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28-513: The mountain range, situated between the municipalities of Seia , Manteigas , Gouveia , Guarda and Covilhã , is about 100 kilometres (60 miles) long and is 30 km (19 mi) across at its widest point. It is formed from a huge granite ridge that once formed the southern frontier of the country. There are three rivers that have their headwaters in the Serra da Estrela: the Mondego , which

56-514: A large part of Serra da Estrela and is also the only one in Portugal where there is a natural ski resort, Vodafone Ski Resort , located within the limits of the parish of Loriga . Located on the western slope of Serra da Estrela, the city of Seia is at an altitude of 550 m. The climate of the municipality is temperate, with moderate temperatures in summer and cold in winter; with very low temperatures and frequent, sometimes significant snowfalls in

84-399: A natural lagoon, is the main water reservoir in Serra da Estrela. It is the largest of the lakes in the upper massif and its high hydroelectric potential led to the construction of the dam in 1911, being one of the first engineering works of this nature carried out in Portugal. The primitive human presence on where Seia lies today dates back to pre-Roman times, when a settlement was founded by

112-482: A picture of life during the fifth millennium BC, the Early Neolithic to emerge, where small communities sustained themselves by small game hunting, the gathering of acorn and other winter fruits, and migratory pastoralism. The raising of sheep and goats, introduced to the region by the first Neolithic settlers - suggests that spring and summer were spent on high ground pastures and winter on the lower grounds of

140-521: A temporal marker for the movement to the high pastures of Serra da Estrela. This archaeological narrative closely mirrors the local folklore that explains the name of the mountain range. Seia Seia ( European Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈsɐjɐ] ) is a municipality in Guarda District in Portugal. The population in 2021 was 21,755, in an area of 453.69 square kilometres (175.17 sq mi). Its urban population

168-469: Is a breed of livestock guardian dog that takes its name from this region. Queijo Serra da Estrela (Serra da Estrela cheese) is a soft cheese from the region of Serra da Estrela. The recipe is more than 2000 years old. It is made from cardoon thistle, raw sheep's milk and salt. The cheese is soft and gooey. The cheese becomes harder and chewier as time goes by. The region's ancient bordaleira sheep are also prized for their wool. The region's cuisine

196-541: Is about 7,000. Seia was elevated to city status on 3 July 1986. The municipality is situated on the northwestern slope of Serra da Estrela , the highest mountain range in mainland Portugal , with a top height of 1993 meters. The present Mayor is António Luciano Silva Ribeiro , elected by the Socialist Party . The municipal holiday is July 3 . Seia has an annual cinema festival called CineEco that focuses on films with ecological and natural themes. The municipality

224-561: Is also home to a hydroelectric system of dams, part of which is the Covão dos Conchos . The Covão dos Conchos looks like a natural sinkhole within the lake at first glance, but it was constructed as a spillway in 1955 and acts as a water diversion from Ribeira das Naves to Lagoa Comprida. A legend associated with the mountain is mentioned in chapter 41 of the American literary classic, Moby-Dick : Archaeological investigations have allowed

252-401: Is limited to the north by the municipalities of Nelas and Mangualde , to the northeast by Gouveia , to the east by Manteigas , to the southeast by Covilhã , to the southwest by Arganil and to the west by Oliveira do Hospital . In this municipality is located the highest point in mainland Portugal, Torre , in Serra da Estrela, with 1,993 meters of altitude. The municipality of Seia covers

280-414: Is the distribution of the municipalities within these districts and the autonomous regions: The biggest municipalities are those located in rural and inland areas where the dominating property type is the latifundia , such as Beja , Évora , or Portalegre in the south, and also in other less populated areas, such as Bragança or Castelo Branco . The most populous municipalities are those located near

308-815: Is the longest river entirely within Portuguese territory; and the Zêzere , which is a tributary of the Tagus ; a tributary of the Mondego, the Alva also has its headwaters in the range. It is 1,691 m (5,548 ft) high. The mountain range is now part of the Serra da Estrela Natural Park and offers skiing opportunities in the ski resort of Loriga , Seia Municipality . The Cão da Serra da Estrela ( Estrela Mountain Dog )

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336-616: Is well-regarded and includes dishes such as breaded sweet sardines and Juniper beef stew . Smoked meat (fumeiro) and traditional sausages (enchidos) are in abundance, the nettle sausage (alheira de urtiga) among them. Though the region has a very small local Jewish population, it has emerged as a center for Kosher food , with local producers launching kosher versions of their olive oil , wine and cheesemakers obtaining kosher certification for some products. 40°21′50.1″N 7°36′39.3″W  /  40.363917°N 7.610917°W  / 40.363917; -7.610917 The Serra da Estrela

364-435: The 1976 Constitution . As a general rule, each municipality is further subdivided into parishes ( freguesias ); the municipalities in the north of the country usually have a higher number of parishes. Six municipalities are composed of only one parish, and Barcelos , with 61 parishes, has the most. Corvo is, by law, the only municipality with no parishes. Since the creation of a democratic local administration, in 1976,

392-630: The Lusitanians made the mountain range, then called Montes Hermínios, their headquarters, which became a strong hurdle for the invaders. This did not, however, prevent General Galba from massacring 30,000 Lusitanian mountaineers. When the Romans became lords of the land, they then transformed the Iberian castro of Nogueira into the Roman "Civitas Sena", which was fortified when it became an Ópido with

420-778: The Turduli , around the 4th century BC , under the name Senna. The Turduli built a castro in the place of Nogueira, between the hills of Santana and Carvalha do Outeiro. Three smaller castros strategically defended it, one in São Romão, another in Crestelo and a third in what is now Seia. There are still remains of castros in Travancinha, Loriga and São Romão. When the Roman invasion of the Iberian Peninsula took place,

448-596: The autonomous region of the Azores , and 11 in Madeira . They are usually named for their biggest city, or at least, their historically most important city or town. However, the municipality is not synonymous with the city (or urban centre) and can include various towns or cities. In Portugal, cities/towns are a social distinction based on population size and associated services and have no legal representation in law or constitution. Portugal has no unincorporated areas ; all

476-642: The constitutional monarchy . The concelhos probably formed after the expulsion of the Visigothic rulers by the Moors during the Umayyad conquest of Hispania . Towns were thus left free to govern themselves, and the population started to organize in councils ( concelhos in Portuguese) in order to govern the town and surrounding lands. These were also a reminder of Roman municipalities. The existence since

504-585: The Middle Ages of a large number of small municipalities with no financial resources and without people qualified to take part in municipal councils caused the stagnation of their growth. The Liberal revolution of 1836, resulted in the suppression/annexation of many of these smaller municipalities, which allowed the infusion of new revenues and facilitated growth in population and size. There are 308 municipalities in Portugal: 278 in mainland Portugal , 19 in

532-509: The Portuguese Republic in 1910. This rally took place on the 25th of September and was chaired by Afonso Costa , a local of Seia. Administratively, the municipality is divided into 21 civil parishes ( freguesias ): Seia is twinned with: Municipalities of Portugal The municipality ( Portuguese : município or concelho ) is the second-level administrative subdivision of Portugal , as defined by

560-399: The Portuguese municipalities have been ruled by a system composed of an executive body (the municipal chamber ) and a deliberative body (the municipal assembly ). The municipal chamber is the executive body and is composed of the president of the municipality and a number of councillors proportional to the municipality's population. The municipal assembly is composed of the presidents of all

588-549: The higher altitudes of the Serra da Estrela. As for the rainfall regime, there is a short dry season, which comprises the summer months of July and August. It is 98 km from Coimbra , 67 km from Guarda , 45 km from Viseu , 298 km from Lisbon and 163 km from Porto . It is mainly served by the Nacional 17 and Nacional 231, which allow a connection to the A25, A24 and IP3. The Lagoa Comprida dam , built from

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616-455: The most stable subdivision of Portugal since the foundation of the country in the 12th century. They have their origin in the foral , a legal document, issued by the King of Portugal , which assigned privileges to a town or a region. The present subdivisions have their origins in the 19th century after the administrative reforms conducted by the middle of the 19th century by the governments of

644-408: The national territory belongs to a municipality, including uninhabited islands: Berlengas to Peniche , Desertas Islands to Santa Cruz , Selvagens Islands to Funchal , and Formigas Islets to Vila do Porto . Portugal is divided into 18 continental districts ( Portuguese : distritos ) and two autonomous regions ( Portuguese : regiões autónomas ), Azores and Madeira . The table below

672-510: The parishes that compose the municipality, as well as by a number of directly elected deputies, at least equal to the number of parish presidents plus one. Both bodies are elected for four years. Portugal has an entirely separate system of ceremonial cities and towns . Cities and towns are located in municipalities but often do not have the same boundaries, even they are continuously built up. There are around twice as many cities and towns as there are municipalities. The municipality has been

700-580: The river valleys. The significance of the Serra da Estrela in Neolithic culture can be seen in the discovery that megaliths in the Mondego River basin were predominantly built with an alignment that allowed the mountain range to be seen from within the inner chamber. At the same time the rise of Aldebaran , the brightest star of Taurus , behind the mountains could also be seen and its Heliacal rising in late April/early May could have been used as

728-719: The same name. It was later occupied by the Visigoths and the Moors , the latter from the 8th century onwards. At the time of the Christian Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula , the town was definitively conquered from the Moors by Fernando Magno , who rebuilt its fortification. About this episode, the chronicle of monk Silas recounts the violence of the attack and how the Christians put the occupants of Ópido Sena into flight, towards Ópido Visense (now Viseu). During

756-560: The sovereign granted the first charter to the village in 1136, designating it Civitatem Senam. Other charters followed, such as the one granted by Afonso II , in December 1217, that of Duarte of Portugal , in December 1433, that of Afonso V , in August 1479, and, finally, that of Manuel I , on 1 June 1510. It was in Seia that the last republican rally was held before the establishment of

784-421: The time of formation of the Portuguese nationality, Bermudo Peres, Teresa of León 's brother-in-law, started a revolt in the castle of Seia. He was unsuccessful, as Afonso I , having learned of this, went to meet him with his forces and expelled him from the castle. In the following year, he donated the domains of Seia and its castle to his servant João Viegas in recognition of services rendered. A few years later,

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