Bardos, Pyrénées-Atlantiques

The area of the commune is 4,253 hectares with a maximum altitude of 186 m on the Miremont hill which is the location of an old 14th century mansion as well as a water tower built on a panoramic viewpoint overlooking the Adour valley.

The climate of Bardos, some twenty kilometres from the Basque coast, is relatively similar to that of Biarritz with fairly heavy rainfall: the oceanic climate due to its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. The average winter temperature is around 8 °C and around 20 °C in summer. The lowest temperature recorded was -12.7 °C on 16 January 1985 and the highest 40.6 °C on 4 August 2003. Rain on the Basque coast is rarely persistent except during winter storms. It often takes the form of intense thunderstorms of short duration.

Comparison of local Meteorological data with other cities in France[7]

Town	Sunshine (hours/yr)	Rain (mm/yr)	Snow (days/yr)	Storm (days/yr)	Fog (days/yr)
National Average	1,973	770	14	22	40
Bardos[8]	1,920	1,450	2	36	29
Paris	1,661	637	12	18	10
Nice	2,724	767	1	29	1
Strasbourg	1,693	665	29	29	56
Brest	1,605	1,211	7	12	75

On the Napoleonic Cadastral Map of 1818 the commune was divided into four sections:[9]

• Section A, Lassarrade
• Section B, Legarre
• Section C, Lerine
• Section D, Ibar

Today, although the division into districts is not precise, there are seven districts:

• Arbinoritz
• le Bourg
• Ibarre
• Lambert
• Lassarrade
• Miremont
• les Tisserands

In 2011 the total number of dwellings in the commune was 716, down from 611 in 2006.[10]

Of these dwellings, 87% were primary residences, 6.6% were second homes, and 6.3% were occasional homes or vacant units. 69.4% of these dwellings were detached houses and 29.6% were apartments.[10]

The proportion of principle residences owned by their occupants was 74%. The percentage of empty rental public housing was 1.3%.[10]

Bardos falls within the area of the Tribunal d'instance (District court) of Bayonne, the Tribunal de grande instance (High Court) of Bayonne, the Cour d'appel (Court of Appeal) of Pau, the Tribunal pour enfants (Juvenile court) of Bayonne, the Conseil de prud'hommes (Labour Court) of Bayonne, the Tribunal de commerce (Commercial Court) of Bayonne, the Tribunal administratif (Administrative tribunal) of Pau, and the Cour administrative d'appel (Administrative Court of Appeal) of Bordeaux.[27]

The town belongs to nine inter-communal structures:[28]

• the Communauté d'agglomération du Pays Basque;
• the AEP association for the Bidache region;
• the sanitation association of Adour-Ursuia;
• the energy association for Pyrénées-Atlantiques;
• the inter-communal association to protect the banks of the Adour and its tributaries (SIPBAMA)
• the inter-communal association for the industrial area of Ayherre;
• the inter-communal association for the support of Basque culture;
• the Joint association for the Berriak Erreka;
• the association for the Z.A. Etxecolu industrial area at Bardos.

Bardos was not part of any community of communes until 1 January 2010 when it joined the community of communes of Pays de Bidache.[29] Bardos is the headquarters of the Joint association for the Berriak Erreka and also for the union for the association for the Z.A. Etxecolu industrial area.

"Environment and Waste" policy is under inter-communal jurisdiction with household waste collection and sorting for the commune being provided by the Community of communes of Pays de Bidache.[30]

The treatment of the waste is then managed by the Bil Ta Garbi joint association.[31]

In 2011 the median household income tax was €32,753, placing Bardos at 11,125th place among the 31,886 communes with more than 49 households in metropolitan France.[35]

The tourist office of Pays de Bidache covers all seven communes of the community to which Bardos belongs. It is located in Bidache.

The Pays de Bidache is itself a member of the Tourist Information Organisation (PAT) of Nive-Adour-Ursuia with Pays de Hasparren.[36]

The commune has two furnished rural cottages for visitors.[37]

Bardos is located in the Academy of Bordeaux zone.[38]

There are two primary schools in Bardos:[39]

• the Saint Mary private school
• a Public School

There is no Basque education available in the commune.[40]

The college for the commune is located in Bidache (5.6 km away).

The high school for the commune is the General René-Cassin High School located in Bayonne (28.7 km away).

The town has a retirement home called Albodi.[29]

The various sports clubs and associations in the village have several facilities available:

• a Fronton
• a trinquete with a wall on the left for Basque pelota
• two tennis courts
• a rugby stadium

In 2011 a building was built next to the sports field for sports like weightlifting and with a dance hall: Erdizka. In 2012 a bowling alley has started near Erdizka.

There are several sports associations in the commune which allow residents regular exercise and sports: clay pigeon shooting, gymnastics, fitness, hiking, walking, Basque pelota, rugby, tennis, judo, and pilates.[41]

There is no local media specific to Bardos except for Bardos-Info, a Municipal Bulletin published by the mayor with various articles from local associations.[42]

There are three TV networks available in the commune:

• Euskal Telebista[43] (Basque government channel covering all of Basque Country)
• France 3 Euskal Herri[44] (a local branch of the national media)
• TVPI (a local channel covering the Basque Country, Landes and Béarn)

News about the village is relayed to the press by local correspondents for three newspapers:

• Herria (weekly newspaper in Basque)
• La Semaine du Pays Basque (The Week in Basque Country) (weekly newspaper in French)
• Sud Ouest Pays basque (South West Basque Country) (a daily newspaper in French).

Bardos is in the parish of Notre Dame du Chemin de Saint-Jacques (Our Lady of the Way of Saint-James) in the diocese of Bayonne[45] which depends on the Church of the Assumption.

The communal cemetery is located along the D936. It was once located around the church and was moved to this location in May 1861.

The commune has many buildings and sites that are registered as historical monuments:

• The Chateau de Miremont (15th century).[46] The Chateau is at 188 metres above sea level and offers panoramic views of the River Adour, Landes and the Pyrenees.
• Houses and Farms (16th-20th century)[47]
• The Chateau de Salha (1655)[48]
• The Ermont Mill (15th century)[49]

Other sites of interest

• A Gaztelu zahar (prehistoric fortified mound) was used as a Napoleonic redoubt (stone parapets).

The Parish Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (19th century).[50] It is located at the highest point in the village at 128 metres above sea level. The Church contains many items that are registered as historical objects:

Language

According to the Map of the Seven Basque Provinces by Prince Louis Lucien Bonaparte dating from 1863, the dialect spoken in Bardos is eastern Low Navarrese. The village had its own dialect known as the dialect of Bardos which is also spoken on the neighbouring commune of Orègue. Notably, although Basque people were the majority, Gascon was once spoken by a significant part of the population, often more than Basque.

Sayings and proverbs

A local Basque saying:
Que bas entau Bidache ? Pot de grache.
Que bas entau Bardos ? Chuque aquét os.
A Bardos que minjà la carne e que dachen lous os.

meaning:

You go to Bidache? Pot of fat.
You go to Bardos? Suck the bone.
In Bardos, eat the meat and leave the bone.

Nicknames

The people of Bardos, who are known as bardoztar have, like most of their neighbours, funny nicknames in Basque and in Gascon:[68]

• "Xarnegu arraza" (in Basque: "mixed race")
• "Los sents" (in Gascon: "the saints")

Two Natura 2000 areas are partially within the territory of the commune:

• the Aran river (also called Joyeuse)[69]
• the Bidouze river.[70]

In addition there are three Zone naturelle d'intérêt écologique, faunistique et floristique (Natural areas of ecological interest, flora and fauna) (ZNIEFF) which are fully or partially located on the territory of the commune:

• the Landes of Arberoue;
• the Hydrographic Network of the Bidouze and Arberoue
• the Joyeuse Valley

The premier event of the year in the commune is the Carnaval Labourdin (Labourdin Carnival) that spans three weekends and includes visits to houses in the districts by day and festive evenings on the town square. It is organized by the Foyer de Bardos, a local cultural association.[71]

The Xarnegu Eguna festival that mixes Basque and Gascon cultures is also organized by the association of the same name every year around 1 May.[72]

For over 30 years the Foyer de Bardos has organised an exhibition of contemporary art in order to diversify the cultural offering in rural areas. It takes place every summer between 15 June and 15 July.[73]

The festivals are organized in Bardos by the Comité des Fêtes de Bardos (Festival Committee of Bardos) every summer around 15 August. The committee includes a large part of the villagers.[74]