Burela is a municipality in the Galician province of Lugo. It is in the

comarca A ''comarca'' (, or , or ) is a traditional region or local administrative division found in Portugal, Spain and some of their former colonies, like Brazil, Nicaragua, and Panama. The term is derived from the term ''marca'', meaning a "march, ...

of A Mariña. Burela is a coastal town on the shores of the

Cantabrian Sea The Cantabrian Sea; french: Mer Cantabrique, gl, Mar Cantábrico, ast, Mar Cantábricu, eu, Kantauri. is the term used mostly in Spain to describe the coastal sea of the Atlantic Ocean that borders the northern coast of Spain and the southwe ...

. An extension area of 8.2 square kilometers was created in 1994, following the segregation of the municipality of Cervo. Its fishing port is one of the most important of the Galician coast and has a large fleet of ships. Its economy is based mainly on

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 ...

, in particular,

albacore The albacore (''Thunnus alalunga''), known also as the longfin tuna, is a species of tuna of the order Perciformes. It is found in temperate and tropical waters across the globe in the epipelagic and mesopelagic zones. There are six distinct s ...

("bonito del norte") and hake are delivered daily to the rest of

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 ...

. As a result, a canning industry has developed. Due to the high demand for personnel to work at sea, Burela is a multicultural town which has many residents from Cape Verde and has recently had an influx of

immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, a ...

from

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, and other places. The population grew considerably in the latter part of the twentieth century.

History

The history of Burela dates to pre-

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 lette ...

times. The oldest evidence of people found in the area was a fort at the end of the cape. The inhabitants of these forts left one of the emblems of the city, a torque, a piece of

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...

culture, which is currently in the Provincial Museum of Lugo and is also part of the coat of arms of Burela. The first written reference to Burela is in a document dated back to 1096, where it is referred to as Burellum. The origin of the name Burela is still unknown. Burela got independence from Cervo in 1994. Near these

remains is a "vilaris" and a Roman villa. This small settlement gave rise to a rural population that became a parish under the protection of Mary and belongs to the Diocese of Saint Martin of Mondoñedo. Burela was under the jurisdiction of the church until Felipe II, in 1593, incorporated the jurisdiction of the Royal Crown preserve of the round of St. Mary of Burela and granted a charter in favor of the Bishop of Mondoñedo. With the Constitution of the Courts of Cadiz (1812) the old jurisdictions and lordships finished and new councils arrived. A list of new councils in 1835 are published in 1835 and the municipalities of San Cibrao and Nois appeared, the latter belonging to the parish of Burela.

Demography

Burela currently has more than 9,000 inhabitants. The population has an average age of 36 years which constitutes the younger half of the province. The population of the town had a large increase in the late 1970s and 80s with the arrival of families from other areas of the peninsula, especially

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 coextensiv ...

and Castile and León, due to the settlement of the public company Alúmina Alumino in San Cibrao (now privatized as Alcoa). From this time on, the Cape Verde population began to grow into a community of greater significance.

References

{{authority control Municipalities in the Province of Lugo