Lower Navarre
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Lower Navarre Nafarroa Beherea |
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 Location of Lower Navarre within the Pyrénées-Atlantiques departement. |
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| Country |
 France
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| Largest settlements | |||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 1.325 km2 (13,137 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2011) | |||
| • Total | 30,290 | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
Lower Navarre (Basque: Nafarroa Beherea or Baxenabarre, Gascon/Bearnese: Navarra Baisha, French: Basse-Navarre, Spanish: Baja Navarra) is a traditional region of the present day Pyrénées Atlantiques département of France. It corresponds to the northernmost merindad of the Kingdom of Navarre during the Middle Ages. After the Spanish conquest of Iberian Navarre (1512–24), this merindad was restored to the rule of the native king, Henry II. Its capitals were Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port and Saint-Palais. In the extreme north there was the little sovereign Principality of Bidache. Its extent is of 1,284 km2, and has a decreasing population of 44,450 (in 1901), 25,356 (in 1990).
Although this denomination is not completely correct from the historical point of view, it is also known as Merindad de Ultrapuertos ("the regions beyond the mountain passes") by the southerners, and Deça-ports ("this side of the mountain passes") by the Gascon-speakers. Despite its lost administrative cohesion, the memory of its past heyday has left an imprint on its inhabitants, who keep identifying themselves as Lower Navarrese and therefore Navarrese. The Nafarroaren Eguna or Day of Navarre is a festival held in Baigorri every year to strengthen their bonds and celebrate their Basque identity. The territory is also claimed by Basque nationalists to be one of the seven constituent regions making up the Basque Country.
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