Avilés (; ) is a town in

Asturias Asturias (, ; ast, Asturies ), officially the Principality of Asturias ( es, Principado de Asturias; ast, Principáu d'Asturies; Galician-Asturian: ''Principao d'Asturias''), is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in nor ...

, Spain. Avilés is, along with

Oviedo Oviedo (; ast, Uviéu ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains the city. Oviedo is located ap ...

and

Gijón Gijón () or () is a city and municipality in north-western Spain. It is the largest city and municipality by population in the autonomous community of Asturias. It is located on the coast of the Cantabrian Sea in the Bay of Biscay, in the cent ...

, one of the main cities in the

Principality of Asturias Asturias (, ; ast, Asturies ), officially the Principality of Asturias ( es, Principado de Asturias; ast, Principáu d'Asturies; Galician-Asturian: ''Principao d'Asturias''), is an autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive ...

. The town occupies the flattest land in the municipality, partially in a land that belonged to the sea, surrounded by small promontories, all of them having an altitude of less than 140 metres. Situated in the Avilés estuary, in the Northern Central area of the Asturian coast, west of Peñas Cape, is its national

seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

. Avilés is mainly an industrial city. It is close to popular beaches like Salinas. It also has important churches like St. Thomas of Canterbury. Avilés has also cultural spaces such as the

Palacio Valdés Theatre The Palacio Valdés Theatre is located in Avilés, Principality of Asturias in Northern Spain. The building was designed by the architect Manuel del Busto at the beginnings of the 20th century. This architect planned a theatre in Neobaroque style ...

(in Spanish: ) or the

Oscar Niemeyer International Cultural Centre The Oscar Niemeyer International Cultural Centre, or Centro Niemeyer ( es, link=no, Centro Cultural Internacional Oscar Niemeyer, popularly known as ''el Niemeyer''), is a cultural centre complex designed by the Brazilian architect Oscar Niemey ...

(in Spanish: ).

History

Sto Tomás de Canterbury Avilés Asturias 01

Toponymy

The existence of the town proper is documented only in the latter

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th or early 6th century to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Mi ...

, although the

etymology Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the Phonological chan ...

of the name "Avilés" is likely ancient. It is thought to come from a local

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

landowner or likely a Romanized Germanic warrior who settled there from/to the

Kingdom of the Suebi The Kingdom of the Suebi ( la, Regnum Suevorum), also called the Kingdom of Galicia ( la, Regnum Galicia) or Suebi Kingdom of Galicia ( la, Galicia suevorum regnum), was a Germanic post-Roman kingdom that was one of the first to separate from ...

Visigothic Kingdom The Visigothic Kingdom, officially the Kingdom of the Goths ( la, Regnum Gothorum), was a kingdom that occupied what is now southwestern France and the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th to the 8th centuries. One of the Germanic peoples, Germanic su ...

, as much

toponymy Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...

in northern Spain shares a Germanic origin named ''Abilius''.

Chronology

Archaeological excavations have shown that the area was already settled in the

upper palaeolithic The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago (the beginning of the Holocene), according to some theories coin ...

era. The first well known document is an endowment of two churches by Asturias King Alfonso III, in 905. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, it was one of the most important ports of the

Biscay Bay Biscay Bay is a Local service district (Newfoundland and Labrador), local service district in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Origin of Name This name appears as early as 1675 in The En ...

, trading mainly with French ports, the main trade was salt. At this time, it had two nuclei: a fishermen's district, Sabugo, and the aristocratic centre, La Villa, standing each other across a small water inlet at the site of present-day Avilés' main Park. La Villa was surrounded by strong

walls Walls may refer to: *The plural of wall, a structure * Walls (surname), a list of notable people with the surname Places * Walls, Louisiana, United States *Walls, Mississippi, United States * Walls, Ontario, neighborhood in Perry, Ontario, C ...

, which demonstrated its strategic and commercial importance. On 15 January 1479 the

Catholic Monarchs The Catholic Monarchs were Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon, whose marriage and joint rule marked the ''de facto'' unification of Spain. They were both from the House of Trastámara and were second cousins, being bot ...

granted a free market on each Monday of the year, which still takes place. The importance of the town as a naval centre is supported by the building of ships with wood harvested from nearby forests, and with the participation of local sailors in the conquest of

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

by the Castilian army, which is reflected in Avilés's

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

. It is the birthplace of

Pedro Menéndez de Avilés Pedro Menéndez de Avilés (; ast, Pedro (Menéndez) d'Avilés; 15 February 1519 – 17 September 1574) was a Spanish admiral, explorer and conquistador from Avilés, in Asturias, Spain. He is notable for planning the first regular trans-oceani ...

, a soldier in the army of Felipe II, who explored

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in the 16th century and founded in 1565 the first successful (continuously populated) European town in what is now the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, San Agustín (now St. Augustine, Florida). St. Augustine and Avilés are now sister cities. Avilés is also the birthplace of

Juan Carreño de Miranda Juan Carreño de Miranda (25 March 1614 — 3 October 1685) was a Spanish painter of the Baroque period. Biography Born in Avilés in Asturias, son of a painter with the same name, Juan Carreño de Miranda. His family moved to Madrid in 1623, ...

, court painter to the king Charles II. Puerto de Avilés 01

The estuary, which had been closed to navigation since the early modern era, was partially drained and cleared in the 19th century. The water inlet dividing the place was covered, so that the two nuclei, Sabugo and La Villa, could be joined together. Then the city began to grow outside the medieval wall, which had been demolished in 1818. In the 20th century, there was an enormous growth in population due to the arrival of several large factories to the town. In 1953 were started the first earthworks for the construction of the factory of ENSIDESA, a large steel mill, currently

Aceralia Aceralia was a large Spanish steel producer formed in 1997 by restructuring of a group formed from earlier mergers of the steel producers ENSIDESA and ''Altos Hornos de Vizcaya''. The company merged into Arcelor in 2001, and became part of Arcelo ...

(part of

ArcelorMittal ArcelorMittal S.A. is a Luxembourgian multinational steel manufacturing corporation headquartered in Luxembourg City. It was formed in 2006 from the takeover and merger of Arcelor by Indian-owned Mittal Steel. ArcelorMittal is the second larg ...

); other companies in the area are Cristalería Española, which together with ENDASA, currently

Alcoa Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primary ...

, transformed Avilés into one of Spain's industrial centres. Nowadays, the city is trying to focus on new industries, particularly cultural tourism, and recover its antique flavour.

Culture

Architecture

Sights include: * St. Thomas of Canterbury church (dating from the 13th century) * Church of Saint Nicholas of Bari (12th-13th century), in Romanesque style * , the sole example of civil medieval architecture in the town * (1700–1706) * , fortified in its north façade against the English pirates * , a 14th-century funerary monument in Romanesque-Gothic transition style * Old church of Sabugo (13th century) * , in Modernist style *

, in Neobaroque style

Museums and arts centres

* Museum of Avilés Urban History * Black Pottery Museum * Alfercam Museum, where visitors can find a combination of world musical instruments and vintage cars. * , including the Bances Candamo public library, art gallery, reading and study areas. * CMAE - - arts and exhibicion centre in ''El Arbolón'' area, not far from the town centre. *

, designed by the Brazilian architect

Oscar Niemeyer Oscar Ribeiro de Almeida Niemeyer Soares Filho (15 December 1907 – 5 December 2012), known as Oscar Niemeyer (), was a Brazilian architect considered to be one of the key figures in the development of modern architecture. Niemeyer was ...

. It is a magnet for different personalities, including winners of the

Prince of Asturias Awards The Princess of Asturias Awards ( es, Premios Princesa de Asturias, links=no, ast, Premios Princesa d'Asturies, links=no), formerly the Prince of Asturias Awards from 1981 to 2014 ( es, Premios Príncipe de Asturias, links=no), are a series of a ...

, the

Nobel prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

, musicians, actors, the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

, etc.

Sculptures

Throughout the town there are sculptures in various styles: the set of sculptures in El Muelle park, specially the ''Pedro Menendez'' sculpture and (the seal); the set of sculptures along the Avilés estuary; ''Avilés'' sculpture, and others such as , (The Man who Listens to the Stone), , , etc. CentroNiemeyer1

Feasts and traditions

Some of the most famous are: Columns in Avilés, 2

In autumn: * Feast of the (Autumn). In winter: * The (

Carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...

in Asturian) which includes the ''.'' In spring: * The ; the is a traditional cake—. * Lunch in the street (). *The . In summer: * The Celsius 232, a terror, fantasy and science fiction literature festival. * The

Interceltic Festival of Avilés The Interceltic Festival of Avilés (FIA) is a summer arts festival held annually in Avilés, and the surrounding area in Asturias, Spain since 1997. The festival is held to promote the cultural traditions, and developments, of the Celtic natio ...

, which takes place in summer, with people coming from all

Celtic nations The Celtic nations are a cultural area and collection of geographical regions in Northwestern Europe where the Celtic languages and cultural traits have survived. The term ''nation'' is used in its original sense to mean a people who shar ...

(

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, Galicia,

). * Feast of

Saint Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...

(Avilés'

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

). * rock festival.

Festivals

, which takes place in summer, with people coming from all

(

, Galicia,

). *

Avilés International Cinema and Architecture Festival The Avilés International Cinema and Architecture Festival (Spanish: ''Festival Internacional de Cine y Arquitectura'') (FICARQ) takes places in Avilés, Asturias and it is the only festival about the subject in Spain. Its main aim is to show the ...

* Beer Festival * Avilés Acción Film Festival, an international short film festival. * organized from Sol Street. * '' IndieGo Alley Festival'', International Creative Commons film and music festival (live music, videoclips, experimental cinema and short films) organized in Palacio Valdés street. It takes place for one evening.

Climate

The area experiences an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

, warm summers with both overcast and sunny days. In winter the weather is moderate, with significant rains and wind, although sometimes the cold climate of Asturias results in snowfall at sea level. The temperature is rarely below zero or over . Summer highs are exceptionally low by Spanish standards due its heavy maritime features and northerly position in the country.

Politics

The first mayor of Avilés, after the Spanish Transition, was Manuel Ponga Santamarta (

FSA-PSOE The Asturian Socialist Federation (Spanish: ''Federación Socialista Asturiana''), often shortened to FSA–PSOE, is the regional section of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) in the Principality of Asturias. It was formed on 27 January 1 ...

) (1979-1983) (1983-1987) (1987-1988), then Santiago Jesús Rodríguez Vega (

) (1988-1991) (1991-1995) (1999-2003) (2003-2007), Agustín Gonzalez Sánchez ( PP) (1995-1999), Pilar Varela Díaz (FSA-PSOE) (2007-2011) (2011-2015), and the current one María Virtudes Monteserín Rodríguez (

) (2015-2019) (2019-2023).

Economy

The Port of Avilés is a

port facility A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

in Avilés. It handles

bulk Bulk can refer to: Industry * Bulk cargo * Bulk liquids * Bulk mail * Bulk material handling * Bulk pack, packaged bulk materials/products * Bulk purchasing * Baking * Bulk fermentation, the period after mixing when dough is left alone to ferm ...

breakbulk In shipping, break-bulk, breakbulk, or break bulk cargo, also called general cargo, refers to goods that are stowed on board ship in individually counted units. Traditionally, the large numbers of items are recorded on distinct bills of lading ...

, liquid bulk and has facilities for

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

and leisure craft.

Parishes

*Avilés *

Corros Corros is one of six parishes (administrative divisions) in Avilés, a municipality within the province and autonomous community of Asturias, in northern Spain. It is in size with a population of 584INE2011). They may be found within the ...

* Entreviñas *

Laviana Laviana ( Asturian: ''Llaviana'') is a municipality in the Autonomous Community of the Principality of Asturias, located in Spain. It is bordered on the north by Bimenes and Nava, on the south by Aller, on the east by Piloña and Sobrescobio, ...

* Miranda * Valliniello

Notable people

* Horacio Álvarez (1881–1936), politician, lawyer and journalist *

Kily Álvarez David 'Kily' Álvarez Aguirre (born 5 February 1984) is a former professional footballer who played as either a right-back or a right midfielder. Born in Spain, he played for the Equatorial Guinea national football team, Equatorial Guinea natio ...

(born 1984), footballer * Sergio Álvarez (born 1992), footballer * Iván Candela (born 1978), retired footballer *

(1614–1685), painter * Yago Lamela (1977–2014), athlete *

(1519–1574), admiral, explorer and first governor of Florida *

Esteban de las Alas Esteban de las Alas (died 1577) was a Spanish naval officer who served as interim governor of La Florida from October 1567 to August 1570, in the absence of official governor Pedro Menéndez de Avilés. He was also governor of the Spanish settle ...

, governor of Florida (in the absence of Avilés) and Santa Elena * Juan Treviño de Guillamas (d. before 1636), governor of Spanish Florida (1613–1618) and Venezuela (1621–1623).

Sister cities

* St. Augustine, Florida, United States *

Saint-Nazaire Saint-Nazaire (; ; Gallo: ''Saint-Nazère/Saint-Nazaer'') is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France, in traditional Brittany. The town has a major harbour on the right bank of the Loire estuary, near the Atlantic Ocean ...

, France *

Laayoune Laâyoune ( , also , ) or El Aaiún ( , ; Hassaniya Arabic: , romanized: ; ber, ⵍⵄⵢⵓⵏ, Leɛyun; ar, label= Literary Arabic, العيون, al-ʿUyūn/el-ʿUyūn, lit=The Springs) is the largest city of the disputed territory of W ...

, Morocco * Cárdenas, Cuba

References

Bibliography

* ''Paseo ilustrado por el casco histórico de Avilés'', Concejalía de Turismo, Ayuntamiento de Avilés, del Río, Alberto * ''Avilés'', Ediciones: Mases, Ovies Ruiz, José Ramón * ''Asturias a través de sus concejos'', Ediciones: Prensa Asturiana S.A. * ''Heráldica Institucional y Vexilología del Principado de Asturias'', Ediciones: Principado de Asturias, Panizo Gómez, Eduardo * ''Avilés, una historia de mil años'', Ediciones Azuzel, Juan Carlos de la Madrid * ''Avilés, su fe y sus obras'', author's edition, Ángel Garralda García * ''Gran Enciclopedia Asturiana'', Silverio Cañada, Several authors

External links

Municipality of AvilésAvifoto - pictures of the city
requires flash)
Oscar Niemeyer International Cultural Centre
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aviles Municipalities in Asturias Port cities and towns on the Spanish Atlantic coast *