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La Teste-de-Buch

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La Teste-de-Buch
Dune du Pyla
Dune du Pyla
Coat of arms of La Teste-de-Buch
Location of La Teste-de-Buch
Map
CountryFrance
RegionNouvelle-Aquitaine
DepartmentGironde
ArrondissementArcachon
CantonLa Teste-de-Buch
IntercommunalityBassin d'Arcachon Sud
Government
 • Mayor (2008–2014) Jean-Jacques Eroles
Area
1
180.20 km2 (69.58 sq mi)
Population
 (2008)
24,384
 • Density140/km2 (350/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
33529 /33260
Elevation0–101 m (0–331 ft)
(avg. 4 m or 13 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

La Teste-de-Buch (French pronunciation: [la tɛst ˈbyk]; Occitan: La Tèsta de Bug [la ˈtɛstɔ ðe ˈβyk]) is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France.

It is located on the south shore of Arcachon Bay, lying in the southwestern part of Gironde.

It is the largest of four communes that comprise the Communauté d'agglomération du Bassin d'Arcachon Sud [fr] (COBAS), a small metropolitan area of 54,204 population (1999 census). It is the eighth-largest commune in metropolitan France in geographical area.

La Teste-de-Buch is famous for the Dune du Pilat, the highest sand dune in Europe. It is also the site of a fictional battle during the Napoleonic wars depicted in Sharpe's Siege by Bernard Cornwell.

Geography

La Teste-de-Buch is located in the department of Gironde, in the middle of the Landes forest, and south of Arcachon Bay. It is the capital of the Pays de Buch. Neighbouring communes are Gujan-Mestras to the east, Arcachon to the northwest, and Biscarosse and Sanguinet to the south.

The Dune of Pilat is a famous landmark on the Atlantic coast, situated in the western corner of the commune. The seaside resort of Pyla-sur-Mer, the village of Cazaux, the bird refuge and sandbank of Arguin are also part of the town.

The Étang de Cazaux et de Sanguinet is in the southeast corner, astride the departments of Gironde and Landes. The rest of the commune area consists of old dunes, where the natural forest has changed little over centuries.

During World War I, an airfield was created near Cazaux for airplane pilots training (fighters and bombers). Most of the American volunteers pilots of the Lafayette Escadrille came to the "Camp de Cazaux" to finish their training as war pilots. When the U.S entered the war, the 36th Aero Squadron was based here.

Climate

Climate data for La Teste-de-Buch (1961–1990)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 22.0
(71.6)
25.4
(77.7)
28.6
(83.5)
29.8
(85.6)
35.1
(95.2)
40.0
(104.0)
39.8
(103.6)
38.4
(101.1)
38.3
(100.9)
31.4
(88.5)
24.1
(75.4)
22.8
(73.0)
40.0
(104.0)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 10.3
(50.5)
11.9
(53.4)
13.9
(57.0)
16.2
(61.2)
19.4
(66.9)
22.7
(72.9)
25.5
(77.9)
25.2
(77.4)
23.8
(74.8)
19.6
(67.3)
14.0
(57.2)
10.8
(51.4)
17.8
(64.0)
Daily mean °C (°F) 6.3
(43.3)
7.4
(45.3)
8.8
(47.8)
11.2
(52.2)
14.4
(57.9)
17.5
(63.5)
19.9
(67.8)
19.7
(67.5)
17.8
(64.0)
14.3
(57.7)
9.5
(49.1)
6.8
(44.2)
12.8
(55.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 2.2
(36.0)
2.9
(37.2)
3.7
(38.7)
6.2
(43.2)
9.4
(48.9)
12.4
(54.3)
14.3
(57.7)
14.1
(57.4)
11.9
(53.4)
8.9
(48.0)
5.0
(41.0)
2.8
(37.0)
7.8
(46.0)
Record low °C (°F) −15.7
(3.7)
−13.7
(7.3)
−9.6
(14.7)
−3.1
(26.4)
−0.4
(31.3)
3.7
(38.7)
5.0
(41.0)
5.2
(41.4)
0.8
(33.4)
−4.0
(24.8)
−8.4
(16.9)
−12.5
(9.5)
−15.7
(3.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 100.6
(3.96)
85.0
(3.35)
73.7
(2.90)
70.5
(2.78)
70.9
(2.79)
55.2
(2.17)
47.1
(1.85)
53.0
(2.09)
77.9
(3.07)
93.8
(3.69)
102.4
(4.03)
102.6
(4.04)
932.7
(36.72)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 13.6 11.8 12.2 11.2 11.1 8.0 7.0 8.3 8.4 10.5 12.4 12.4 126.9
Average snowy days 0.7 1.1 0.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.4 2.8
Average relative humidity (%) 86 83 79 77 77 77 76 77 79 84 87 88 80.8
Mean monthly sunshine hours 89 110 169 198 227 247 280 253 210 165 106 86 2,140
Source: Infoclimat.fr[1]

Population

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1793 2,000—    
1800 2,301+15.1%
1806 2,306+0.2%
1821 2,409+4.5%
1831 2,840+17.9%
1836 2,986+5.1%
1841 3,447+15.4%
1846 3,512+1.9%
1851 3,399−3.2%
1856 3,891+14.5%
1861 3,601−7.5%
1866 4,259+18.3%
1872 4,462+4.8%
1876 5,314+19.1%
1881 6,063+14.1%
1886 6,200+2.3%
1891 6,480+4.5%
1896 6,663+2.8%
1901 6,840+2.7%
1906 7,082+3.5%
1911 7,023−0.8%
1921 6,321−10.0%
1926 7,815+23.6%
1931 8,826+12.9%
1936 9,496+7.6%
1946 9,066−4.5%
1954 11,281+24.4%
1962 11,085−1.7%
1968 15,064+35.9%
1975 15,831+5.1%
1982 18,038+13.9%
1990 20,331+12.7%
1999 22,976+13.0%
2008 24,384+6.1%

International relations

La Teste-de-Buch is twinned with

See also

References

  1. ^ "Normes et records 1961-1990: Cazaux - La Teste de Buch (33) - altitude 23m" (in French). Infoclimat. Retrieved December 30, 2015.