Soorts-Hossegor

Name

In 1913, the town associated the toponym of Hossegor, from the name of its marine lake, with its original name of Soorts. The root of the name Soorts is probably close to that of Sorde, the verb gascon sórder or sordar, sourdre, meaning "where there are sources". Related names are Sor (Ariège, Sort) and Sort-en-Chalosse (Landes) from the same Gascon etymon. The origin of Hossegor is more obscure: it may be an Aquitain or Basque name to be attached to the hydronyms osse and the adjective gorri, meaning "dry water".

History

The history of the town and inhabited area originated in the 11th century with the town of Soorts. The local church was built in the 14th century as a costal path to Santiago de Compostela, in Spain. And, Bielle farm, the town's oldest building was constructed at that time.

In the 19th century, the town of Soorts began its transformation into a local hub. Starting in 1869, with the digging of the Hossegor pond canal towards the sea, which is 99 hectares in size today. Then in 1913, a stone bridge was constructed, connecting the ponds and lake. On April 1 of that year, thanks to an increase in tourism, the local government decided to add the name of Hossegor to the town of Soorts, thus creating Soorts-Hossegor, as it's known today. Some noteworthy visitors early to Soorts-Hossegor have included J.H. Rosny in 1903 and Paul Margueritte in 1909. Other personalities later joined them, like Charles Derennes in 1913, then Maxime Leroy, Gaston Chérau, Pierre Benoit, Tristan Dereme and Leon Blum in 1920.

In 1923, the seaside town was connected via railway for the first time, and the town became known as a seaside resort. Then between 1929-1939, the area was transformed into the town and seaside resort it is today. Under the leadership of 5 French architects,{{efn|All the architects were; David Chabas, Henri Godbarge, Louis and Benjamin Gomez, Mathias, Morhardt, Serge Barranx, Jean Prévost or even Sébastien Japrisot, Françoise Sagan. Also, the sports casino was built in the years of 1927-1931, in the same local Basque-Landes style. Many hotels were built at that time, such as Les Hortensias du Lac, a four-star luxury hotel with an extraordinary view of the marine lake, and the Mercedes, a three-star hotel near the city center overlooking the canal.

Development continued in Hoessgor after the art-deco era. A small industrial park was built, with the relocation of the headquarters of the European branch of the surf brand Rip Curl to the area in 1980, today followed by the HQ's for the surf companies Quiksilver, Billabong and Rusty.

Sports

There are many sports played in the town, such as swimming, tennis, horse riding and Basque pelote.

Surfing

The naming of Hossegor in the Gascon language is to do with the 'gouf of Capbreton', an underwater canyon thousands of metres deep and hundreds of kilometres long, this creates waves from the ocean on the Landes coast. It was in the 1950s when surfing became popular in the town. In the Landes region are several good surfing spots which are enjoyed when possible by the public and also professional athletes as part of yearly competition.

Since 1984, the French Surf Federation has its headquarters in Hossegor. As part of the World Surf League, there is a stage designated to the local Hossegor area for a surf competition. Depending on the weather, the competition is held at the end of September. Since 1987, the competition brings the biggest names in surfing, and the tour competition is split between the men's Quiksilver Pro France and women's Roxy Pro France events. The Hossegor coast has been one of the few world class surfing locations in Atlantic Europe, with beach breaks at Gravière and La Nord, Les Estagnots. Also, there's nearby beach breaks in Capbreton and Seignosse, which have shared the surf competition due to differing wave conditions. Another event takes place during Easter weekend: the sale of "spirit surf" clothes. More than 100,000 people flock to the craft zone, looking to purchase sports wear, or equipment.

Golf

It was in 1927 that the local golf course was built.

Jai alai

In 1958, the first Jai alai (Basque sport) sporting location in France opened in Soorts-Hossegor. Since 2019, there has been an annual competition televised on the Canal+ Sports channel, and now a roof has been to the arena.

Climate

|Jan record high C = 22.5 |Feb record high C = 28.9 |Mar record high C = 30.0 |Apr record high C = 34.0 |May record high C = 36.5 |Jun record high C = 40.6 |Jul record high C = 41.0 |Aug record high C = 40.5 |Sep record high C = 39.0 |Oct record high C = 33.9 |Nov record high C = 29.0 |Dec record high C = 24.2 |year record high C = 41.0 |Jan record low C = -13.3 |Feb record low C = -12.9 |Mar record low C = -8.0 |Apr record low C = -2.7 |May record low C = 1.0 |Jun record low C = 5.1 |Jul record low C = 7.5 |Aug record low C = 8.3 |Sep record low C = 3.8 |Oct record low C = -0.9 |Nov record low C = -6.6 |Dec record low C = -10.2 |year record low C = -13.3 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180330020114/https://donneespubliques.meteofrance.fr/FichesClim/FICHECLIM_40304001.pdf | archive-date = 30 March 2018 | access-date = 29 March 2018}}

Population

In 2020, the town had 3,497 inhabitants, a decrease of 7.8% compared to 2012. |1793 |197 |1821 |224 |1846 |268 |1872 |351 |1901 |386 |1926 |498 |1946 |1175 |1962 |1755 |1968 |2071 |1975 |2248 |1982 |2544 |1990 |2829 |1999 |3292 |2007 |3629 |2012 |3792 |2017 |3580

Twin town

• POR Nazaré, Portugal.
• Tahiti Taiʻarapu-Ouest, Tahiti, twinned in 2022.

Beach gallery

hossegor2.jpg|Plage Centrale Soorts-Hossegor beachfront.jpg|Basque-Landis architecture Notre Dame Beach, Soorts-Hossegor.jpg|The Notre Dame Beach in Soorts-Hossegor Hossegor beach statue.jpg|Note Dame beach, Lucien Danglade statue Woman on sandy beach (Unsplash).jpg|Beach panoramic view Hossegor boat entry.jpg|Entrance for boats to marina

References

• Sébastien Barrère, Petite histoire d'Hossegor, Éditions Cairn, 2015, 156 p. ()

References

1. (13 September 2022). "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises.
2. "Heritage".
3. (26 December 2022). "PLACE DES LANDAIS IN SOORTS-HOSSEGOR: A BASQUE-LANDES STYLE HERITAGE SITE.".
4. "Sporting Casino".
5. "Surf Hossegor".
6. "Quiksilver Pro France winners".
7. "The best information about Surfing in Hossegor".
8. (7 June 2022). "Essentials: What You Need To Know About The 2022 Quiksilver And ROXY Pro France".
9. "Hossegor Jai Alai".
10. {{Cassini-Ehess. 36561. Soorts-Hossegor
11. [https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/4515315?geo=COM-40304#ancre-POP_T1 Population en historique depuis 1968], INSEE