A Coruña (; ; also informally called just Coruña; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
in
Galicia, Spain. It is Galicia's second largest city, behind
Vigo. The city is the provincial capital of the province of
A Coruña, having also served as political capital of the
Kingdom of Galicia
The Kingdom of Galicia was a political entity located in southwestern Europe, which at its territorial zenith occupied the entire northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. In the early 10th century, the Kingdom of Galicia was formed following the div ...
from the 16th to the 19th centuries, and as a regional administrative centre between 1833 and 1982.
A Coruña is located on a
promontory in the
Golfo Ártabro, a large gulf on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the main industrial and
financial
Finance refers to monetary resources and to the study and Academic discipline, discipline of money, currency, assets and Liability (financial accounting), liabilities. As a subject of study, is a field of Business administration, Business Admin ...
centre of northern Galicia, and holds the headquarters of the
Universidade da Coruña. A Coruña is the Spanish city featuring the tallest mean-height of buildings, also featuring a population density of of built land area.
Name
Origin
There is no clear evidence as to what the name derives from. It seems to be from ''Crunia'', of unknown origin and meaning, documented for the first time at the time of
Ferdinand II of León (reigned 1157–1188). As usual in Galician-Portuguese (as well as in Castilian Spanish), the cluster ''ni'' naturally evolved into the sound , written ''n'', ''nn'' or ''nh'' in old Galician orthography, ''nn'' in Spanish (later abbreviated to ''
ñ'', like the original Latin cluster "nn"), and ''nh'' in Portuguese and alternative Galician spelling. "''A''" is the Galician-Portuguese article equivalent to English ''the'', comparable to the Castilian Spanish ''la'' ("the").
One proposed etymology derives ''Crunia'' from ''
Cluny'', the town in France. During its height () the
Cluniac
Cluny Abbey (; , formerly also ''Cluni'' or ''Clugny''; ) is a former Order of Saint Benedict, Benedictine monastery in Cluny, Saône-et-Loire, France. It was dedicated to Saint Peter, Saints Peter and Saint Paul, Paul.
The abbey was constructed ...
religious movement became very prominent in Europe. There is another town named ''Coruña'' in
Burgos Province.
A more likely possibility is that the name simply means "The Crown", which in Galician is ''A Coroa'' and in Spanish is ''La Corona''. It seems less likely that it traces back to the Galician ''clunia''. The name is reputedly from the Greek Κορώνα (Crown), referring to the crown of
Geryon that was buried by
Hercules under the lighthouse he built to his honour. The hero Hercules slew the giant tyrant Geryon after three days and three nights of continuous battle. Hercules then—in a Celtic gesture—buried the head of Geryon with his weapons and ordered that a city be built on the site. The lighthouse atop a skull and crossbones representing the buried head of Hercules' slain enemy appears in the coat-of-arms of the city of A Coruña, Loukeris (2019).
A proxy evolution within the Portuguese language points out to the Latin word ''Colonya'' as its origin, where the L was transformed into R which
occurs widely in Portuguese. A similar happening can be found today in
Coronie, a Surinamese town which also made its course outside the Portuguese system.
A folk etymology incorrectly derives ''Coruña'' from the ancient ''columna'', or
Tower of Hercules.
Use
In English, use of the Spanish or Galician forms now predominates. However, the traditional English form ''Corunna'' is still often used in the UK, particularly in reference to the
Battle of Corunna (1809) in the
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...
. Archaically, English-speakers knew the city as "The Groyne", probably from French ''La Corogne''. In Spain, the official form of the name is now the
Galician one: "A Coruña", though many Spaniards continue to use "La Coruña". Despite this, "La Coruña" is in a constant decline, in favor of the official and historical form "A Coruña".
Geography

A Coruña is located on a peninsula, and its isthmus was at times formed only by a small strip of sand. Erosion and sea currents caused a progressive accumulation of sand, enlarging it to its present dimensions.
Climate
A Coruña has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (''
Csb'') in the
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
. Autumn is usually mild with spring-like temperatures, but winter is often unsettled and unpredictable, with strong winds and abundant rainfall coming from
Atlantic depressions. The ocean keeps temperatures mild all year round (the variation between winter and summer temperatures is only on average) and therefore frost and snow are extremely rare. In fact, the city has not received significant snowfall since January 1987. A Coruña lies in plant
hardiness zone 10b.
Spring is usually warm and fairly calm, while summers are mostly sunny and humid, with occasional rainfall, usually in the form of
drizzle; high temperatures are warm but rarely uncomfortably hot because of the sea's cooling influence during the day, most often being around between July and September. Even the warmest month on record was relatively subdued, being August 2003, with an average high temperature of . Temperatures above occur many days in the summer, while temperatures above are infrequent.
Administrative divisions
Parishes
A Coruña has five parishes, or : A Coruña, San Vicente de Elviña, Santa María de Oza, San Cristóbal das Viñas, and San Pedro de Visma.
Districts
* Cidade Vella (Old town)
* A Mariña
* Os Cantóns
* Pescaría (Pescadería)
* Ensanche
* Cidade Xardín
* Riazor
* Catro Camiños
* A Gaiteira
* Os Mallos
* Zalaeta-Orzán
* Torre-As Atochas
* Monte Alto
* As Lagoas
* Falperra–Santa Lucía
* Juan Flórez–San Paulo
* Os Castros
* A Agra do Orzán
* O Peruleiro
* A Agrela
* Sagrada Familia-Campo de Vionho
* Labañou–San Roque
* Barrio das Flores
* Elviña
* O Ventorrillo
* O Castrillón
* As Durmideiras
* O Birloque
* O Martinete
* Matogrande
* As Roseiras (Rosales)
* Paseo das Pontes
* Mesoiro
* Novo Mesoiro
* Someso
* Eirís
* Monelos
* San Cristovo das Viñas
* San Pedro de Visma
* San Vicenzo de Elviña
* Bens
* Nostián
* O Portiño
* A Silva–San Xosé
* Palavea
* Santa Xema
* Casabranca–As Xubias
* Feáns
* A Zapateira
* Santa Margarida
History
Prehistory
A Coruña spread from the peninsula, the site of the later
Tower of Hercules, onto the mainland. The oldest part, known popularly in Galician as Cidade Vella (Old City), Cidade Alta (High City) or the Cidade (City), is built on an ancient Celtic castro. It was supposedly inhabited by the
Brigantes and
Artabrians, the Celtic tribes of the area.
Roman times
The Romans came to the region in the 2nd century BCE; they made the most of the strategic position and soon the city became quite important in maritime trade. In 62 BCE
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...
came to the city (known at the time as Brigantium) in pursuit of the metal trade, establishing commerce with what are now France, England and Portugal. The town began to grow, mainly during the 1st and 2nd centuries (when the Farum Brigantium
Tower of Hercules was built), but declined after the 4th century and particularly with the incursions of the
Vikings
Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...
, which forced the population to flee towards the interior of the Estuary of O Burgo.
Middle Ages
After the fall of the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...
, A Coruña still had a commercial port connected to foreign countries, but contacts with the Mediterranean were slowly replaced by a more Atlantic-oriented focus. The process of deurbanisation that followed the fall of the Roman Empire also affected A Coruña. Between the 7th and 8th centuries, the city was no more than a little village of labourers and sailors.
The 11th-century ''Chronica iriense'' names Faro do Burgo (ancient name of A Coruña) as one of the dioceses that king
Miro granted to the episcopate of
Iria Flavia in the year 572:
:''Mirus Rex Sedi suae Hiriensi contulit Dioceses, scilicet Morratium, Salinensem, (...) Bregantinos, Farum...''
:"
ing Miro granted to his Irienses headquarters the dioceses of Morrazo, Salnés (...). Bergantiños, Faro...
The Muslim invasion of the Iberian peninsula left no archaeological evidence in the northwest, so it cannot be said whether or not the Muslim invaders ever reached the city. As Muslim rule in early 8th century Galicia consisted little more than a short-lived overlordship of the remote and rugged region backed by a few garrisons, and the city was no more than a village amidst Roman ruins, the invaders showed the same lack of interest in the ruined city as they did generally for the region.
As the city began to recover during the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
the main problem for the inhabitants was the
Norman raids, as well as the ever-present threat of raids (
razzias) from
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...
to the south. During the 9th century there were several
Viking
Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...
attacks on the city, called at that time Faro or Faro Bregancio.
In the year 991, King
Vermudo II began the construction of defensive military positions on the coast. At Faro, in the ruins of the
Tower of Hercules, a fortress was built, which had a permanent military garrison. To pay for it, he gave power over the city to the
bishop of Santiago. The bishop of Santiago became the most important political post in
Galicia, and remained so until the 15th century.
In 1208,
Alfonso IX re-founded the city of ''Crunia''. Some privileges, such as those of disembarking and selling
salt
In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...
without paying taxes, were granted to the city, and it enjoyed a big growth in fishing and mercantile business. The city grew and extended through the isthmus. In 1446
John II of Castile granted to A Coruña the title of "City". The
Catholic Monarchs established the Royal Audience of the Kingdom of Galicia in the city, instead of
Santiago
Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...
. A Coruña also became the headquarters of the
Captaincy General.

Later, in 1522,
Charles V conceded to the city of A Coruña the license to establish the
House of Spices, being this the port chosen by Jofre Garcia de Loysa to set his expedition to conquer the
Moluccans.

In the late Middle Ages, before the
expulsion of the Jews in 1492, a thriving Jewish community created a rich artistic heritage in the city. The most lavishly illuminated Hebrew Bible in medieval Spain was created in A Coruña in 1476. Known as the
Kennicott Bible, it is currently housed in the
Bodleian Library, Oxford. The Jewish community is said to have dated to at least the 11th century, with fragments of Jewish tombstones dating to that time period. There is a street in present A Coruña called "Calle de la Sinagoga", or "synagogue street", which is believed to be the street where the synagogue once stood.
Modern period
During the
Modern period, the city was a port and centre for the manufacturing of textiles. In 1520, king
Carlos I of
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, met in the courts of A Coruña and embarked from its harbour to be elected Emperor of the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
(as Charles V). He allowed the government of the Kingdom of Galicia to distribute spice in Europe between 1522 and 1529. Commerce with the
Indies was allowed between 1529 and 1575.
San Antón Castle was built to defend of the city and its harbour.
From the port of
Ferrol in the
Province of A Coruña,
Philip II left to marry
Mary I of England in 1554, and much later, in 1588, from the same port the
Spanish Armada
The Spanish Armada (often known as Invincible Armada, or the Enterprise of England, ) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by Alonso de Guzmán, Duke of Medina Sidonia, an aristocrat without previous naval ...
would set sail to the
Low Countries and England, where it was defeated.
In the following year, during the
Anglo-Spanish War, the
English Armada conducted a
besieged A Coruña, but was eventually forced to withdraw. A local woman,
María Pita, took her dead husband's spear during the siege and killed an enemy captain, rallying support to deny a breach in the wall to the attackers.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the wars of the Spanish monarchy caused a great increase in taxes and the start of conscription. In 1620,
Philip III created the School of the Boys of the Sea. In 1682 the
Tower of Hercules was restored by Antúnez.
19th century

On 16 January 1809, A Coruña was the site of the
Battle of Corunna during the
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...
, in which British troops fought against the French to cover the embarkation of British troops after their retreat. In this battle
General Sir John Moore was killed.
Spanish resistance during the war in Galicia was led by Sinforiano López, and A Coruña was the only
Galician city that achieved success against the French troops. French troops left Galicia at the end of May 1809.
During the 19th century, the city was the centre of anti-monarchist sentiment. On 19 August 1815,
Juan Díaz Porlier, pronounced against
Fernando VII in defense of the
Spanish Constitution of 1812. He was supported by the
bourgeoisie
The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and aristocracy. They are traditionally contrasted wi ...
and the educated people. But on 22 August he was betrayed and hanged in the Campo da Leña two months later. A Coruña supported the
liberal side in all the 19th-century rebellions. A Coruña also played an important role in the
Rexurdimento, and there were founded the
Galician Royal Academy in 1906 and the Brotherhoods of the Galician Language in 1916.
Regarding the economy, in 1804 the National Cigarette Factory was founded, and there the
workers' movement of the city had its origins. During the 19th century other businesses (glass, foundries, textiles, gas, matches, etc.) were slowly established, but it was maritime trade and migrant travel that attracted Catalan, Belgian, French and English investments. The Bank of A Coruña was founded in 1857. The new provincial division of 1832 also influenced economic development.
20th and 21st centuries
At the beginning of the 20th century, A Coruña had about 45,000 inhabitants. The Great Depression and the Spanish Civil War severely affected the economy through the 1930s to the mid-1950s. The 1960s and early 1970s saw a dramatic economic recovery, which was part of the wider
Spanish Miracle. As elsewhere in Galicia, A Coruña attracted a massive influx of Galician-speaking rural dwellers, into their quickly developed neighbourhoods. The period between 1960 and 1980 saw a big transformation in most areas of the city from being agricultural dwellings to urban districts. The international
oil shocks of the mid and late 1970s severely disrupted the economy, causing many bankruptcies and high unemployment until the mid-1980s, when slower but steady economic development was resumed.
Elections of 1931
In the
Spanish general elections, 1931, all the political parties knew that the electoral results had important political consequences. The campaign of Unión Monárquica was very important in A Coruña and was supported by ''
El Ideal Gallego''. Republicans and socialists constituted a block, made up of ORGA, independent republicans,
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) and the
Radical Socialist Republican Party.
In the elections, the republican parties obtained 34 of the 39 council seats. The best results were of the ORGA and of the Partido Radical Socialista, and the
Radical Republican Party lost a lot of support.
Democracy returns
From 1983 to 2006, the mayor of the city was Francisco Vázquez Vázquez (
PSOE), and the city became devoted to services, but he also was criticised because of his being openly against
Galician nationalism, favouring the already established
Castillian-
Spanish social dominance and extending the equally deep-rooted prejudice against Galician language and cultural expression. Another downside's of Mr Vazquez legacy would be his town-planning policies, with big-money pharaoh-like projects with little social impact (shopping centres, Millennium obelisk, etc.). However, on a positive note Mr Vazquez's 23 year-long mandate saw the European-funded Maritime Promenade and the city's Scientific Museums (Casa das Ciencias-Planetario-, Casa dos Peixes-Aquarium and Casa do Home-Domus).
On 20 January 2006 Vázquez was named ambassador to the
Vatican City
Vatican City, officially the Vatican City State (; ), is a Landlocked country, landlocked sovereign state and city-state; it is enclaved within Rome, the capital city of Italy and Bishop of Rome, seat of the Catholic Church. It became inde ...
, and was later replaced by Francisco Javier Losada de Azpiazu. In 2007 Municipal Elections the local government was a coalition of the
Socialists' Party of Galicia and the left-wing nationalist
Galician Nationalist Bloc party. The city celebrated its first
millennium
A millennium () is a period of one thousand years, one hundred decades, or ten centuries, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting ...
in 2008.
In the 2011 Municipal Elections, the conservative candidate Carlos Negreira (
PP) obtained a majority, the first one for the People's Party in the city since the arrival of democracy.
The mayor of the 2015–2019 mandate was Xulio Ferreiro, from the
Marea Atlántica ("Atlantic Tide") party, who was elected in 2015 on an anti-corruption mandate. His remit was to improve the town planning of the city rather than to leave it to the mercy of corrupt, unregulated free-market policies which have left a negative legacy in many areas of the municipality. He has widespread support across the region in opposition to a project to sell off the city's port (a legacy of the preceding mayor Carlos Negreira) to a private equity firm, which wants to construct a gated community of high-rise apartment blocks for which there is no real market demand in a city with a population of around 250,000 inhabitants. The plan is to put a covenant on the land and to encourage a civic consultation on redevelopment of the site.
The current mayor is
Inés Rey of
PSdeG-PSOE.
Population
19th and 20th centuries
After the
War of Independence (1808–1814), the fortunes of
Ferrol began to deteriorate. The largest port in northern Spain, site of the
Reales Astilleros de Esteiro, one of the three Royal Royal Dockyards together with
Cartagena and
Cádiz, almost became a "dead" town during the reign of
Ferdinand VII. By 1833, the City and Naval Station of Ferrol saw its civilian population reduced to 13,000. During the administration of the marquess of Molina, Minister for Naval affairs in the mid-19th century new activities sprang up, but Ferrol never fully returned to its former glory. During those years, most of the
Spanish colonies in Latin America succeeded in gaining independence from their former
metropolis
A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural area for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications.
A big city b ...
.
The population of the City of A Coruña in 1900 reached 43,971, while the population of the rest of the province including the City and Naval Station of nearby
Ferrol as well as
Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela, simply Santiago, or Compostela, in the province of Province of A Coruña, A Coruña, is the capital of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city ...
was 653,556. A Coruña's miraculous growth happened during the aftermath of the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
at a similar rate to other major Galician cities, but it was after the death of
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco Bahamonde (born Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco Bahamonde; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general and dictator who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces i ...
when the city of A Coruña (and Vigo) left all the other Galician cities behind.
The meteoric increase in the population of the City of A Coruña during the years which followed the Spanish Civil War in the mid-20th century was accompanied by the decline in the villages and hamlets of the province as it industrialized.
21st century
The municipality of A Coruña has 250,438 inhabitants and a population density of around 6,700 inhabitants per square kilometer.
In 2010, there were 12,344 foreigners living in the city, representing 5% of the total population. The main nationalities are
Brazilians
Brazilians (, ) are the citizens of Brazil. A Brazilian can also be a person born abroad to a Brazilian parent or legal guardian as well as a person who acquired Brazilian nationality law, Brazilian citizenship. Brazil is a multiethnic society, ...
(10%),
Colombians (8%) and
Peruvians (7%).
By language, according to 2008 data, 7.75% of the population speak
Galician as a primary language, 36% speak
Spanish and the rest use both interchangeably.
The A Coruña metropolitan area has 431,332 inhabitants.
Main sights
The city is the site of the Roman
Tower of Hercules, a lighthouse which has been in continuous operation since possibly the 2nd century AD. It has been declared by
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
as a
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
. It is surrounded by a large public park with a
golf course
A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, tee box, a #Fairway and rough, fairway, the #Fairway and rough, rough and other hazard (golf), hazards, and ...
and the so-called Moor's Graveyard (''Cemiterio do Mouro'' in Galician, ''Cementerio del Moro'' in Spanish) a building where in fact there were never burials, Muslim or not, which now houses the ''Casa das Palabras'' (Galician for House of Words) museum. The lighthouse features as the main emblem of the city's flag and coat of arms.
The city is also well known for its characteristic glazed window balconies, called ''galerías''. Originally, this type of structure came about as a naval architecture solution for the challenging weather, particularly designed for rainy days. This fashion started in nearby
Ferrol in the 18th century when some of the technicians working for the
Royal Dockyards had the idea of using the shape of the back of a warship in a modern building. Soon afterward, most seaports in northern Spain, were adding these glazed window balconies to their city-port houses.
The Old Town (''Ciudad Vieja'' in Spanish, ''Cidade Vella'' in Galician) is the name given to the oldest part of A Coruña. During the ninth and tenth centuries, the inhabitants of what was then called Faro Island (peninsula where the Tower of Hercules stands) were leaving the area due to constant attacks by the Viking fleet and settled in the area of Betanzos. In 1208
King Alfonso IX refounded the city at the present site of the Old Town and put it under his personal control, free from allegiance to the clergy or feudal lords. In the fourteenth century, the scarcely-surviving city walls of the Old Town were built, as well as three harbors: the Parrot and San Miguel. It also preserves the stronghold known as the Old Fortress, now converted into the Garden of San Carlos, in which
Sir John Moore is buried. The
Old City of A Coruña kept streets and squares that revive the city's history and noble mansions and residences such as Rosalia de Castro's house, located on Prince Street. Notable buildings are the
Royal Galician Academy, the institution dedicated to the study of Galician culture and especially the Galician language, the
Romanesque churches of Santiago and Saint Mary, As Bárbaras Monastery (Romanesque and
Baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
) and the headquarters of the Operational Logistics Force of the
Spanish Army. In July, a Medieval Fair takes place in the streets of the Old City.
The city has several museums, such as the Castle of San Antón Archaeological Museum, Fine Arts Museum and the network of scientific museums (
Casa das Ciencias, which also includes a planetarium, DOMUS, made by
Arata Isozaki and
Aquarium Finisterrae). In 2012, the
National Museum of Science and Technology (MUNCYT) opened a branch in the city. A Coruña's social scene is most popular on Summer nights. Most bars and clubs are on Rua do Orzán, which runs directly parallel to Paseo Maritimo on the beach side. Another popular destination, primarily for a more youthful crowd, is Os Xardins (''The Gardens''), a park near the beginning of Rúa Real and the Os Cantons Village Shopping Centre.
Squares, parks and beaches
* María Pita Square, the most important square in the city. Notable landmarks are the City Hall and the statue of the local heroine
Maria Pita. Nearby you can also find
Church of Saint George, where
first same-sex marriage in Spain took place between Elisa and Marcela in 1901, which is the basis for the
movie of the same name.
* Mount of San Pedro Park, a former military area, with views over the city and the
ria. Visitors can arrive by road or using an elevator from the promenade. It has a café, play areas, gardens and three restored
artillery
Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...
pieces.
* The promenade (Paseo Marítimo) is long, one of the largest in Europe. It runs around the city's headland, passing sights such as its Aquarium, the
Estadio Riazor and the Tower of Hercules. There used to be a functioning touristic tramway, opened between 1997 and 2002, which ceased operations after a derailment in 2011.
* In the summertime, the Orzán and Riazor beaches are immensely popular destinations, located directly opposite of the port in the central part of the city. During María Pita festivity, which takes place all through August, Riazor is the venue of Noroeste Pop Rock Festival, a free music festival with groups from Spain and abroad (
Amaral,
David Bisbal,
Joe Cocker or
Status Quo have played on it in last editions). Other beaches in the city smaller than Orzan and Riazor are As Lapas down Hercules Tower, O Matadoiro next to Orzan, San Amaro and Oza.
Economy
A Coruña is nowadays the richest region of Galicia and is its economic engine. There have been various changes in the city's structure over the last few decades—it now shares some administrative functions with the nearby city of
Ferrol. Companies have grown, especially in sectors such as finance, communication, planning, sales, manufacturing and technical services, making A Coruña the wealthiest metropolitan area of
Galicia. The port itself unloads large amounts of fresh fish, and with the increase in other port activities like crude oil and solid bulk, which make up 75% of Galician port traffic.
In 1975, the clothing company
Zara, founded by
Amancio Ortega Gaona, opened its first store worldwide in this city and has since become a national and international clothing chain.
Inditex, the main textile manufacturer of the world, has its headquarters in the nearby town of
Arteixo. A Coruña concentrates 30% of the GDP of Galicia and in the period between 1999 and 2001 it grew 35%, surpassing
Vigo which was traditionally economically stronger. Other important companies of the city are
Banco Pastor (owned by
Banco Popular Español),
Banco Etcheverría (oldest in Spain),
Hijos de Rivera Brewery
Corporation Hijos de Rivera, LLC is a Spanish brewery founded in 1906 in the city of A Coruña, Galicia (Spain), Galicia. It's engaged in the production, marketing and distribution of beverages. It's known by the name of its most popular beer bra ...
,
Abanca,
R Cable Operator, the
Repsol
Repsol S.A.
El Nuevo Herald, 2012-05-31[Originally an init ...]
refinery,
Gas Natural combined cycle power plant,
General Dynamics factory,
Alcoa aluminium plant and
La Voz de Galicia, a Spanish-language conservative daily newspaper, the one with the largest circulation in Galicia. A Coruña is also an important retail center.
El Corte Inglés, the main department store chain in Spain, has two centers in the city, one of them in the new commercial area Marineda City, opened in April 2011, one of the biggest shopping centers in the EU, which also includes, among others,
IKEA
IKEA ( , ) is a Multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in Sweden that designs and sells , household goods, and various related services.
IKEA is owned and operated by a series of not-for-profit an ...
and
Decathlon stores, cinemas, an ice rink, a bowling court and a kart circuit. Other hypermarket chains present in the city are
Carrefour (two centers),
Hipercor and
Auchan (known in Spain as Alcampo).
Over the last few years, emphasis has been placed upon better access and infrastructure, especially cultural, sporting, leisure and scientific areas. Following a significant
oil spill
An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into th ...
when the ''
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some . In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea, which in turn con ...
'' wrecked and exploded, considerable resources have been used in the recovery of the shoreline and strengthening the tourist sector. All this has reaffirmed the city's existing character as a centre for administration, sales, port activities, culture and tourism. The city also has a
regional airport, used by 1.025.688 passengers in 2015.
Tourism
Tourism in A Coruña has increased in recent years to the point of receiving 62 cruise ships a year.
The two main beaches of A Coruña (Orzán and Riazor) are located in the heart of the city and are bordered by the promenade above. This location makes them a great attraction for tourists, being also a meeting point for surfers much of the year. Moreover, the city has other beaches like As Lapas, San Amaro, Oza and Matadoiro. These four beaches, along with Riazor and Orzán, were recognized with
blue flag certification in 2011.
An important holiday is on the night of San Xoán-Seaone (St John), celebrated on June 23 with a massive fireworks celebration, parade, bonfires and the ancient fires on all city beaches well into dawn.
In 2006 and for the first time ever, the number of tourists has doubled the population of the city, virtually to 500,000 the number of people who chose the city as a tourist destination.
The city has an extensive network of hotels, with an offer of over 3,000 hotel vacancies. There is 1 five-star hotel and 11 four-star hotels, as well as many other hotels and hostels. The city is also focusing on business tourism, offering the Congress and Exhibition Centre PALEXCO, with room for more than 2,500 people; a new trade fair centre, EXPOCORUÑA, venue of concerts, exhibitions and festivals like
Sónar.
The city is also located on the
English Way, a path of the
Camino de Santiago.
Education and culture
There are 38
pre-school centres, 47
primary school
A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...
s, 29
vocational school
A vocational school (alternatively known as a trade school, or technical school), is a type of educational institution, which, depending on the country, may refer to either secondary education#List of tech ed skills, secondary or post-secondar ...
s and 33
secondary school
A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...
s.
Higher education is represented by the
University of A Coruña, a public university established in 1989, the
UNED branch, and CESUGA, a private university centre in alliance with
University College Dublin, which offers
Bachelor of Commerce and
Bachelor of Architecture Irish
degrees. Escuela de Negocios NCG offers
MBA and other
master's degrees
A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...
in business.
There are seven municipal libraries, one library that belongs to the provincial government and one
public library
A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...
, administered by the
Xunta. The Archive of the Kingdom of Galicia (''Arquivo do Reino de Galicia'' in Galician) is located in the Old Town.
There is an
Escola Oficial de Idiomas (Spanish
language school) centre, which offers classes in English, French,
Galician, Italian, German, Portuguese, Arabic, Russian, Chinese, Japanese and Spanish as a foreign language.
Music studies are well represented by a
Music school
A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger in ...
. A Coruña is also the base for the
Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia.
The city is home to two main theatres, Teatro Colón and Teatro Rosalía, with regular performances, music concerts and other representations. A multipurpose centre, the
Coliseum, hosts a variety of concerts and cultural and sporting events. International artists like
David Copperfield,
Maná,
Mark Knopfler,
Shakira
Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977) is a Colombian singer-songwriter. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Latin Music", she has had a Cultural impact of Shakira, significant impact on the ...
, Gloria Estefan, Iron Maiden, Deep Purple and Judas Priest among others have performed there. In summer it also serves as a bullring, and in winter as an ice rink.
A Coruña has several museums, such as the Castle of San Antón Archaeological Museum, its Fine Arts Museum, the Military Museum and the network of scientific museums (Casa das Ciencias, which includes a planetarium, DOMUS, made by
Arata Isozaki and
Aquarium Finisterrae). In 2012, the [National Museum of Science and Technology (MUNCYT) opened a branch in the city.
The city's principal festival is the María Pita Festival, which lasts from the end of July to mid-September. The festival includes Noroeste Pop Rock (free concerts at Riazor beach), free concerts in venues all over the city, the medieval fair in the Old Town, the International Folklore Festival, a book fair, Festival Viñetas desde o Atlántico, a comic fair and, for the first time in 2011, a recreation of the famous German Oktoberfest. Another very popular festival is St. John's Day, which is celebrated on 23 June with bonfires under the night sky on beaches and neighbourhoods all over the city. More than 150,000 people go out from afternoon to early morning in order to frighten the evil spirits away by jumping over the bonfires. Apart from that, Virxe do Rosario's day is also celebrated, but to such an extent as the festivities previously mentioned.
Transport
A Coruña is the destination of one of the radial roads originating in Madrid, (Carretera Nacional N-VI, N-VI). Currently there is a highway (Autovía A-6) that runs parallel to the old radial road. Another major road running through the city is the toll motorway Autopista AP-9, AP-9, which links Ferrol, Galicia, Ferrol with the Portuguese border crossing the main cities of Galicia. AG-55 motorway links the city with the Costa da Morte, although currently only going as far as Carballo. The conventional road N-550 (A Coruña-Tui, Pontevedra, Tui) was the main link to the airport while the new highway AC-14 was under construction.
Air transport
A Coruña Airport, formerly known as Alvedro Airport, is located in the municipality of Culleredo, approximately from the city centre. It serves mainly Spanish destinations, although there is regular service to London and Lisbon and, in the summer season, to Amsterdam and Paris. In 2010, 1,101,208 passengers used the airport.
Rail transport
Railway services depart from A Coruña railway station, San Cristovo Station. The city is connected with Madrid and
Vigo by high-speed rail since 2021 via the Madrid–Galicia high-speed rail line. Regional lines connect the city with
Vigo through
Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela, simply Santiago, or Compostela, in the province of Province of A Coruña, A Coruña, is the capital of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city ...
and Pontevedra, Lugo and Monforte de Lemos. Intercity ALVIA trains depart to Madrid twice daily. There is a freight train station that serves the port.
Intercity buses
Regional and intercity buses depart from the Bus station at Caballeros Street, adjacent and connected to the train station by an open-air pedestrian sky walk. A Coruña is well connected with its metropolitan area and other Galician cities and towns. Intercity bus services provided by Alsa (bus company), ALSA, Monbus and FlixBus connect the city with Madrid, Barcelona, Andalusia and the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country among others and with European cities such as Geneva, Paris or Munich.
Local public transport
Local transportation in A Coruña is provided by :es:Compañía de Tranvías de La Coruña. Its network includes 24 bus lines served by 93 vehicles. Despite its name containing the Spanish word for tramway, it no longer operates any trams. The tramway had been inaugurated in 1903 as a horse drawn tram which was electrified starting in 1911 with the last horse drawn trams withdrawn in 1913. The tram was partially replaced by trolleybuses before completely shutting down in 1962. The tram was subsequently revived in 1995 as a heritage tramway before again ceasing operations in 2011. The trolleybus which had replaced the tram after World War II was itself withdrawn in 1979.
Sport
A Coruña has an extensive network of sports infrastructures. The most important one is the Riazor Sport Complex, which includes
Estadio Riazor (home of Deportivo de La Coruña), the Palace of Sports (home of HC Liceo La Coruña, HC Liceo A Coruña), two indoor tracks, a pelota court and an indoor swimming-pool. La Torre Sport Complex hosts many football fields, a golf court and another pelota court. There are also five municipal football fields, 11 sports centres and several marinas (Real Club Náutico, Marina Coruña, etc.). In 2007 the Termaria Casa da Auga complex was opened, which has a gymnasium, a thalassotherapy centre and an indoor Olympic-sized swimming pool.
Founded in 1906, Deportivo competes in the second tier Segunda División as of the 2024–25 season. Since the Spanish football league system was established in 1928, it has spent 46 seasons in the La Liga, Primera División (first division) and 42 seasons in the Segunda División (second division). They won the league title once, in the 1999–2000 La Liga, 1999–2000 season, and finished as runners-up on five occasions. The club also won two Copa del Rey, Spanish Cups (1995 and 2002) and three Supercopa de España, Spanish Super Cups, along with five Segunda División titles, the last one being in the 2011–12 Segunda División, 2011–12 season. Between 2000–01 and 2004–05, Deportivo played in the UEFA Champions League for five consecutive seasons, and reached the semi-finals in 2004. The Deportivo de La Coruña (women), women's section of the club plays in Spain's top division, Liga F, as of the 2024–25 season.
The city has a roller hockey (quad), roller hockey team, HC Liceo, one of the most successful in Spain, and the team plays in the main League OK Liga. They became Europe's Champions in 2011.
The city's basketball team, Básquet Coruña, plays in Liga ACB, the Spanish top division. Handball teams and Balonman Xiria currently plays in the Spanish third division. The American football team Towers Football currently plays in LGFA, the Galician regional gridiron football league.
Two Gaelic football teams were founded in 2010 and 2011, A Coruña Fillos de Breogán (with men and women's teams) and Ártabros de Oleiros (also originating in A Coruña). They participate in the Iberian Championship and in the Galician League.
Casas Novas riding club, in the outskirts of the city, hosts many national and international championships.
In tenpin bowling, A Coruña is home to the annual Teresa Herrera de Bowling tournament, this year (2016) played from 24 to 28 August in the Pleno Bowling Centre, Marineda City. It attracts players from all over Spain.
Politics
Domingos Rafael Merino Mexuto was the first mayor after the Spanish Constitution of 1978 for the PSG party (he is now in the BNG party), and he currently works at the Galician Ombudsman's (Valedor) office.
Francisco Vázquez Vázquez from the
PSOE became mayor of the city in 1983; however, on becoming the Spanish ambassador to the Holy See, Vatican, he was replaced by Javier Losada on 10 February 2006.
The mayor between 2015 and 2019 was Xulio Ferreiro, from the
Marea Atlántica ("Atlantic Tide") party, who was largely elected in 2015 on an anti-corruption mandate. One of his main priorities was to reverse some of the very worst examples of town planning policy which has left a negative legacy in many areas of the city and its immediate suburbs.
The current mayor is
Inés Rey of
PSdeG-PSOE.
Notable people
*
Maria Pita, María Mayor Fernández de Cámara y Pita (born in Cambre, 1565–1643), a heroine of the defence of A Coruña in 1589 against the
English Armada
* Ramón de la Sagra, Ramón Dionisio José de la Sagra y Peris (1798–1871), botany teacher, philosopher and social economist
* Evaristo Martelo Paumán (1850–1928), poet and
Rexurdimento activist
* Emilia Pardo Bazán (1851–1921), novelist, journalist, essayist and critic
* Eduardo Dato Iradier (1856–1921), lawyer and politician
* Ramón Menéndez Pidal (1869–1968), writer
* Eugenia Osterberger (1852–1932), pianist and composer
* Pablo Picasso, (1881–1973), artist, lived here for four years in the 1890s
* Santiago Casares Quiroga (1884–1950), lawyer and politician
* Wenceslao Fernández Flórez (1885–1964), narrator and journalist
* Celia Brañas (1880–1948) scientist and teacher fought for the education and inclusion of women into the scientific community in Spain
* Salvador de Madariaga y Rojo (1896–1978), writer and poet
* Enrique Líster (1907–1994), communist politician and military general
* Irene González Basanta (1909–1928), Spain's first professional woman association football, footballer
* Fernando Rey, Fernando Casado Arambillet (1917–1994), better known as Fernando Rey, actor
* Amando de Ossorio (1918–2001), film director
* Carmela Arias y Díaz de Rábago (1920–2009), first woman president of a bank in Spain
* María Casares (1922–1996), actress
* Manolo Sanchez (Nixon staff member), Manolo Sanchez (born 1929), long-time valet to U.S. president Richard Nixon.
* Luis Suárez Miramontes (born 1935), football player and manager
* Amancio Ortega, (born 1936 in Castilla y León), founder of fashion brand Zara (clothing)
* Amancio Amaro Varela (1939–2023), football player
* Emilio Pérez Touriño (born 1948), former president of the Spanish autonomous community of
Galicia
* Manuel Rivas Barros (born 1957), writer, poet, essayist and journalist
* Fernando Romay, (born 1959), basketball player
* María Pujalte, (born 1966), actress
* Marta Sánchez, (born 1966), singer
* Nadia Calviño (born 1968), incumbent Minister of Economy and former director-general for Budget of the European Union
* Andrés Manuel Díaz, (born 1969), athlete
* Mario Casas, (born 1986), actor
* Lucas Pérez, (born 1988), football player for Deportivo de La Coruña
* María Luisa Pérez-Soba, first Galician and fifth Spanish agricultural engineer
* Iñigo Quintero, (born 2001), musician, known for his 2022 song "Si No Estás"
International relations
Twin towns – sister cities
A Coruña is Sister city, twinned
with:
* Brest, France, Brest, France
*
Cádiz, Spain
* Caracas, Venezuela
* Mar del Plata, Argentina
* Mariglianella, Italy
* Limerick, Ireland
* Recife, Brazil
See also
*Celtic nations
*Celts
*Ethnic groups in Europe
*Galician music
*
Galician nationalism
*Galician people
*Galician wine
*Modern Celts
*Timeline of Galician history
*Way of St. James (Camino de Santiago)
*List of municipalities in A Coruña
Notes
References
External links
Concello da Coruña Tourism Office website for A Coruña (Turismo Coruña – Town Council) Regional Tourism website for A Coruña (TurGalicia – Regional Tourism Office)Tourism website – Travel Guide for A Coruña (TurEspaña – National Tourism Office)Pinocho in A Coruña: An illustrated guidebook to A Coruña
{{DEFAULTSORT:A Coruna
A Coruña,
Populated coastal places in Spain
Port cities and towns on the Spanish Atlantic coast