Auch 521564 209137166 2008-04-30T01:22:37Z 71.112.1.156 :''This article is for the French town. For the bird see: [[great auk]].'' {{French commune |nomcommune=Auch<br>[[Image:Auch1.jpg|300px]]<br><small>Cathedral and town center</small> |région=[[Midi-Pyrénées]] |département=[[Gers]] |arrondissement=Auch |canton= |insee=32013 |cp=32000 |maire=Claude Bétaille |mandat=2001-2008 |intercomm=Grand Auch |longitude= 0.5855 |latitude= 43.6465 |alt moy=166 m |alt mini=115 m |alt maxi=281 m |hectares=7,248 |km²=72.48 |sans=21,838 |date-sans=1999 |dens=301.3 |date-dens=1999}} '''Auch''' (pronounced {{IPA|/ɔʃ/}} in [[French language|French]]) ([[Gascon]] [[Occitan]]: ''Aush'', pronounced {{IPA|/awʃ/}}) is a [[communes of France|commune]] in southwestern [[France]]. Located in the [[Regions of France|region]] of [[Midi-Pyrénées]], it is the capital of the [[Gers]] [[departments of France|department]]. Auch is the historical capital of [[Gascony]]. At the 1999 census there were 24,725 inhabitants in the urban area of Auch. ==History== ===The Ausci=== Auch is a very ancient town. The name of ''Auch'' comes from the [[Aquitani]]an tribe that inhabited the area at the time of the Roman conquest in the [[50s BC]]. The name of this tribe, as recorded by the Romans, was ''Ausci'' (pronounced {{IPA|/awski/}} in [[Latin]]), singular ''Auscus''. Aquitanians spoke a language related to the old [[Basque language]], and a striking fact is that the name ''Ausci'' seems related to the native name of the modern [[Basque people|Basques]], who call themselves ''Euskal'' (pronounced {{IPA|/ewskal/}} in Basque). At the time of the Roman conquest, the native name of ''Auch'', as recorded by the Romans, was ''Elimberris''. ''Elimberris'' is itself a variant of ''Iliberri'', where ''Ili-'' comes from the [[Iberian language|Iberian]] word ''iltir''' or ''iltur'' (the "t" is mute) meaning town, city, [[oppidum]], a frequent prefix in names of Iberian cities, and which was probably borrowed into Basque and also [[Aquitanian language|Aquitanian]] (cf. modern Basque ''hiri'', meaning "town"). In modern Basque there is also the word ''berri'' which means "new", so ''Iliberri'' is often interpreted as meaning "new oppidum" (based on the fact that Aquitanian and old Basque are related). However, this interpretation should be taken with caution. In the south of [[Spain]], near [[Granada]], an area far away from the Basque homeland, there was an Iberian city whose name the Romans also recorded as ''Iliberi'', and here it seems the name recorded by the Romans is the phonetic transcription of Iberian ''Ilbirir'', which comes from the Iberian stem ''ilbi-'' (meaning unknown), and not at all from an hypothetical ''il(t)i-'' (town) and Basque ''berri''. The Romans renamed the town ''Augusta Auscorum'' (or ''Augusta Ausciorum''), which means "Augusta of the Ausci". Eventually, ''Augusta'' was dropped, and the name evolved into modern [[Gascon language|Gascon]] ''Aush'', and modern French ''Auch''. Inhabitants of Auch are known in French as ''Auscitains'' (pronounced {{IPA|/ositɛ̃/}}) ===Capital of Gascony=== During Roman times, Auch was one of the twelve ''civitates'' of the [[Roman province|province]] of [[Novempopulana]] ([[Gascony]]). In [[409]], when [[Eauze]], the capital of Novempopulana, was ruined by the [[Vandal]]s, Auch replaced it as the capital of Gascony. It became the seat of a [[Catholic]] [[archdiocese]], the [[Archdiocese of Auch]], covering the whole of Gascony, which lasted until the [[French Revolution]], and whose [[archbishop]]s claimed the title of [[Primate (religion)|Primate]] of Aquitaine, Novempopulana, and of the kingdom of [[Navarre]]. ==Sights== Auch is known for its Renaissance [[Auch Cathedral|Cathédrale Sainte-Marie]] with its magnificent organ, carved stalls and rose [[stained-glass windows]], La Tour d'Armagnac - a 14th century prison, as well as a statue of [[d'Artagnan]] who was based on the real life person, Charles de Batz, Comte d'Artagnan born nearby in the château de Castelmore, and written about by [[Alexandre Dumas, père|Alexandre Dumas]]. ==Geography== The [[Gers River]] flows through the town. ==Transportation== Auch is well connected to nearby [[city|cities]] and [[town]]s such as [[Agen]], [[Toulouse]] and [[Tarbes]] by [[Route nationale (France)|Routes Nationales]]. ==Miscellaneous== Auch is a [[town twinning|twin city]] for [[Memmingen]] ([[Germany]]). Auch is the home of [[FC Auch]] rugby union team. Auch was the birthplace of: * [[Jacques Fouroux]] ([[1947]]-[[2005]]), [[rugby union]] player * [[Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse]] ([[1750]]-[[1812]]), [[admiral]] * [[Dominic Serres]] ([[1719]]-[[1793]]), [[painter]] * [[Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange]] ([[1877]]-[[1964]]), [[Dominican Order|Dominican]] and prominent [[Neo-Thomist]] theologian Auch is also a European surname, possibly derived as a habitational name for some early inhabitants of the town, see also [[Auch (name)]]. Auch is one of the three main cities in the MMORPG [[Granado Espada]] ==External links== * [http://www.mairie-auch.fr/ Official website] (in French) * [http://www.auch.tecomm.fr/ Unofficial website about Auch] (in French) {{Gers-geo-stub}} {{commonscat|Auch}} {{Préfectures of départements of France}} {{Gers communes}} [[Category:Communes of Gers]] [[Category:Prefectures in France]] [[bg:Ош]] [[ca:Aush]] [[ceb:Auch]] [[cs:Auch]] [[de:Auch]] [[es:Auch]] [[eo:Auch]] [[eu:Auski]] [[fr:Auch]] [[gl:Auch]] [[id:Auch]] [[it:Auch]] [[la:Augusta Auscorum]] [[nl:Auch]] [[ja:オーシュ]] [[no:Auch]] [[nn:Auch]] [[oc:Aush]] [[pl:Auch]] [[pt:Auch]] [[ro:Auch]] [[ru:Ош (Франция)]] [[sl:Auch]] [[sr:Ош (Жер)]] [[fi:Auch]] [[sv:Auch]] [[vi:Auch]] [[uk:Ош (Франція)]] [[vo:Auch]]