11/24/22, 1:24 PM Banyuls-sur-Mer - Wikipedia

Coordinates: 42°28′59″N 3°07′41″E

Banyuls-sur-Mer
Banyuls-sur-Mer (French pronunciation:  [baɲuls syʁ mɛʁ]
( listen); Catalan: Banyuls de la Marenda) is a commune Banyuls-sur-Mer
in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern
Commune
France.[2] It was first settled by Greeks starting in 400
BCE.

Contents
Geography
Location
Toponymy
History
A general view of Banyuls-sur-Mer
Government and politics
Mayors
International relations
Demography
Sports Coat of arms

Economy Location of Banyuls-sur-Mer

Sites of interest
Notable people
See also
References
External links

Geography Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap

Location

Banyuls-sur-Mer is located in the canton of La Côte

Vermeille and in the arrondissement of Céret.

Banyuls-sur-Mer is neighbored by Cerbère, Port-Vendres,

Argelès-sur-Mer and Collioure on its French borders, and
by Espolla, Rabós, Colera and Portbou on its Spanish
borders. The foothills of Pyrenees, the Monts Albères, run
into the Mediterranean Sea in Banyuls-sur-Mer, creating
a steep cliff line.
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Banyuls-sur-
Mer

Map of Banyuls-sur-Mer and its surrounding

communes Show map of France
Show map of Occitanie
Show all
Toponymy Coordinates: 42°28′59″N 3°07′41″E

Country France
Banyuls-sur-Mer was first mentioned in 981 as Balneum Region Occitania
or Balneola. In 1074, the town started being called Department Pyrénées-
Bannils de Maritimo in order to distinguish it from Orientales
Banyuls-dels-Aspres, which lies 20  km (12  mi) away. In Arrondissement Céret
1197, the town was mentioned as Banullis de Maredine Canton La Côte
and in 1674. In Catalan, it has been called Banyuls de la Vermeille
Marenda since the 19th century. Intercommunality CC des
Albères, de la
The name Banyuls indicates the presence of a pond. In Côte Vermeille
fact, a pond did exist in Banyuls-sur-Mer until the creek et de l'Illibéris
Vallauria was drained in 1872. The term Marenda in Government
Catalan or sur Mer in French merely indicates the  • Mayor (2020–2026) Jean-Michel
proximity to the coast. Solé
Area1 42.34 km2
History (16.35 sq mi)
Population (Jan. 2019)[1] 4,738
In the 20th century Banyuls-sur-Mer was the site of a  • Density 110/km2
camp housing Republican escapees from Spain at the end (290/sq mi)
of the Spanish Civil War.[3] Time zone UTC+01:00
(CET)

Government and politics  • Summer (DST) UTC+02:00

(CEST)
INSEE/Postal code 66016 (https://
www.insee.fr/fr/
Mayors statistiques/140
5599?geo=CO
M-66016)
/66650
Elevation 0–965 m (0–
3,166 ft)
(avg. 6 m or
20 ft)
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1 French Land Register data, which

Mayor Term start Term end
excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2
René Ribère 1977 1983
(0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river
Jean Rède 1983 1995 estuaries.
Pierre Becque 1995 2001
Roger Rulls 2001 2008
Jean Rède 2008 2014
Jean-Michel Solé 2014

International relations
Town hall
Banyuls-sur-Mer is twinned with Settle, North Yorkshire, United
Kingdom and also with the town of Kralupy nad Vltavou in the
Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic.

Demography

"Fête des Vendanges", wine festival held

on the beach each year in October

Historical population
Year Pop. ±% p.a. Year Pop. ±% p.a.
1836 2,022 —     1990 4,662 +1.64%
1901 3,111 +0.67% 1999 4,532 −0.31%
1962 4,271 +0.52% 2007 4,644 +0.31%
1968 4,436 +0.63% 2012 4,652 +0.03%
1975 4,000 −1.47% 2017 4,761 +0.46%
1982 4,093 +0.33%
Source: EHESS[4] and INSEE (1968-2017)[5]

Sports
Banyuls-sur-Mer is at the eastern end of the GR 10 long-distance footpath.[6]
Banyuls is a centre for scuba diving. The main dive site of the area is the marine reserve at Cap
Rederis. Local dive schools offer excellent facilities.
Sea kayaking is also available here.
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Economy
For nearly two centuries, the smuggling of goods to and from Spain was a major activity in Banyuls-
sur-Mer. Depending on the needs of the time, salt, tobacco, silver, sugar, rice, textiles, and leather
were smuggled through this city, almost always with impunity. Otherwise the inhabitants lived mainly
from fishing and viticulture. Nowadays, tourism stemming from the wine industry plays a significant
economic role in the town, notably for delicious and rare red dessert wines. Under the Collioure
appellation, the town is also a centre of quality dry reds, rosés and whites, with a number of producers
of naturally sweet wines.

George Orwell and his wife Eileen had a holiday in Banyuls-sur-Mer directly after leaving Spain, then
in the throes of its civil war, in July 1937. Their holiday was not a success. As he noted, Orwell found
the place 'a bore and a disappointment'. It was chilly weather, a persistent wind blew off the sea, the
water was dull and choppy....[7]

Sites of interest
Musée Maillol Banyuls-sur-Mer, a private museum at the farm of the sculptor Aristide Maillol
where he is buried.

Notable people
Aristide Maillol (1861-1944), French sculptor and painter, born
and died in Banyuls-sur-Mer. Maillol was very much part of the
turn of the century art scene, friends with Matisse, Derrain,
Picasso, Dali. A sculpture of Dina Vierny, aged 17, his last
muse, model, and member of the French Resistance, stands
beneath the huge jacaranda tree behind the town hall.[8]
Emil Racovita (1868-1947), Romanian polar explorer, former
co-director of the Arago laboratory. War memorial by Aristide Maillol
Jean de La Hire (1878-1956), writer born in Banyuls-sur-Mer.
Marc Eyraud (1924-2005), actor, died in Banyuls-sur-Mer.
Nils Seethaler (*1981), German cultural anthropologist, spent parts of his childhood in Banyuls-
sur-Mer.

See also
Communes of the Pyrénées-Orientales department

References
1. "Populations légales 2019" (https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/6005800?geo=COM-66016). The
National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 29 December 2021.
2. INSEE commune file (https://www.insee.fr/fr/metadonnees/cog/commune/COM66016-banyuls-sur
-mer)
3. Beevor, Antony (2001). The Spanish Civil War. London: Cassell Military Paperbacks. p. 394.
ISBN 0-304-35840-1.

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4. Des villages de Cassini aux communes d'aujourd'hui: Commune data sheet Banyuls-sur-Mer (htt
p://cassini.ehess.fr/fr/html/fiche.php?select_resultat=2592), EHESS. (in French)
5. Population en historique depuis 1968 (https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/4515315?geo=COM-660
16#ancre-POP_T1), INSEE
6. "Banyuls-sur-Mer" (http://anglophone-direct.com/banyuls-sur-mer/). 6 October 2020.
7. Shelden, Michael (1991). ORWELL : : THE AUTHORIZED BIOGRAPHY (https://books.google.co
m/books?id=tDkzAAAAMAAJ&q=+New+Statesman+) (First ed.). New York, NY: HarperCollins.
p. 277. ISBN 9780060167097. Retrieved 2014-08-18.
8. "Banyuls-sur-Mer" (http://anglophone-direct.com/banyuls-sur-mer/). 6 October 2020.

External links
Official website (http://www.banyuls-sur-mer.com/)

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