Palencia is a

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of northern

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 ...

, in the northern part of the

autonomous community eu, autonomia erkidegoa ca, comunitat autònoma gl, comunidade autónoma oc, comunautat autonòma an, comunidat autonoma ast, comunidá autónoma , alt_name = , map = , category = Autonomous administra ...

of Castile and León in the north of the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, def ...

. It is bordered by the provinces of León,

Cantabria Cantabria (, also , , Cantabrian: ) is an autonomous community in northern Spain with Santander as its capital city. It is called a ''comunidad histórica'', a historic community, in its current Statute of Autonomy. It is bordered on the east ...

Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of ...

, and

Valladolid Valladolid () is a municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and de facto capital of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. It has a population around 300,000 peop ...

Overview

Of the population of 176,125 (2002), 45% live in the capital,

Palencia Palencia () is a city of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Palencia. Located in the Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, in the northern half o ...

which is located on the Canal de Castilla. There are 191 municipalities in the province, of which more than half are villages with fewer than 200 people. The major towns in this province are: Guardo, an industrial-mining town; Aguilar de Campoo, a biscuit and tourist village in northern Palencia; Herrera de Pisuerga, a village that is the gateway to the Palencine mountain, is also known for its summer activities and Crab Festival;

Venta de Baños Venta de Baños is a small town and municipality of about 6,400 inhabitants located in the Cerrato district of the province of Palencia, part of the autonomous community of Castile and León in central Spain. It lies some 10 km south of the ...

, an important railway and industrial junction south of the province; Villamuriel de Cerrato, a village to the south of Palencia that owes its development to the Renault factory and its proximity to Palencia;

Cervera de Pisuerga Cervera de Pisuerga is a municipality located in the province of Palencia, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2004 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research c ...

, in the heart of the Palencine mountains; Barruelo, a mining town that was the most populated town until the 1960s. During the Middle Ages, the

Visigoths The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is ...

ruled Palencia. Basílica de San Juan, the oldest Visigothic church in Spain, was built in 661 in the province's

Baños de Cerrato Banos or Baños ( es, baths) may refer to: * Banos, Landes, a commune in the Landes department of France * Baños de Agua Santa, a city and popular tourist destination in Tungurahua Province, Ecuador *Baños Canton, Ecuador, of which Baños de Agua ...

. During the thirteenth century a university was founded in the province. It was the first university in Spain and one of the first in the world. It was later shifted to Valladolid. The province is bordered on the north by

, on the west by the province of León, on the east by the province of

and on the south by the province of

. In Palencia large protected areas such as the Natural Park of Fuentes Carrionas and Fuente Cobre-Montaña Palencia are located. The term historical region in Palencia, refers to those regions created in the fourteenth century, under the name merindades. Cantabrian Mountains are located in the northerns parts of the province. The 8,268 feet (2,520 metres) high Curavacas peak is located in the province. The major commercial products produced in the province are barley, wheat, sugar beets, hemp, linen and woolen clothes, porcelain, leather, paper, and rugs. Food processing and metallurgy are major industries. The province has three judicial districts–one each in Palencia, Carrión de los Condes and Cervera de Pisuerga.

Population development

The historical population is given in the following chart: Colors= id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9) id:darkgrey value:gray(0.7) id:sfondo value:rgb(1,1,1) ImageSize = width:600 height:auto barincrement:30 PlotArea = left:40 bottom:40 top:20 right:20 DateFormat = x.y Period = from:0 till:240 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal AlignBars = late ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:20 start:0 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:5 start:0 BackgroundColors = canvas:sfondo PlotData= color:skyblue width:20 shift:(-50,-5) fontsize:M anchor:till bar:1877 from:0 till:180 text:180,128 bar:1887 from:0 till:189 text:189,431 bar:1900 from:0 till:192 text:192,246 bar:1910 from:0 till:198 text:197,680 bar:1920 from:0 till:196 text:195,914 bar:1930 from:0 till:212 text:212,092 bar:1940 from:0 till:227 text:222,662 bar:1950 from:0 till:236 text:236,008 bar:1960 from:0 till:237 text:237,426 bar:1970 from:0 till:202 text:201,532 bar:1980 from:0 till:188 text:188,479 bar:1990 from:0 till:185 text:185,479 bar:2000 from:0 till:174 text:174,143 bar:2010 from:0 till:171 text:170,513 bar:2020 from:0 till:160 text:160,321 TextData= pos:(35,20) fontsize:M text:"Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, INE"

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Palencia, Province of

Overview

Population development

See also

References

External links