Hardanges

Hardanges
Commune
Coat of arms
Location of Hardanges
Hardanges Show map of France Hardanges Show map of Pays de la Loire
Coordinates: 48°20′14″N 0°24′03″W / 48.3372°N 0.4008°W / 48.3372; -0.4008
Country	France
Region	Pays de la Loire
Department	Mayenne
Arrondissement	Mayenne
Canton	Lassay-les-Châteaux
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Eric Neveu[1]
Area ^1	18.48 km^2 (7.14 sq mi)
Population  (2023)[2]	169
• Density	9.15/km^2 (23.7/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	53114 /53640
Elevation	149–327 m (489–1,073 ft) (avg. 225 m or 738 ft)
^1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km^2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Hardanges (French pronunciation: [aʁdɑ̃ʒ]) is a French commune, located in Mayenne, Pays de la Loire, populated by 203 persons. The commune is part of the historic province of Maine (province).^[3]

History

The Latin form of the name Hardengia. It is formed of a Germanic medieval suffix -ing (indicating property), one of few such examples in West France.^[4]

Geography

Hardanges is located 11 km from Villaines-la-Juhel and 17 km from Mayenne. The N12 road is 7 km from the commune.

Hardagnes is a rural commune, as such it is part of those communes judged "sparse or very sparse" by the French Insee.^[5][6] As the commune is part of the Aire d'attraction of Mayenne, it is a Crown Commune.

The commune is made up of the following collection of villages and hamlets, Les Aulnais, La Thébaudière, La Morandière, Hardanges, La Rongère, La Bérachère, La Martelière and La Chasseguerre.^[7]

Local culture and heritage

Key sites and monuments include:

• St Peter's Church
• St Matthew's Chapel, built in 1775
• La Chasse-Guerre Castle
• La Butte Park
• Le Saule Mountain

Sport

The commune is home to the Les Découvertes Motocross circuit.^[8] It was created in 1987 by former motocross competitor, Raymond Lebreton and has been used to host some national competitions.^[9]

See also

• Communes of the Mayenne department

References

1. "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020.
2. "Populations de référence 2023" (in French). National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 18 December 2025.
3. Saugrain, Claude-Marin (1726). Dictionnaire universel de la France ancienne et moderne et de la Nouvelle France. Vol. 2. p. 139.
4. Albert Dauzat; Charles Rostaing (1979). Dictionnaire étymologique des noms de lieu en France (in French). Paris. p. 343b. ISBN 2-85023-076-6. Librairie Guénégaud
5. "Typologie urbain / rural". www.observatoire-des-territoires.gouv.fr. Archived from the original on 21 September 2022. Retrieved 29 March 2021..
6. "Comprendre la grille de densité". www.observatoire-des-territoires.gouv.fr. Archived from the original on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021..
7. "Google Maps". Google Maps.
8. "Hardanges. Au circuit des découvertes, une passion familiale du motocross créée par Raymond". laval.maville.com.
9. "Hardanges. Au circuit des Découvertes, une passion familiale du motocross créée par Raymond Lebreton". Ouest-France (in French). 26 March 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2026.