Concarneau
Encyclopedia
Concarneau is a commune
in the Finistère
department of Brittany in north-western France
.
The town has two distinct areas: the modern town on the mainland and the medieval Ville Close, a walled town on a long island in the centre of the harbour. Historically, the old town was a centre of shipbuilding. The Ville Close is now devoted to tourism with many restaurants and shops aimed at tourists. However restraint has been shown in resisting the worst excesses of souvenir shops. Also in the Ville Close is the fishing museum. The Ville Close is connected to the town by a drawbridge and at the other end a ferry to the village of Lanriec on the other side of the harbour.
but the Filets Bleus is one of the oldest and largest attracting in excess of a thousand costumed participants with many times the number of observers. In 2005, the 100th festival was celebrated.
's 1931
novel Le Chien jaune (The Yellow Dog
), featuring his celebrated sleuth Maigret
.
, particularly for tuna
, has long been the primary economic activity in Concarneau. The Les Mouettes d'Arvor
is one of last traditional canning factory in Concarneau. Concarneau is one of the biggest fishing ports in France. Since the 1980s, other industries have arisen, such as boat construction and summer tourism.
The Ville Close separates the working port from the yacht basin.
Concarnois.
, Germany
since 1969 M'bour
, Senegal
since 1974 Penzance
, United Kingdom
since 1982
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Finistère
Finistère
Finistère is a département of France, in the extreme west of Brittany.-History:The name Finistère derives from the Latin Finis Terræ, meaning end of the earth, and may be compared with Land's End on the opposite side of the English Channel...
department of Brittany in north-western France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
The town has two distinct areas: the modern town on the mainland and the medieval Ville Close, a walled town on a long island in the centre of the harbour. Historically, the old town was a centre of shipbuilding. The Ville Close is now devoted to tourism with many restaurants and shops aimed at tourists. However restraint has been shown in resisting the worst excesses of souvenir shops. Also in the Ville Close is the fishing museum. The Ville Close is connected to the town by a drawbridge and at the other end a ferry to the village of Lanriec on the other side of the harbour.
Events
In August the town holds the annual Fête des Filets Bleus (Festival of the blue nets). The festival named after the traditional blue nets of Concarneau's fishing fleet, is a celebration of Breton and pan-Celtic culture. Such festival can occur throughout BrittanyBrittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
but the Filets Bleus is one of the oldest and largest attracting in excess of a thousand costumed participants with many times the number of observers. In 2005, the 100th festival was celebrated.
Literature
Concarneau was the setting for Belgian mystery writer Georges SimenonGeorges Simenon
Georges Joseph Christian Simenon was a Belgian writer. A prolific author who published nearly 200 novels and numerous short works, Simenon is best known for the creation of the fictional detective Maigret.-Early life and education:...
's 1931
1931 in literature
The year 1931 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Cherokee playwright Lynn Riggs' play Green Grow the Lilacs premiers. It would later be adapted by Rodgers and Hammerstein as Oklahoma!....
novel Le Chien jaune (The Yellow Dog
Maigret and the Yellow Dog
Maigret and the Yellow Dog is a detective novel by the Belgian writer Georges Simenon.-Overview:M. Mostaguen, the wine dealer at Concarneau, is wounded by a gunshot when returning home drunk from the local Admiral Hotel and Maigret, who is organizing the mobile squad in Rennes, is called in by the...
), featuring his celebrated sleuth Maigret
Maigret
Jules Maigret, Maigret to most people, including his wife, is a fictional police detective, actually a commissaire or commissioner of the Paris "Brigade Criminelle" , created by writer Georges Simenon.Seventy-five novels and twenty-eight short stories about Maigret were published between 1931 and...
.
Economy
FishingFishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
, particularly for tuna
Tuna
Tuna is a salt water fish from the family Scombridae, mostly in the genus Thunnus. Tuna are fast swimmers, and some species are capable of speeds of . Unlike most fish, which have white flesh, the muscle tissue of tuna ranges from pink to dark red. The red coloration derives from myoglobin, an...
, has long been the primary economic activity in Concarneau. The Les Mouettes d'Arvor
Les Mouettes d'Arvor
-History:The ‘Les Mouettes d'Arvor’ Gonidec canning factory is one of last traditional canning factories. Built in 1959 by Jacques Gonidec, the company used the brand name ‘Les Mouettes d’Arvor’ and worked from a small workshop in the Passage-Lanriec in Concarneau.In 1995, Les Mouettes d'Arvor’...
is one of last traditional canning factory in Concarneau. Concarneau is one of the biggest fishing ports in France. Since the 1980s, other industries have arisen, such as boat construction and summer tourism.
The Ville Close separates the working port from the yacht basin.
Population
Inhabitants of Concarneau are called in FrenchFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
Concarnois.
Personalities
- Michel DesjoyeauxMichel DesjoyeauxMichel Desjoyeaux Michel Desjoyeaux Michel Desjoyeaux (born 16 July 1965, in Concarneau, is a French sailor, known for competing successfully in several long-distance single-handed races...
, navigator - Samantha (Sam) Davies, sailor
- Guy CottenGuy CottenGuy Cotten is a French businessman, born in Saint-Yvi . In 1969 he created at Concarneau, his own business called GUY COTTEN, a company specialising in commercial fishing clothes, which became famous for its yellow oilskin item.The company sells clothing and personal equipment in areas such as the...
, founder of a clothes factory - Stéphane Guivarc'hStéphane Guivarc'hStéphane Guivarc'h is a retired French footballer that played as striker. He featured in the France squad that won the 1998 FIFA World Cup on home soil....
, French footballer, won the FIFA World Cup 1998 with the French national sideFrance national football teamThe France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
International relations
BielefeldBielefeld
Bielefeld is an independent city in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe Region in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population of 323,000, it is also the most populous city in the Regierungsbezirk Detmold...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
since 1969 M'bour
M'Bour
M'Bour or Mbour is a city in the Thiès Region of Senegal. It lies on the Petite Côte, approximately eighty kilometers south of Dakar. It is home to a population of 153,503 . The city's major industries are tourism, fishing and peanut processing....
, Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
since 1974 Penzance
Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is approximately 75 miles west of Plymouth and 300 miles west-southwest of London...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
since 1982