Porto
Encyclopedia
Porto (ˈpoɾtu), also known as Oporto in English
, is the second largest city in Portugal
and one of the major urban areas in the Iberian Peninsula
. Its administrative limits (an area of 41.66 km²/16 sq.mi) include a population of 237,559 (2011) inhabitants distributed within 15 civil parishes
. The urbanized area of Porto, which extends beyond the administrative limits of the city, has a population of 1.3 million (2011) in an area of 389 km² (150 sq mi), making it the second-largest urban area in Portugal. The Porto Metropolitan Area includes approximately 1.7 million people, and is recognized as a Gamma-level global city
by the Globalization and World Cities (GaWC) Study Group, being one of the four cities in the peninsula with global city status (the others being Madrid
, Barcelona
and Lisbon
).
Located along the Douro river estuary
in northern Portugal, Porto is one of the oldest Europe
an centres, and registered as a World Heritage Site
by UNESCO
in 1996. Its settlement dates back many centuries, when it was an outpost of the Roman Empire
. Its Latin
name, Portus Cale
, has been referred to as the origin for the name "Portugal," based on transliteration and oral evolution from Latin
. In Portuguese the name of the city is spelled with a definite article
as "o Porto" . Consequently, its English name evolved from a misinterpretation of the oral pronunciation and referred to as "Oporto" in modern literature and by many speakers.
One of Portugal's internationally famous exports, port wine
, is named for Porto, since the metropolitan area, and in particular the adegas
of Vila Nova de Gaia
, were responsible for the production and export of the fortified wine.
of the Iberian Peninsula
. Celtic and Proto-Celtic ruins have been discovered in several areas, and their occupation has been dated to about 275 BC
. During the Roman occupation, the city developed as an important commercial port, primarily in the trade between Olissipona (the modern Lisbon
) and Bracara Augusta (the modern Braga
).
Porto fell under the control of the Moors
during the invasion
of the Iberian Peninsula
in AD 711. In 868, Vímara Peres
, a Christian
warlord
from Gallaecia
, and a vassal of the King of Asturias, Léon and Galicia
, Alfonso III
, was sent to reconquer
and secure the lands from the Moors. This included the area from the Minho
to the Douro River: the settlement of Portus Cale
and the area that is today known as Vila Nova de Gaia
. Portus Cale, later referred to as Portucale
, was the origin for the modern name of Portugal
. In 868 Count
Vímara Peres established the First County of Portugal
, or , usually known as Condado Portucalense after reconquering the region north of Douro.
In 1387, Porto was the site of the marriage of John I of Portugal
and Philippa of Lancaster
, daughter of John of Gaunt
; this symbolized a long-standing military alliance
between Portugal and England
. The Portuguese-English alliance,(see the Treaty of Windsor (1386)) is the world's oldest recorded military alliance.
In the 14th and the 15th centuries, Porto's shipyards contributed to the development of Portuguese shipbuilding. It was also from the port of Porto that, in 1415, Prince Henry the Navigator (son of John I of Portugal
) embarked on the conquest of the Moorish port of Ceuta
, in northern Morocco
. This expedition by the King and his fleet, which counted amongst others Prince Henry, was followed by navigation and exploration along the western coast of Africa
, initiating the Portuguese Age of Discovery
. The nickname given to the people of Porto began in those days; Portuenses are to this day, colloquially, referred to as tripeiros (tripe peoples), referring to this period of history, when higher-quality cuts of meat were shipped from Porto with their sailors, while off-cuts and by-products, such as tripe
, were left behind for the citizens of Porto: tripe remains a culturally important dish in modern day Porto.
, produced in the Douro valley, was already in the 13th century transported to Porto in barcos rabelos (flat sailing vessels). In 1703 the Methuen Treaty
established the trade relations between Portugal and England. In 1717, a first English trading post was established in Porto. The production of port wine
then gradually passed into the hands of a few English firms. To counter this English dominance, Prime Minister Marquis of Pombal established a Portuguese firm receiving the monopoly of the wines from the Douro valley. He demarcated the region for production of port, to ensure the wine's quality; this was the first attempt to control wine quality and production in Europe
. The small winegrowers revolted against his strict policies on Shrove Tuesday
, burning down the buildings of this firm. The revolt was called Revolta dos Borrachos (revolt of the drunks).
Between 1732 and 1763, Italian
architect Nicolau Nasoni
designed a baroque
church with a tower that would become its architectural and visual icon: the Torre dos Clérigos
(English: Clerics Tower).
During the 18th and 19th centuries the city became an important industrial centre and saw its size and population increase.
. The French army
was rooted out of Porto by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
, when his troops crossed the Douro river from the Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar (a former convent) in a brilliant daylight coup de main
, using wine barges to transport the troops, so outflanking the French Army.
In August 1820, Porto rebelled against the English presence.
A Civil War took place in early 20's between those supporting Constitutionalism and a change of regime, and those opposed to this change, keen on near-absolutism and led by D.Miguel. In 1822, a liberal constitution was accepted, partly through the efforts of the liberal assembly of Porto (Junta do Porto). When Miguel of Portugal
took the Portuguese
throne in 1828, he rejected this constitution and reigned as an absolutist monarch.
Porto rebelled again and had to undergo a siege of eighteen months between 1832 and 1833 by the absolutist
army. Porto is also called "Cidade Invicta" (English: Unvanquished City) after resisting the Miguelist
siege. After the abdication of King Miguel, the liberal constitution was re-established.
Known as the city of bridges, Porto built its first permanent bridge, the Ponte das Barcas (a pontoon bridge
), in 1806. Three years later it was sabotaged. It was replaced by the Ponte D. Maria II, popularised under the name Ponte Pênsil (suspended bridge
) and built between 1841–43; only its supporting pylons have remained.
The Ponte D. Maria
, a railway bridge, was inaugurated the 4th of November of that same year; it was considered a feat of wrought iron
engineering and was designed by Gustave Eiffel
, notable for his Parisian tower
. The later Ponte Dom Luís I
replaced the aforementioned Ponte Pênsil. This last bridge was made by Teophile Seyrig, a former partner of Eiffel. Seyrig won a governmental competition that took place in 1879. Building began in 1881 and the bridge was opened to the public on 31 October 1886.
Unrest by Republicans led to a revolt in Porto on 31 January 1891. This would result ultimately in the creation of the Portuguese Republic
in 1910.
A higher learning institution in nautical sciences (Aula de Náutica, 1762) and a stock exchange
(Bolsa do Porto, 1834) were established in the city, but would be discontinued later.
Portuguese Grand Prix
.
The historic centre of Porto was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996. The World Heritage site is defined in two concentric zones; the "Protected area", and within it the "Classified area". The Classified area comprises the medieval borough located inside the 14th-century Romanesque wall.
In recent years, UNESCO
recognised its historic centre as a World Heritage Site
. Among the architectural highlights of the city, Oporto Cathedral
is the oldest surviving structure, together with the small romanesque
Church of Cedofeita
, the gothic
Igreja de São Francisco
(Church of Saint Francis
), the remnants of the city walls
and a few 15th-century houses. The baroque
style is well represented in the city in the elaborate gilt work interior decoration
of the churches of St. Francis and St. Claire (Santa Clara), the churches of Mercy (Misericórida) and of the Clerics (Igreja dos Clérigos
), the Episcopal Palace of Porto
, and others. The neoclassicism
and romanticism
of the 19th and 20th centuries also added interesting monuments to the landscape of the city, like the magnificent Stock Exchange Palace (Palácio da Bolsa
), the Hospital of Saint Anthony
, the Municipality, the buildings in the Liberdade Square
and theAvenida dos Aliados, the tile-adorned São Bento Train Station
and the gardens of the Crystal Palace (Palácio de Cristal). A guided visit to the Palácio da Bolsa
, and in particular the Arab Room, is a major tourist attraction
.
Many of the city's oldest houses are at risk of collapsing. The population in Porto municipality dropped by nearly 100,000 since the 1980s, but the number of permanent residents in the outskirts and satellite towns has grown strongly.
Porto is ranked number 3 in the Portuguese
most livable cities survey of living conditions
published yearly by Expresso
.
Administratively, the historic city of Porto is divided into 15 civil parishes:
Bordeaux
, France
Bristol
, England
, UK
Pernik
, Bulgaria
Duruelo de la Sierra
, Castile and León
, Spain
Jena
, Germany
León
, Castile and León
, Spain
Liège
, Belgium
Macau
, Macau
Shanghai
, People's Republic of China
Nagasaki
, Japan
Vigo
, Galicia, Spain
Belo Horizonte
, Brazil
Beira
, Mozambique
Luanda
, Angola
Mindelo
, Cape Verde
Neves
, São Tomé and Príncipe
Ndola
, Zambia
Recife
, Brazil
Akhisar
, Turkey
(Köppen climate classification
Csb). As a result, its climate shares many characteristics with the coastal south: warm, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. Unlike the south, however, cool and rainy interludes can interrupt the dry season
and the season's average length is usually shorter.
Summers are typically sunny with average temperatures between 15 °C (59 °F) and 25 °C (77 °F) but can rise to as high as 35 °C (95 °F) during occasional heat waves. During such heat waves the humidity
remains quite low but nearby forest fires
can add haze and ash to the air making breathing somewhat uncomfortable, especially at night. Nearby beaches are often windy and usually cooler than the urban area
s. In contrast, occasional summer rainy periods may last a few days and are characterised by showers and cool temperatures of around 20 °C (68 °F) in the afternoon.
Winter temperatures typically range between 5 °C (41 °F) during morning and 15 °C (59 °F) in the afternoon but rarely drop below 0 °C (32 °F) at night. The weather is often rainy for long stretches although prolonged sunny periods do occur.
in economic
power. As the most important city in the heavily industrialised northwest, many of the largest Portuguese corporations from diverse economic sectors
, like Altri
, Ambar, Amorim
, Bial
, Cerealis
, BPI
, CIN
, EFACEC
, Frulact
, Lactogal
, Millennium bcp
, Porto Editora
, Grupo RAR
, Sonae
, Sonae Indústria
, and Unicer, are headquartered in the Greater Metropolitan Area of Porto
, most notably, in the core municipalities of Maia
, Matosinhos
, Porto, and Vila Nova de Gaia
.
The country's biggest exporter (Petrogal
) has one of its two refineries near the city, in Leça da Palmeira
(13 km) and the second biggest (Qimonda
, now bankrupt) has its only factory also near the city in Mindelo (26 km).
The city's former stock exchange
(Bolsa do Porto
) was transformed into the largest derivatives exchange
of Portugal, and merged with Lisbon Stock Exchange
to create the Bolsa de Valores de Lisboa e Porto
, which eventually merged with Euronext
, together with Amsterdam, Brussels, LIFFE
and Paris stock and futures exchange
s. The building formerly hosting the stock exchange is currently one of the city's touristic attractions, the Salão Árabe (Arab Room in English) being its major highlight.
Porto hosts a popular Portuguese newspaper, Jornal de Notícias
. The building where its offices are located (which has the same name as the newspaper) was up to recently one of the tallest in the city (it has been superseded by a number of modern buildings which have been built since the 1990s).
Porto Editora
, one of the biggest Portuguese publishers, is also in Porto. Its dictionaries are among the most popular references used in the country, and the translations are very popular as well.
The economic relations between the city of Porto and the Upper Douro River
have been documented since the Middle Ages
. However, they were greatly deepened in the modern ages. Indeed, sumac
h, dry fruits and nut
s and the Douro olive oil
s sustained prosperous exchanges between the region and Porto. From the riverside quays at the river mouth, these products were exported to other markets of the Old
and New World
. But the greatest lever to interregional trade relations resulted from the commercial dynamics of the Port wine
(Vinho do Porto) agro industry. It decidedly bolstered the complementary relationship between the large coastal urban centre, endowed with open doors to the sea, and a region with significant agricultural potential, especially in terms of the production of extremely high quality fortified wine
s, today known by the world-famous label Port. The development of Porto was also closely connected with the left margin of River Douro in Vila Nova de Gaia
, where is located the amphitheatre-shaped slope with the Port wine cellars.
In a study concerning competitiveness
of the 18 Portuguese district capitals, Porto was the worst-ranked. The study was made by Minho University economics researchers and was published in Público newspaper on 30 September 2006. The best-ranked cities in the study were Évora
, Lisbon
and Coimbra
. Nevertheless, the validity of this study was questioned by some Porto's notable figures (such as local politicians and businesspersons) who argued that the city proper does not function independently but in conurbation with other municipalities. A new ranking, published in the newspaper Expresso (Portuguese Newspaper)
in 2007 which can be translated to "The Best Cities to Live in Portugal" ranked Porto in third place (tied with Évora
) below Guimarães
and Lisbon
. The two studies are not directly comparable as they use different dependent measures.
The road system capacity is augmented by the Via de Cintura Interna or A20, an internal highway connected to several motorways and city exits, complementing the Circunvalação 4-lane peripheric road, which borders the north of the city and connects the eastern side of the city to the Atlantic shore. The city is connected to Valença by highway A28, to Estarreja by the A29, to Lisbon by the A1, to Amarante by the A4 and to Braga by the A3. There is also an outer-ring road the A41 that connects all the main cities around Porto, linking the city to other major metropolitan highways such as the A7, A11, A42, A43 and A44. In the future a new highway, the A32, is to connect the city to São João da Madeira
.
During the 20th century, major bridges were built: Arrábida Bridge
, which at its opening had the biggest concrete supporting arch in the world, and connects north and south shores of the Douro on the west side of the city, S. João, to replace D. Maria Pia and Freixo, a highway bridge on the east side of the city. The newest bridge is Ponte do Infante, finished in 2003. Two more bridges are said to be under designing stages and due to be built in the next 10 years, one on the Campo Alegre area, nearby the Faculty of Humanities and the Arts, and another one in the area known as the Massarelos valley.
Nowadays, Porto is often known as Cidade das Pontes (City of Bridges), "Cidade Invicta" (Invincible City) and "Capital do Norte" (The Capital of the North).
, some 15 km to the north-west of the city centre. The airport is a state-of-the-art facility, having undergone a massive programme of refurbishment due to the Euro 2004 football championships being partly hosted in the city.
Porto's main railway station is situated in Campanhã
, located in the eastern part of the city (connecting to the lines of Douro (Peso da Régua/Tua/Pocinho), Minho (Barcelos/Viana do Castelo/Valença) and Norte (on the main line to Aveiro, Coimbra
and Lisbon
). From here, both light rail
and suburban rail
services connect to the city centre. The main central station
is São Bento Station
, which is itself a notable landmark located in the heart of Porto.
Subway/Light rail
Currently the major project is the Porto Metro
, a light rail
system. Consequently, the Infante bridge was built for urban traffic, replacing the Dom Luís I, which was dedicated to the subway on the second and higher of the bridge's two levels. Six lines are open: lines A (blue), B (red), C (green) and E (purple) all begin at Estádio do Dragão
(home to FC Porto) and terminate at Senhor de Matosinhos, Póvoa de Varzim
(via Vila do Conde), ISMAI
(via Maia) and Francisco Sá Carneiro airport respectively. Line D (yellow) currently runs from Hospital S. João in the north to D. João II
on the southern side of the Douro river. Line F (orange), from Senhora da Hora (Matosinhos) to Fânzeres (Gondomar). The lines intersect at the central Trindade
station. Currently the whole network spans 60 km (37.3 mi) using 68 stations, thus being the biggest metro system
in the country.
Buses
The city has an extensive bus network
run by the STCP (Sociedade dos Transportes Colectivos do Porto, or Porto Public Transport
Society) which also operates lines in the neighbouring cities of Gaia
, Maia and Gondomar. Other smaller companies connect such towns as Paços de Ferreira
and Santo Tirso to the town center. In the past the city also had trolleybus
es. A bus journey is 1.50 Euro, which can be paid in cash.
Trams
A tram network, of which only four lines remain one of them being a tourist line on the shores of the Douro, saw its construction begin in 12 September 1895, therefore being the first in the Iberian Peninsula
. The lines in operation today all use vintage tramcars, so the service has become a heritage tramway
. STCP also operates these routes. The first line of the area's modern-tram, or light rail
system, named Metro do Porto
, opened for revenue service in January 2003 (after a brief period of free, introductory service in December 2002).
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In 2001, Porto shared the designation European Culture Capital
. In the scope of these events, the construction of the major concert hall space Casa da Música
, designed by the Dutch
architect Rem Koolhaas
, was initiated and finished in 2005.
The first Portuguese moving pictures were taken in Porto by Aurélio da Paz dos Reis and shown there on 12 November 1896 in Teatro do Príncipe Real do Porto, less than a year after the first public presentation by Auguste and Louis Lumière
. The country's first movie studio
s Invicta Filmes was also erected in Porto in 1917 and was open from 1918 to 1927 in the area of Carvalhido. Manoel de Oliveira
, a Portuguese film director
and the oldest director in the world who is still active, is from Porto. Fantasporto
is an internationalfilm festival
organized in Porto every year.
Many renowned Portuguese music
artists and cult bands such as GNR
, Rui Veloso
, Sérgio Godinho
, Clã
, Pluto and Ornatos Violeta
are from the city or its metropolitan area.
Porto has several museums, concert halls, theaters, cinemas, art galleries, libraries and book shops. The best-known museums of Oporto are the National Museum Soares dos Reis
(Museu Nacional de Soares dos Reis), which is dedicated especially to the Portuguese artistic movements
from the 16th to the 20th century, and the Museum of Contemporary Art of the Serralves Foundation
(Museu de Arte Contemporânea).
The city has concert halls of a rare beauty and elegance such as the Coliseu do Porto
by the Portuguese architect Cassiano Branco; an exquisite example of the Portuguese decorative arts. Other notable venues include the historical São João National Theatre
, the Rivoli theatre, the Batalha cinema
and the recent Casa da Música
. The city has a magnificent, and beautiful bookshop, "Lello", that was featured in third place in The Guardian
's list of world's top bookshops. From the three top bookshops, Lello was the only one that was originally built to be a bookshop, as the other ones were, respectively, a church and a theatre.
Porto's most popular event is St. John (São João Festival
) on the night of 23–24 June. In this season it's a tradition to have a vase with bush basil decorated with a small poem. During the dinner of the great day people usually eat sardines and boiled potatoes together with red wine.
Another major event is Queima das Fitas
, that starts in the first Sunday of May and ends in the second Sunday of the month. Basically, before the beginning of the study period
preceding the school year’s last exams, academia
tries to have as much fun as possible. The week has 12 major events, starting with the Monumental Serenata on Sunday, and reaching its peak with the Cortejo Académico on Tuesday, when about 50,000 students of the city's higher education
institutions march through the downtown streets till they reach the city hall. During every night of the week a series of concerts takes place on the Queimódromo, next to the city’s park, where it’s also a tradition for the students in their second-to-last year to erect small tents where alcoholic beverage
s are sold in order to finance the trip that takes place during the last year of their course of study; an average of 50 000 students attend these shows.
to be built in the Waterfront Plaza of Matosinhos
. The resulting sculpture is entitled She Changes
by American artist, Janet Echelman
, and spans the height of 50 × 150 × 150 meters.
Cathedral to the Social Housing projects developed through the late 20th century, much could be said surrounding Architecture
.
Porto is home to the Porto School of Architecture
, one of the most prestigious architecture schools in Europe
and the world. It is also home to two earners of the Pritzker Architecture Prize (two former students of the aforementioned school
): Álvaro Siza Vieira
and Eduardo Souto de Moura
.
.
A typical dish from this city is Tripas à Moda do Porto
(Tripe
s Porto style), which still can be found everywhere in the city today.
Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá
(Gomes de Sá Bacalhau
) is another typical cod
fish dish born in Porto and popular in Portugal.
The Francesinha
- literally Frenchy, or more accurately little French (female) - is the most famous popular native snack food in Porto. It is a kind of sandwich with several meats covered with cheese and a special sauce made with beer and other ingredients.
Port wine
, an internationally renowned wine, is widely accepted as the city's dessert wine
, especially being that the wine is made along the Douro
River which runs through the city.
The city has a large number of public and private basic and secondary schools
, as well as kindergartens and nurseries. Due to the depopulation of the city's interior, however, the number of students has dropped substantially in the last decade, forcing a closure of some institutions. The largest and oldest international school
located in Porto is the Oporto British School
established in 1894.
Porto has several institutions of higher education, the largest one being the state-managed University of Porto
(Universidade do Porto), which is the largest Portuguese university
with approximately 28,000 students. There are also a state-managed polytechnic
institute, the Instituto Politécnico do Porto (a group of technical colleges), and privately owned institutions like the Lusíada University of Porto
, Universidade Fernando Pessoa
(UFP), the Porto's Higher Education School of Arts (ESAP- Escola Superior Artística do Porto) and a Vatican state
university, the Portuguese Catholic University at Porto (Universidade Católica Portuguesa – Porto) and the Portucalense University at Porto (Universidade Portucalense – Infante D. Henrique). Due to the recognition, potential for employment and higher revenue, there are many students from the entire country and particularly from the north of Portugal, attending a college or university in Porto.
For foreigners wishing to study Portuguese in the city, there are a number of options. As the most popular city in Portugal for ERASMUS
students, most universities have facilities to assist foreigners in learning the language. There are also several private learning institutions in the city, such as the Fast Forward Language Institute
has the highest rate of tuberculosis
positive cases in Portugal. Porto tuberculosis rates are at Third World
proportions (comparatively, London
faces a similar phenomenon ). The incidence of positive cases was 23/100 000 nationwide in 1994, with a rate of 24/100 000 in Lisbon and 37/100 000 in Porto. Porto area represented the worst epidemiological situation in the country, with very high rates in some city boroughs and in some poor fishing and declining industrial communities. Epidemiological analysis indicated the existence of undisclosed sources of infection in these communities, responsible for continuing transmission despite a cure rate of 83% in the district. In 2002, the situation was not better with 34/100 000 nationwide and 64/100 000 in Porto district. In 2004 the situation improved to 53/100 000.
, swimming pool
s in the area of Constituição (between the Marquês and Boavista), and other minor arenas, such as the Pavilhão do Académico.
Porto is home to northern Portugal's only cricket club
, the Oporto Cricket and Lawn Tennis Club
. Annually, for more than 100 years, a match (the Kendall Cup
) has been played between the Oporto Club and the Casuals Club of Lisbon
, in addition to sporadic games against touring teams (mainly from England
). The club's pitch is located off the Rua Campo Alegre.
In 1958 and 1960, Porto's streets hosted the Formula One Portuguese Grand Prix
on the Boavista street circuit, which are reenacted annually, in addition to a World Touring Car Championship
race.
Every year in October the Porto Marathon
is held through the streets of the old city of Porto.
As in most Portuguese cities, football is the most important sport. There are three main teams in Porto: FC Porto, Boavista and Salgueiros. FC Porto is one of the Big Three
, and a major club in Europe. Boavista is considered the second club in the city, having won the championship once, in the 2000-2001 season, but the club had financial and disciplinary problems and was demoted 2 tiers. Salgueiros was a regular first division club during the 1980s and 1990s but, due to financial indebtedness, nowadays plays at regional level championships (5th tier or lower).
The biggest stadiums in the city are the Estádio do Dragão
and the Estádio do Bessa
. The first team in Porto to own a stadium was Académico
, who played in the Estádio do Lima, Académico was one of the eight teams to dispute the first Primeira Liga. Salgueiros, who sold the grounds of Estádio Engenheiro Vidal Pinheiro
field to the Porto Metro and planned on building a new field in the Arca d'Água area of Porto. Located a few hundred meters away from the old grounds, it became impossible to build on this land due to a large underground water pocket, and, consequently, they moved to the Estádio do Mar
in Matosinhos
(owned by Leixões). Other amateur football clubs also have fields in Porto, but with the exception of FC Porto's old stadium and football school (the Campo da Constituição
) these fields have only sand or dirt. For the Euro 2004 football competition, held in Portugal, the Estádio do Dragão was built (replacing the old Estádio das Antas
) and the Estádio do Bessa was renovated.
F.C. Porto won the 1986–87 European Cup, the 1987 Intercontinental Cup
, the 1987 European Super Cup
, the 2002-03 UEFA Cup
, the 2003–04 UEFA Champions League, the 2004 Intercontinental Cup
and the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League.
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English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, is the second largest city in 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...
and one of the major urban areas in the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
. Its administrative limits (an area of 41.66 km²/16 sq.mi) include a population of 237,559 (2011) inhabitants distributed within 15 civil parishes
Freguesia
Freguesia is the Portuguese term for a secondary local administrative unit in Portugal and some of its former colonies, and a former secondary local administrative unit in Macau, roughly equivalent to an administrative parish. A freguesia is a subdivision of a concelho, the Portuguese synonym term...
. The urbanized area of Porto, which extends beyond the administrative limits of the city, has a population of 1.3 million (2011) in an area of 389 km² (150 sq mi), making it the second-largest urban area in Portugal. The Porto Metropolitan Area includes approximately 1.7 million people, and is recognized as a Gamma-level global city
Global city
A global city is a city that is deemed to be an important node in the global economic system...
by the Globalization and World Cities (GaWC) Study Group, being one of the four cities in the peninsula with global city status (the others being Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, 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...
and Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
).
Located along the Douro river estuary
Douro
The Douro or Duero is one of the major rivers of the Iberian Peninsula, flowing from its source near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province across northern-central Spain and Portugal to its outlet at Porto...
in northern Portugal, Porto is one of the oldest Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an centres, and registered as a 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...
by UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
in 1996. Its settlement dates back many centuries, when it was an outpost of the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
. Its Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
name, Portus Cale
Portus Cale
Portus Cale was the old name of an ancient town and port in current day Portugal. It was located in the north of Portugal, in the area of today's Grande Porto.-Early History:...
, has been referred to as the origin for the name "Portugal," based on transliteration and oral evolution from Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
. In Portuguese the name of the city is spelled with a definite article
Article (grammar)
An article is a word that combines with a noun to indicate the type of reference being made by the noun. Articles specify the grammatical definiteness of the noun, in some languages extending to volume or numerical scope. The articles in the English language are the and a/an, and some...
as "o Porto" . Consequently, its English name evolved from a misinterpretation of the oral pronunciation and referred to as "Oporto" in modern literature and by many speakers.
One of Portugal's internationally famous exports, port wine
Port wine
Port wine is a Portuguese fortified wine produced exclusively in the Douro Valley in the northern provinces of Portugal. It is typically a sweet, red wine, often served as a dessert wine, and comes in dry, semi-dry, and white varieties...
, is named for Porto, since the metropolitan area, and in particular the adegas
Wine cellar
A wine cellar is a storage room for wine in bottles or barrels, or more rarely in carboys, amphorae or plastic containers. In an active wine cellar, important factors such as temperature and humidity are maintained by a climate control system. In contrast, passive wine cellars are not...
of Vila Nova de Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia, or simply Gaia is a city in Vila Nova de Gaia Municipality, Portugal. It is located in the Porto District, south of the city of Porto on the other side of the Douro River. The city proper has a population of 178,255 and the municipality contains 24 parishes with a total...
, were responsible for the production and export of the fortified wine.
Early history
The history of Porto dates back to the 4th century, to the Roman occupationRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
of the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
. Celtic and Proto-Celtic ruins have been discovered in several areas, and their occupation has been dated to about 275 BC
275 BC
Year 275 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Dentatus and Caudinus...
. During the Roman occupation, the city developed as an important commercial port, primarily in the trade between Olissipona (the modern Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
) and Bracara Augusta (the modern Braga
Braga
Braga , a city in the Braga Municipality in northwestern Portugal, is the capital of the Braga District, the oldest archdiocese and the third major city of the country. Braga is the oldest Portuguese city and one of the oldest Christian cities in the World...
).
Porto fell under the control of the Moors
Moors
The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of the Maghreb region who are predominately of Berber and Arab descent. They came to conquer and rule the Iberian Peninsula for nearly 800 years. At that time they were Muslim, although earlier the people had followed...
during the invasion
Umayyad conquest of Hispania
The Umayyad conquest of Hispania is the initial Islamic Ummayad Caliphate's conquest, between 711 and 718, of the Christian Visigothic Kingdom of Hispania, centered in the Iberian Peninsula, which was known to them under the Arabic name al-Andalus....
of the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
in AD 711. In 868, Vímara Peres
Vímara Peres
Vímara Peres, Count of Portugal was a Galician Christian duke of the 9th century in west Iberia. He was a vassal of the King of Asturias, Léon and Galicia, Alfonso III, and was sent to reconquer and secure from the Moors , in the west coastal fringe of Gallaecia, the area from the Minho River to...
, a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
warlord
Warlord
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war...
from Gallaecia
Gallaecia
Gallaecia or Callaecia, also known as Hispania Gallaecia, was the name of a Roman province and an early Mediaeval kingdom that comprised a territory in the north-west of Hispania...
, and a vassal of the King of Asturias, Léon and Galicia
Kingdom of Galicia
The Kingdom of Galicia was a political entity located in southwestern Europe, which at its territorial zenith occupied the entire northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Founded by Suebic king Hermeric in the year 409, the Galician capital was established in Braga, being the first kingdom which...
, Alfonso III
Alfonso III of León
Alfonso III , called the Great, was the king of León, Galicia and Asturias from 866 until his death. He was the son and successor of Ordoño I. In later sources he is the earliest to be called "Emperor of Spain"...
, was sent to reconquer
Reconquista
The Reconquista was a period of almost 800 years in the Middle Ages during which several Christian kingdoms succeeded in retaking the Muslim-controlled areas of the Iberian Peninsula broadly known as Al-Andalus...
and secure the lands from the Moors. This included the area from the Minho
Minho River
The Minho or Miño is the longest river in Galicia, Spain, with an extension of 340 km.Both names come from Latin Minius...
to the Douro River: the settlement of Portus Cale
Portus Cale
Portus Cale was the old name of an ancient town and port in current day Portugal. It was located in the north of Portugal, in the area of today's Grande Porto.-Early History:...
and the area that is today known as Vila Nova de Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia, or simply Gaia is a city in Vila Nova de Gaia Municipality, Portugal. It is located in the Porto District, south of the city of Porto on the other side of the Douro River. The city proper has a population of 178,255 and the municipality contains 24 parishes with a total...
. Portus Cale, later referred to as Portucale
County of Portugal
The County of Portugal was the region around Braga and Porto, today corresponding to littoral northern Portugal, from the late ninth to the early twelfth century, during which it was held in vassalage from the Kingdom of León.-History:...
, was the origin for the modern name of 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...
. In 868 Count
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
Vímara Peres established the First County of Portugal
County of Portugal
The County of Portugal was the region around Braga and Porto, today corresponding to littoral northern Portugal, from the late ninth to the early twelfth century, during which it was held in vassalage from the Kingdom of León.-History:...
, or , usually known as Condado Portucalense after reconquering the region north of Douro.
In 1387, Porto was the site of the marriage of John I of Portugal
John I of Portugal
John I KG , called the Good or of Happy Memory, more rarely and outside Portugal the Bastard, was the tenth King of Portugal and the Algarve and the first to use the title Lord of Ceuta...
and Philippa of Lancaster
Philippa of Lancaster
Philippa of Lancaster, LG was a Queen consort of Portugal. Born into the royal family of England, her marriage with King John I secured the Anglo-Portuguese Alliance and produced several famous children who became known as the "Illustrious Generation" in Portugal...
, daughter of John of Gaunt
John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster
John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster , KG was a member of the House of Plantagenet, the third surviving son of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault...
; this symbolized a long-standing military alliance
Collective security
Collective security can be understood as a security arrangement, regional or global, in which each state in the system accepts that the security of one is the concern of all, and agrees to join in a collective response to threats to, and breaches of, the peace...
between Portugal and England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
. The Portuguese-English alliance,(see the Treaty of Windsor (1386)) is the world's oldest recorded military alliance.
In the 14th and the 15th centuries, Porto's shipyards contributed to the development of Portuguese shipbuilding. It was also from the port of Porto that, in 1415, Prince Henry the Navigator (son of John I of Portugal
John I of Portugal
John I KG , called the Good or of Happy Memory, more rarely and outside Portugal the Bastard, was the tenth King of Portugal and the Algarve and the first to use the title Lord of Ceuta...
) embarked on the conquest of the Moorish port of Ceuta
Ceuta
Ceuta is an autonomous city of Spain and an exclave located on the north coast of North Africa surrounded by Morocco. Separated from the Iberian peninsula by the Strait of Gibraltar, Ceuta lies on the border of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta along with the other Spanish...
, in northern Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
. This expedition by the King and his fleet, which counted amongst others Prince Henry, was followed by navigation and exploration along the western coast of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, initiating the Portuguese Age of Discovery
Age of Discovery
The Age of Discovery, also known as the Age of Exploration and the Great Navigations , was a period in history starting in the early 15th century and continuing into the early 17th century during which Europeans engaged in intensive exploration of the world, establishing direct contacts with...
. The nickname given to the people of Porto began in those days; Portuenses are to this day, colloquially, referred to as tripeiros (tripe peoples), referring to this period of history, when higher-quality cuts of meat were shipped from Porto with their sailors, while off-cuts and by-products, such as tripe
Tripe
Tripe is a type of edible offal from the stomachs of various farm animals.-Beef tripe:...
, were left behind for the citizens of Porto: tripe remains a culturally important dish in modern day Porto.
18th century
WineWine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
, produced in the Douro valley, was already in the 13th century transported to Porto in barcos rabelos (flat sailing vessels). In 1703 the Methuen Treaty
Methuen Treaty
The Methuen Treaty was an offensive military and commercial treaty between Portugal and England signed in 1703 as part of the War of the Spanish Succession....
established the trade relations between Portugal and England. In 1717, a first English trading post was established in Porto. The production of port wine
Port wine
Port wine is a Portuguese fortified wine produced exclusively in the Douro Valley in the northern provinces of Portugal. It is typically a sweet, red wine, often served as a dessert wine, and comes in dry, semi-dry, and white varieties...
then gradually passed into the hands of a few English firms. To counter this English dominance, Prime Minister Marquis of Pombal established a Portuguese firm receiving the monopoly of the wines from the Douro valley. He demarcated the region for production of port, to ensure the wine's quality; this was the first attempt to control wine quality and production in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. The small winegrowers revolted against his strict policies on Shrove Tuesday
Shrove Tuesday
Shrove Tuesday is a term used in English-speaking countries, especially in Ireland, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, Germany, and parts of the United States for the day preceding Ash Wednesday, the first day of the season of fasting and prayer called Lent.The...
, burning down the buildings of this firm. The revolt was called Revolta dos Borrachos (revolt of the drunks).
Between 1732 and 1763, Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
architect Nicolau Nasoni
Nicolau Nasoni
Nicolau Nasoni was an Italian artist and architect but mostly active in Portugal....
designed a baroque
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
church with a tower that would become its architectural and visual icon: the Torre dos Clérigos
Clérigos Church
The Clérigos Church is a Baroque church in the city of Porto, in Portugal. Its tall bell tower, the Torre dos Clérigos, can be seen from various points of the city and is one of its most characteristic symbols....
(English: Clerics Tower).
During the 18th and 19th centuries the city became an important industrial centre and saw its size and population increase.
19th century
The invasion of the Napoleonic troops in Portugal under Marshal Soult also brought war to the city of Porto. On 29 March 1809, as the population fled from the advancing troops and tried to cross the river Douro over the Ponte das Barcas (a pontoon bridge), the bridge collapsed under the weight. This event is still remembered by a plate at the Ponte D. Luis IDom Luís Bridge, Porto
The Luís I Bridge is a metal arch bridge that spans the Douro River between the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia in Portugal...
. The French army
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
was rooted out of Porto by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
, when his troops crossed the Douro river from the Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar (a former convent) in a brilliant daylight coup de main
Coup de main
A coup de main is a swift attack that relies on speed and surprise to accomplish its objectives in a single blow. The United States Department of Defense defines it as:The literal translation from French means a stroke or blow of the hand...
, using wine barges to transport the troops, so outflanking the French Army.
In August 1820, Porto rebelled against the English presence.
A Civil War took place in early 20's between those supporting Constitutionalism and a change of regime, and those opposed to this change, keen on near-absolutism and led by D.Miguel. In 1822, a liberal constitution was accepted, partly through the efforts of the liberal assembly of Porto (Junta do Porto). When Miguel of Portugal
Miguel of Portugal
Dom Miguel I, sometimes Michael , was the King of Portugal between 1828 and 1834, the seventh child and second son of King John VI and his queen, Charlotte of Spain....
took the Portuguese
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...
throne in 1828, he rejected this constitution and reigned as an absolutist monarch.
Porto rebelled again and had to undergo a siege of eighteen months between 1832 and 1833 by the absolutist
Absolute monarchy
Absolute monarchy is a monarchical form of government in which the monarch exercises ultimate governing authority as head of state and head of government, his or her power not being limited by a constitution or by the law. An absolute monarch thus wields unrestricted political power over the...
army. Porto is also called "Cidade Invicta" (English: Unvanquished City) after resisting the Miguelist
Miguelista
In the history of Portugal, a Miguelista was a supporter of the legitimacy of the king Miguel I of Portugal. The name is also given to those who supported absolutism as form of government, in opposition to the liberals who intended the establishment of a constitutional regime in Portugal....
siege. After the abdication of King Miguel, the liberal constitution was re-established.
Known as the city of bridges, Porto built its first permanent bridge, the Ponte das Barcas (a pontoon bridge
Pontoon bridge
A pontoon bridge or floating bridge is a bridge that floats on water and in which barge- or boat-like pontoons support the bridge deck and its dynamic loads. While pontoon bridges are usually temporary structures, some are used for long periods of time...
), in 1806. Three years later it was sabotaged. It was replaced by the Ponte D. Maria II, popularised under the name Ponte Pênsil (suspended bridge
Suspension bridge
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. Outside Tibet and Bhutan, where the first examples of this type of bridge were built in the 15th century, this type of bridge dates from the early 19th century...
) and built between 1841–43; only its supporting pylons have remained.
The Ponte D. Maria
Maria Pia Bridge
The Maria Pia bridge , commonly known as Ponte Dona Maria, is a railway bridge built in 1877 by Gustave Eiffel in Porto, Portugal...
, a railway bridge, was inaugurated the 4th of November of that same year; it was considered a feat of wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
engineering and was designed by Gustave Eiffel
Gustave Eiffel
Alexandre Gustave Eiffel was a French structural engineer from the École Centrale Paris, an architect, an entrepreneur and a specialist of metallic structures...
, notable for his Parisian tower
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
. The later Ponte Dom Luís I
Dom Luís Bridge, Porto
The Luís I Bridge is a metal arch bridge that spans the Douro River between the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia in Portugal...
replaced the aforementioned Ponte Pênsil. This last bridge was made by Teophile Seyrig, a former partner of Eiffel. Seyrig won a governmental competition that took place in 1879. Building began in 1881 and the bridge was opened to the public on 31 October 1886.
Unrest by Republicans led to a revolt in Porto on 31 January 1891. This would result ultimately in the creation of the Portuguese Republic
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...
in 1910.
A higher learning institution in nautical sciences (Aula de Náutica, 1762) and a stock exchange
Stock exchange
A stock exchange is an entity that provides services for stock brokers and traders to trade stocks, bonds, and other securities. Stock exchanges also provide facilities for issue and redemption of securities and other financial instruments, and capital events including the payment of income and...
(Bolsa do Porto, 1834) were established in the city, but would be discontinued later.
20th century
In 1958 and 1960, Porto's streets hosted the Formula OneFormula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
Portuguese Grand Prix
Portuguese Grand Prix
The Portuguese Grand Prix was a motorsports event held for several years, mostly in the 1950s and then in the 1980s and 90s. It was a Formula One race between and and between and ....
.
The historic centre of Porto was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996. The World Heritage site is defined in two concentric zones; the "Protected area", and within it the "Classified area". The Classified area comprises the medieval borough located inside the 14th-century Romanesque wall.
Geography
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
recognised its historic centre as a 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...
. Among the architectural highlights of the city, Oporto Cathedral
Oporto Cathedral
The Porto Cathedral , located in the historical centre of the city of Porto, Portugal, is one of the city's oldest monuments and one of the most important Romanesque monuments in Portugal...
is the oldest surviving structure, together with the small romanesque
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
Church of Cedofeita
Church of Cedofeita
The Church of Cedofeita is a mediaeval church in the city of Porto, in Portugal. It is located in the district of Cedofeita.-History:The Church of Cedofeita was built between the 12th and the 13th centuries in romanesque style...
, the gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
Igreja de São Francisco
Igreja de São Francisco (Porto)
The Igreja de São Francisco is the most prominent Gothic monument in Oporto, Portugal, being also noted for its outstanding Baroque inner decoration. It is located in the historic centre of the city, declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO.-History:The Franciscan Order was established in Oporto...
(Church of Saint Francis
Francis of Assisi
Saint Francis of Assisi was an Italian Catholic friar and preacher. He founded the men's Franciscan Order, the women’s Order of St. Clare, and the lay Third Order of Saint Francis. St...
), the remnants of the city walls
Defensive wall
A defensive wall is a fortification used to protect a city or settlement from potential aggressors. In ancient to modern times, they were used to enclose settlements...
and a few 15th-century houses. The baroque
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
style is well represented in the city in the elaborate gilt work interior decoration
Interior design
Interior design describes a group of various yet related projects that involve turning an interior space into an effective setting for the range of human activities are to take place there. An interior designer is someone who conducts such projects...
of the churches of St. Francis and St. Claire (Santa Clara), the churches of Mercy (Misericórida) and of the Clerics (Igreja dos Clérigos
Clérigos Church
The Clérigos Church is a Baroque church in the city of Porto, in Portugal. Its tall bell tower, the Torre dos Clérigos, can be seen from various points of the city and is one of its most characteristic symbols....
), the Episcopal Palace of Porto
Episcopal Palace of Porto
The Episcopal Palace of Porto is the former residence of the bishops of Porto, in Portugal. The palace is located on a high elevation, near Oporto Cathedral, and dominates the skyline of the city...
, and others. The neoclassicism
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
and romanticism
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
of the 19th and 20th centuries also added interesting monuments to the landscape of the city, like the magnificent Stock Exchange Palace (Palácio da Bolsa
Palácio da Bolsa
The Palácio da Bolsa is a historical building in Porto, Portugal. The palace was built in the 19th century by the city's Commercial Association in Neoclassical style. It is located in the Infante D...
), the Hospital of Saint Anthony
Anthony of Padua
Anthony of Padua or Anthony of Lisbon, O.F.M., was a Portuguese Catholic priest and friar of the Franciscan Order. Though he died in Padua, Italy, he was born to a wealthy family in Lisbon, Portugal, which is where he was raised...
, the Municipality, the buildings in the Liberdade Square
Liberdade Square (Porto)
Liberdade Square is a square in the city of Porto, Portugal. It is located in Santo Ildefonso parish, in the lower town area. The square is continuous on its north side with the Avenida dos Aliados, an important avenue of the city.The square has its origins in the beginning of the 18th century...
and theAvenida dos Aliados, the tile-adorned São Bento Train Station
São Bento Train Station
The São Bento Train Station is located in the city of Porto, in Portugal. Inaugurated in 1916, the historical station is known for its tile panels that depict scenes of the History of Portugal. It is located in the Almeida Garret Square, in the centre of the city...
and the gardens of the Crystal Palace (Palácio de Cristal). A guided visit to the Palácio da Bolsa
Palácio da Bolsa
The Palácio da Bolsa is a historical building in Porto, Portugal. The palace was built in the 19th century by the city's Commercial Association in Neoclassical style. It is located in the Infante D...
, and in particular the Arab Room, is a major tourist attraction
Tourist attraction
A tourist attraction is a place of interest where tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, or amusement opportunities....
.
Many of the city's oldest houses are at risk of collapsing. The population in Porto municipality dropped by nearly 100,000 since the 1980s, but the number of permanent residents in the outskirts and satellite towns has grown strongly.
Porto is ranked number 3 in the Portuguese
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...
most livable cities survey of living conditions
Standard of living
Standard of living is generally measured by standards such as real income per person and poverty rate. Other measures such as access and quality of health care, income growth inequality and educational standards are also used. Examples are access to certain goods , or measures of health such as...
published yearly by Expresso
Expresso (Portuguese newspaper)
right||thumb|Expresso Expresso is the flagship publication of the Group IMPRESA, and was founded by Francisco Pinto Balsemão in 1973...
.
Administratively, the historic city of Porto is divided into 15 civil parishes:
- AldoarAldoarAldoar is a Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Porto. It has a population of 13,957 inhabitants and a total area of 2,36 km²....
- BonfimBonfim (Porto)Bonfim is a Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Porto. It has a population of 28,578 inhabitants and a total area of 3.05 km²....
- CampanhãCampanhãCampanhã is a Portuguese parish, located in the city of Porto. It has a population of 38,757 inhabitants and a total area of 8.13 km². Located there is the Campanhã station, the most important in Porto....
- CedofeitaCedofeitaCedofeita is a Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Porto. It has a population of 24,784 inhabitants and a total area of 2.66 km²....
- Foz do DouroFoz do DouroFoz do Douro is a Portuguese parish of the city and of Porto municipality. It has 12,235 inhabitants and is 3.00 km² in area. It became a parish in 1836...
- Lordelo do OuroLordelo do OuroLordelo do Ouro is a Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Porto. It has a population of 22,212 inhabitants and a total area of 3.40 km², overlooking the Douro river, in the city of Porto....
- MassarelosMassarelosMassarelos is a Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Porto. It has a population of 7,756 inhabitants and a total area of 1.94 km².The municipality includes parts of the city's old downtown, classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site...
- MiragaiaMiragaia (Porto)Miragaia is a Portuguese parish of the municipality of Porto. It is 0.49 km² in area with 2,810 inhabitants as of 2001.Local landmarks include Santo António Hospital, the ancient city walls of Porto, built by Ferdinand I and several palaces and churches.- External links :*...
- Nevogilde
- ParanhosParanhos (Porto)Paranhos is a parish in the municipality of Porto, Portugal.It has an area of 6.67 km² and a population of 48,686 giving a population density of 7,299 inhabitants per km². Local landmarks include the Areosa Church, various faculties of the University of Porto and the sprawling Hospital de...
- Ramalde
- São NicolauSão Nicolau (Porto)São Nicolau is a Portuguese parish of the municipality of Porto. It is 0.21 km² in area with 2,937 inhabitants as of 2001....
- Santo IldefonsoSanto Ildefonso (Porto)Santo Ildefonso is a Portuguese parish of the municipality of Porto. It is 1.28 km² in area with 10,044 inhabitants as of 2001....
- SéSé (Porto)Sé is a Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Porto. It has a population of 4,751 inhabitants and a total area of 0.48 km²....
- VitóriaVitória (Porto)Vitória is a Portuguese parish of the municipality of Porto. It is 0.31 km² in area with 2,720 inhabitants as of 2001.Vitória is one of the four districts within the UNESCO World Heritage Classified Zone of Porto, the others being São Nicolau, Sé, and Miragaia.A major landmark of Vitória is...
Twin towns — sister cities
Porto is twinned with:Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Pernik
Pernik
Pernik is a city in western Bulgaria with a population of 81,052 . It is the main city of Pernik Province and lies on both banks of the Struma River in the Pernik Valley between the Viskyar, Vitosha and Golo Bardo mountains.Originally the site of a Thracian fortress founded in the 4th century BC,...
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
Duruelo de la Sierra
Duruelo de la Sierra
Duruelo de la Sierra is a municipality of Spain, in the province of Soria, Autonomous Community of Castile and León - Population :...
, Castile and León
Castile and León
Castile and León is an autonomous community in north-western Spain. It was so constituted in 1983 and it comprises the historical regions of León and Old Castile...
, 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...
Jena
Jena
Jena is a university city in central Germany on the river Saale. It has a population of approx. 103,000 and is the second largest city in the federal state of Thuringia, after Erfurt.-History:Jena was first mentioned in an 1182 document...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
León
León, Spain
León is the capital of the province of León in the autonomous community of Castile and León, situated in the northwest of Spain. Its city population of 136,985 makes it the largest municipality in the province, accounting for more than one quarter of the province's population...
, Castile and León
Castile and León
Castile and León is an autonomous community in north-western Spain. It was so constituted in 1983 and it comprises the historical regions of León and Old Castile...
, 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...
Liège
Liège
Liège is a major city and municipality of Belgium located in the province of Liège, of which it is the economic capital, in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium....
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
, Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
Nagasaki
Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Nagasaki was founded by the Portuguese in the second half of the 16th century on the site of a small fishing village, formerly part of Nishisonogi District...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
Vigo
Vigo
Vigo is a city and municipality in north-west Spain, in Galicia, situated on the ria of the same name on the Atlantic Ocean.-Population:...
, Galicia, 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...
Partner towns
Within the context of development cooperation, Porto is also linked to:Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte is the capital of and largest city in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of Brazil. It is the third largest metropolitan area in the country...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
Beira
Beira, Mozambique
Beira is the second largest city in Mozambique. It lies in the central region of the country in Sofala Province, where the Pungue River meets the Indian Ocean. Beira had a population of 412,588 in 1997, which grew to an estimated 546,000 in 2006...
, Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
Luanda
Luanda
Luanda, formerly named São Paulo da Assunção de Loanda, is the capital and largest city of Angola. Located on Angola's coast with the Atlantic Ocean, Luanda is both Angola's chief seaport and its administrative center. It has a population of at least 5 million...
, Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
Mindelo
Mindelo
For the parish in Portugal, see Mindelo, PortugalMindelo , is a port city in the northern part of the island of São Vicente in Cape Verde. Mindelo is also the seat of the parish of Nossa Senhora da Luz, and this island's municipality...
, Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...
Neves
Neves, São Tomé and Príncipe
-Education :Neves has schools or collegiates , a lyceum , a small high school , churches, beaches, a small port and a few squares ....
, São Tomé and Príncipe
São Tomé and Príncipe
São Tomé and Príncipe, officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, is a Portuguese-speaking island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, off the western equatorial coast of Central Africa. It consists of two islands: São Tomé and Príncipe, located about apart and about , respectively, off...
Ndola
Ndola
Ndola is the third largest city in Zambia, with a population of 495,000 . It is the industrial, commercial, on the Copperbelt, Zambia's copper-mining region, and capital of Copperbelt Province. It is also the commercial capital city of Zambia and has one of the three international airports, others...
, Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
Recife
Recife
Recife is the fifth-largest metropolitan area in Brazil with 4,136,506 inhabitants, the largest metropolitan area of the North/Northeast Regions, the 5th-largest metropolitan influence area in Brazil, and the capital and largest city of the state of Pernambuco. The population of the city proper...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
Akhisar
Akhisar
Akhisar is a county district and its town center in Manisa Province in the Aegean region of Western Turkey...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
Climate
Porto features the warm-summer Mediterranean climateMediterranean climate
A Mediterranean climate is the climate typical of most of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, and is a particular variety of subtropical climate...
(Köppen climate classification
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...
Csb). As a result, its climate shares many characteristics with the coastal south: warm, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. Unlike the south, however, cool and rainy interludes can interrupt the dry season
Dry season
The dry season is a term commonly used when describing the weather in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which oscillates from the northern to the southern tropics over the course of the year...
and the season's average length is usually shorter.
Summers are typically sunny with average temperatures between 15 °C (59 °F) and 25 °C (77 °F) but can rise to as high as 35 °C (95 °F) during occasional heat waves. During such heat waves the humidity
Humidity
Humidity is a term for the amount of water vapor in the air, and can refer to any one of several measurements of humidity. Formally, humid air is not "moist air" but a mixture of water vapor and other constituents of air, and humidity is defined in terms of the water content of this mixture,...
remains quite low but nearby forest fires
Wildfire
A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...
can add haze and ash to the air making breathing somewhat uncomfortable, especially at night. Nearby beaches are often windy and usually cooler than the urban area
Urban area
An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...
s. In contrast, occasional summer rainy periods may last a few days and are characterised by showers and cool temperatures of around 20 °C (68 °F) in the afternoon.
Winter temperatures typically range between 5 °C (41 °F) during morning and 15 °C (59 °F) in the afternoon but rarely drop below 0 °C (32 °F) at night. The weather is often rainy for long stretches although prolonged sunny periods do occur.
Economy
Porto has always rivaled LisbonLisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
in economic
Economy of Portugal
The Economy of Portugal is a high income mixed economy. The Global Competitiveness Report 2008-2009 edition placed Portugal in the 43rd position out of 134 countries and territories....
power. As the most important city in the heavily industrialised northwest, many of the largest Portuguese corporations from diverse economic sectors
Economy
An economy consists of the economic system of a country or other area; the labor, capital and land resources; and the manufacturing, trade, distribution, and consumption of goods and services of that area...
, like Altri
Altri
Altri is a Portuguese industrial conglomerate headquartered in Porto. The group's main companies operate in wood pulp production, cultivation of forests for the timber and paper industry and co-generation of energy, including energy production from renewable resources...
, Ambar, Amorim
Amorim
Amorim is a Portuguese surname. A habitational name from any of the various places named Amorim, originally Amorini, from the name of the estate owner.It may refer to:- People :*Ana Amorim, Brazilian handball player...
, Bial
Bial
Bial is a pharmaceutical company headquartered in S. Mamede do Coronado, in Trofa, Porto district, Portugal. It was founded in 1924, being among the largest companies of its kind in Portugal....
, Cerealis
Cerealis
Cerealis is a Portuguese food producer and the biggest milling company in Portugal, headquartered in Maia, and founded in 1919 as a cereal processing company...
, BPI
Banco Português de Investimento
Banco Português de Investimento is a major privately owned bank in Portugal. The bank's shares are listed in the Euronext Lisbon's PSI-20 stock index. It runs the banking business with companies, institutional and private clients. As Sociedade Portuguesa de Investimentos it was founded in 1981 by...
, CIN
Corporação Industrial do Norte
CIN - Corporação Industrial do Norte S.A. is a Portuguese company that is the Iberian market leader for paint & coating products. The company was established in 1926 and is headquartered in Maia, Norte Region....
, EFACEC
EFACEC
The EFACEC Group is the largest Portuguese corporation in the field of electromechanics and electronics, with a strong presence in different international markets. It is headquartered in Matosinhos, Greater Porto area, Portugal. The José de Mello corporation owns about 50% of EFACEC's capital....
, Frulact
Frulact
Frulact - Ingredientes para a Indústria de Laticínios, Lda. is a food industry company specialized in fruit processing, headquartered in Maia, Portugal. Its aim is the manufacture of food products like fruit compounds for food industries. It has industrial and commercial facilities in Maia,...
, Lactogal
Lactogal
Lactogal is a Portuguese food products company focused on dairy products, milk, fruit juice and mineral water. It is headquartered in Porto and is placed among the twenty largest agro-food European companies...
, Millennium bcp
Banco Comercial Português
Banco Comercial Português , is a Portuguese bank that was founded in 1985 and is the largest private bank in the country. BCP is a member of the Euronext 100 stock index and its current chief executive officer is Carlos Santos Ferreira. BCP is based in Porto, but its operations are headquartered...
, Porto Editora
Porto Editora
Porto Editora is the leading educational publisher in Portugal, in the areas of educational books, dictionaries and multimedia products – off and on-line...
, Grupo RAR
Grupo RAR
Refinarias de Açúcar Reunidas , is a Portugal-based international industrial and agribusiness conglomerate headquartered in Porto, and active in several businesses, including sugar and fresh salads production and distribution. RAR is also the owner of packaging company ColepCCL and chocolatier...
, Sonae
Sonae
Sonae is a conglomerate, and is the largest private employer in Portugal. The company is primarily engaged in the operation of retail stores through its subsidiary Modelo Continente....
, Sonae Indústria
Sonae Indústria
Sonae Indústria is a manufacturer of engineered wood products, founded and headquartered in Maia, Portugal. Present in twelve countries within three continents, Sonae Indústria has a wide range of products, from simple board to complete construction systems, a large range of wood-based products...
, and Unicer, are headquartered 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...
, most notably, in the core municipalities of Maia
Maia (city)
Maia is a city in northern Portugal, located in Maia Municipality. It includes the parishes of Gueifães, Maia and Vermoim, and has 35,625 inhabitants.-History:In 1902, Maia received the status of vila...
, Matosinhos
Matosinhos
Matosinhos Municipality is located in Porto District, Portugal. The main city is Matosinhos. It is bordered to the south by the city of Porto and lies within the Greater Porto subregion. The municipality has a population of 168,451 in 10 parishes. Many people have recently moved from the...
, Porto, and Vila Nova de Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia, or simply Gaia is a city in Vila Nova de Gaia Municipality, Portugal. It is located in the Porto District, south of the city of Porto on the other side of the Douro River. The city proper has a population of 178,255 and the municipality contains 24 parishes with a total...
.
The country's biggest exporter (Petrogal
Galp Energia
The Galp Energia Group is a Portuguese corporation which consists of more than 100 companies engaged in activities such as natural gas supply, regasification, transport, storage, and distribution; petroleum products exploration, production, refining, trading, logistics and retailing; co-generation...
) has one of its two refineries near the city, in Leça da Palmeira
Leça da Palmeira
Leça da Palmeira is a Portuguese parish in the municipality of Matosinhos and part of the city with the same name. It has 5.97 km² and had 17.215 inhabitants in the 2001 census....
(13 km) and the second biggest (Qimonda
Qimonda
Qimonda AG, was a memory company split out of Infineon Technologies on 1 May 2006, to form at the time the second largest DRAM company worldwide, according to the industry research firm Gartner Dataquest...
, now bankrupt) has its only factory also near the city in Mindelo (26 km).
The city's former stock exchange
Stock exchange
A stock exchange is an entity that provides services for stock brokers and traders to trade stocks, bonds, and other securities. Stock exchanges also provide facilities for issue and redemption of securities and other financial instruments, and capital events including the payment of income and...
(Bolsa do Porto
Euronext Lisbon
Euronext Lisbon is a stock exchange in Lisbon, Portugal. It belongs to the NYSE Euronext group, the first global stock exchange.Euronext Lisbon trades equities, public and private bonds, participation bonds, warrants, corporate warrants, investment trust units, and exchange traded funds...
) was transformed into the largest derivatives exchange
Futures exchange
A futures exchange or futures market is a central financial exchange where people can trade standardized futures contracts; that is, a contract to buy specific quantities of a commodity or financial instrument at a specified price with delivery set at a specified time in the future. These types of...
of Portugal, and merged with Lisbon Stock Exchange
Euronext Lisbon
Euronext Lisbon is a stock exchange in Lisbon, Portugal. It belongs to the NYSE Euronext group, the first global stock exchange.Euronext Lisbon trades equities, public and private bonds, participation bonds, warrants, corporate warrants, investment trust units, and exchange traded funds...
to create the Bolsa de Valores de Lisboa e Porto
Euronext Lisbon
Euronext Lisbon is a stock exchange in Lisbon, Portugal. It belongs to the NYSE Euronext group, the first global stock exchange.Euronext Lisbon trades equities, public and private bonds, participation bonds, warrants, corporate warrants, investment trust units, and exchange traded funds...
, which eventually merged with Euronext
Euronext
Euronext N.V. is a pan-European stock exchange based in Amsterdam and with subsidiaries in Belgium, France, Netherlands, Portugal and the United Kingdom. In addition to equities and derivatives markets, the Euronext group provides clearing and information services...
, together with Amsterdam, Brussels, LIFFE
London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange
The London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange is a futures exchange based in London. LIFFE is now part of NYSE Euronext following its takeover by Euronext in January 2002 and Euronext's merger with New York Stock Exchange in April 2007.-History:The London International Financial...
and Paris stock and futures exchange
Futures exchange
A futures exchange or futures market is a central financial exchange where people can trade standardized futures contracts; that is, a contract to buy specific quantities of a commodity or financial instrument at a specified price with delivery set at a specified time in the future. These types of...
s. The building formerly hosting the stock exchange is currently one of the city's touristic attractions, the Salão Árabe (Arab Room in English) being its major highlight.
Porto hosts a popular Portuguese newspaper, Jornal de Notícias
Jornal de Notícias
Jornal de Notícias is a Portuguese daily national newspaper. JN was founded in Porto on 2 June 1888, and has since become one of the most popular newspapers, especially after the Carnation Revolution....
. The building where its offices are located (which has the same name as the newspaper) was up to recently one of the tallest in the city (it has been superseded by a number of modern buildings which have been built since the 1990s).
Porto Editora
Porto Editora
Porto Editora is the leading educational publisher in Portugal, in the areas of educational books, dictionaries and multimedia products – off and on-line...
, one of the biggest Portuguese publishers, is also in Porto. Its dictionaries are among the most popular references used in the country, and the translations are very popular as well.
The economic relations between the city of Porto and the Upper Douro River
Douro
The Douro or Duero is one of the major rivers of the Iberian Peninsula, flowing from its source near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province across northern-central Spain and Portugal to its outlet at Porto...
have been documented since the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. However, they were greatly deepened in the modern ages. Indeed, sumac
Sumac
Sumac is any one of approximately 250 species of flowering plants in the genus Rhus and related genera, in the family Anacardiaceae. Sumacs grow in subtropical and temperate regions throughout the world, especially in Africa and North America....
h, dry fruits and nut
Nut (fruit)
A nut is a hard-shelled fruit of some plants having an indehiscent seed. While a wide variety of dried seeds and fruits are called nuts in English, only a certain number of them are considered by biologists to be true nuts...
s and the Douro olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
s sustained prosperous exchanges between the region and Porto. From the riverside quays at the river mouth, these products were exported to other markets of the Old
Old World
The Old World consists of those parts of the world known to classical antiquity and the European Middle Ages. It is used in the context of, and contrast with, the "New World" ....
and New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
. But the greatest lever to interregional trade relations resulted from the commercial dynamics of the Port wine
Port wine
Port wine is a Portuguese fortified wine produced exclusively in the Douro Valley in the northern provinces of Portugal. It is typically a sweet, red wine, often served as a dessert wine, and comes in dry, semi-dry, and white varieties...
(Vinho do Porto) agro industry. It decidedly bolstered the complementary relationship between the large coastal urban centre, endowed with open doors to the sea, and a region with significant agricultural potential, especially in terms of the production of extremely high quality fortified wine
Fortified wine
Fortified wine is wine to which a distilled beverage has been added. Fortified wine is distinguished from spirits made from wine in that spirits are produced by means of distillation, while fortified wine is simply wine that has had a spirit added to it...
s, today known by the world-famous label Port. The development of Porto was also closely connected with the left margin of River Douro in Vila Nova de Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia, or simply Gaia is a city in Vila Nova de Gaia Municipality, Portugal. It is located in the Porto District, south of the city of Porto on the other side of the Douro River. The city proper has a population of 178,255 and the municipality contains 24 parishes with a total...
, where is located the amphitheatre-shaped slope with the Port wine cellars.
In a study concerning competitiveness
Competitiveness
Competitiveness is a comparative concept of the ability and performance of a firm, sub-sector or country to sell and supply goods and/or services in a given market...
of the 18 Portuguese district capitals, Porto was the worst-ranked. The study was made by Minho University economics researchers and was published in Público newspaper on 30 September 2006. The best-ranked cities in the study were Évora
Évora
Évora is a municipality in Portugal. It has total area of with a population of 55,619 inhabitants. It is the seat of the Évora District and capital of the Alentejo region. The municipality is composed of 19 civil parishes, and is located in Évora District....
, Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
and Coimbra
Coimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
. Nevertheless, the validity of this study was questioned by some Porto's notable figures (such as local politicians and businesspersons) who argued that the city proper does not function independently but in conurbation with other municipalities. A new ranking, published in the newspaper Expresso (Portuguese Newspaper)
Expresso (Portuguese newspaper)
right||thumb|Expresso Expresso is the flagship publication of the Group IMPRESA, and was founded by Francisco Pinto Balsemão in 1973...
in 2007 which can be translated to "The Best Cities to Live in Portugal" ranked Porto in third place (tied with Évora
Évora
Évora is a municipality in Portugal. It has total area of with a population of 55,619 inhabitants. It is the seat of the Évora District and capital of the Alentejo region. The municipality is composed of 19 civil parishes, and is located in Évora District....
) below Guimarães
Guimarães
Guimarães Municipality is located in northwestern Portugal in the province of Minho and in the Braga District. It contains the city of Guimarães.The present Mayor is António Magalhães Silva, elected by the Socialist Party.-Parishes:-Economy:...
and Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
. The two studies are not directly comparable as they use different dependent measures.
Roads and bridges
São João da Madeira
São João da Madeira , in English St. John's Wood, is a municipality in northwestern Portugal. Its part of Porto Metropolitan Area, the second largest of Portugal. It has a land area of 8.11 km² and a total population of 21 685 inhabitants...
.
During the 20th century, major bridges were built: Arrábida Bridge
Arrábida Bridge
The Arrábida Bridge is an arch bridge over the Douro River that connects Porto to Vila Nova de Gaia, in Portugal. It is the most downstream bride across the Douro River, just a few kilometers from the Atlantic Ocean....
, which at its opening had the biggest concrete supporting arch in the world, and connects north and south shores of the Douro on the west side of the city, S. João, to replace D. Maria Pia and Freixo, a highway bridge on the east side of the city. The newest bridge is Ponte do Infante, finished in 2003. Two more bridges are said to be under designing stages and due to be built in the next 10 years, one on the Campo Alegre area, nearby the Faculty of Humanities and the Arts, and another one in the area known as the Massarelos valley.
Nowadays, Porto is often known as Cidade das Pontes (City of Bridges), "Cidade Invicta" (Invincible City) and "Capital do Norte" (The Capital of the North).
Airports
Porto is served by Francisco de Sá Carneiro Airport which is located in Pedras Rubras, Moreira civil parish of the neighbouring Municipality of MaiaMaia (city)
Maia is a city in northern Portugal, located in Maia Municipality. It includes the parishes of Gueifães, Maia and Vermoim, and has 35,625 inhabitants.-History:In 1902, Maia received the status of vila...
, some 15 km to the north-west of the city centre. The airport is a state-of-the-art facility, having undergone a massive programme of refurbishment due to the Euro 2004 football championships being partly hosted in the city.
Public transport
RailwaysPorto's main railway station is situated in Campanhã
Campanhã
Campanhã is a Portuguese parish, located in the city of Porto. It has a population of 38,757 inhabitants and a total area of 8.13 km². Located there is the Campanhã station, the most important in Porto....
, located in the eastern part of the city (connecting to the lines of Douro (Peso da Régua/Tua/Pocinho), Minho (Barcelos/Viana do Castelo/Valença) and Norte (on the main line to Aveiro, Coimbra
Coimbra
Coimbra is a city in the municipality of Coimbra in Portugal. Although it served as the nation's capital during the High Middle Ages, it is better-known for its university, the University of Coimbra, which is one of the oldest in Europe and the oldest academic institution in the...
and Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
). From here, both light rail
Porto Metro
The Porto Metro , part of the public transport system of Porto, Portugal, is a light-rail network that runs underground in central Porto and above ground into the city's suburbs...
and suburban rail
Regional rail
Commuter rail, also called suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates between a city center, and the middle to outer suburbs beyond 15km and commuter towns or other locations that draw large numbers of commuters—people who travel on a daily basis...
services connect to the city centre. The main central station
Central station
A central station usually designates the principal passenger railway station of cities which have multiple stations. The central station functions as the main transport hub for rail transport, normally with interchange with other modes of public transport...
is São Bento Station
São Bento Train Station
The São Bento Train Station is located in the city of Porto, in Portugal. Inaugurated in 1916, the historical station is known for its tile panels that depict scenes of the History of Portugal. It is located in the Almeida Garret Square, in the centre of the city...
, which is itself a notable landmark located in the heart of Porto.
Subway/Light rail
Currently the major project is the Porto Metro
Porto Metro
The Porto Metro , part of the public transport system of Porto, Portugal, is a light-rail network that runs underground in central Porto and above ground into the city's suburbs...
, a light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
system. Consequently, the Infante bridge was built for urban traffic, replacing the Dom Luís I, which was dedicated to the subway on the second and higher of the bridge's two levels. Six lines are open: lines A (blue), B (red), C (green) and E (purple) all begin at Estádio do Dragão
Estádio do Dragão
The Estádio do Dragão is a football stadium located in Porto, Portugal, with an all-seated capacity of 50,399. Inaugurated on November 16, 2003, it is the current home ground of F.C. Porto, having replaced the club's old venue, the Estádio das Antas...
(home to FC Porto) and terminate at Senhor de Matosinhos, Póvoa de Varzim
Póvoa de Varzim
Póvoa de Varzim is a Portuguese city in the Norte Region and sub-region of Greater Porto, with a 2011 estimated population of 63,364. According to the 2001 census, there were 63,470 inhabitants with 42,396 living in the city proper. The urban area expanded, southwards, to Vila do Conde, and there...
(via Vila do Conde), ISMAI
ISMAI
ISMAI - Instituto Superior da Maia is an institute of higher education formed in 1990 in Maia, Portugal.Academic first degrees:Psychology,Psychosocial Counseling,Communication Sciences,Physical Education and Sports,Law ,...
(via Maia) and Francisco Sá Carneiro airport respectively. Line D (yellow) currently runs from Hospital S. João in the north to D. João II
John II of Portugal
John II , the Perfect Prince , was the thirteenth king of Portugal and the Algarves...
on the southern side of the Douro river. Line F (orange), from Senhora da Hora (Matosinhos) to Fânzeres (Gondomar). The lines intersect at the central Trindade
Trindade (station)
Trindade is a station on the Porto Metro system in Porto, Portugal.The modern metro station was built on the site of the former Trindade railway station, which was the central terminus for services to Porto from Trofa and Póvoa do Varzim...
station. Currently the whole network spans 60 km (37.3 mi) using 68 stations, thus being the biggest metro system
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
in the country.
 Metro do Porto |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Line | Length (km) |
Stations | Inauguration | Vehicle | |
| 15,6 | 23 | 7 December 2002 | Flexity Outlook (Eurotram) | ||
| 33,6 | 35 | 13 March 2005 | Flexity Swift (Tram-train) | ||
| 19,6 | 24 | 30 July 2005 | Flexity Swift (Tram-train) | ||
| 9,2 | 16 | 18 September 2005 | Flexity Outlook (Eurotram) | ||
center>Estádio do Dragão ↔ Aeroporto  |
16,7 | 21 | 27 May 2006 | Flexity Outlook (Eurotram) | |
| 17,4 | 24 | 2 January 2011 | Flexity Outlook (Eurotram) | ||
Buses
The city has an extensive bus network
Bus network
A bus network topology is a network architecture in which a set of clients are connected via a shared communications line, called a bus. There are several common instances of the bus architecture, including one in the motherboard of most computers, and those in some versions of Ethernet...
run by the STCP (Sociedade dos Transportes Colectivos do Porto, or Porto Public Transport
Public transport
Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...
Society) which also operates lines in the neighbouring cities of Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia
Vila Nova de Gaia, or simply Gaia is a city in Vila Nova de Gaia Municipality, Portugal. It is located in the Porto District, south of the city of Porto on the other side of the Douro River. The city proper has a population of 178,255 and the municipality contains 24 parishes with a total...
, Maia and Gondomar. Other smaller companies connect such towns as Paços de Ferreira
Paços de Ferreira
Paços de Ferreira is a city in Portugal. It is sometimes also called Capital do Móvel , since the city is home to numerous furniture manufacturing plants. Besides older Portuguese furniture companies, Portugal's major industrial operations of IKEA are also located there...
and Santo Tirso to the town center. In the past the city also had trolleybus
Trolleybus
A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...
es. A bus journey is 1.50 Euro, which can be paid in cash.
Trams
A tram network, of which only four lines remain one of them being a tourist line on the shores of the Douro, saw its construction begin in 12 September 1895, therefore being the first in the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
. The lines in operation today all use vintage tramcars, so the service has become a heritage tramway
Heritage streetcar
Heritage streetcars or heritage trams are a development of the heritage railways that are becoming popular across the world. As with modern streetcar systems, the vehicles are referred to as trams or tramcars in the United Kingdom, Australasia and certain other places , but as streetcars or...
. STCP also operates these routes. The first line of the area's modern-tram, or light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
system, named Metro do Porto
Porto Metro
The Porto Metro , part of the public transport system of Porto, Portugal, is a light-rail network that runs underground in central Porto and above ground into the city's suburbs...
, opened for revenue service in January 2003 (after a brief period of free, introductory service in December 2002).
Culture
European Capital of Culture
The European Capital of Culture is a city designated by theEuropean Union for a period of one calendar year during which it organises a series of cultural events with a strong European dimension....
. In the scope of these events, the construction of the major concert hall space Casa da Música
Casa da Música
Casa da Música is a major concert hall space in Porto, Portugal which houses the cultural institution of the same name with its three orchestras Orquestra Nacional do Porto, Orquestra Barroca and Remix Ensemble...
, designed by the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
architect Rem Koolhaas
Rem Koolhaas
Remment Lucas Koolhaas is a Dutch architect, architectural theorist, urbanist and "Professor in Practice of Architecture and Urban Design" at the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University, USA. Koolhaas studied at the Netherlands Film and Television Academy in Amsterdam, at the Architectural...
, was initiated and finished in 2005.
The first Portuguese moving pictures were taken in Porto by Aurélio da Paz dos Reis and shown there on 12 November 1896 in Teatro do Príncipe Real do Porto, less than a year after the first public presentation by Auguste and Louis Lumière
Auguste and Louis Lumière
The Lumière brothers, Auguste Marie Louis Nicolas and Louis Jean , were among the earliest filmmakers in history...
. The country's first movie studio
Movie studio
A movie studio is a term used to describe a major entertainment company or production company that has its own privately owned studio facility or facilities that are used to film movies...
s Invicta Filmes was also erected in Porto in 1917 and was open from 1918 to 1927 in the area of Carvalhido. Manoel de Oliveira
Manoel de Oliveira
Manoel Cândido Pinto de Oliveira, GCSE is a Portuguese film director born in Cedofeita, Porto. He began working on films in the late 1920s, but did not receive international recognition until the early 1970s. Since the late 1980s he has been one of the most prolific working film directors and...
, a Portuguese film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
and the oldest director in the world who is still active, is from Porto. Fantasporto
Fantasporto
Fantasporto, also known as Fantas, is an international film festival, annually organized since 1981 in Porto, Portugal. Giving screen space to commercial feature films, auteur films and experimental projects from all over the world, Fantasporto has created enthusiastic audiences, ranging from...
is an internationalfilm festival
Film festival
A film festival is an organised, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theaters or screening venues, usually in a single locality. More and more often film festivals show part of their films to the public by adding outdoor movie screenings...
organized in Porto every year.
Many renowned Portuguese music
Music of Portugal
Portugal is internationally known in the music scene for its traditions of fado, but the country has seen a recent expansion in musical styles, with modern acts from rock to hip hop becoming popular...
artists and cult bands such as GNR
GNR (band)
GNR is a Portuguese band founded in 1981. This band shares its acronym with the Guarda Nacional Republicana and is inseparable from the concept of Portuguese rock. Many years after its creation, numerous recordings show the band's popularity...
, Rui Veloso
Rui Veloso
Rui Manuel Gaudêncio Veloso, commonly known as Rui Veloso, CavIH , is a Portuguese rock singer and musician. Regarded as the "father of Portuguese rock", this composer and interpreter had a great impact on the Portuguese music scene with the record Ar de Rock .Songs such as Chico Fininho and A...
, Sérgio Godinho
Sérgio Godinho
Sérgio Godinho, OL is a Portuguese poet, composer, and singer. He was born on August 31, 1945 in Porto, Portugal, and is one of the most influential popular musicians in Portugal...
, Clã
Clã
Clã is a Portuguese pop-rock band of a mixed nature in terms of style, ranging from moments of pure balladry, through jazzy details, to enthusiastic pop songs. They are currently regarded as one of the best Portuguese bands...
, Pluto and Ornatos Violeta
Ornatos Violeta
Ornatos Violeta were a Portuguese alternative rock group whose music included some other influences, such as funk, jazz and ska. The band was formed in the city of Porto....
are from the city or its metropolitan area.
Porto has several museums, concert halls, theaters, cinemas, art galleries, libraries and book shops. The best-known museums of Oporto are the National Museum Soares dos Reis
National Museum Soares dos Reis
National Museum Soares dos Reis , located in the ancient Carrancas Palace, in Porto, Portugal, is one of the most renowned Portuguese museums.The museum Soares dos Reis, founded in 1833, is Portugal's first national museum...
(Museu Nacional de Soares dos Reis), which is dedicated especially to the Portuguese artistic movements
Art movement
An art movement is a tendency or style in art with a specific common philosophy or goal, followed by a group of artists during a restricted period of time, or, at least, with the heyday of the movement defined within a number of years...
from the 16th to the 20th century, and the Museum of Contemporary Art of the Serralves Foundation
Serralves Foundation
Serralves Foundation is an art foundation whose mission is to raise the general public's awareness concerning contemporary art and the environment. The foundation is located in Porto, Portugal.-Casa de Serralves:...
(Museu de Arte Contemporânea).
The city has concert halls of a rare beauty and elegance such as the Coliseu do Porto
Coliseu do Porto
The Coliseu do Porto is a theatre in Porto, Portugal. It is arguably one of the most relevant landmarks of Porto and a prestigious venue for music and cultural events. Together with Batalha Cinema, the Coliseu is a very good example of Portuguese Streamline Moderne and Art Deco in the city of Porto...
by the Portuguese architect Cassiano Branco; an exquisite example of the Portuguese decorative arts. Other notable venues include the historical São João National Theatre
São João National Theatre
The São João National Theatre is a theatre in the city of Porto, in Portugal. It is located in Batalha Square, in the historical centre of the city....
, the Rivoli theatre, the Batalha cinema
Cinema Batalha (Porto)
The Cinema Batalha is a cinema and concert venue in Porto, Portugal. Originally the High Life Cinema, it was transformed in the current structure by architect Artur Andrade and inaugurated on 3 June 1947...
and the recent Casa da Música
Casa da Música
Casa da Música is a major concert hall space in Porto, Portugal which houses the cultural institution of the same name with its three orchestras Orquestra Nacional do Porto, Orquestra Barroca and Remix Ensemble...
. The city has a magnificent, and beautiful bookshop, "Lello", that was featured in third place in The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
's list of world's top bookshops. From the three top bookshops, Lello was the only one that was originally built to be a bookshop, as the other ones were, respectively, a church and a theatre.
Entertainment
Festa de São João
Every year, on the 24th June, the city of Porto, in the north of Portugal, becomes lively and seemingly crazy. Thousands of people come to the city centre and to the most traditional neighborhoods to pay a tribute to Saint John the Baptist, in a party that mixes sacred and profane traditions .The...
) on the night of 23–24 June. In this season it's a tradition to have a vase with bush basil decorated with a small poem. During the dinner of the great day people usually eat sardines and boiled potatoes together with red wine.
Another major event is Queima das Fitas
Queima das Fitas
The Queima das Fitas is a traditional festivity of the students of some Portuguese universities, organized originally by the students of the University of Coimbra.- History :...
, that starts in the first Sunday of May and ends in the second Sunday of the month. Basically, before the beginning of the study period
Study Hall
Study hall or study period is a term for a place and/or time during the school day where students are assigned to study when they are not scheduled for an academic class. They are most commonly found in high schools and some middle schools, especially in the United States...
preceding the school year’s last exams, academia
Academia
Academia is the community of students and scholars engaged in higher education and research.-Etymology:The word comes from the akademeia in ancient Greece. Outside the city walls of Athens, the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning...
tries to have as much fun as possible. The week has 12 major events, starting with the Monumental Serenata on Sunday, and reaching its peak with the Cortejo Académico on Tuesday, when about 50,000 students of the city's higher education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
institutions march through the downtown streets till they reach the city hall. During every night of the week a series of concerts takes place on the Queimódromo, next to the city’s park, where it’s also a tradition for the students in their second-to-last year to erect small tents where alcoholic beverage
Alcoholic beverage
An alcoholic beverage is a drink containing ethanol, commonly known as alcohol. Alcoholic beverages are divided into three general classes: beers, wines, and spirits. They are legally consumed in most countries, and over 100 countries have laws regulating their production, sale, and consumption...
s are sold in order to finance the trip that takes place during the last year of their course of study; an average of 50 000 students attend these shows.
Arts
In 2005, the municipality funded a public sculpturePublic art
The term public art properly refers to works of art in any media that have been planned and executed with the specific intention of being sited or staged in the physical public domain, usually outside and accessible to all...
to be built in the Waterfront Plaza of Matosinhos
Matosinhos
Matosinhos Municipality is located in Porto District, Portugal. The main city is Matosinhos. It is bordered to the south by the city of Porto and lies within the Greater Porto subregion. The municipality has a population of 168,451 in 10 parishes. Many people have recently moved from the...
. The resulting sculpture is entitled She Changes
She Changes
She Changes is a sculpture designed by artist Janet Echelman for the cities of Porto and Matosinhos, Northern Portugal. The installation consists of three steel poles, cables, a 20-ton steel ring, and a net structure of varying densities and colors. The sculpture is Echelman's first permanent...
by American artist, Janet Echelman
Janet Echelman
Janet Echelman is an American artist specializing in public art installations and sculpture. She graduated from Harvard University in 1987 with Highest Honors in Visual Studies. From 1988-1993 Echelman lived and worked in Bali, Indonesia before returning to America. She created her first permanent...
, and spans the height of 50 × 150 × 150 meters.
Architecture
Due to its prolonged existence, the city of Porto carries an immense architectural patrimony. From the RomanesqueRomanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
Cathedral to the Social Housing projects developed through the late 20th century, much could be said surrounding Architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
.
Porto is home to the Porto School of Architecture
Porto School of Architecture
The Faculty of Architecture of the University of Porto , or FAUP, is an architecture faculty located in Porto, Portugal, and one of the thirteen constituent faculties of the University of Porto.- History :...
, one of the most prestigious architecture schools in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and the world. It is also home to two earners of the Pritzker Architecture Prize (two former students of the aforementioned school
Porto School of Architecture
The Faculty of Architecture of the University of Porto , or FAUP, is an architecture faculty located in Porto, Portugal, and one of the thirteen constituent faculties of the University of Porto.- History :...
): Álvaro Siza Vieira
Álvaro Siza Vieira
Álvaro Joaquim de Melo Siza Vieira, GOSE, GCIH, is a Portuguese architect, born 25 June 1933 in Matosinhos a small coastal town by Porto. He is internationally known as Álvaro Siza .-Life and career:...
and Eduardo Souto de Moura
Eduardo Souto de Moura
-Life and career:Souto de Moura was born in Porto, and studied sculpture before switching to architecture at the School of Fine Arts of the University of Porto, the current FAUP - Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade do Porto, and receiving his degree in 1980. From 1974 to 1979 he worked with...
.
Gastronomy
Porto is home to a number of dishes from traditional Portuguese cuisinePortuguese cuisine
Portuguese cuisine is characterised by rich, filling and full-flavored dishes and is closely related to Mediterranean cuisine. The influence of Portugal's former colonial possessions is also notable, especially in the wide variety of spices used. These spices include piri piri and black pepper, as...
.
A typical dish from this city is Tripas à Moda do Porto
Tripas
Tripas, in Mexican cuisine are the small intestines of farm animals that have been cleaned, boiled and grilled. Tripas are used as filling for tacos, then dressed with condiments such as cilantro, chopped onions, and chile sauce. They are also served with Pico De Gallo and...
(Tripe
Tripe
Tripe is a type of edible offal from the stomachs of various farm animals.-Beef tripe:...
s Porto style), which still can be found everywhere in the city today.
Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá
Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá
Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá is essentially a casserole of cod, potatoes, eggs, olives, olive oil and onion. It is a speciality from the northern city of Porto, being today popular throughout Portugal, and is considered one of Portugal's greatest bacalhau recipes....
(Gomes de Sá Bacalhau
Bacalhau
Bacalhau is the Portuguese word for codfish and—in a culinary context—dried and salted codfish. Fresh cod is referred to as bacalhau fresco .-Use:...
) is another typical cod
Cod
Cod is the common name for genus Gadus, belonging to the family Gadidae, and is also used in the common name for various other fishes. Cod is a popular food with a mild flavor, low fat content and a dense, flaky white flesh. Cod livers are processed to make cod liver oil, an important source of...
fish dish born in Porto and popular in Portugal.
The Francesinha
Francesinha
Francesinha is a Portuguese sandwich originally from Porto, made with bread, wet-cured ham, linguiça, fresh sausage like chipolata, steak or roast meat and covered with molten cheese and a hot thick tomato and beer sauce served with french fries.- History :It is said that the Francesinha was an...
- literally Frenchy, or more accurately little French (female) - is the most famous popular native snack food in Porto. It is a kind of sandwich with several meats covered with cheese and a special sauce made with beer and other ingredients.
Port wine
Port wine
Port wine is a Portuguese fortified wine produced exclusively in the Douro Valley in the northern provinces of Portugal. It is typically a sweet, red wine, often served as a dessert wine, and comes in dry, semi-dry, and white varieties...
, an internationally renowned wine, is widely accepted as the city's dessert wine
Dessert wine
Dessert wines are sweet wines typically served with dessert.There is no simple definition of a dessert wine. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a meal, as opposed to the white fortified wines drunk before the meal, and the red fortified wines drunk after it...
, especially being that the wine is made along the Douro
Douro
The Douro or Duero is one of the major rivers of the Iberian Peninsula, flowing from its source near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province across northern-central Spain and Portugal to its outlet at Porto...
River which runs through the city.
Education
Education in Portugal
Education in Portugal is regulated by the State through two ministries - the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education. There are a system of public education and also many private schools at all levels of education...
, as well as kindergartens and nurseries. Due to the depopulation of the city's interior, however, the number of students has dropped substantially in the last decade, forcing a closure of some institutions. The largest and oldest international school
International school
An International school is loosely defined as a school that promotes international education, in an international environment, either by adopting an international curriculum such as that of the International Baccalaureate or Cambridge International Examinations, or by following a national...
located in Porto is the Oporto British School
Oporto British School
The Oporto British School, in Foz do Douro, Porto, is the oldest British school in mainland Europe, established in 1894.The current Headmaster is Mr David Butcher and the current Head of Primary is Mr John Thorpe. The current Head of Seniors is Mr Michael Clack.It is a private, day school for both...
established in 1894.
Porto has several institutions of higher education, the largest one being the state-managed University of Porto
University of Porto
The University of Porto is a Portuguese public university located in Porto, and founded 22 March 1911. It is the largest Portuguese university by number of enrolled students and has one of the most noted research outputs in Portugal...
(Universidade do Porto), which is the largest Portuguese university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
with approximately 28,000 students. There are also a state-managed polytechnic
Polytechnic (Portugal)
A polytechnic is a higher education educational institution in Portugal created in the 1980s. After 1998 they were upgraded to institutions which are allowed to confer licenciatura degrees. Before then, they only awarded short-cycle degrees which were known as bacharelatos and didn't provide...
institute, the Instituto Politécnico do Porto (a group of technical colleges), and privately owned institutions like the Lusíada University of Porto
Lusíada University of Porto
The Lusíada University of Porto is a Portuguese private university located in Oporto, and founded in 1989.-Organization:Currently 3 374 students attend the courses provided by ULP's three faculties and two institutes...
, Universidade Fernando Pessoa
Fernando Pessoa University
Universidade Fernando Pessoa is a university located in Porto and Ponte de Lima, Portugal.It was founded in 1996, and it is named for Fernando Pessoa....
(UFP), the Porto's Higher Education School of Arts (ESAP- Escola Superior Artística do Porto) and a Vatican state
Vatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
university, the Portuguese Catholic University at Porto (Universidade Católica Portuguesa – Porto) and the Portucalense University at Porto (Universidade Portucalense – Infante D. Henrique). Due to the recognition, potential for employment and higher revenue, there are many students from the entire country and particularly from the north of Portugal, attending a college or university in Porto.
For foreigners wishing to study Portuguese in the city, there are a number of options. As the most popular city in Portugal for ERASMUS
Desiderius Erasmus
Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus , known as Erasmus of Rotterdam, was a Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic priest, and a theologian....
students, most universities have facilities to assist foreigners in learning the language. There are also several private learning institutions in the city, such as the Fast Forward Language Institute
Public health
Porto districtPorto District
The District of Porto , sometimes Oporto in English, is located on the north-west coast of Portugal. The district capital is the city of Porto, the second largest city in the country...
has the highest rate of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
positive cases in Portugal. Porto tuberculosis rates are at Third World
Third World
The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either capitalism and NATO , or communism and the Soviet Union...
proportions (comparatively, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
faces a similar phenomenon ). The incidence of positive cases was 23/100 000 nationwide in 1994, with a rate of 24/100 000 in Lisbon and 37/100 000 in Porto. Porto area represented the worst epidemiological situation in the country, with very high rates in some city boroughs and in some poor fishing and declining industrial communities. Epidemiological analysis indicated the existence of undisclosed sources of infection in these communities, responsible for continuing transmission despite a cure rate of 83% in the district. In 2002, the situation was not better with 34/100 000 nationwide and 64/100 000 in Porto district. In 2004 the situation improved to 53/100 000.
Sport
Porto, in addition to football, is the home to many athletic sports arenas, most notably the city-owned Pavilhão Rosa MotaPavilhão Rosa Mota
Pavilhão Rosa Mota is an arena in Porto, Portugal. It is primarily used for basketball. Pavilhão Rosa Mota opened in 1954 and holds 5,400 people....
, swimming pool
Swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool...
s in the area of Constituição (between the Marquês and Boavista), and other minor arenas, such as the Pavilhão do Académico.
Porto is home to northern Portugal's only cricket club
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
, the Oporto Cricket and Lawn Tennis Club
Oporto Cricket and Lawn Tennis Club
The Oporto Cricket and Lawn Tennis Club is a sports and social club located on Campo Alegre in Porto, Portugal. Principally aimed at, and founded by, ex-pats in Porto, the club has a long history going back to 1855, the grounds at that time being situated at Candal in Vila Nova de Gaia...
. Annually, for more than 100 years, a match (the Kendall Cup
Kendall Cup
The Kendall Cup is the trophy awarded to the winners of a 2 day cricket match between representative teams from Lisbon and Porto, in Portugal, played alternately in the two cities. While this match had been played since 1861 on an almost annual basis, the Cup itself was originally presented in 1920...
) has been played between the Oporto Club and the Casuals Club of Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, in addition to sporadic games against touring teams (mainly from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
). The club's pitch is located off the Rua Campo Alegre.
In 1958 and 1960, Porto's streets hosted the Formula One Portuguese Grand Prix
Portuguese Grand Prix
The Portuguese Grand Prix was a motorsports event held for several years, mostly in the 1950s and then in the 1980s and 90s. It was a Formula One race between and and between and ....
on the Boavista street circuit, which are reenacted annually, in addition to a World Touring Car Championship
World Touring Car Championship
For the video game, known as World Touring Car Championship in Japan, see TOCA World Touring CarsThe FIA World Touring Car Championship is an international Touring Car championship sanctioned by the FIA.-History:...
race.
Every year in October the Porto Marathon
Porto Marathon
The Porto Marathon is an annual marathon race in the city of Porto, Portugal, held in October or November, since 2004.Along with the marathon, several races of shorter distances are arranged as well. The marathon is sponsored by Energias de Portugal....
is held through the streets of the old city of Porto.
Football
Big Three (Portugal)
The Big Three is the nickname of the three most successful sports clubs in Portugal. The football teams of Sport Lisboa e Benfica, Futebol Clube do Porto and Sporting Clube de Portugal have a great rivalry, and are usually the main contenders for the title. They share all but two of the Portuguese...
, and a major club in Europe. Boavista is considered the second club in the city, having won the championship once, in the 2000-2001 season, but the club had financial and disciplinary problems and was demoted 2 tiers. Salgueiros was a regular first division club during the 1980s and 1990s but, due to financial indebtedness, nowadays plays at regional level championships (5th tier or lower).
The biggest stadiums in the city are the Estádio do Dragão
Estádio do Dragão
The Estádio do Dragão is a football stadium located in Porto, Portugal, with an all-seated capacity of 50,399. Inaugurated on November 16, 2003, it is the current home ground of F.C. Porto, having replaced the club's old venue, the Estádio das Antas...
and the Estádio do Bessa
Estádio do Bessa
The Estádio do Bessa is a football stadium located in the Boavista area of Porto, Portugal, used by Boavista.Like other stadiums used in Euro 2004, the Bessa is a new ground, but built on top of the old stands, and each one of them was built at a time, which allowed Boavista to continue playing...
. The first team in Porto to own a stadium was Académico
Académico F.C.
Académico Futebol Clube, or more commonly known as Académico do Porto, is a Portuguese football club founded in 1911, in Paranhos, Porto. They were one of the eight teams taking part in the first Primeira Liga season, the main division in the Portuguese football league system, in 1934–35. They went...
, who played in the Estádio do Lima, Académico was one of the eight teams to dispute the first Primeira Liga. Salgueiros, who sold the grounds of Estádio Engenheiro Vidal Pinheiro
Estádio Engenheiro Vidal Pinheiro
Estádio Engenheiro Vidal Pinheiro was a multi-use stadium in Porto, Portugal. It was used mostly for football matches and was the home stadium of S.C. Salgueiros. The stadium was able to hold 11,000 people....
field to the Porto Metro and planned on building a new field in the Arca d'Água area of Porto. Located a few hundred meters away from the old grounds, it became impossible to build on this land due to a large underground water pocket, and, consequently, they moved to the Estádio do Mar
Estádio do Mar
thumb|300 px|Estádio do Mar - Main standEstádio do Mar is a multi-use stadium in Matosinhos, Portugal. It is used mostly for football matches and is the home stadium of Leixões. The stadium seats 16,035 and was built in 1963 and inaugurated in January 1, 1964 with a match against Benfica, which...
in Matosinhos
Matosinhos
Matosinhos Municipality is located in Porto District, Portugal. The main city is Matosinhos. It is bordered to the south by the city of Porto and lies within the Greater Porto subregion. The municipality has a population of 168,451 in 10 parishes. Many people have recently moved from the...
(owned by Leixões). Other amateur football clubs also have fields in Porto, but with the exception of FC Porto's old stadium and football school (the Campo da Constituição
Campo da Constituição
The Campo da Constituição was the second ground of Portuguese football side FC Porto, built in the Constituição area of Porto.In 1912 FC Porto's first ground, the Campo da Rainha was no longer capable of supporting the growth of the club, so the board searched for a new stadium, and the estate was...
) these fields have only sand or dirt. For the Euro 2004 football competition, held in Portugal, the Estádio do Dragão was built (replacing the old Estádio das Antas
Estadio das Antas
The Estádio das Antas was the third stadium of the Portuguese football side FC Porto. It was in use from 1952 to 2004, replacing the earlier Campo da Constituição and later replaced by Estádio do Dragão. As well the stadium, it had an indoor arena and three training grounds...
) and the Estádio do Bessa was renovated.
F.C. Porto won the 1986–87 European Cup, the 1987 Intercontinental Cup
1987 Intercontinental Cup
The 1987 Intercontinental Cup was a football match played on 13 December 1987 between Porto of Portugal, winners of the 1986–87 European Cup, and Peñarol of Uruguay, winners of the 1987 Copa Libertadores. The match was played under heavy snow, at the neutral venue of the National Stadium in Tokyo,...
, the 1987 European Super Cup
1987 UEFA Super Cup
The 1987 UEFA Super Cup was played between FC Porto and AFC Ajax, with Porto winning 2–0.- First leg:- Second leg:Porto won 2–0 on aggregate.-External links:* from UEFA* from RSSSF...
, the 2002-03 UEFA Cup
2003 UEFA Cup Final
The 2003 UEFA Cup Final was played on 21 May 2003 between Celtic of Scotland and Porto of Portugal. Porto won the match 3–2 in extra time thanks to a goal from Derlei...
, the 2003–04 UEFA Champions League, the 2004 Intercontinental Cup
2004 Intercontinental Cup
The 2004 Intercontinental Cup was a football match played on 12 December 2004 between FC Porto, winners of 2003–04 UEFA Champions League, and Once Caldas, winners of the 2004 Copa Libertadores. The match was played at the neutral venue of the International Stadium Yokohama in Yokohama, Japan, in...
and the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League.
Notable citizens
- Filipe Duarte (1993) - world's best rower in 2010
- Alexandre QuintanilhaAlexandre QuintanilhaAlexandre Tiedtke Quintanilha, GOSE is a Portuguese scientist, former director of the Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular of the University of Porto and Professor at ICBAS - Abel Salazar Institute of Biomedical Sciences.-Biography:Alexandre Tiedtke Quintanilha, GOSE was born in Lourenço...
– scientist - Almeida GarrettAlmeida GarrettJoão Baptista da Silva Leitão de Almeida Garrett, Viscount of Almeida Garrett was a Portuguese poet, playwright, novelist and politician. He is considered to be the introducer of the Romanticism in Portugal, with the epic poem Camões, based on the life of Luís de Camões...
(1799–1854) – notable writer, theater director and liberalist. - Álvaro Siza VieiraÁlvaro Siza VieiraÁlvaro Joaquim de Melo Siza Vieira, GOSE, GCIH, is a Portuguese architect, born 25 June 1933 in Matosinhos a small coastal town by Porto. He is internationally known as Álvaro Siza .-Life and career:...
– architect - António Pinho VargasAntónio Pinho VargasAntónio Pinho Vargas is a Portuguese composer and pianist specialized in the performance and writing of Jazz and as well as Contemporary Music....
– composer - António NobreAntónio NobreAntónio Pereira Nobre was a Portuguese poet. He died of tuberculosis in Foz do Douro, Porto, in 1900, after trying to recover in a number of places. His masterpiece Só , was the only book he published.-Northern Portugal:Nobre was a member of a wealthy family...
- (António Pereira Nobre, August 16, 1867 – March 18, 1900) was a poet. He died of tuberculosis in Foz do Douro, Porto, in 1900, after trying to recover in a number of places. His masterpiece Só (Paris, 1892), was the only book he published. - António da Silva PortoAntonío da Silva PortoAntónio Francisco Ferreira da Silva Porto was a Portuguese trader and explorer in Angola, in the Portuguese West Africa.-Biography:...
(Francisco Ferreira da Silva Porto, 24 August 1817 - 1890) was a Portuguese trader and explorer in Angola, in the Portuguese West Africa. The town of Kuito, founded by the Portuguese and named Belmonte at that time, was renamed Silva Porto - Belmiro de AzevedoBelmiro de AzevedoBelmiro Mendes de Azevedo is a Portuguese entrepreneur, ranked by Forbes as the 605th richest person in the world , as well as the 2nd richest in Portugal, with an estimated wealth of US$2 billion...
– entrepreneur (born in the district of Porto, in Marco de Canaveses) - Charles Albert of SardiniaCharles Albert of SardiniaCharles Albert was the King of Piedmont-Sardinia from 1831 to 1849. He succeeded his distant cousin Charles Felix, and his name is bound with the first Italian statute and the First War of Independence...
(1798–1849) – Italian monarch - Eduardo Souto de MouraEduardo Souto de Moura-Life and career:Souto de Moura was born in Porto, and studied sculpture before switching to architecture at the School of Fine Arts of the University of Porto, the current FAUP - Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade do Porto, and receiving his degree in 1980. From 1974 to 1979 he worked with...
– architect - Estevão Gomes, also known as Esteban Gómez and Estevan Gómez, (c. 1483 - 1538), was a cartographerCartographyCartography is the study and practice of making maps. Combining science, aesthetics, and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality can be modeled in ways that communicate spatial information effectively.The fundamental problems of traditional cartography are to:*Set the map's...
and explorerExplorationExploration is the act of searching or traveling around a terrain for the purpose of discovery of resources or information. Exploration occurs in all non-sessile animal species, including humans...
. He sailed at the service of Spain in the fleet of Ferdinand Magellan, but deserted the expedition before reaching the Strait of MagellanStrait of MagellanThe Strait of Magellan comprises a navigable sea route immediately south of mainland South America and north of Tierra del Fuego...
, and returned to Spain in May 1521. In 1524 he explored present-day Nova ScotiaNova ScotiaNova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
sailing South along the MaineMaineMaine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
coast. He entered New York HarborNew York HarborNew York Harbor refers to the waterways of the estuary near the mouth of the Hudson River that empty into New York Bay. It is one of the largest natural harbors in the world. Although the U.S. Board of Geographic Names does not use the term, New York Harbor has important historical, governmental,...
, saw the Hudson RiverHudson RiverThe Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
, and eventually reached FloridaFloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
in August 1525. Because of his expedition, the 1529 Diogo Ribeiro world map outlines the East coast of North America almost perfectly. - Fernão de MagalhãesFerdinand MagellanFerdinand Magellan was a Portuguese explorer. He was born in Sabrosa, in northern Portugal, and served King Charles I of Spain in search of a westward route to the "Spice Islands" ....
(Ferdinand Magellan) – the globe circumnavigation navigator; probably born in Porto, but surely lived and studied in this town. - Francisco Sá Carneiro – former Prime Minister
- Francisco Vieira de MatosVieira PortuenseFrancisco Vieira de Matos , who choose the artistic name of Vieira Portuense, was a Portuguese painter, one of the introducers of Neoclassicism in Portuguese painting. He was, in the neoclassical style, one of the two great Portuguese painters of his generation, with Domingos Sequeira.He first...
(1765–1805), painter (a.k.a. Vieira Portuense) - Freitas-MagalhaesArmindo Freitas-MagalhãesArmindo Freitas-Magalhães, Ph.D., is a Portuguese psychologist working on the psychology of the human smile in the context of emotion and facial expression...
– psychologist and scientist - Guilhermina SuggiaGuilhermina SuggiaGuilhermina Augusta Xavier de Medim Suggia Carteado Mena, known as Guilhermina Suggia, was a Portuguese cellist. She studied in Germany with Pablo Casals, and built an international reputation. She spent many years living in England, where she was particularly celebrated...
(1885–1950) – cellist; born at Porto - Jorge Nuno Pinto da CostaJorge Nuno Pinto da CostaJorge Nuno de Lima Pinto da Costa is a Portuguese football chairman, currently in charge of F.C. Porto.-Early years:Pinto da Costa was born in Porto, the son of José Alexandrino Teixeira da Costa and Maria Elisa Bessa Lima de Amorim Pinto, who fathered other four children, including future...
– President of Futebol Clube do Porto - José Pacheco PereiraJosé Pacheco PereiraJosé Álvaro Machado Pacheco Pereira, GCL is a Portuguese political analyst, historian and politician, a member of PSD .- Biography :He was born in Porto and graduated in Philosophy from the University of Porto...
(born 6 January 1949), politician, professor and political analyst - Júlio DinisJúlio DinisJúlio Dinis, pseudonym of Joaquim Guilherme Gomes Coelho was a Portuguese doctor and writer.Júlio Dinis died at the young age of 31 of tuberculosis, and some of its works were published posthumously...
(1839–1871) – writer - Kaúlza de ArriagaKaúlza de ArriagaKaúlza de Oliveira de Arriaga, OA, GCC, OC, OIH was a Portuguese General, writer, professor and politician...
– general - Manoel de OliveiraManoel de OliveiraManoel Cândido Pinto de Oliveira, GCSE is a Portuguese film director born in Cedofeita, Porto. He began working on films in the late 1920s, but did not receive international recognition until the early 1970s. Since the late 1980s he has been one of the most prolific working film directors and...
– film director - Miguel Sousa TavaresMiguel Sousa TavaresMiguel Andresen de Sousa Tavares is a Portuguese lawyer, journalist and writer.The son of poet Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen and lawyer and politician Francisco Sousa Tavares, Miguel received his education in Law, eventually pursuing careers in journalism and essay writing for which he became...
– writer - Pedro AbrunhosaPedro Abrunhosathumb|250px|Pedro AbrunhosaPedro Abrunhosa is a Portuguese singer, musician and songwriter. Aside from his music, he is known for always wearing sunglasses in public. Abrunhosa also played himself in the 1999 film La Lettre. He is an active spokesman for the Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa...
– singer/songwriter - Pedro de EscobarPedro de EscobarPedro de Escobar , a.k.a. Pedro do Porto, was a Portuguese composer of the Renaissance, mostly active in Spain. He was one of the earliest and most skilled composers of polyphony in the Iberian Peninsula, whose music has survived.-Life:He was born at Oporto, Portugal, but nothing is known of his...
– Renaissance composer - Pêro Vaz de CaminhaPêro Vaz de CaminhaPêro Vaz de Caminha , was a Portuguese knight that accompanied Pedro Álvares Cabral to India in 1500, as a secretary to the royal factory. Caminha wrote the detailed official report of the April 1500 discovery of Brazil by Cabral's fleet...
– wrote the letter Carta do Achamento do Brasil, announcing the discovery of Brasil - Prince Henry the Navigator (1394–1460)
- Ramalho OrtigãoRamalho OrtigãoJosé Duarte Ramalho Ortigão was a Portuguese writer of the late 19th century and early 20th century. He spent his early years with his maternal grandmother in Oporto....
(1836–1912) – writer - Ricardo Padua (1978-) designer and musician
- Richard ZimlerRichard ZimlerRichard Zimler is a best-selling author of fiction. His books, which have earned him a 1994 National Endowment of the Arts Fellowship in Fiction and the 1998 Herodotus Award, have been published in many countries and translated into more than 20 languages...
– novelist - Rosa MotaRosa MotaRosa Maria Correia dos Santos Mota, GCIH, GCM is a Portuguese former marathon runner, one of her country's foremost athletes. She is also considered to have been one of the best marathon runners of the 20th century....
– marathon runner, Olympic gold medalist (Seoul 1988) - Rui VelosoRui VelosoRui Manuel Gaudêncio Veloso, commonly known as Rui Veloso, CavIH , is a Portuguese rock singer and musician. Regarded as the "father of Portuguese rock", this composer and interpreter had a great impact on the Portuguese music scene with the record Ar de Rock .Songs such as Chico Fininho and A...
– singer - Sophia de Mello Breyner AndresenSophia de Mello Breyner AndresenSophia de Mello Breyner Andresen was an award-winning Portuguese poet and writer.Sophia, as she is often referred to in Portugal, was born in Porto to a wealthy aristocratic family. She inherited the surname 'Andresen' from her paternal grandfather, a Danish merchant...
– writer - Soares dos Reis - sculptor
- Tiago MonteiroTiago MonteiroTiago Vagaroso da Costa Monteiro is a Portuguese racing driver. He drove for Jordan, Midland and Spyker MF1 teams—all different iterations of the same team as it was bought by new owners during a two year stint as part of the Formula One paddock...
– racing driverAuto racingAuto racing is a motorsport involving the racing of cars for competition. It is one of the world's most watched televised sports.-The beginning of racing:... - Uriel da CostaUriel da CostaUriel da Costa or Uriel Acosta was a philosopher and skeptic from Portugal.-Life:Costa was born in Porto with the name Gabriel da Costa...
(1580–1640), Jewish philosopher - Carlos LopesCarlos LopesCarlos Alberto de Sousa Lopes, GCIH, is a former Portuguese long-distance athlete, winner of the marathon race at the 1984 Summer Olympics, in Los Angeles. He brought home Portugal's first ever Olympic gold medal along with a new Olympic record - 2:09.21.Born in Vildemoinhos, near Viseu, Portugal,...
– marathon runner, Olympic gold medalist (Los Angeles 1984) - Henrique HilárioHenrique HilárioHenrique Hilário Meireles Alves Sampaio , known as Hilário, is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Chelsea in the Premier League as a goalkeeper.-Portugal:...
– Chelsea Football ClubChelsea F.C.Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
goalkeeper; born in Porto - Raul Meireles - footballer
- DudaDudaThe Magyar duda—Hungarian duda— is the traditional bagpipe of Hungary. It is an example of a group of bagpipes called Medio-Carparthian bagpipes....
- footballer - Bruno AlvesBruno AlvesBruno Eduardo Regufe Alves is a Portuguese footballer who plays for FC Zenit Saint Petersburg in Russia and the Portuguese national team, as a central defender....
- footballer - Bruno da Rocha - jewellery designer and manufacturer