Côtes-d'Armor

The Côtes-d'Armor (/koʊt dɑːrmər/, /-dɑːrmɔːr/; French pronunciation: [kot daʁmɔʁ] (listen); Breton: Aodoù-an-Arvor, [ˈoːdu ãn ˈarvor]), formerly known as Côtes-du-Nord (Breton: Aodoù-an-Hanternoz, [ˈoːdu ãn ˌhãntɛrˈnoːs]), are a department in the north of Brittany, in northwestern France. In 2019, it had a population of 600,582.[3]

Côtes-d'Armor
Aodoù-an-Arvor (Breton)
Department
The departmental council and prefectural building in Saint-Brieuc.
Flag
Coat of arms
Location of Côtes-d'Armor in France
Coordinates: 48°20′N 02°50′W
CountryFrance
RegionBrittany
PrefectureSaint-Brieuc
SubprefecturesDinan
Guingamp
Lannion
Government
 • President of the departmental councilChristian Coail[1] (PS)
Area
1
 • Total6,878 km2 (2,656 sq mi)
Population
 (Jan. 2019)[2]
 • Total600,582
 • Rank42nd
 • Density87/km2 (230/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Department number22
Arrondissements4
Cantons27
Communes348
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

History

Côtes-du-Nord was one of the original 83 departments created on 4 March 1790 following the French Revolution. It was made up from the near entirety of the ancient Pays de Saint-Brieuc, most of historical Trégor, the eastern half of Cornouaille, and the north-western part of the former diocese of Saint-Malo.

On February 27, 1990, the name was changed to Côtes-d'Armor: the French word côtes means "coasts" and ar mor is "the sea" in Breton. The name also recalls that of the Roman province of Armorica ("the coastal region").

Geography

Côtes-d'Armor is part of the current administrative region of Brittany and is bounded by the departments of Ille-et-Vilaine to the east, Morbihan to the south, and Finistère to the west, and by the English Channel to the north.

The region is an undulating plateau including three well-marked ranges of hills in the south. A granitoid chain, the Monts du Méné, starting in the south-east of the department runs in a north-westerly direction, forming the watershed between the rivers running respectively to the English Channel and the Atlantic Ocean. Towards its western extremity this chain bifurcates to form the Montagnes Noires in the south-west and the Monts d'Arrée in the west of the department. Off the coast, which is steep, rocky and much indented, are the Jentilez, Bréhat and other small islands. The principal bays are those of Saint-Malo and Saint-Brieuc.[4]

Principal towns

The most populous commune is Saint-Brieuc, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 6 communes with more than 10,000 inhabitants:[3]

Commune Population (2019)
Saint-Brieuc 43,605
Lannion 20,210
Lamballe-Armor 16,688
Dinan 14,407
Plérin 14,309
Ploufragan 11,383

Demographics

The inhabitants of the department are known in French as Costarmoricains.

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1801504,303—    
1821552,424+0.46%
1831598,872+0.81%
1841607,572+0.14%
1851632,613+0.40%
1861628,676−0.06%
1876630,957+0.02%
1881627,585−0.11%
1891618,652−0.14%
1901609,349−0.15%
1921557,824−0.44%
1936532,000−0.32%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1946526,955−0.10%
1954503,178−0.58%
1962501,923−0.03%
1968506,000+0.13%
1975525,556+0.54%
1982538,860+0.36%
1990538,443−0.01%
1999542,398+0.08%
2006569,498+0.70%
2011594,375+0.86%
2016598,953+0.15%
Sources:[5][6]

Politics

Côtes-d'Armor's long tradition of anti-clericalism, especially in the interior around Guingamp (a former Communist stronghold), has often led to the department's being seen as an area of left-wing exceptionalism in a region that historically was otherwise strongly Catholic and right-wing. The current president of the departmental council, Christian Coail, is a member of the Socialist Party.

Party groupingsseats
Centre et droite républicaine32
Socialiste et républicain15
Communiste et républicain5
non-party2

Current National Assembly Representatives
ConstituencyMember[7]Party
Côtes-d'Armor's 1st constituency Bruno Joncour MoDem
Côtes-d'Armor's 2nd constituency Hervé Berville La République En Marche!
Côtes-d'Armor's 3rd constituency Marc Le Fur The Republicans
Côtes-d'Armor's 4th constituency Yannick Kerlogot La République En Marche!
Côtes-d'Armor's 5th constituency Éric Bothorel La République En Marche!

Culture

The western part of the département is part of the traditionally Breton-speaking "Lower Brittany" (Breizh-Izel in Breton). The boundary runs from Plouha to Mûr-de-Bretagne. The Breton language has become an intense issue in many parts of Brittany, and many Breton-speakers advocate for bilingual schools. Gallo is also spoken in the east and is offered as a language in the schools and on the baccalaureat exams.

  • Paimpol
  • Perros-Guirec
  • Fort-la-Latte
  • Cap Fréhel
  • Castel Meur house in Plougrescant
  • Statue of Bertrand du Guesclin in Dinan

Notable people
  • Anne Beaumanoir (b. 1923), one of the Righteous Among the Nations, was born in Guildo.
  • English-born poet Robert William Service (1874–1958), known as the "Bard of the Yukon", is buried in Lancieux.

See also
  • Cantons of the Côtes-d'Armor department
  • Communes of the Côtes-d'Armor department
  • Arrondissements of the Côtes-d'Armor department

References
  1. "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
  2. "Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2019". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 29 December 2021.
  3. Populations légales 2019: 22 Côtes-d'Armor, INSEE
  4. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Côtes-du-Nord". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 7 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 249.
  5. "Historique des Côtes-d'Armor". Le SPLAF.
  6. "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
  7. Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
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