| Sioniac | |
| Commune Status: | Commune |
| Image Coat Of Arms: | Blason ville fr Sioniac (Corrèze).svg |
| Arrondissement: | Brive-la-Gaillarde |
| Canton: | Midi Corrézien |
| Insee: | 19260 |
| Postal Code: | 19120 |
| Mayor: | Laurent Puyjalon[1] |
| Term: | 2020 - 2026 |
| Intercommunality: | Midi Corrézien |
| Coordinates: | 44.9756°N 1.8131°W |
| Elevation Min M: | 193 |
| Elevation Max M: | 387 |
| Area Km2: | 10.6 |
Sioniac (in French pronounced as /sjɔnjak/; Occitan (post 1500);: Seunhac) is a commune in the Corrèze department of Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in central France.[2]
The origin of the Sioniac's name today has evolved over time. From records, it is first recorded as Siuiniacum during the 9th century, the suffice -acum being Latin for the property of the man Sivinius.[3] It is later recorded as Siviniaco vico and Siviniacus in 859 and by 1315 as Seunhac in Occitan.[3]
Sioniac lies in the southernmost part of the Corrèze department, near the river Dordogne. It is part of the functional area of Biars-sur-Cère and Saint-Céré.[2]
Prior to the 9th Century, little is known about the origins of Sioniac but when Rodoulf, Archbishop of Bourges established a monastery down the hill at Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne, he gave the church of Saint-Saturnin at Sioniac in May 859 to the newly established monks.[4] In June 859, Rudolf obtained a charter from King Charles the Bald to establish a market in Sioniac.[4] This market remained the main market for Beaulieu until the medieval period.[4] Other sources say the market could be older as the village was positioned on an ancient north-south trading route between Pay Arnac and Quercy.
An older church served the area prior to the formation of the abbey at Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne. The current church was built in the 11th century, with later additions from the 12th, 15th and 17th centuries. It's a small Romanesque church with single nave with the first span a barrel vault while the other three consist of rib vaults. There are six semi-round columns with buried bases that have curved volute capitals at their tops and support double arches. Eight recessed columns with rebated capitals support the diagonal arches. It has a tall pointed gable bell tower dates which from the 15th century. It became a Historical Monument of France on 16 September 1949.
Now a private property, was an old hunting lodge of the Lords of d'Estresse.[5] It was built in the 13th century and extensions added in the 16th century.[6]