Massamá () is a former
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below district ...
in the municipality of
Sintra
Sintra (, ) is a town and municipality in the Greater Lisbon region of Portugal, located on the Portuguese Riviera. The population of the municipality in 2011 was 377,835, in an area of . Sintra is one of the most urbanized and densely populat ...
,
Lisbon District
Lisbon District ( pt, Distrito de Lisboa, ) is a district located along the western coast of Portugal. The district capital is the city of Lisbon, which is also the national capital. From its creation until 1926, it included the area of the cu ...
, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish
Massamá e Monte Abraão
Massamá e Monte Abraão is a civil parish in the municipality of Sintra, Lisbon District
Lisbon District ( pt, Distrito de Lisboa, ) is a district located along the western coast of Portugal. The district capital is the city of Lisbon, which ...
. The population in 2011 was 28,112, in an area of 2.78 km².
It was separated from
Queluz parish in 1997. The parish consists of three different zones. The old zone is known as the 2nd phase, a newer zone is known as the 6th phase, while the newest zone, Massamá-Norte (North Massamá, also known as 7th phase) is located outside the parish of Massamá, belonging to
Belas parish, though it is usually considered as a zone from Massamá, as it is connected to the rest of Massamá. Belas town is actually several kilometers from Massamá Norte.
The name Massamá comes from the
Mozarabic
Mozarabic, also called Andalusi Romance, refers to the medieval Romance varieties spoken in the Iberian Peninsula in territories controlled by the Islamic Emirate of Córdoba and its successors. They were the common tongue for the majority of ...
term “Mactama” which means “place with good water” or “fountain”. Due to its location between
Sintra
Sintra (, ) is a town and municipality in the Greater Lisbon region of Portugal, located on the Portuguese Riviera. The population of the municipality in 2011 was 377,835, in an area of . Sintra is one of the most urbanized and densely populat ...
and
Lisbon, this was the place where ancient warriors would take a break to rest and drink water from the local springs.
[Terras de Portugal]
/ref>
Notable people
*Pedro Passos Coelho
Pedro Manuel Mamede Passos Coelho (; born 24 July 1964) is a Portuguese politician and university guest lecturer who was the 118th prime minister of Portugal, in office from 2011 to 2015. He was the leader of the Social Democratic Party (PSD ...
, Prime Minister of Portugal, lives in Massamá.
References
Former parishes of Sintra
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