Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise

Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise (French pronunciation: [bɛs e sɛ̃.t‿anastɛz]; Occitan: Bèssa), also known as Besse-en-Chandesse (its official name from 2 April 1961 to 1 July 1973), or Besse (its name before 1961), is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in central France.

Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise
Commune
Beffroy
Coat of arms
Location of Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise
Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise Show map of France Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise Show map of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Coordinates: 45°30′50″N 2°56′01″E
Country	France
Region	Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Department	Puy-de-Dôme
Arrondissement	Issoire
Canton	Le Sancy[1]
Intercommunality	Massif du Sancy
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Lionel Gay[2]
Area 1	72.38 km2 (27.95 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[3]	1,445
• Density	20/km2 (52/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	63038 /63610
Elevation	805–1,725 m (2,641–5,659 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

The nearby ski resort of Super-Besse hosted the first mountain finish of the 2008 Tour de France.

Geography

The river Rhue has its source in the commune.

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	1,530	—
1975	1,767	+2.08%
1982	1,763	−0.03%
1990	1,799	+0.25%
1999	1,672	−0.81%
2007	1,659	−0.10%
2012	1,519	−1.75%
2017	1,504	−0.20%
Source: INSEE[4]

See also

• Arthur Besse
• Nicolas Bourbaki
• Communes of the Puy-de-Dôme department