Gràcia
Encyclopedia
Districts of Barcelona
Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain proper is presently divided into 10 districts. These are administrated by a councillor designated by the main city council, and each of them have some powers relating to issues such as urbanism or infrastructure in their area. The current division of the city into...
of the city of Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, 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...
. It comprises the neighborhoods of Vila de Gràcia
Vila de Gràcia
Vila de Gràcia , also known as Gràcia, is a neighborhood in the Gràcia district of Barcelona, Catalonia . This neighborhood was the main core of the old town of Gràcia that included also Camp d'en Grassot i Gràcia Nova. It was the center of slave trading for over 200 years....
, Vallcarca i els Penitents
Vallcarca i els Penitents
Vallcarca i els Penitents is a neighbourhood in the northernmost part of Gràcia, a district of Barcelona. Locked between two hills, Putget and El Coll, it grew out of a few scattered settlements, namely L'Hostal de la Farigola, Can Falcó, Can Mas and Can Gomis....
, El Coll
El Coll
El Coll is a neighbourhood of Gràcia, one of the 10 districts Barcelona is divided in. Located at the base of Tibidabo hill, it's 300 meters above sea level and is nowadays inhabited by 6.850 people.-History:...
, La Salut
La Salut
La Salut is a neighborhood in the Gràcia district of Barcelona, Catalonia .-References:...
and Camp d'en Grassot i Gràcia Nova
Camp d'en Grassot i Gràcia Nova
El Camp d'en Grassot i Gràcia Nova is a neighborhood in the city of Barcelona in Catalonia in Spain.It is part of the district of Gràcia.-Landmarks:...
. Gràcia is bordered by the districts of Eixample
Eixample
The Eixample is a district of Barcelona between the old city and what were once surrounding small towns , constructed in the 19th and early 20th centuries....
to the south, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi
Sarrià-Sant Gervasi
Sarrià-Sant Gervasi is one of the biggest districts of Barcelona, situated on the north-west of the city, surrounded by districts of Les Corts, Gràcia, Eixample i Horta-Guinardo, and by the villages of Sant Just, Sant Feliu, Molins de Rei and Sant Cugat...
to the west and Horta-Guinardó
Horta-Guinardó
Horta-Guinardó is the name of one of the districts of Barcelona, located in its North-Eastern corner. It is named after two very heterogeneous areas of the city, Horta and el Guinardó, which together cover a large area of 11.92 km², which sums up for the 11,9% of the total extension of the...
to the east. It's numbered District 6. In 2005, Gràcia had 120,087 inhabitants, according to the Instituto Nacional de Estadística
Instituto Nacional de Estadística (Spain)
The National Institute of Statistics is the official organisation in Spain that collects statistics about demography, economy, and Spanish society. Every 10 years, this organisation conducts a national census. The last census took place in 2001....
.
History
Gràcia was established in 1626, by a novitiateNovitiate
Novitiate, alt. noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a novice monastic or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether they are called to the religious life....
of Carmelites
Carmelites
The Order of the Brothers of Our Lady of Mount Carmel or Carmelites is a Catholic religious order perhaps founded in the 12th century on Mount Carmel, hence its name. However, historical records about its origin remain uncertain...
who established a convent there called "Nostra Senyora de Gràcia (Our Lady of Grace)."
Gràcia was an independent municipality until it was annexed to Barcelona in 1897 along with other villages in the plain of Barcelona. The expansion of the Eixample
Eixample
The Eixample is a district of Barcelona between the old city and what were once surrounding small towns , constructed in the 19th and early 20th centuries....
district in the 19th century eventually led to the northward expansion of Barcelona, connecting Gràcia to the growing metropolis.
Landmarks
Casa Vicens
Casa Vicens is a family residence in Barcelona , designed by Antoni Gaudí and built for industrialist Manuel Vicens. It was Gaudí's first important work. It was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Works of Antoni Gaudí" in 2005....
, Gaudí's first important work and a UNESCO World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
, is also located in Gràcia.
Gràcia was also the original home to Teatre Lliure
Teatre Lliure
The Teatre Lliure is a theatre in Barcelona considered one of the most prestigious in Catalonia. It was created in 1976 in the neighborhood of Gràcia by a group of professionals from Barcelona's independent theater scene. It became distinguished for its practice of presenting theater in Catalan,...
, one of the most prestigious theaters in 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...
(the theater has since relocated to Montjuic
Montjuïc
Montjuïc is a hill located in Barcelona, Catalonia.-Etymology:Montjuïc is translated as 'Jew Hill' in medieval Catalan, or is perhaps related to the Latin phrase Mons Jovicus . The name is found in several locations in the Catalan Countries: the Catalan cities of Girona and Barcelona both have a...
). There are several notable squares in Gràcia including Plaça del Sol, Plaça de Rius i Taulet and Plaça de la Virreina.
Every August, Gràcia holds an 8-day festival "Festa Major", known as Festes de Gràcia, one of the largest festivals in Barcelona.
Gràcia in fiction
Mercè RodoredaMercè Rodoreda
Mercè Rodoreda i Gurguí was a Spanish Catalan novelist in the Catalan language.She is considered by many to be the most important Catalan novelist of the postwar period...
's most important novel, The Time of the Doves
The Time of the Doves
The Time Of The Doves is a 1962 novel written by exiled Catalan writer Mercè Rodoreda. It is noted by its use of stream of consciousness. The book is named after a square in Barcelona's district of Gràcia...
(La plaça del diamant), is set mainly in Gràcia at the time of the Second Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
and the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
.
See also
- List of streets and squares in Gràcia
- Districts of BarcelonaDistricts of BarcelonaBarcelona, Catalonia, Spain proper is presently divided into 10 districts. These are administrated by a councillor designated by the main city council, and each of them have some powers relating to issues such as urbanism or infrastructure in their area. The current division of the city into...
External links
GraciaNet- The history of Gracia English written site about Barcelona. Official Barcelona District Site Festa Major de Gràcia
- bcn.travel/gracia English Barcelona district profile by bcn.travel.