Barcelos () is a city and a municipality in

Braga District The district of Braga ( ) is a district in the northwest of Portugal. The district capital is the city of Braga, and it is bordered by the district of Viana do Castelo in the north, Vila Real in the east, Galicia (a Spanish autonomous commu ...

in the

Minho Province Minho () was a former province in Portugal, established in 1936 and dissolved in 1976. It consisted of 23 municipalities, with its capital in the city of Braga. Today, the area would include the districts of Braga and Viana do Castelo. Minho ha ...

, in the north of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. The population in 2011 was 120,391, in an area of 378.90 km². With 60 parishes, it is the municipality with the highest number of parishes in the country. It is one of the growing municipalities in the country, and is well known for its textile and

adobe Adobe (from arabic: الطوب Attub ; ) is a building material made from earth and organic materials. is Spanish for mudbrick. In some English-speaking regions of Spanish heritage, such as the Southwestern United States, the term is use ...

industries, as well as its horseback riding events and "figurado" style of pottery, which are comical figurines with accentuated features of farmers, folk musicians, and nativity scene characters. Barcelos is part of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network as a Crafts and Folk Art City.

History

Originally a

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 Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

settlement, it expanded and became the seat of the First Duke of Bragança in the 15th century. The palace of the Dukes of Bragança was destroyed by an earthquake in 1755 and is now an open-air museum. The town is on the Portuguese Way, a Christian pilgrimage route connecting to the

Camino de Santiago The Camino de Santiago (, ; ), or the Way of St. James in English, is a network of pilgrims' ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the apostle James in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tra ...

. Construction of the Barcelos Bridge, crossing the

Cávado River The Cávado River (, ) is a river located in northern Portugal. It has its source in Serra do Larouco at an elevation of above sea level. It runs from Fonte da Pipa, near the triangulation station Larouco, to its mouth into the Atlantic Oce ...

, dates to 1325. The Bridge was deemed a National Monument in 1910.

Rooster

The town is closely associated with the

Rooster of Barcelos The Rooster of Barcelos () is a common symbol of Portugal. Folk tale The folk tale of the rooster of Barcelos, tells the story of a dead rooster's miraculous intervention in proving the innocence of a man who had been falsely convicted and sen ...

(), which often serves as a national symbol of Portugal. One of the many legends of the

rooster The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...

involves the town's long history along a pilgrimage route. The story involves a wealthy man throwing a grand party, which ended after the silver had gone missing. Among the guests was a

pilgrim The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as ...

, who was accused of theft, and pleaded innocence before a judge. Unswayed by the pilgrim's claims, the judge sentenced the pilgrim to be hanged. As final protest, the pilgrim invoked divine intercession: the rooster being prepared for the judge's dinner would crow three times as proof of his innocence. As the execution approached, the judge at his dinner table watched the roasted bird miraculously crow three times. The judge quickly released the pilgrim, who would later return to Barcelos and commission a statue commemorating the

divine providence In theology, divine providence, or simply providence, is God's intervention in the universe. The term ''Divine Providence'' (usually capitalized) is also used as a names of God, title of God. A distinction is usually made between "general prov ...

Climate

Barcelos has a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

: ''Csb'') with warm summers and very wet, mild winters.

Parishes

Administratively, the municipality is divided into 61 civil parishes ('' freguesias''): * Abade de Neiva * Aborim * Adães *

Airó Airó is a Portuguese '' freguesia'' ("civil parish"), located in the municipality of Barcelos. The population in 2011 was 913, in an area of 3.02 km². References Freguesias of Barcelos, Portugal {{braga-geo-stub ...

* Aldreu * Alheira e Igreja Nova * Alvelos * Alvito (São Pedro e São Martinho) e Couto * Arcozelo * Areias * Areias de Vilar e Encourados * Balugães * Barcelinhos * Barcelos, Vila Boa e Vila Frescainha (São Martinho e São Pedro) * Barqueiros * Cambeses * Campo e Tamel (São Pedro Fins) * Carapeços * Carreira e Fonte Coberta * Carvalhal * Carvalhas * Chorente, Góios, Courel, Pedra Furada e Gueral * Cossourado * Creixomil e Mariz * Cristelo * Durrães e Tregosa * Fornelos * Fragoso * Galegos (Santa Maria) * Galegos (São Martinho) * Gamil e Midões * Gilmonde *

Lama Lama () is a title bestowed to a realized practitioner of the Dharma in Tibetan Buddhism. Not all monks are lamas, while nuns and female practitioners can be recognized and entitled as lamas. The Tibetan word ''la-ma'' means "high mother", ...

* Lijó * Macieira de Rates * Manhente *

Martim Martim is a Portugal, Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Barcelos Municipality, Portugal, Barcelos. The population in 2011 was 2,375, in an area of 5.32 km2. References

Freguesias of Barcelos, Portugal {{braga-geo ...

* Milhazes, Vilar de Figos e Faria * Moure * Negreiros e Chavão * Oliveira * Palme * Panque * Paradela * Pereira * Perelhal * Pousa * Quintiães e Aguiar * Remelhe * Rio Covo (Santa Eugénia) * Roriz * Sequeade e Bastuço (São João e Santo Estêvão) * Silva * Silveiros e Rio Covo (Santa Eulália) * Tamel (Santa Leocádia) e Vilar do Monte * Tamel (São Veríssimo) * Ucha * Várzea * Viatodos, Grimancelos, Minhotães e Monte de Fralães * Vila Cova e Feitos * Vila Seca

Notable citizens

* Paio Peres Correia (–1275) a ''

Reconquista The ''Reconquista'' (Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese for ) or the fall of al-Andalus was a series of military and cultural campaigns that European Christian Reconquista#Northern Christian realms, kingdoms waged ag ...

'' warrior from

Monte de Fralães Monte de Fralães is a former Freguesia (Portugal), civil parish, located in the Municipalities of Portugal, municipality of Barcelos, Portugal, Barcelos, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Viatodos, Grimancelos, Minhotães e ...

. * João Garcia de Guilhade, (PT Wiki) (1239–1288) a famous trobadour from Milhazes. * Pedro Afonso, Count of Barcelos (1289–1350) illegitimate son of King

Denis of Portugal Denis (, ; 9 October 1261 – 7 January 1325), called the Farmer King (''Rei Lavrador'') and the Poet King (''Rei Poeta''), was King of Portugal from 1279 until his death in 1325. Dinis was the eldest son of Afonso III of Portugal by his second ...

and the third Count of Barcelos. *

Isabel of Barcelos Isabel is a female name of Iberian origin. Isabelle is a name that is similar, but it is of French origin. It originates as the medieval Spanish form of '' Elisabeth'' (ultimately Hebrew '' Elisheba''). Arising in the 12th century, it became popu ...

(1402–1466) a lady of the Portuguese nobility *

Lourenço de Almeida Lourenço de Almeida ( – March 1508) was a Portuguese explorer and military commander. He was born in Martim, Portugal, the son of Francisco de Almeida, first viceroy of Portuguese India. Acting under his father, Lourenço distinguished hims ...

(–1508) an explorer from

Martim Martim is a Portugal, Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Barcelos Municipality, Portugal, Barcelos. The population in 2011 was 2,375, in an area of 5.32 km2. References

Freguesias of Barcelos, Portugal {{braga-geo ...

and military commander. * Gaspar de Faria (–1576), was the 6th Bishop of Angra, from 1571 and 1576. * Francisco de Sá Carneiro (1934–1980) Prime Minister of Portugal; his paternal family were from Barcelos. * António Pires de Lima, (PT Wiki) (1936–2017) a lawyer from Barcelos.Ordem dos Advogados
* Gisela João (born 1983) a Portuguese

fado Fado (; "destiny, fate") is a music genre which can be traced to the 1820s in Lisbon, Portugal, but probably has much earlier origins. Fado historian and scholar Rui Vieira Nery states that "the only reliable information on the history of fado ...

singer. * Renata Gomes (born 1985) a cardiovascular specialist and academic

Sport

* Dito (1962–2020) a footballer with 383 club caps and 17 with

* Capucho (born 1972) a former footballer with 410 club caps and 34 with

* Bruno Magalhães (born 1982) a former footballer with 443 club caps * Hugo Viana (born 1983) a footballer with 321 club caps and 29 with

* Nélson Oliveira (born 1991) a footballer with over 270 club caps and 17 with

Sport

Barcelos is home to Gil Vicente Futebol Clube (

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

) and Óquei Clube de Barcelos (

rink hockey Roller hockey (in British English), rink hockey (in American English) or ball roller hockey is a team sport played on roller skates. It is a quad-skate team sport where two teams face-off against one another, trying to drive a hard ball with t ...

Twin Cities

Vierzon Vierzon () is a Communes of France, commune in the Cher (department), Cher departments of France, department, Centre-Val de Loire, France. Geography A medium-sized town by the banks of the river Cher (river), Cher with some light industry and a ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Pontevedra Pontevedra (, ) is a city in the autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, in northwestern Spain. It is the capital of both the ''Pontevedra (comarca), Comarca'' and Province of Pontevedra, and the capital of the Rías Baixas. It is als ...

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 ...

* São Domingos,

Cape Verde Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...

El Jadida El Jadida (, ) is a major port city on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, located south of the city of Casablanca, in the province of El Jadida and the region of Casablanca-Settat. It has a population of 170,956 as of 2023. The fortified city, b ...

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

Recife Recife ( , ) is the Federative units of Brazil, state capital of Pernambuco, Brazil, on the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of South America. It is the largest urban area within both the North Region, Brazil, North and the Northeast R ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

Svishtov Svishtov ( ) List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, is a town in northern Bulgaria, located in Veliko Tarnovo Province on the right bank of the Danube river opposite the Romanian town of Zimnicea. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous S ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

References

{{Authority control Cities in Portugal Municipalities of Braga District