Garrigues
Encyclopedia
Les Garrigues is a comarca (county)
Comarques of Catalonia
This is a list of the comarques of Catalonia . A comarca is roughly equivalent to a US "county" or a UK "district". However, in the context of Catalonia, the term "county" can be a bit misleading, because in medieval Catalonia, the most important rulers were counts, notably the Counts of Barcelona...

 in Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...

, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

. Its capital is Les Borges Blanques. Its symbol (on the flag and shield in the right panel) is an olive branch, Les Garrigues being the center of olive cultivation (most of it without the necessity of irrigation) in all of Catalonia. http://www.grec.net/cgibin/dificil.pgm?USUARI=&SESSIO=&PGMORI=E&NDCHEC=0029269

History

The cave paintings at Roca dels Moros
Roca dels Moros
The Roca dels Moros or Caves of El Cogul is a rock shelter containing outstanding paintings of prehistoric Levantine rock art. The site is in El Cogul, in the autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

, El Cogul
El Cogul
El Cogul is a municipality in Catalonia. It is in the comarca of les Garrigues in the province of Lleida.In 2010 the population was reported to have dropped below 200.It is famous for its rock art site Roca dels Moros....

, are the most important vestiges of prehistoric settlement in Les Garrigues. A Neolithic tomb has been found at Les Borges Blanques
Les Borges Blanques
Les Borges Blanques is the capital of the comarca of Les Garrigues, in the province of Lleida, Catalonia.It lies in the southern sector of the central Catalan depression, near the zone watered by the Urgell canal. The high plateaux are covered by beautifully perfumed olive groves as thick as forests...

. During the Iberian era, the comarca was settled by the Ilergetians. There is documentation also for Roman summer residences and country villas, particularly in the north, but the Roman influence died out soon after. http://www.grec.net/cgibin/dificil.pgm?USUARI=&SESSIO=&PGMORI=E&NDCHEC=0029271

The Web site Catalunya en Linia gives the following history of later times: http://www.grec.net/cgibin/dificil.pgm?USUARI=&SESSIO=&PGMORI=E&NDCHEC=0029272
The territory of Les Garrigues was included in the vegueria, later corregiment (territorial divisions in force before and after 1716, respectively) of Lleida, with the exceptions of L'Albi, Cervià, and L'Espluga Calba, which belonged to the vegueria of Montblanc (after 1716, to the corregiment of Tarragona).

Ecclesiastically it was divided into the dioceses of Tarragona (Cervià, La Pobla de Cèrvoles, El Vilosell, L'Albi, Vinaixa, Tarrès, Fulleda, Els Omellons, L'Espluga Calba and Arbeca) and of Lleida. In 1833 the county was included in the administrative area of Lleida, in the province of the same name.

However, in 1808 the administrative area of Les Borges Blanques
Les Borges Blanques
Les Borges Blanques is the capital of the comarca of Les Garrigues, in the province of Lleida, Catalonia.It lies in the southern sector of the central Catalan depression, near the zone watered by the Urgell canal. The high plateaux are covered by beautifully perfumed olive groves as thick as forests...

 was created (recently annexed again to Lleida), and this area essentially served as the basis (with the inclusion of Granyena and the exclusion of Belianes) for a new county called Les Garrigues, created in 1936 by the Government of Catalonia.

The name given to the county also traditionally included the farming communities of the Segrià, especially Maials, Llardecans and Almatret. On the other hand, the inhabitants of the lower part of the county (from Les Borges Blanques and Castelldans to the north) have been considered as traditionally belonging to El Pla d'Urgell; and Vinaixa to the east, as belonging to La Segarra.

In the new territorial divisions drawn up at the end of the 1980s, the municipality of Torregrossa previously pertaining to Les Garrigues was incorporated into the county of El Pla d'Urgell.

Municipalities

Population data is from approximately 2001-2002.
  • L'Albagés
    L'Albagés
    L'Albagés is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 512
  • L'Albi
    L'Albi
    L'Albi is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 826
  • Arbeca
    Arbeca
    Arbeca is a village in the comarca of Les Garrigues, in the provinceof Lleida, in Catalonia, Spain.It is the third village of Les Garrigues in number of inhabitants, close to Les Borges Blanques and Juneda....

     - pop. 2,295
  • Bellaguarda
    Bellaguarda
    Bellaguarda is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 351
  • Les Borges Blanques
    Les Borges Blanques
    Les Borges Blanques is the capital of the comarca of Les Garrigues, in the province of Lleida, Catalonia.It lies in the southern sector of the central Catalan depression, near the zone watered by the Urgell canal. The high plateaux are covered by beautifully perfumed olive groves as thick as forests...

     - pop. 5,365
  • Bovera - pop. 378
  • Castelldans
    Castelldans
    Castelldans is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain.-References:...

     - pop. 962
  • Cervià de les Garrigues
    Cervià de les Garrigues
    Cervià de les Garrigues is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 842
  • El Cogul
    El Cogul
    El Cogul is a municipality in Catalonia. It is in the comarca of les Garrigues in the province of Lleida.In 2010 the population was reported to have dropped below 200.It is famous for its rock art site Roca dels Moros....

     - pop. 224
  • L'Espluga Calba
    L'Espluga Calba
    L'Espluga Calba is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 429
  • La Floresta
    La Floresta, Lleida
    La Floresta, Lleida is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain.-References:...

     - pop. 186
  • Fulleda
    Fulleda
    Fulleda is a village in the comarca of Les Garrigues, in the province of Lleida, in Catalonia, Spain.The population is about 115. The economy of the village is basically agrarian, with the cultivation on its unirrigated land of almonds, cereals, vineyard, olives, etc.Fulleda is situated in the east...

     - pop. 113
  • La Granadella
    La Granadella
    La Granadella is a Spanish town in the autonomous community of Catalonia. It is situated in the county of Garrigues, in the province of Lleida.It covers an area of 89 km² and has 779 inhabitants, as of 2001...

     - pop. 777
  • Granyena de les Garrigues
    Granyena de les Garrigues
    Granyena de les Garrigues is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 165
  • Juncosa
    Juncosa
    Juncosa is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 589
  • Juneda
    Juneda
    Juneda is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain.-References:...

     - pop. 2,992
  • Els Omellons
    Els Omellons
    Els Omellons is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 253
  • La Pobla de Cérvoles
    La Pobla de Cérvoles
    La Pobla de Cérvoles is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 233
  • Puiggròs
    Puiggròs
    Puiggròs is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 259
  • El Soleràs
    El Soleràs
    El Soleràs is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 428
  • Tarrés
    Tarrés
    Tarrés is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain.-References:...

     - pop. 115
  • Els Torms
    Els Torms
    Els Torms is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 188
  • El Vilosell
    El Vilosell
    El Vilosell is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....

     - pop. 233
  • Vinaixa
    Vinaixa
    Vinaixa is a municipality in Les Garrigues, Catalonia, Spain.The main attraction is the church of St. John the Baptist, in Romanesque-Cistercian style. It houses several Romanesque paintings and Gothic retablo....

    - pop. 600

External links

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