Avernes-sous-Exmes
Avernes-sous-Exmes | |
|---|---|
Part of Gouffern en Auge | |
Location of Avernes-sous-Exmes | |
  Avernes-sous-Exmes Location within France  Avernes-sous-Exmes Location within Normandy | |
| Coordinates: 48°47′22″N 0°12′17″E / 48.7894°N 0.2047°E | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Normandy |
| Department | Orne |
| Arrondissement | Argentan |
| Canton | Argentan-2 |
| Commune | Gouffern en Auge |
Area 1 | 7.03 km2 (2.71 sq mi) |
| Population (2023)[1] | 81 |
| • Density | 12/km2 (30/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Postal code | 61310 |
| Elevation | 129–277 m (423–909 ft) (avg. 270 m or 890 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Avernes-sous-Exmes (French pronunciation: [avɛʁn su.z‿ɛm], literally Avernes under Exmes) is a former commune in the Orne department in northwestern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Gouffern en Auge.[2]
Geography
| Saint-Pierre-la-Rivière | ||||
| Omméel, Villebadin |  |  |  | Ménil-Hubert-en-Exmes |
| Villebadin |  | .svg.png){kind=small} |  | Ménil-Hubert-en-Exmes, Courménil |
| Villebadin, Exmes |  |  |  | Courménil |
| Exmes, Courménil | ||||
Toponymy
The name was originally Auvernes in C.1335 and Avernes in 1373. The commune was called this until 1830, where by decree, it became Avernes-sous-Exmes to distinguish it from the Avernes close to Vimoutiers which at the same time became Avernes-Saint-Gourgon. [3]
According to Albert Dauzat, it may derive from the Gaulish areverno or a toponymic type similar to the Latin Averna, whereas René Lepelley identifies the Germanic afisna ("pasture") as the source, as with Avesnes; the 's' would have shifted to 'r' here, a phenomenon frequently observed in French phonetics.[4] Old English contains the term æfesn("pasture"), derived from Common Germanic.[5]
History
The last lord was Jean-Jacques, count of Beausobre and marquis of Brisseuil, lord of Grébert, La Folie,Les Basses Londes etc. by special royal permission. He was born on the 15 March 1704, and was Marechal de Camp and lieutenant-general in the army. He retired and died at the Château de Brisseuil.
In 1821, in Avernes-sous-Exmes there were 252[6] inhabitants and in Grebert there were 120.[7]
Politics and Administration
| Start | End | Name | Party | Profession |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1919 | after 1954 | Robert Soret | ||
| March 1965 | June 1995 | René Lorphelin | Farmer, Knight of the Order of Agricultural Merit (1972) | |
| June 1995 | March 2001 | Pierre Besnard | Farmer | |
| March 2001[8] | March 2008 | Marcel Pacory | Independent | Dairy controller |
| March 2008[9][10] | December 2016 | Claudine Poinsignon | Independent |
The municipal council consisted of seven members, including the mayor and two deputy mayors.[11]
Demographics
In 2023, the commune had 81 residents which was 1.25% from 2017. In 1841, Avernes-sous-Exmes had just 314 inhabitants and now it is the least populated commune in the Canton d'Exmes.[12]
Places and Monuments
- The church of Saint-Leger
- A seigneurial castle
- Ancien Manoir des Loges
Notable people
- Louis-Stanislas de Colleville, a doctor and archaeologist from the area born at the Manior des Loges.
- Léon Bazalgette, a writer and journalist and the first biographer and translater of Walt Whitman and Henry David Thoreau.
Heraldry
Source:[13]
| Description of the emblazon | ||
|---|---|---|
[[File:.svg.png) |
Original French | De gueules à deux léopards d'or, l'un au-dessus de l'autre ; au pal d'hermine brochant |
| English blazon | Gules with two golden leopards one on top of another ; with vertical hermine | |
| Notes | The two golden lions remind of the traditional coats of arms of Normandy. | |
| Status | Official status but commune no longer exists. | |
See also
References
- ↑ "Populations de référence 2023" [Reference populations 2023] (PDF) (in French). INSEE. December 2025.
- ↑ Arrêté préfectoral 6 October 2016 (in French)
- ↑ Ernest Nègre (1998). Toponymie générale de la France, t. 1 : Formations préceltique, celtiques, romanes. Géneve. p. 349.
- ↑ Duazat, Albert (1979). Dictionnaire étymologique des noms de lieux en France. Librairie Guénégaud. pp. 41b.
- ↑ Lepelly, René (1996). Dictionnaire étymologique des noms de communes de Normandie. p. 144.
- ↑ "Avernes-sous-Exmes - Notice Communale". cassini.ehess.fr. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
- ↑ "Grebert - Notice Communale". cassini.ehess.fr. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
- ↑ "Marcel Pacory n'aura fait qu'un mandat de maire". Ouest-France. 3 October 2013. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
- ↑ "Avernes-sous-Exmes (61310) - Municipales 2014". elections.ouest-france.fr. Ouest-France. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
- ↑ "Claudine Poinsignon pour un premier mandat". Ouest-France. 4 April 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
- ↑ "Les archives des élections en France". www.archives-resultats-elections.interieur.gouv.fr. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
- ↑ "Recensement de la population" (PDF). Insee: 15.
- ↑ "L'Armorial des villes et villages de France". armorialdefrance.fr (in French). Retrieved 2026-07-21.
