The comarques of Catalonia (singular comarca , Eastern Catalan: [kuˈmarkə] , Western Catalan: [koˈmaɾka] ), often referred to in English as counties , are an administrative division of Catalonia . Each comarca comprises a number of municipalities , roughly equivalent to a county in the United States. Currently, Catalonia is divided into 42 comarques and Aran , considered a "unique territorial entity" and not a comarca.
15-702: Baix Penedès ( Catalan pronunciation: [ˈbaʃ pənəˈðɛs] ) is a comarca in the Penedès region, in Catalonia , Spain . The area has been settled since the times of the Iberians , with ancient ruins remaining in Banyeres at Can Canyís , at the village of Guàrdies and in Calafell at the villages of Toixoneres and la Ciutadella ("The Citadel"). The capital is El Vendrell . Baix Penedès has one of
30-701: A majority of municipalities of the Lluçanès region of Osona voted to join a proposed new comarca of that name. It was finally added to the list of Comarques on the 3rd of May 2023. There are six comarques which are often referred to as the historical comarques of Catalonia , because their present-day territory was a part of the former Principality of Catalonia , but nowadays they lie in Northern Catalonia , administered by France . Province of Barcelona Barcelona ( Catalan: [bəɾsəˈlonə] ; Spanish: [baɾθeˈlona] )
45-491: Is a province of eastern Spain , in the center of the autonomous community of Catalonia . The province is bordered by the provinces of Tarragona , Lleida , and Girona , and by the Mediterranean Sea . Its area is 7,726 km (2,983 sq mi). A total of 5,743,402 people live in the province, of whom about 29% (1,664,182) live within the administrative limits of the city of Barcelona , which itself
60-674: Is contained in the Barcelona metropolitan area . The capital of the province is the city of Barcelona, and the provincial council is based in the Casa Serra on the Rambla de Catalunya in that city. Some other cities and towns in Barcelona province include L'Hospitalet de Llobregat , Badalona , Cerdanyola del Vallès , Martorell , Mataró , Granollers , Sabadell , Terrassa , Sitges , Igualada , Vic , Manresa , and Berga . Since
75-694: Is included here, is officially not a comarca but a "unique territorial entity" with additional powers. Its current status was formalised in February 2015. Revisions to the comarques took place in 1988 (creation of Pla d'Estany, Pla d'Urgell, and Alta Ribagorça), 1990 (various adjustments), and May 2015 (creation of Moianès). The Catalan government 's "Report on the revision of Catalonia's territorial organisation model" (the Roca Report [ ca ] ), published in 2000, recommends many more changes to comarques, which have not yet been adopted except for
90-544: The autonomous Catalan government under the Spanish Republic in 1936. It was superseded after the 1939 victory of Francisco Franco 's forces in the Spanish Civil War , but restored in 1987 by the re-established Generalitat of Catalonia . Since the definition of comarques is sometimes ambiguous, many new proposals have been made since the comarques were first officially designated as attempts to modify
105-575: The counties that were ruled by counts . Borders of comarques generally do not cross those of the state-level provinces ( Barcelona , Girona , Lleida , Tarragona ), since the provinces are defined by the Spanish government, while comarques are defined by the Catalan government - notably in the case of Cerdanya which is split into two between the provinces of Lleida and Girona (most other cases involve only one or two municipalities). Aran , which
120-484: The 2015 creation of Moianès. The other proposed new comarques are: Vall de Camprodon [ ca ] (capital at Camprodon ), Selva Marítima [ ca ] (capital at Blanes ), Alta Segarra [ ca ] (capital at Calaf ), Segre Mitjà [ ca ] (capital at Ponts ), and Baix Llobregat Nord [ ca ] (capital at Martorell ). In a non-binding referendum in July 2015,
135-649: The division by provinces in Spain and the division by comarques in Catalonia do not completely agree, the term comarques of the province of Barcelona would not be entirely correct. However, a list of the comarques that are included—totally or partially—in the province of Barcelona can be made: The Catalan Pre-Coastal Range and Catalan Coastal Range mountains run through the Province of Barcelona. There are several notable smaller mountain ranges that are located in
150-577: The longest-lived traditions of castellers in Catalonia. (Castellers practice the traditional Catalan art/sport of making human pyramids .) The comarcal capital, el Vendrell, has a monument dedicated to castellers. The most important competitions of Castellers in the comarca occur each year as part of the August festival in honor of the Virgin Mary at Bisbal and on the fourth Sunday of August at L'Arboç , with castellers from all over Catalonia. Among
165-480: The most important historical figures from Baix Penedès are: 41°13′12″N 1°32′4″E / 41.22000°N 1.53444°E / 41.22000; 1.53444 Comarques of Catalonia Each comarca has a representative county council (Catalan: consell comarcal ), except for Barcelonès , which abolished it in 2019, and Aran, which instead has the Conselh Generau d'Aran . Comarques form
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#1732790685421180-483: The official distribution with what some regions consider to be a traditional comarca. As a result, some revisions to the official division have been made, such as the additions of Moianès and Lluçanès to the map, in 2015 and 2023 respectively. Comarques exist as a local government area, and have a representative county council . They are often known as counties in the English language, but this can be confused with
195-654: The people of the region traditionally go to shop or to sell their goods. This is the case of comarques such as the Pla de l'Estany , centred on the town of Banyoles , or the Ripollès , centred on the town of Ripoll . In other cases, comarques are larger areas with many important population centres that have traditionally been considered part of the same region, as in the case of the Empordà or Vallès . The current official division of Catalonia into comarques originates in an order of
210-465: The province, including Montseny Massif , Serra de Collserola , and Tibidabo . Pedraforca is the tallest mountain in the province, located on the north side as part of the Pre-Pyrenees . Tibidabo is the mountain that overlooks the city of Barcelona. The majority of the Province of Barcelona has a Mediterranean climate on the coast and an oceanic climate inland. The historical population
225-521: The second-level administrative division within Catalonia, being a subdivision of vegueries (or provinces at state level). Although today the comarques are officially defined under a Catalan parliamentary act, for centuries they had existed unofficially, with citizens identifying with a particular comarca in the same way that people in other parts of the world might identify with a particular region. In some cases, comarques consist of rural areas and many small villages centring on an important town, where
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