Sainte-Néomaye is a
commune in the
Deux-Sèvres department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
in western
France. It has 1,324 inhabitants (2018).
[Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2018]
INSEE They are called Neomadiens.
Villages
Sainte-Neomaye is composed of several villages:
* Sainte-Neomaye (le Bourg)
* La Chesnaye
* Aiript
* Les Fontenelles
* La Corbeliere
* Fontramier
Each village has its own identity, and its own particularities.
Traditions
A legend says that Sainte-Neomaye takes his name from a young a very virtuous woman, Neomaye, who was promised, against her will, to a local ugly lord. Rather than accepting the wedding, and in order to keep her virtue, she asked that her foot be changed in a goose leg, and was fulfilled after she dived it in a source. This source is still said to have some magic power.
Sainte-Neomaye has been famous for its Donkey Fair (La Foire aux Mules) since the 18th century. Nowadays, this social event still takes place on the gorgeous central square of the village, but is less about commerce, and more about entertainment.
At this occasion, a race, "Les Chemins du Roy", takes place around the village, through tiny paths used, a long time ago, by donkey merchants.
Geography
Sainte-Neomaye is located in the south-east of Deux-Sèvres. It is 14 km east of
Niort, 60 km south-west of
Poitiers
Poitiers (, , , ; Poitevin: ''Poetàe'') is a city on the River Clain in west-central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and the historical centre of Poitou. In 2017 it had a population of 88,291. Its agglomerat ...
.
The town is crossed by several rivers. The most important is the
Sèvre Niortaise
The Sèvre Niortaise () is a long river in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Pays de la Loire regions in western France, flowing into the Atlantic Ocean. Its source is in the Deux-Sèvres department, near Sepvret, north of Melle.
It flows through t ...
.
Sainte-Néomaye is very accessible, only 2 hours 15 minutes from
Paris via
TGV
The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
, and 2 hours from
Bordeaux by
car
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods.
The year 1886 is regarded as ...
. It is also very close from Poitiers and its malls and universities (60 km), and La Rochelle and the Atlantic Ocean.
Architecture
* The roman church was built in the 12th century and has been recently renovated.
* The castle of Sainte-Neomaye is a manor built in the 19th century.
* The castle of Les Fontenelles is a nice example of romantic architecture from the 19th century.
* Sainte-Neomaye's central square is also well known for the beautiful houses erected on its sides. These very typical Poitevin houses used to be hostels. The square is planted with trees and has large grass areas.
See also
*
Communes of the Deux-Sèvres department
References
Communes of Deux-Sèvres
{{DeuxSèvres-geo-stub