Somorrostro Beach is one of the beaches in

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. It is located between Hospital del Mar and Marina Street, in the far east area of the Barceloneta neighborhood, in the

Ciutat Vella Ciutat Vella (, meaning in English "Old City") is a district of Barcelona, numbered District 1. The name means "old city" in Catalan and refers to the oldest neighborhoods in the city of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. ''Ciutat Vella'' is nestl ...

district. It is long and wide. The Somorrostro name was forgotten and the beach became one of the most popular in the city. It was not until 2010, Somorrostro beach got its original name back.

History

During the 19th century and part of the 20th century, the beach, and much of the neighboring beach areas was occupied by a shanty town, inhabited by 15,000 people living in 2,000 slums. Known during this time as a Romani community. It was not until the 1966 visit of Spanish

caudillo A ''caudillo'' ( , ; osp, cabdillo, from Latin , diminutive of ''caput'' "head") is a type of personalist leader wielding military and political power. There is no precise definition of ''caudillo'', which is often used interchangeably with " ...

Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...

that the slum removal began. Most of these slums were pulled down between the 1960s and 1980s. Famous

gypsy The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

flamenco Flamenco (), in its strictest sense, is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and ...

dancers

Carmen Amaya Carmen Amaya Amaya (2 November 1913/1915 – 19 November 1963) was a Spanish Romani flamenco dancer and singer, born in the Somorrostro district of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. She has been called "the greatest Flamenco dancer ever Clarke, Mary ...

and Antoñita Singla were born in that neighborhood. ''

Los Tarantos ''Los Tarantos'' is a 1963 Spanish musical drama film directed by Francisco Rovira Beleta. It was nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Foreign Film category. The film is based on the play ''La historia de los Tarantos'' written by Alfredo ...

'', an

academy award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-nominated film about flamenco starring Amaya, was filmed there in 1963.

Gallery

File:Aerial view of Somorrostro Beach and Port Olympic in Barcelona, Spain (51227006624).jpg, Aerial view of Somorrostro Beach and Port Olympic in Barcelona, Spain File:Aerial view of the Promenade and Somorrostro Beach in Barcelona (51225533277).jpg, Aerial view of the Promenade and Somorrostro Beach in Barcelona

References

{{Coord, 41.38392, 2.19622, display=title Beaches of Barcelona Beaches of Catalonia