Balacet

Balacet
Commune
Location of Balacet
Balacet Balacet
Coordinates: 42°53′06″N 0°58′56″E
Country	France
Region	Occitania
Department	Ariège
Arrondissement	Saint-Girons
Canton	Couserans Ouest
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Anselme Poignant
Area 1	2.12 km2 (0.82 sq mi)
Population  (2023)	51
• Density	24/km2 (62/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	09034 /09800
Elevation	833–1,674 m (2,733–5,492 ft) (avg. 906 m or 2,972 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Balacet (French pronunciation: [balasɛ]) is a commune in the Ariège department in the Occitanie region of south-western France.

Geography

Balacet is located some 8 km south-west of Audressein and 3 km north-east of Sentein in the Biros Valley. Access to the commune is by the tortuous D704 road which branches from the D4 just west of Lascoux and goes to the village then continues east to Uchentein. There is also another road that goes west from the village to Irazein. The commune is a rugged mountain commune which is heavily forested.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

From	To	Name
2001	2008	Gilbert Birbes
2008	2014	André Marran
2014	2020	Antoine Duburcq
2020	2026	Anselme Poignant

Demography

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Balacetois or Balacetoises in French.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1793	83	—
1821	126	+1.50%
1846	108	−0.61%
1872	116	+0.28%
1901	107	−0.28%
1926	65	−1.97%
1946	29	−3.96%
1962	30	+0.21%
1968	29	−0.56%

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1975	26	−1.55%
1982	14	−8.46%
1990	10	−4.12%
1999	24	+10.22%
2007	19	−2.88%
2012	17	−2.20%
2017	26	+8.87%
2023	51	+11.88%

Source: EHESS and INSEE

Religious heritage

The Parish Church contains several items that are registered as historical objects:

• A Pyx of "malades-chrismatoire" (13th century)
• A Ciborium (19th century)
• 2 Candlesticks (18th century)
• An Altar, Retable, and Tabernacle (18th century)
• A Chalice (17th century)
• A Carving: Chrisme (12th century)

See also

• Communes of the Ariège department

External links

• Balacet on Géoportail, National Geographic Institute (IGN) website (in French)
• Balacet on the 1750 Cassini Map