Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise

Commune in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France

Coat of arms

Location of Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise

(2020–2026) Lionel Gay^[2]Area

72.38 km² (27.95 sq mi)Population

(2021)^[3]

1,461 • Density20/km² (52/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)INSEE/Postal code

63038 /63610

Elevation805–1,725 m (2,641–5,659 ft)¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise (French pronunciation: [bɛs e sɛ̃.t‿anastɛz]; Occitan: Bèssa), also known as Besse-en-Chandesse (its official name from April 2, 1961, to July 1, 1973), or Besse (its name before 1961), is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in central France.

The nearby ski resort of Super-Besse is to host the first mountain finish of the 2008 Tour de France.

Geography

The river Rhue has its source in the commune.

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	1,530	—
1975	1,767	+2.08%
1982	1,763	−0.03%
1990	1,799	+0.25%
1999	1,672	−0.81%
2007	1,659	−0.10%
2012	1,519	−1.75%
2017	1,504	−0.20%
Source: INSEE^[4]

References

^ "Décret 2014-210 du 21 février 2014 portant délimitation des cantons dans le département du Puy-de-Dôme" [2014-210 decree delimiting cantons of Puy-de-Dôme department]. Légifrance (in French). 21 February 2014.
^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020.
^ "Populations légales 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE