A còp of May / once again, the toponym Lespinasse comes from Occitan Espinassa. Alavetz brave mond, me vos cal far una precioneta pr’aquò / so small clarification anyway: in French, you write Lespinasse in one word. Mente qu’en lenga nòstra / whereas in Occitan, you write L’ apostrophe and further ”Espinassa” that you pronounce Espinassa, the Espinassa. Question: what is the origin of the name l’Espinassa? What does Epinass mean? Do you have any idea?
Is it a story of thorns?
Yes, it’s true and more exactly, the toponym Lespinasse originally evokes a wooded region. It is said that at the Edat Mejana / it is said that in the Middle Ages, the forest of Espèse extended, then later of Lespinasse. Una espina in Occitan, it is precisely a thorn. Espinassa which has an augmentative value in the present case. Literally, Espinassa, it is the big thorn. In other words, it is a place planted with thorns. Spreads aquel bòsc de Garona estant fins a l’Èrs Mòrt / Formerly, this forest, this wood of thorns stretches between the Garonne and the Hers mort.
What is the original function of this wood of thorns?
In the Middle Ages, it was common to indicate the boundaries of villages with thorns / aquò permetiá to far veire las bòlas between los diferent villages. Hawthorn is a very hard wood, it is also sometimes used to build military defences. Avètz un bricon mai de 2680 estatjants a l’Espinassa / more than 2680 inhabitants in Lespinasse. Farewell-siatz to all the Lespinassois and all the Lespinassoises who listen to France Bleu Occitanie on 91.8. Good dimes to all / Happy Wednesday everyone!
– Town hall of Lespinasse
– Town hall of Lespinasse