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In Greek mythology, Pyrene is a princess who gave her name to the Pyrenees. The Greek historian Herodotus says Pyrene is the name of a town in Celtic Europe. [5] According to Silius Italicus, [6] she was the virgin daughter of Bebryx, a king in Mediterranean Gaul by whom the hero Hercules was given hospitality during his quest to steal the cattle of Geryon [7] during his famous Labours.
The Pyrenees extend for about 491 km (305 mi) from the Bay of Biscay to the Mediterranean Sea (Cap de Creus). The highest mountain in the Pyrenees is Aneto in Spain at 3,404 metres (11,168 ft). The summits meeting the 3,000-metre criterion were defined by a UIAA-sponsored joint Franco-Spanish team led by Juan Buyse. [1]
The Western Pyrenees National Park covers a significant area, and includes well-known attractions such as the Cirque de Gavarnie and the Pont d'Espagne. The entire area is a favorite destination of hikers and mountain enthusiasts.
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Minority languages in the region are Catalan and Occitan, which between them are estimated to be spoken by 34% of the population and understood by an additional 21%. On 10 December 2007, the Departmental Council of Pyrénées-Orientales recognized Catalan as a regional language of the department, though French is still the only official ...
The ecoregion extends from the lower slopes of the Pyrenees to its highest peaks, which include Aneto (3,404 m), Posets (3,375 m), and Vignemale (3,298 m). The Pyrenees forests are at the transition between the Mediterranean climate regions of Spain and France, which lie to the south and east, and the more humid and temperate forests of Western ...
In the 1950s, the Basses-Pyrénées were one of the departments composing the newly created region of Aquitaine. In 1969, the name of the department was changed to "Pyrénées-Atlantiques", because the inhabitants of the department found the name of the Basses-Pyrénées pejorative compared to that of the Hautes-Pyrénées .
While the metropolitan area of Toulouse at the center of the region is a densely populated area, in some places reaching 3,500 inhabitants per km 2 (9,000 inhabitants per sq. mile), the rest of the region is sparsely populated, with densities ranging from 12 to 60 inh. per km 2 (31 to 155 inh. per sq. mile), which are among the lowest densities ...