Castellane

Castellane (; Provençal: ''Castelana'') is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France. With about 1,600 inhabitants, Castellane has the distinction of being the least-populated sub-prefecture of France.

Its inhabitants are referred to as ''Castellanais''.

Geography

Castellane is a very old city located upstream of the Gorges du Verdon. The city is above sea level.

The Roc, or the Roc of Notre-Dame, overlooks the city from above. It has been occupied since the High Middle Ages and is a registered historical site. It can be accessed from the centre of town behind the old Church of St. Andrew. The walk takes about 25 minutes.

Two reservoirs are located in the territory of Castellane:
* Lake Castillon
* Lake Chaudanne, created by the dam of the same name, the .
The area has two water gaps:
* the ''clue de Taulanne'' containing the Asse de Blieux river and the Route Napoléon along its banks.
* the ''clue de Chasteuil'', which contains the Verdon valley.

The GR 4 hiking trail crosses through the town. The neighboring municipalities are:

Climate

Castellane features a warm-summer mediterranean climate (Köppen: ''Csb''), bordering on a mediterraneran continental climate (Köppen: ''Dsb''). Summers are warm to hot and dry, while winters are cold and snowy.

Geology

The commune is part of the Jurassic limestone area of the French Prealps in Provence, formed by the tectonic upheaval of the Alps during the Tertiary. Limestone deposits run the length of the Verdon river, giving rise to spectacular gorges formed through karst erosion. Around Castellane older formations surface, such as gypsum and Triassic black marl.

Neighboring mountains and passes
*Castellard ()
*Pré Chauvin ()
*, the route taken by Napoleon
*Blaches Pass, on the road to Saint-André-les-Alpes

Environment

The commune contains of wood and forests (about 59% of its surface area). The extends over the western part of the commune (former communes of Taulanne, Chasteuil and Villars-Brandis).

History of place names

Castellane's name appeared in texts for the first time circa 965–977 as ''Petra Castellana''. The name breaks down into three Occitan terms, ''pèira'', ''castel'' and the suffix ''-ana,'' which means fortified rock and village, and could be translated as "Castellane rock", in other words, the rock that has a fortified village,
, § 26663, pages=1465-1466
or simply the stronghouse or stronghold. Castellane is called ''Castelana'' in the Provençal dialect in the classical norm, or ''Castelano'' in the Mistralian.

The former commune of Castillon, now beneath the lake, appeared around 1300 as ''de Castilhone'', an Occitan word for a small castle.

The first part of the name "Chasteuil" is obscure, but the second, ''-ialo'', is a Celtic suffix for "clearing".

The village of ''Robion'' has the same name as the river that and flows through it into the and takes its source from the Massif du Robion to the east of the village. The name ''in Rubione'', which first appeared for it in 1045, is derived from the vulgar Latin ''robigonem'', a distortion of the classical Latin ''robiginem'' for rust, according to Ernest Nègre. Charles Rostaing, on the other hand, believed that the name might predate the Gauls and designate a steep-sided ravine.

, was first mentioned in 1095 when the château of Taloire was given to the Abbey of St. Victor, Marseille, which became the lay ''seigneur'' of the fief. It derived its name from the Occitan '' talador'', meaning soldiers especially recruited to devastate the land of an adversary. Adding the -ia suffix designates, either a land inhabited by these devastators, or a land devastated by the ''taladors''. Rostaing thought this name also probably also predated the Gauls. noted a tautology: *Tal- et *Tor-, the ''teo'' roots. The name "Taloire" contains two terms designating a mountain.

Economy

In 2017, the unemployment rate of the Castellane population was 20.1%, up from 12.4% in 2007. The largest sector of activity in December 2015 was the public sector (administration, education, health, social work) with 45 businesses and 280 paid workers.

History

Prehistory and antiquity

The inhabitants of Castellane are known back to a very early date. Neolithic nomads came through the area; the oldest traces date back to 6000 BC. A grotto with cave paintings exists in the commune but its location is kept confidential to protect the artwork; Bronze Age tombs have also been discovered in a cave in Castillon. Ligurian tribes occupied the territory. The Suetrii or Suètres later created an ''oppidum'' named ''Ducelia'', near the Roc. They mined salt in the area and sold it. Most of the communes attached to Castellane today were peopled by the Suetrii. Taulanne was the exception, inhabited by the people who had their capital in Senez. (Their name is uncertain and Roman historians differ on the subject.)

The region was conquered by Augustus in 14 BC. Castellane was attached to the Roman province of Alpes-Maritimes and began to grow. Homes were established in the plain, and the city was named ''Civitas Saliniensum'' (city of salt merchants). The name of the town later became Salinae.

Several roads left from or passed through the town:
* Via Salinaria, going west towards Durance