Baix Penedès () is a comarca in Catalonia,

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 ...

. The area has been settled since the times of the

Iberians The Iberians ( la, Hibērī, from el, Ἴβηρες, ''Iberes'') were an ancient people settled in the eastern and southern coasts of the Iberian peninsula, at least from the 6th century BC. They are described in Greek and Roman sources (among ...

, with ancient ruins remaining in Banyeres at ''Can Canyís'', in the capital

El Vendrell El Vendrell () is a town located in the province of Tarragona, Catalonia, in the wine-growing region of Penedès. It is wedged between the Mediterranean and the coastal range. El Vendrell is the capital of the Baix Penedès ''comarca'' and a tou ...

at the village of ''Guàrdies'' and in

Calafell Calafell () is a village in the province of Tarragona and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain. Tourism The town is located at the heart of the Baix Penedès region; the gateway to the Costa Daurada, its economy depends heavily on tourism. The ...

at the villages of ''Toixoneres'' and ''la Ciutadella'' ("The Citadel").

Municipalities

Castellers

Baix Penedès has one of the longest-lived traditions of

casteller A ''castell'' () is a human tower built traditionally at festivals in Catalonia, the Balearic islands and the Valencian Community. At these festivals, several ''colles castelleres'' (teams that build towers) attempt to build and dismantle a ...

s in Catalonia. (Castellers practice the traditional Catalan art/sport of making

human pyramid A human pyramid is an acrobatic formation of three or more people in which two or more people support a tier of higher people, who in turn may support other, higher tiers of people. People above the bottom tier may kneel or stand on the shoulders ...

s.) 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 Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

at Bisbal and on the fourth Sunday of August at

L'Arboç L'Arboç () is a village in the province of Tarragona and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain. L'Arboç contains a half-scale replica of the La Giralda in Seville. The building also contains copies of the Court of the Lions The Court of th ...

, with castellers from all over Catalonia.

People from Baix Penedès

Among the most important historical figures from Baix Penedès are: *

Àngel Guimerà Àngel Guimerà y Jorge (6 May 1845 or 6 May 1847 or 1849 – 18 July 1924), known also as Ángel Guimerá, was a Spanish Nobel-nominated writer in the Catalan language. His work is known for bringing together under romantic aspects the main el ...

(1845–1924): writer. Guimerà was originally from the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

, but his mother was from el Vendrell, and he eventually settled there in his ancestral home, ''cal Guimerà''. *

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,

(1876–1973): cellist and composer. The house-museum ''vila Casals'' is at Sant Salvador, as is a concert hall, lAuditori Pau Casals''. * Aureli Maria Escarré (1908–1968): abbot of

Montserrat Montserrat ( ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is part of the Leeward Islands, the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles chain of the West Indies. Montserrat is about long and wide, with r ...

. Since 1978, there has been a monument to him in his home village of

l'Arboç L'Arboç () is a village in the province of Tarragona and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain. L'Arboç contains a half-scale replica of the La Giralda in Seville. The building also contains copies of the Court of the Lions The Court of th ...

, where his ancestral home is on the main street. *

Andreu Nin Andreu Nin Pérez (4 February 1892 – 20 June 1937) was a Spanish communist politician, translator and publicist. In 1937, Nin and the rest of the POUM leadership were arrested by the Moscow-oriented government of the Second Spanish Republic ...

(1892–1937) dissident Communist revolutionary in the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

)

References

External links

Official comarcal web site (in Catalan)Map, on the site of the Generalitat de Catalunya
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baix Penedes Comarques of the Province of Tarragona