IV.

People and Economy

The population of the Pyrenees includes Andorrans, Catalans (see Catalonia), Béarnais, and Basques. The few towns in the chain include Jaca and Ripoli in Spain and the famous pilgrimage centre of Lourdes in France. The economy of the eastern Pyrenees is limited mainly to livestock farming, but in the west a number of manufacturing industries, powered by hydroelectricity generated by mountain streams, have been established. The only other industrial activity consists of mining—iron, lead, zinc, manganese, and coal are extracted—and marble quarrying. The chain has many thermal and cold mineral springs, and well-known spas include Cauterets and Bagnères-de-Bigorre in France.