A Coruña ( ; ; also Corunna in English, and archaically The Groyne) is the second largest city in Galicia in northwestern Spain, second only in size to the port of Vigo in Pontevedra Province. The city is the capital of A Coruña Province. It had been the Galician capital from 1563 to 1982 before that role was moved to Santiago de Compostela.

Currently, the only official form of the name is the Galician one, A Coruña. Nonetheless, the Spanish form La Coruña is still widespread.

A Coruña is a busy port located on a promontory in the entrance of an estuary in a large gulf (the Portus Magnus Artabrorum of the classical geographers) on the Atlantic Ocean. It provides a distribution point for agricultural goods from the region. Although much of the heavy industry is based on the shipyards and metalworks of the neighbouring city of Ferrol, there is an oil refinery in A Coruña itself.

The city's traditional name in English is Corunna.

Etymology

The toponym derives from Crunia, of unknown origin and meaning. At the time of Ferdinand II of Leon (12th century) the name Crunia was documented for the first time. As usual in Galician-Portuguese (as well as in Castilian Spanish), the cluster ni naturally evolved into the sound , written nn (later abbreviated to ñ) in the Spanish orthography, and nh in the Portuguese. The 'A' means 'the'; compare Castilian Spanish 'La' ('the').

A proposed etymology derives Crunia from Cluny, the town and religious order from the south of France. During its height (c. 950–c.1130) the Cluniac movement was one of the largest religious forces in Europe. There is another town named Coruña in Burgos Province.

A folk etymology incorrectly derives Coruña from the ancient columna, or Tower of Hercules, which still exists, having been converted into a light-house in 1791.

Official name

-A Coruña is the official name according to Law 3/1983 of the Galician Council. Only this designation is valid in official documentation.

-La Coruña is the traditional name in Spanish recommended by the Real Academia Española . Is usually used in extra-official documents and in conversations between Spanish-speakers.

Now several groups of people are advocating elevating the form "La Coruña" to official status, pointing to the provisions of the Spanish Constitution of 1978. They claim that the Constitution is violated by not allowing the use of Spanish, an official language, to name a city and in official documents, and that no Autonomous Regional law can prevail over the Constitution.

Geography

A Coruña is located on a peninsula, and its isthmus was at times formed only by a small strip of sand. Erosion and sea currents caused a progressive accumulation of sand, enlarging it to its present dimensions.

A Coruña is one of only eight pairs of cities in the world that has a near-exact antipodal city. Half of these antipodal pairs are in Spain/Morocco and New Zealand – with Christchurch, New Zealand as A Coruña's antipode.

Suburbs

• Cidade Vella (Old Town)
• A Mariña (The Marine)
• Os Cantóns (The Cantons)
• Pescadería (Fishmonger's)
• O Ensanche (Development)
• Cidade Xardín (Garden City)
• Catro Camiños (Four Waies)
• A Gaiteira (The Piper)
• Os Mallos
• Zalayeta
• Monte Alto (High Mountain)
• Falperra – Santa Lucia (Falperra – St Lucia)
• Juan Flórez – San Pablo (Juan Florez – St Paul)
• Os Castros (The Hill Forts)
• Agra do Orzán
• Sagrada Familia (Holy Family)
• Labañou – San Roque (Labañou – St Roch)
• Barrio das Flores (Flowers Suburb)
• Elviña
• O Ventorrillo
• Castrillón
• Adormideras (Opium Poppies)
• O Birloque
• Matogrande
• Os Rosales (The Bushes)
• Paseo de los puentes (Bridges Street)
• Mesoiro
• Novo Mesoiro (New Mesoiro)

• Someso
• Vioño
• Eirís
• San Pedro de Visma (St. Peter of Visma)
• Bens
• A Silva – San Xosé
• Palavea
• Casabranca – As Xubias (Whitehouse – The Jubias)
• Feáns
• A Zapateira (The Shoemaker)
• Santa Margarita

Climate

The climate of A Coruña is temperate maritime and heavily moderated by the Atlantic Ocean; however it does display some characteristics of a Mediterranean climate. Autumn and winter are often unsettled and unpredictable with strong winds and abundant rainfall, coming from Atlantic depressions and it is often overcast. The ocean keeps temperatures mild, and frost and snow are rare. In summer, it is quite dry and sunny with only occasional rainfall, temperatures are warm but rarely uncomfortably hot due to the sea's cooling influence during the day. Spring is usually cool and fairly calm.

History

Prehistory

A Coruña spread from the peninsula where the Tower of Hercules stands, onto the mainland. The oldest part, known popularly as Cidade Vella (Old City), Cidade Alta (High City) or the Cidade (City), is built on an ancient Celtic castro. It was supposedly inhabited by the Artabrians, the Celtic tribe of the area.

Roman times

The Romans came to the region in the 2nd century BC, and the colonisers made the most of the strategic position and soon the city became quite important in maritume trade. In 62 BC Julius Caesar came to the city (known at the time as Brigantium) in pursuit of the metal trade, establishing commerce with the regions that would eventually be France, England and Portugal. The town began growing, mainly during the 1st and 2nd centuries (when the Torre de Hércules was built), but declined after the 4th century and especially with the incursions of the Normans, which forced the population to flee towards the interior of the Estuary of O Burgo.

Middle Ages

After the fall of the Roman Empire, A Coruña still had a commercial port connected to foreign countries, but contacts with the Mediterranean were slowly replaced by a more Atlantic-oriented focus.The process of deurbanization that followed the fall of the Roman Empire also affected A Coruña. Between the 7th and 8th centuries AD, the city was no more than a little village of laborers and sailors.

The 11th-century Chronica iriense names Faro do Burgo (ancient name of A Coruña) as one of the dioceses that king Miro granted to the episcopate of Iria Flavia in the year 572:

"Mirus Rex Sedi suae Hiriensi contulit Dioceses, scilicet Morratium, Salinensem, (...) Bregantinos, Farum..."

[King Miro granted to his Irienses headquarters the dioceses of Morrazo, Salnés (...). Bergantiños, Faro...]

The Muslim invasion of the Iberian peninsula left no archeological evidence in this area, so it cannot be said whether or not the Muslim invaders ever reached the city. As Muslim rule in early 8th century Galicia consisted little more than a short-lived overlordship of the remote and rugged region backed by a few garrisons, and the city was no more than a village amidst Roman ruins, the invaders showed the same lack of interest in the ruined city as they did generally for the region.

As the city began to recover during the Middle Ages the main problem for the inhabitants was the Norman raids, as well as the ever present threat of raids ("razzies") from Al-Andalus to the south. During 9th century there were several Viking attacks on the city, called at that time Faro or Faro Bregancio.

In the year 991, king Vermudo II began the construction of defensive military positions on the coast. At Faro, in the ruins of the Tower of Hercules, a fortress was built, which had a permanent military garrison. To pay for it, he gave power over the city to the bishop of Santiago. The bishop of Santiago became the most important political post in Galicia, and remained so until the 15th century.

In 1208, Alfonso IX re-founded the city of Crunia. Some privileges, such as those of disembarking and selling salt without paying taxes, were granted to the city, and it enjoyed a big growth in fishing and mercantile business. The city grew and extended through the isthmus. In 1446 John II of Castile granted to A Coruña the title of "City". The Catholic Kings established the Royal Audience of the Kingdom of Galicia in the city, instead of Santiago. A Coruña also became the headquarters of the Captaincy General.

Modern period

During the Modern period, the city was an important port and centre for the manufacturing of textiles. In 1520, king Charles I of Spain (future Emperor Charles V of Germany), met in the Courts of A Coruña and embarked from its harbor to be elected Emperor. Charles I allowed the Government of the Kingdom of Galicia to distribute space in Europe between 1522 and 1529. Commerce with the Indies was allowed between 1529 and 1575. The Castle of San Antón was built as a defense of the city and its harbour.

From the port of Ferrol in the Province of A Coruña, Philip II left to marry Mary Tudor in 1554, and much later, in 1588, from the same port the Spanish Armada would set sail to the Spanish Netherlands and England.In the following year, during the Anglo-Spanish War, Francis Drake besieged A Coruña, but was repelled, starting the legend of María Pita, a woman who took her dead husband's weapon and continued shooting until she captured a flag of the British enemy.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the wars of the Spanish monarchy caused a great increase in taxes and the start of conscription. In 1620, Philip III created the School of the Boys of the Sea. In 1682 the Tower of Hercules was restored by Antúnez.

19th century

A Coruña was the site of the Battle of Corunna during the Peninsular War, on 16 January 1809, in which British troops fought against the French to cover the embarkation of British troops after their retreat. In this battle Sir John Moore was killed.

Spanish resistance during the Peninsular War was led by Sinforiano López, and A Coruña was the only Galician city that achieved success against the French troops. French troops left Galicia at the end of May 1809.

During the 19th century, the city was the centre of anti-monarchist sentiment.On August 19, 1815, Juan Díaz Porlier, pronounced against Fernando VII in defense of the Spanish Constitution of 1812. He was supported by the bourgeoisie and the educated people. But on August 22 he was betrayed. He was hanged in the Campo da Leña two months later.In all the 19th-century rebellions, A Coruña supported the liberal side.A Coruña also played an important role in the Rexurdimento, and there were founded the Galician Royal Academy in 1906 and the Brotherhoods of the Galician Language in 1916.

Regarding the economy, in 1804 the National Cigarette Factory was founded, and there the workers' movement of the city had its origins. During the 19th century other businesses (glass, foundries, textiles, gas, matches, etc.) were slowly established, but it was maritime trade and migrant travel that attracted Catalan, Belgian, French and English investments. The Bank of A Coruña was founded in 1857. The new provincial division of 1832 also influenced economic development.

20th century

At the beginning of the 20th century, A Coruña had about 45,000 inhabitants. After the decade of 1960, it recovered the business initiative that had been lost, with Barrié de la Maza (Banco Pastor, Fenosa, Aluminio de Galicia, Genosa, Emesa, etc.).

Elections of 1931

In the Spanish general elections, 1931, all the political parties knew that the electoral results had important political consequences. The campaign of Unión Monárquica was very important in A Coruña and was supported by El Ideal Gallego. Republicans and socialists constituted a block, made up of ORGA, independent republicans, PSOE and the Partido Radical Socialista.In the elections, the republican parties obtained 34 of the 39 council seats. The best results were of the ORGA and of the Partido Radical Socialista, and the Partido Radical lost a lot of support.

During the dictatorship of Francisco Franco

After the Spanish civil war, supporters of the Republic were forced to go into exile, and those who remained in the country suffered repression by the new government. Supporters of the Fascist faction occupied all important positions, and obtained university degrees "by war".During this time, the Nazis murdered 13 citizens of A Coruña in Mathausen.During World War II, the following German U-Boat had been reported as sunk somewhere near the port of A Coruña:

• Unterseeboot 514 Sunk 8 July 1943 north-east of Cape Finisterre, Spain. 54 dead (all hands lost).

A group of Franco supporters, lead by Pedro Barrié, bought the estate known as the Pazo de Meirás and gave it to Franco. In the year 1970, ETA almost managed to assassinate Franco in A Coruña, but failed at the last moment.

Democracy returns

From 1983 to 2006, the mayor of the city was Francisco Vázquez Vázquez (PSOE), and the city became devoted to services, but he also was criticised because of his offenses to the Galician language and his town-planning policies.On January 20, 2006 Paco Vázquez was named ambassador to the Vatican City, and was later replaced by Javier Losada. Since the 2007 Municipal Elections the local government has been a coalition of the two left-wing parties, PSdeG and BNG.

Population

The province and city of A Coruña during the 20th century

After the Battle of Trafalgar (1805) and the War of Independence (1808–1814), the fortunes of Ferrol began to deteriorate. The largest port in northern Spain, site of one of the three Royal Dockyards, together with Cartagena and Cadiz, almost became a “dead” town during the reign of Ferdinand VII. By 1833 the City and Naval Station of Ferrol saw its civilian population reduced to just 13,000. During the administration of the Marquis de Molina, Minister for Naval affairs in the mid-19th century new activities sprang up, but Ferrol never fully returned to its former glories. It should be noted that during those years, most of the Spanish Colonies in Latin America succeeded in gaining independence from their former metropolis.

The population of the City of A Coruña in 1900 reached 43,971, while the population of the rest of the province including the City and Naval Station of nearby Ferrol as well as Santiago de Compostela was 653,556. A Coruña's miraculous growth happened during aftermath of the Spanish Civil War at a similar rate to other major Galician cities, but it was after the death of Francisco Franco when the city of A Coruña left all the other Galician cities behind (i.e.: with the exception of Vigo of course).The miraculous meteoric increase of population of the city of A Coruña and to a lesser degree Ferrol and Santiago de Compostela, during the years which follow the Spanish Civil War during the mid 20th century, can only be explained when we see the figures of the number of villages and hamlets of the province which disappeared or nearly disappeared during the same period. We are talking here about an economic revolution and not so much to an explosion of births or a substantial increase in living standards which of course has happened too, but looking to the overall picture what has happened is that the fields have been abandon due to the introduction of new machinery and most of the population has moved to find jobs in the main cities increasing the number of people working in the Tertiary and Quaternary sectors.

The city of A Coruña today

City's Metropolitan area 2007
District	population
Coruña	245,164
Culleredo	26,707
Arteixo	27,713
Oleiros	31,694
Sada	13,606
Bergondo	6,540
Abegondo	5,808
Cambre	22,513
Carral	5,647

The municipality of A Coruña has 245,164 inhabitants, and has one of the highest population densities of Spain and Europe, with around 6,700 inhabitants per square kilometer.

A Coruña and its metropolitan area have more than 419,800 inhabitants. Including the city of Ferrol and the municipalities of Bergantiños and Betanzos, the population of the conurbation is 634,000, making it the most populous area in Galicia, and the second most populous in the northwest region of Spain, after Asturias.

Tourism

Tourism in A Coruña has increased in recent years to the point of reaching received 62 cruise ships a year. One of the drivers of this tourism is the promenade that skirts the entire city, the longest in Europe. It measures 10 kilometers. There is also a tram and a bike path that runs through most of the journey. Also, there is a cultural tour, passing several museums such as The House of Man and La Casa de los Peces (Aquarium Finisterrae) and it also visits the Castle of San Antón, which contains the archaeological museum, or the Tower of Hercules.

The two main beaches of A Coruña (Orzán and Riazor) are located in the heart of the city and are bordered by the promenade above. This location makes them a great attraction for tourists, being also a meeting point for surfers much of the year. Moreover, the city has other beaches like Bens Creek, Las Lapas, Adormideras, San Amaro beach or Oza.

An important holiday is on the night of San Juan, celebrated with a massive fireworks celebration, parade, burning fails and the ancient fires on all city beaches well into dawn.

In 2006 and for the first time ever, the number of tourists has doubled the population of the city, virtually to 500,000 the number of people who chose the city as a tourist destination.

The city has an extensive network of hotels, international chains and local businesses offer between them a hotel offer over 3,500 beds, which puts the city at the forefront of Galicia. La Coruna has a five-star hotel, Hotel Finisterra, (Hesperia chain). Four-star hotels, Alfonso Molina, María Pita Trip, the Trip Cuatro Caminos, Hesperia John Florez or the Eurostars Ciudad de La Coruña.

Main sights

.

• The city is the site of the Roman Tower of Hercules, which is a lighthouse that has been in continuous operation for nearly 2,000 years.

• The city is also well-known for its characteristic glazed window balconies, called galerías. Originally, this type of structure came about as a naval architecture solution for the challenging weather, particularly designed for rainy days. This fashion started in Ferrol in the 18th century when some of the technicians working for the Royal Dockyards had the wonderful idea of using the shape of the back of a war ship in a modern building. Soon, afterwards, most sea ports in northern Spain, including the Basque region were adding these glazed window balconies to their city-port houses.

• In the summertime, the Orzan and Riazor beaches are immensely popular destinations, located directly opposite of the port in the central part of the city.

• The city also has a robust social scene at night, especially in the summer. Most bars and clubs are on Calle Orzan, which runs directly parallel to Paseo Maritimo on the beach side. Like other parts of Spain, most clubs on Orzan do not open until 11 pm at the earliest and do not close until maybe three or four in the morning. Another popular destination, for mostly a more youthful crowd, is Los Jardines (The Gardens), a park near the beginning of Calle Real and El Puerto mall.

Economy

A Coruña is nowadays the richest region of Galicia and its economic engine. There have been various changes in the city's structure over the last few decades—it now shares some administrative functions with the nearby city of Ferrol. Companies have grown, especially in sectors such as finance, communication, planning, sales, manufacturing and technical services, making A Coruña the wealthiest metropolitan area of Galicia. The port itself unloads large amounts of fresh fish, and with the increase in other port activities like crude oil and solid bulk, which make up 75% of Galician port traffic.

In 1975, the clothing company Zara, founded by Amancio Ortega Gaona, opened its first store in the city and has since become a national and international clothing chain.

Inditex, the main textile manufacturer of the world, has its headquarters in the nearby town of Arteixo. A Coruña concentrates the 30% of the GDP of Galicia and in the period between 1999 and 2001 it grew 35%, surpassing Vigo which was traditionally economically stronger. Other important companies of the city are Banco Pastor, Caixa Galicia, Martinsa Fadesa, the Repsol-YPF refinery and La Voz de Galicia, the main daily newspaper of Galicia.

Over the last few years, emphasis has been placed upon better access and infrastructure, especially cultural, sporting, leisure and scientific areas. Following a spectacular oil spill when the Aegean Sea wrecked and exploded, considerable resources have been used in the recovery of the shoreline and strengthening the tourist sector. All this has reaffirmed the city's existing character as a centre for administration, sales, port activities, culture and tourism. The city also has a regional airport which operates services by Iberia, Spanair, EasyJet, Clickair and Portugalia to Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, Seville, Lisbon and London. During the winter of 2007–2008, the airline Pyrenair linked A Coruña with the Aragonese city of Huesca, one of the most important winter sports centers of Spain.

Sport

The city has a football club in Spain's top division, Deportivo de La Coruña.

Politics

Francisco Vázquez Vázquez had been mayor of the city from 1983; however, after becoming the Spanish ambassador to the Vatican, he was replaced by Javier Losada on February 10, 2006.

Notable people

• José Andrés Cornide Saavedra (1734–1803), writer
• Ramón de la Sagra Peris (1798–1871), botany teacher, philosopher and social economist.
• Emilia Pardo Bazán (1851–1921), novelist, journalist, essayist and critic.
• Eduardo Dato Iradier (1856–1921), lawyer and politician.
• Ramón Menéndez Pidal (1869–1968), writer.
• José Millán Astray (1879–1954), founder and first commander of the Spanish Foreign Legion.
• Santiago Casares Quiroga (1884–1950), lawyer and politician.
• Wenceslao Fernández Flórez (1885–1964), narrator, journalist and humorist.
• Salvador de Madariaga y Rojo (1896–1978), writer and poet.
• Fernando Casado D'Arambillet (1917–1994), better known as Fernando Rey, actor.
• María Casares (1922–1996), actress.
• Luis Suárez Miramontes (born 1935), football player and manager.
• Amancio Amaro Varela (born 1939), football player.
• Emilio Pérez Touriño (born 1948), former president of the Spanish autonomous community of Galicia.
• Manuel Rivas Barros (born 1957), writer, poet, essayist and journalist.
• Andrés Díaz Díaz, (born 1969), athlete.

Sister cities

• Cádiz, Spain

References

1. Decree of the Xunta de Galicia 146/1984, 27 September,[1] which follows on the principles of Law 3/1983, 15 June, of Linguistic Normalization, article 10 [2]
2. Converted into a light-house date and other details taken from the Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer By Thomas Baldwin, Sixth Edition, (1847). [3]
3. Historia de la ciudad de La Coruña, page 509 (José Ramón Barreiro Fernández), Biblioteca Gallega.
4. Population figures and other data taken from the Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer By Thomas Baldwin, Sixth Edition, (1847). [4]
5. Population figures and other data taken from the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, (1911). [5]

External links

• Ayuntamiento de A Coruña
• La Coruña informative page
• Tourism Office website for A Coruña (Turismo Coruña – Town Council)
• Tourism website for A Coruña (TurGalicia – Regional Tourism Office)
• Tourism website – Travel Guide for A Coruña (TurEspaña – National Tourism Office)
• Pinocho in la Coruña: An illustrated guidebook to la Coruña
• Photographs of A Coruña, by Luis Vila
• News of A Coruña, Spain