Its capital is the city of Foix but the city with the largest population is Pamiers.
The department was inhabited in prehistoric times, as evidenced by the presence of caves with cave paintings and dolmens. In historical times it was inhabited by Basque people; they settled on the northern side of the Pyrenees and in the valleys below. In 415 it became part of the kingdom of the Visigoths, until their defeat at the hands of the king of the Franks in 507.
Ariège was created in 1790 during the French Revolution, when the whole of France was divided into departments, replacing the old provinces. Ariège was created combining the counties of Foix (Languedoc) and Couserans (Gascogne).
Ariège is part of the Occitanie region and has an area of .
The department is surrounded by the French departments of Haute-Garonne to the west and north, Aude to the east, and Pyrénées-Orientales in the southeast, as well as Spain (Lleida) and Andorra in the south.
There are three main natural regions in the department:
The highest mountain in the department is the "Pica d'Estats" () that is high and is on the Spain-France border. Other high mountains are the "peak of Montcalm" (3,077 m) and the "Pic de Sotllo" (3,072 m).
The main river is the Ariège river, a tributary of the Garonne river. Another important river is the Lèze, a tributary of the Ariège.
Two main types of climate are found in Ariège:
Temperatures are mild in the foothills, e.g. at the city of Foix (400 metres) the average is 5 °C in January and 19 °C in July. However, they decline rapidly with elevation, e.g. at l'Hospitalet-près-l'Andorre (1,430 m) it is 0 °C in January and 14 °C in July.
The department is managed by the "Departamental Council of the Ariège" in Foix. Ariège is part of the region of Occitanie.
There are 3 "arrondissements" (districts), 13 "cantons" and 332 "communes" (municipalities) in Ariège.
The following is a list of the 13 cantons of the Ariège department (with their INSEE codes), following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:
The inhabitants of Ariège are known, in French, as "ariègeois" (women: "ariègeoises").
Ariège has a population, in 2014, of 152,574, for a population density of inhabitants/km. The "arrondissement" of Pamiers, with 73,702 inhabitants, is by far the one with more inhabitants. The other two, Foix and Saint-Girons, have respectively 51,473 and 27,399 inhabitants.
Evolution of the population in Ariège
About 25% of the population lives in the four "communes" with 6,000 or more inhabitants.
The 10 most important cities in the department are:
Agriculture is an important activity in Ariege. Only a small part of its territory is used by farmers; only , 27% of its total area, are used for agriculture in the Ariege.
The Ariège plain is the most fertile area of the department; here farmers grow maize, wheat, sunflower and other crops. The other natural regions are not good for agriculture and are covered with forests or are used for pastures for sheep, cattle and horses.
In the Ax valleys, the mining of talc is the most typical activity. This industry is supplemented by tourism for winter sports.
Hydroelectric production is about one-fifth of the production in the Pyrenees. The hydroelectric plant at Aston has the largest annual production capacity in the Pyrenees.
Aube
Aube is a department in northeast France named after the Aube river. The prefecture (capital) of Aube is Troyes.
Aube is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790 with Troyes as its capital. It was divided in six districts: Nogent-sur-Seine, Arcis-sur-Aube, Bar-sur-Aube, Bar-sur-Seine, Ervy, and Troyes.
In 1800, with the creation of the "arrondissements" in France, the six districts were changed into five "arrondissements": Arcis-sur-Aube, Bar-sur-Aube, Bar-sur-Seine, Nogent-sur-Seine and Troyes.
After the Battle of Waterloo (18 June 1815), the department was occupied by the Russian army from June 1815 to November 1818.
On 10 September 1926, the "arrondissements" of Arcis-sur-Aube et Bar-sur-Seine were eliminated.
The Aube department is in the southwest of the Grand Est region. It is surrounded by 5 departments in 3 regions:
The area of Aube is . Its highest point is in the "Bois du Mont" in the "commune" Champignol-lez-Mondeville in the southeast of the department. It is high (). The lowest point is high in the "commune" La Motte-Tilly in the west of the department.
The main rivers in the department are the Seine, the Aube (tributary of the Seine), the Amance (tributary of the Armançon), and the Vanne (a tributary of the Yonne).
The area around Troyes, at an altitude of about , has few extremes of temperature. The Köppen climate classification type for the climate at Troyes is a "Marine West Coast Climate" and of the subtype "Cfb".
The average amount of precipitation for the year in Troyes is . The month with the most precipitation on average is November with of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is July with an average of .
The average temperature for the year in Troyes is . The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of . The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of .
Aube is managed by the "Departmental Council of Aube" in Troyes. The department is part of the Grand Est region.
There are 3 "arrondissements" (districts), 17 "cantons" and 431 "communes" (municipalities) in Aube.
This is a list of the 17 cantons of the Aube department (with their INSEE codes), following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:
People who live in Aube are called "Aubois" (women: "Auboises").
Aube had a population, in 2014, of 308,094, for a population density of inhabitants/km. The "arrondissement" of Troyes, with 225,184 inhabitants, is the "arrondissement" with more inhabitants.
Evolution of the population in Aube
The "communes" with more inhabitants in the Aube department are:
Aude
Aude is a department in the region of Occitanie in southern France. It is named after the Aude river.
The inhabitants of the Aude are known, in French, as "Audois" (women: "Audoises").
Aude was created in 1790 during the French Revolution, when the whole of France was divided into departments, replacing the old provinces. Aude was formed with part of the old province of Languedoc.
It was divided in six districts: Castelnaudary, Carcassonne, Narbonne, Lagrasse, Limoux and Quillan, with Carcassonne as is capital.
In 1800, with the creation of the "arrondissements" in France, the six districts were changed into four "arrondissements": Carcassonne, Castelnaudary, Limoux and Narbonne. On 10 September 1926, the "arrondissement" of Castelnaudary was eliminated.
A skull was found, and named "Homme de Tautavel" (Tautavel Man). It was found in a cave on the site called Caune de l'Arago, near Tautavel. The fossils are between 300.000 and 450.000 years old. There are over 80 fragments; the skull belonged to a man in his twenties. He was about 1.65 m, and weighed around 45–55 kg. Other remains are two mandibles, belonging to a woman in her fifties, and to a man, about 20 to 25 years old. It looks like they did not know how to use fire yet. It also looks like they might have been cannibals, or that they preferred to scavenge for food, rather than hunt. Some bones of rhinoceros, horses, wild sheep (called Mouflon), Tahrs (resemble wild goats), Muskox (a type of bovine), deer, and reindeer were found in the cave. There is an ongoing debate if this hominian is directly related to the Neanderthal. If they are not they would be Homines erecti (currently they are classified as H. erectus Tautavelensis). If they are direct predecessors of the Neanderthals, they would be Homo heidelbergensis.
Aude has an area of . It is surrounded by the departments of Pyrénées-Orientales, Ariège, Haute-Garonne, Tarn, and Hérault, with the Gulf of Lion (Mediterranean Sea) on the east.