierre Bedel e los estatjants del canton de Cassanhas, Rodez, Mission départementale de la culture, 1996, Al canton collection, 240 pages, ill., couv. ill., 28 cm, ISBN 2-907279-30-0, ISSN 1151-8375, BnF 366930046 (in French)/(Occitan)

References

1. "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020.
2. "Populations légales 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
3. Google Maps
4. Géoportail, IGN, consulted on 4 May 2014 (in French)
5. Henri Grimal, The Affair of Arvieu (October 1793), Revue du Rouergue, No. 87, New series, Autumn 2006, pp. 349 to 382. (in French)
6. List of Mayors of France (in French)
7. Le nom des habitants du 12 - Aveyron, habitants.fr
8. Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
9. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée PA12000030 Church of Notre-Dame d'Aures (in French)
10. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM12000002 Statue: Saint Foy (in French)
11. Ministry of Culture, Palissy IM12000212 Painting: Assumption of the Virgin (in French)

External links

• Arvieu official website (in French)
• Arvieu tourism website (in French)
• Arvieu on the National Geographic Institute website (in French)
• Arvieu on Géoportail, National Geographic Institute (IGN) website (in French)
• Arvieu on the 1750 Cassini Map