Mortágua

Mortágua
Municipality
View of Mortágua valley

Flag
Coat of arms
Coordinates: 40°26′N 8°14′W / 40.433°N 8.233°W / 40.433; -8.233Coordinates: 40°26′N 8°14′W / 40.433°N 8.233°W / 40.433; -8.233
Country  Portugal
Region Centro
Subregion Dão-Lafões
Intermunic. comm. Região de Coimbra
District Viseu
Parishes 7
Government
 • President José Júlio Norte (PPD-PSD)
Area
 • Total 251.18 km2 (96.98 sq mi)
Population (2011)
 • Total 9,607
 • Density 38/km2 (99/sq mi)
Time zone WET/WEST (UTC+0/+1)
Website http://www.cm-mortagua.pt/

Mortágua (Portuguese pronunciation: [muɾˈtaɣwɐ] or [mɔɾˈtaɣwɐ]) is a municipality in the district of Viseu, Portugal. The population in 2011 was 9,607,[1] in an area of 251.18 km².[2]

The present mayor is José Júlio Norte, elected in 2013 by the Social Democratic Party.

History

Legend suggests that that village was formed on a lake; settlers recalled that Água Morta (dead water) existed here, but no physiological evidence remains of the body of water.[3] But, the name overtime stayed and evolved, becoming the variant today of the local municipality.

About 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) from the main village is a hill, covered in vegetation, but whose lateral flank was occupied by a Moorish settlement known as Crasto.[3] Over a cliff archeologists discovered several homes including a building that was defined as a kitchen, on its edge.[3]

By 1895, several chapels were situated on this hilltop, which had become known as Cabeça da Senhora do Mundo (owing to the existence of an image to that invocation).[3]

Geography

Administratively, the municipality is divided into 7 civil parishes (freguesias):[4]

  • Cercosa
  • Espinho
  • Marmeleira
  • Mortágua, Vale de Remígio, Cortegaça e Almaça
  • Pala
  • Sobral
  • Trezói

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Instituto Nacional de Estatística
  2. ↑ Direção-Geral do Território Archived 2014-09-29 at Archive.is
  3. 1 2 3 4 J.L. de V. (1895), p.10
  4. ↑ Diário da República. "Law nr. 11-A/2013, page 552 78" (pdf) (in Portuguese). Retrieved 28 July 2014.

Sources

  • J.L. de V., "Antiguidades de Mortágua", O Arqueólogo Português (PDF) (in Portuguese) (Série 1 ed.), Lisbon, Portugal: DGPC, p. 10


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