Ariège (department)

Ariège (; ) is a department in the region of Occitanie in southern France; it is named after the Ariège river that flows through the department.
Its capital is the city of Foix but the city with the largest population is Pamiers.
History.
The department was inhabited in prehistoric times, as evidenced by the presence of caves with cave paintings and dolmens. In historical times it was inhabited by Basque people; they settled on the northern side of the Pyrenees and in the valleys below. In 415 it became part of the kingdom of the Visigoths, until their defeat at the hands of the king of the Franks in 507.
Ariège was created in 1790 during the French Revolution, when the whole of France was divided into departments, replacing the old provinces. Ariège was created combining the counties of Foix (Languedoc) and Couserans (Gascogne).
Geography.
Ariège is part of the Occitanie region and has an area of .
The department is surrounded by the French departments of Haute-Garonne to the west and north, Aude to the east, and Pyrénées-Orientales in the southeast, as well as Spain (Lleida) and Andorra in the south.
Natural regions.
There are three main natural regions in the department:
The highest mountain in the department is the "Pica d'Estats" () that is high and is on the Spain-France border. Other high mountains are the "peak of Montcalm" (3,077 m) and the "Pic de Sotllo" (3,072 m).
The main river is the Ariège river, a tributary of the Garonne river. Another important river is the Lèze, a tributary of the Ariège.
Climate.
Two main types of climate are found in Ariège:
Temperatures are mild in the foothills, e.g. at the city of Foix (400 metres) the average is 5 °C in January and 19 °C in July. However, they decline rapidly with elevation, e.g. at l'Hospitalet-près-l'Andorre (1,430 m) it is 0 °C in January and 14 °C in July.
Administration.
The department is managed by the "Departamental Council of the Ariège" in Foix. Ariège is part of the region of Occitanie.
Administrative divisions.
There are 3 "arrondissements" (districts), 13 "cantons" and 332 "communes" (municipalities) in Ariège.
The following is a list of the 13 cantons of the Ariège department (with their INSEE codes), following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:
Demographics.
The inhabitants of Ariège are known, in French, as "ariègeois" (women: "ariègeoises").
Ariège has a population, in 2014, of 152,574, for a population density of inhabitants/km2. The "arrondissement" of Pamiers, with 73,702 inhabitants, is by far the one with more inhabitants. The other two, Foix and Saint-Girons, have respectively 51,473 and 27,399 inhabitants.
Evolution of the population in Ariège
About 25% of the population lives in the four "communes" with 6,000 or more inhabitants.
The 10 most important cities in the department are:
Economy.
Agriculture is an important activity in Ariege. Only a small part of its territory is used by farmers; only , 27% of its total area, are used for agriculture in the Ariege.
The Ariège plain is the most fertile area of the department; here farmers grow maize, wheat, sunflower and other crops. The other natural regions are not good for agriculture and are covered with forests or are used for pastures for sheep, cattle and horses.
In the Ax valleys, the mining of talc is the most typical activity. This industry is supplemented by tourism for winter sports.
Hydroelectric production is about one-fifth of the production in the Pyrenees. The hydroelectric plant at Aston has the largest annual production capacity in the Pyrenees.