Renan is an unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in the northeastern part of Pittsylvania County

Pittsylvania County, Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 61,745 people, 24,684 households, and 18,216 families residing in the county. The population density was 64 people per square mile . There were 28,011 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile...

, Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is included in the Danville, Virginia

Danville, Virginia

Danville is an independent city in Virginia, United States, bounded by Pittsylvania County, Virginia and Caswell County, North Carolina. It was the last capital of the Confederate States of America. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Danville with Pittsylvania county for...

 Metropolitan Statistical Area.
It is contained within the Staunton River Magisterial District, and is located on a crossroads between Straightstone

Straightstone, Virginia

Straightstone is an unincorporated community in Pittsylvania County, in the U.S. state of Virginia.-Reference:...

, Mount Airy

Mount Airy, Pittsylvania County, Virginia

Mount Airy is an unincorporated community in northeastern Pittsylvania County, Virginia, United States. Its altitude is 643 feet , and it is located at , along State Route 40 between Gretna and Brookneal. It is included in the Danville, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area.-References:...

, and Hurt

Hurt, Virginia

Hurt is a town in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, United States. Hurt's population was 1,276 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Danville, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Hurt is located at ....

.

The community of Renan was named in the second half of the 19th century after Ernest Renan

Ernest Renan

Ernest Renan was a French expert of Middle East ancient languages and civilizations, philosopher and writer, devoted to his native province of Brittany...

, French philosopher and theologian. The name of the community is pronounced with stress on the first syllable of the word, however. In the 1880s, the four-room Harmony Grove School served the area, which was then replaced by the brick Renan School. This was then closed and converted into a Virginia furniture

Virginia furniture

Virginia furniture has a long tradition, from the colonial period to today.-Colonial period:In colonial days, when cabinetmaker Anthony Hay made furniture in Colonial Williamsburg, at least six shops catered to local tastes. As the colony grew in taste and sophistication, shops developed in other...

factory.

A store served the community from 1901 until the 1980s.