Arouca is a municipality in the Greater Metropolitan Area of Porto

Greater Metropolitan Area of Porto

The Greater Metropolitan Area of Porto is a metropolitan area in coastal northern Portugal which covers 16 municipalities, including the City of Porto, making up the second biggest urban area in the country...

 Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 with a total area

Area

Area is a quantity that expresses the extent of a two-dimensional surface or shape in the plane. Area can be understood as the amount of material with a given thickness that would be necessary to fashion a model of the shape, or the amount of paint necessary to cover the surface with a single coat...

 of 329.1 km² and a total population of 24,038 inhabitants, and 20,383 electors (2006). The population has grown from 7072 inhabitants in 1801 to the current 24,038.

The municipality is composed of 20 parishes, and is located in the District of Aveiro

Aveiro (district)

Aveiro District is located in the central coastal region of Portugal. The capital of the district is the city of Aveiro, which also serves as the seat of Aveiro Municipality and as the see of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Aveiro, created 1938....

.

The present Mayor is José Artur Tavares Neves, elected by the Socialist Party

Portuguese Socialist Party

The Portuguese Socialist Party was a political party in Portugal.The party was founded in 1875. During its initial phase the party was heavily influenced by Proudhonism, and rejected revolutionary Marxism. The party suffered constant factional struggles...

.

The municipal holiday is May 2 and it celebrates Saint Mafalda.

The archaeological site of São João de Valinhas

São João de Valinhas

The Castro of Monte Valinhas, alternately the Castro of São João de Valinhas, is an archaeological site in Portugal, in the civil parish of Santa Eulália, in the municipality of Arouca, notable for the discovery of important traces of human remains from the last 2000 years.-History:Its situation,...

 is located in Arouca.

Arouca is a member of the European Geoparks Network

European Geoparks Network

The European Geoparks Network, often known as the EGN, is a trans-national partnership of Geoparks across Europe formed in 2000 to provide mutual support to established and prospective Geoparks across the continent...

 and Global Geoparks Network on account of its outstanding geological heritage.

Demographics

Population of Arouca Municipality (1801–2006)
1801	1849	1900	1930	1960	1981	1991	2001	2004	2006
7072	11111	16671	21433	26378	23896	23894	24227	24019	23874

Parishes

• Albergaria da Serra
• Alvarenga
• Arouca
• Burgo
• Cabreiros
• Canelas
  Canelas (Arouca)
  Canelas is a Portuguese community in Arouca, with 20.89 km² of area and 864 inhabitants as of 2001. The population density is 41.4 inhabitants/km².Canelas has been part of Arouca since 1843. Before this, it was part of the community of Alvarenga...
  
  
• Chave
• Covelo de Paivó
• Escariz
• Espiunca
• Fermedo
• Janarde
• Mansores
• Moldes
• Rossas
• Santa Eulália
• São Miguel do Mato
• Tropeço
• Urrô
• Várzea