Aldudes

Aldudes
Aldude
Aldudes Aldude
Commune
	Nive River
	Coat of arms
	Location of Aldudes
	Aldudes Aldudes
	Coordinates: 43°05′49″N1°25′28″W / 43.0969°N 1.4244°W
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Arrondissement	Bayonne
Canton	Montagne Basque
Intercommunality	Pays Basque
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Martin Suquilbide
Area 1	23.27 km2 (8.98 sq mi)
Population (2022)	327
• Density	14.1/km2 (36.4/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	64016 /64430
Elevation	345–1,000 m (1,132–3,281 ft) ; (avg. 485 m or 1,591 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Last updated October 13, 2025

Aldudes (French pronunciation: [aldyd] ; Occitan : Aldudas; Basque : Aldude) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwestern France.

Geography

Location

The village Aldudes is part of Le Pays Quint ^[3] (Kintoa in Basque or Quinto Real in Spanish). The commune is an area of pasture belonging to Spain but cultivated by French farmers.

It is located in the Aldudes valley on the banks of the Nive des Aldudes in the Basque province of Lower Navarre. It is on the Spanish border some 20 km southwest of Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port although it can not be directly accessed from there.

Access

Access is by the D948 road from Saint-Etienne-de-Baigorry in the north, which passes through the village then continues south to Urepel. The D58 road goes from the village through the length of the commune before continuing to Spain through Urepel commune. The Spanish border of Navarre forms the southwestern and northeastern borders of the commune.^[4]

The village of Esnazu. Esnazu1.JPG — The village of Esnazu.

Hydrography

Located in the watershed of the Adour, Aldudes is traversed by the Nive d'Aldudes with its many tributaries, such as the Urbeltch Labiaringo erreka, the Aktieltako erreka, and numerous unnamed streams. Paul Raymond mentioned^[5] the Autrin, a stream which rises in Aldudes and joins the Nive des Aldudes.

Localities and hamlets

Abanjo
Abrakou
Achtieta
Aguerréa
Ahadilépo
Alachontro
Alamontcho
Alasta
Alastagaraya
Ametzlépo
Antonénéa
Aranbelea
Arrokia
Asketa
Atabala
Aucho
Autrin
Auzkia
Barbachuri
Baztanchuria
Behorsubuztan
Berha
Bidartea
Chabadinénéa
Chalosa
Chekalebeherea
Chekalegaraya
Chiloénéa
Chotro
Chotroenborda
Domingoénéa
Egnauténéa
Elgartéa
Elhocady^[5]
Elichaga
Erremedio
Errienta
Esnazu^[5]^[6] (or Eznazu, or Esnaratsu on the Cassini Map)
Etcheberria
Etchemendia
Ferranjagaraya
Hachketa
Haritzchilo
Harribeltzia
Iguxkagerrea (or Iguchkaguerrea^[7])
Joanessénéa
Joangnakei
Koche
Koskartéa
Koskarteko Borda
Koskorziloa
Landart
Lechaka
Lekuederra^[8] (or Lekuederrea)
Col de Lepeder^[5]
Luichénéa
Mahatcheta
Makurea
Manechuna
Marquitchaénéa
Martinénéa
Mate
Meharroztegui (Pass, 738m)^[5])
Menementa^[9]
Miguelartzaina
Miguelénéa
Munichta
Munichtagaraya
Murruoin
Nobléa
Oliopitchar
Otsachar
Ohhanburua
Otsanhaitz
Oyhanzelhaya
Paratzelhaï
Patchiko
Pilaria
Pocomotzénéa
Poko
Le Pont Romain
Predotinéa
Premundoa
Pritchia
Sabina
Salaria
Sallaberria
Sarahandia
Sarahandiko Ithurria
Sarkindéa
Semeder
Soldadoénéa
Ttattola
Turrieta
Uhaldéa
Urrichka
Zelhaybeguia

^[10]

Toponymy

The name of the commune in Basque is Aldude. Aldudes was also the name given to the entire valley bordering the Baïgorry Valley and the Spanish border.^[5]

Jean-Baptiste Orpustan proposes the construction ald(a)-uhide meaning "the path beside the water".^[11] According to Ernest Nègre however, the name Aldudes is a contraction of the basque Aldubide meaning "way to the summits" from the root aldu meaning "heights" and bide meaning "way".^[12] The romanisation into Aldudes is actually a plural.

The following table details the origins of the commune name and other names in the commune.

Name	Spelling	Date	Source	Page	Origin	Description
Aldudes	Alduide	1193	Orpustan			Village
	Montes de alduides	1237	Mérimée
	Aldude	1353	Mérimée
	Alduyde	1374	Mérimée
	Alduyde	1381	Orpustan
	Alduyde	1392	Orpustan
	Alduide	1614	Raymond	4	Camara
	Les Aldudes	1863	Raymond	4

Elhocady	Elhocady	1863	Raymond	58		Redoubt on the Spanish border

Esnazu	Eznazu	1863	Raymond	64		Hamlet

Le Labiarine	Le Labiarine	1863	Raymond	87		Hamlet

Lepeder	Lépéder	1863	Raymond	99		Mountain

Col de Meharroztegui	Col de Méharoztéguy	1863	Raymond	111		Pass

Col de Phaaçaldéguy	Col de Phaaçaldéguy	1863	Raymond	135		Pass to Spain

Col d’Urtiague	Col d’Urtiague	1863	Raymond	172		Pass to Spain

Sources:

Orpustan: Jean-Baptiste Orpustan, New Basque Toponymy ^[11]
Mérimée: Ministry of Culture Mérimée database: Presentation of the Commune^[3]),
Raymond: Topographic Dictionary of the Department of Basses-Pyrenees, 1863, on the page numbers indicated in the table. (in French)^[5]

Origins:Camara: Titles of Camara de Comptos^[13]

History

The commune originated in the 16th century when young noblemen of the Baigory family founded the village which, by the ancient Basque succession rule, reserved the legacy of the family house exclusively to the eldest child. The parish was established in 1793.^[3]

Heraldry

Arms of Aldudes	Blazon: Quarterly, first of gules bordered in Or charged with the monogram of the Virgin surmounted by a small cross the same all bordered in azure; second argent 3 wood-pigeons azure 2 and 1; third Or a Lachua glove posed in bend accompanied in sinister chief by a palote the whole proper; fourth gules a majuscule letter K of argent surmounted by a royal crown of Or.^[14]

Administration

List of Successive Mayors^[15]

From	To	Name
1801	1808	Jean Tihista
1808	1815	Jean Ardantz
1815	1816	Jean Uhide
1816	1829	Martin Arrambide
1829	1831	Charles Schmarzow
1831	1833	Salvat Larre
1833	1839	Mathieu Barcelona
1839	1848	Charles Schmarzow
1848	1860	Pierre Mococain
1860	1862	Alfred Saurel
1862	1871	Étienne Ritou
1995	2014	Perio Setoain
2014	2020	Jean-Michel Dendarieta
2020	2026	Martin Suquilbide

Inter-communality

The commune of Aldudes participates in five intercommunal organisations:

the Communauté d'agglomération du Pays Basque
the intercommunal association for the development and management of the slaughterhouse of Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port
the joint association of the watershed of the Nive
the association to support Basque culture
the energy association of Pyrénées-Atlantiques

Population

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Aldulais in French.^[16]

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	718	—
1975	586	−2.86%
1982	483	−2.72%
1990	433	−1.36%
1999	395	−1.02%
2007	376	−0.61%
2012	338	−2.11%
2017	322	−0.97%
Source: INSEE^[17]

Economy

A fish farm is active on the road to Urepel.

Basque pig breeding is an activity in full revival in the Aldudes valley, under the leadership of the Technical Institute of Pork (ITP).

The commune hosts the Ets Pierre Oteiza company (gourmet pork products) which is one of the fifty top agribusinesses in the department.

It is part of the Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) zone of Ossau-iraty.

Culture and heritage

Languages

According to the Map of the Seven Basque Provinces, published in 1863 by Prince Louis-Lucien Bonaparte, the dialect of Basque spoken in Aldudes is western Lower Navarrese dialect.

Laxoa

In 1952 the square in front of the church and the town hall was converted into a playing field for "laxoa". This ancient game of basque pelote is played with leather gloves.

At the entrance porch of the church is the target for the game.

Civil heritage

The commune contains a number of sites that are registered as historical monuments:

Houses and Farms (18th-19th century) ^[18]
The Menementa Farm (1827) ^[9]
The Iguxkagerrea Farm (18th century) ^[7]
The Joalginenborda Farm (19th century) ^[8]

Other sites of interest

Cromlechs: There are three Harrespils on the Argibel site. These are great circles of stone or "menhirs" for funerary purposes, dated from the 1st millennium BC. The Harrespil are notable due to their number (over 100 registered) and their witness to knowledge of ancient burial rites.

Religious Heritage

The commune has two religious sites that are registered as historical monuments:

The 'Chapel of the Assumption (1868) at a place called Eznazu has been listed on the Inventory of cultural heritage since 21 March 2003.^[6] It contains a Retable and Statues (17th century) which are registered as historical objects. ^[19]
The Parish Church of Notre-Dame (17th century) ^[20] has a rosary which belonged to the Emperor Maximilian.

Other religious sites of interest

Some Hilarri in the cemetery are from the 19th century - two from 1805.

Environmental heritage

Palombière is the property of the association of the Baigorry Valley. This hunt at 500 metres above sea level was created in 1840 by the mayor of the town, Charles Schmarsow. Reorganized in 1880, it then passed into the hands of the Ospital family who still lead the hunt. The five Filetiers use five pantières or special nets and ten beaters to direct the pigeons to the nets.

Picture Gallery

Church of Aldudes
The Church
The Bank
Salting along the Nive
The Weir on the Nive
The Roman bridge on the Nive
The Roman Bridge
The Roman Bridge
The Urepel Bridge over the Nive
The Urepel Bridge
The Urepel Valley
A Basque pig farm
The War Memorial

Facilities

Education

The commune has a private primary school (Mendi-Alde).

Notable People linked to the commune

Georges Lacombe, born 31 January 1879 in Orthez and died July 1947 in Paris, was a linguist, bascologuue, and Basque French academic. On the eve of the First World War he prepared, with the help of Dr. Jean Etchepare,^[21]^[22] a doctorate in Letters on the Aldudes dialect.
Bernard Delhom, born in 1885 in Aldudes, was the oldest man in France from 30 December 1995 to 7 February 1996 when he died in Paris aged 110 years and 213 days
Jean-Baptiste Urrutia , born in 1901 at Aldudes and died in Montbeton, was a missionary in Indochina and Bishop of Huế during the Indochina War and the Vietnam War

Notes

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.
1 2 3 IA64000418 Presentation of the commune (in French)
↑ Google Maps
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Topographic Dictionary of the Department of Basses-Pyrenees, Paul Raymond, Imprimerie nationale, 1863, Digitised from Lyon Public Library 15 June 2011 (in French)
1 2 Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000403 Chapel of the Assumption (in French)
1 2 Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000455 Iguxkagerrea Farm (in French)
1 2 Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000454 Joalginenborda Farm (in French)
1 2 Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000456 Menementa Farm (in French)
↑ Géoportail, IGN (in French)
1 2 Jean-Baptiste Orpustan, New Basque Toponymy, Presses universitaires de Bordeaux, 2006, ISBN 2 86781 396 4 (in French)
↑ Ernest Nègre, General Toponymy of France, Librairie Droz, 1990, ISBN 2 600 00133 6, No. 19228 (in French)
↑ Titles published by don José Yanguas y Miranda - Diccionario de Antiguedades del reino de Navarra, 1840, Pamplona (in Spanish)
↑ Guy Ascarat Archived November 9, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
↑ List of Mayors of France
↑ Pyrénées-Atlantiques, habitants.fr
↑ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
↑ Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000487 Houses and Farms (in French)
↑ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM64000027 Retable and Statues (in French)
↑ Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000400 Parish Church of Notre-Dame (in French)
↑ (in Spanish) Centenario de Euskaltzaleen Biltzarra ^{[ permanent dead link ]}
↑ "Official website of Euskaltzaleen Biltzarra". Archived from the original on 2010-10-05. Retrieved 2013-08-22.

External links

Aldude in the Bernardo Estornés Lasa - Auñamendi Encyclopedia (Euskomedia Fundazioa) (in Spanish)
les Aldudes on the 1750 Cassini Map

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[1] "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020.

[popref2022-2] "Populations de référence 2022" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 19 December 2024.

[Mérimée-3] 1 2 3 IA64000418 Presentation of the commune (in French)

[Google-4] Google Maps

[Raymond-5] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Topographic Dictionary of the Department of Basses-Pyrenees, Paul Raymond, Imprimerie nationale, 1863, Digitised from Lyon Public Library 15 June 2011 (in French)

[Eznazu-6] 1 2 Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000403 Chapel of the Assumption (in French)

[Iguchkaguerrea-7] 1 2 Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000455 Iguxkagerrea Farm (in French)

[Joalginenborda-8] 1 2 Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000454 Joalginenborda Farm (in French)

[Menementa-9] 1 2 Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000456 Menementa Farm (in French)

[Géo-10] Géoportail, IGN (in French)

[Orpustan-11] 1 2 Jean-Baptiste Orpustan, New Basque Toponymy, Presses universitaires de Bordeaux, 2006, ISBN 2 86781 396 4 (in French)

[Nègre-12] Ernest Nègre, General Toponymy of France, Librairie Droz, 1990, ISBN 2 600 00133 6, No. 19228 (in French)

[Camara-13] Titles published by don José Yanguas y Miranda - Diccionario de Antiguedades del reino de Navarra, 1840, Pamplona (in Spanish)

[14] Guy Ascarat Archived November 9, 2013, at the Wayback Machine

[15] List of Mayors of France

[16] Pyrénées-Atlantiques, habitants.fr

[pophist-17] Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE

[18] Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000487 Houses and Farms (in French)

[19] Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM64000027 Retable and Statues (in French)

[20] Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA64000400 Parish Church of Notre-Dame (in French)

[Biltzarra-21] (in Spanish) Centenario de Euskaltzaleen Biltzarra ^{[ permanent dead link ]}

[22] "Official website of Euskaltzaleen Biltzarra". Archived from the original on 2010-10-05. Retrieved 2013-08-22.

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