Plouescat

Plouescat (French pronunciation: [pluɛskat]; Breton: Ploueskad) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France. It is a seaside resort, complete with a casino and a large camping and caravanning site, adjacent to its extensive beach of fine, powdery sand. The region is largely agricultural, specialising in artichokes, onions, cauliflowers and potatoes.

Plouescat Ploueskad
Commune
The sea shore near Plouescat
Coat of arms
Location of Plouescat
Plouescat Show map of France Plouescat Show map of Brittany
Coordinates: 48°39′28″N 4°10′24″W
Country	France
Region	Brittany
Department	Finistère
Arrondissement	Morlaix
Canton	Saint-Pol-de-Léon
Intercommunality	Haut-Léon Communauté
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Eric Le Bour[1]
Area 1	14.79 km2 (5.71 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	3,549
• Density	240/km2 (620/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	29185 /29430
Elevation	0–56 m (0–184 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Geography

Plouescat (Ploueskad), capital of the canton, is part of the district of Morlaix. It is a town in northern Finistère (Penn-ar-Bed), located on the edge of the English Channel, in the country of Léon, on the "Côte des Sables", on the edge of the "Côte des Légendes".

It is separated from Plounévez-Lochrist (Gwinevez) by the Keralle, a small coastal river which rises in Saint-Vougay and flows into the Baie du Kernic, in Pont-Christ en Plouescat; to the east, the town borders Cléder.

The communal finage forms, at least in its western part, a peninsula limited to the north by the English Channel and by Anse du Kernite the south; its western peak lies at Porz Meur.

Population

Port de Porsguen

Inhabitants of Plouescat are called in French Plouescatais.

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 2,118 —     1800 2,124 +0.04% 1806 2,407 +2.11% 1821 2,396 −0.03% 1831 3,017 +2.33% 1836 3,238 +1.42% 1841 3,314 +0.47% 1846 3,467 +0.91% 1851 3,180 −1.71% 1856 3,003 −1.14% 1861 3,082 +0.52% 1866 3,176 +0.60% 1872 3,095 −0.43% 1876 3,167 +0.58% 1881 3,148 −0.12% 1886 3,069 −0.51% 1891 2,983 −0.57% 1896 3,095 +0.74%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 3,145 +0.32% 1906 3,382 +1.46% 1911 3,526 +0.84% 1921 3,582 +0.16% 1926 3,866 +1.54% 1931 4,002 +0.69% 1936 4,137 +0.67% 1946 4,224 +0.21% 1954 4,131 −0.28% 1962 4,042 −0.27% 1968 4,003 −0.16% 1975 4,008 +0.02% 1982 3,935 −0.26% 1990 3,689 −0.80% 1999 3,660 −0.09% 2007 3,778 +0.40% 2012 3,600 −0.96% 2017 3,446 −0.87%
Source: EHESS[3] and INSEE (1968–2017)[4]

Breton language

In 2008, 17.02% of primary-school children attended bilingual schools.^[5]

Sights

Les halles of Plouescat

In the centre of the village is Les Halles - a remarkable timber-framed market hall dating from the early 15th Century which has been classified by the French Ministry of Culture as a Monument historique since 1915.^[6]

The route of a former railway line provided the foundation for a new road, called Le boulevard de l'Europe, which by-passes Plouescat on its southern side.

International relations

Plouescat is twinned with:

• Braunton, England

See also

• Communes of the Finistère department
• Hortense Clémentine Tanvet Sculptor of war memorial