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Thecomarques of Catalonia (singularcomarca,Eastern Catalan:[kuˈmarkə],Western Catalan:[koˈmaɾka]), often referred to in English ascounties,[1][2][3][a] are anadministrative division ofCatalonia. Each comarca comprises a number ofmunicipalities, roughly equivalent to acounty in the United States. Currently, Catalonia is divided into 42 comarques andAran, considered a "unique territorial entity" and not a comarca.[4]
Each comarca has a representativecounty council (Catalan:consell comarcal), except forBarcelonès, which abolished it in 2019, and Aran, which instead has theConselh Generau d'Aran.
Comarques form the second-level administrative division within Catalonia, being a subdivision ofvegueries (orprovinces at state level).
Although today the comarques are officially defined under a Catalan parliamentary act,[5] for centuries they had existed unofficially, with citizens identifying with a particular comarca in the same way that people in other parts of the world might identify with a particular region.
In some cases, comarques consist of rural areas and many small villages centring on an important town, where the people of the region traditionally go to shop or to sell their goods. This is the case of comarques such as thePla de l'Estany, centred on the town ofBanyoles, or theRipollès, centred on the town ofRipoll. In other cases, comarques are larger areas with many important population centres that have traditionally been considered part of the same region, as in the case of theEmpordà orVallès.
The current official division of Catalonia into comarques originates in an order of theautonomous Catalan government under theSpanish Republic in 1936. It was superseded after the 1939 victory ofFrancisco Franco's forces in theSpanish Civil War, but restored in 1987 by the re-establishedGeneralitat of Catalonia. Since the definition of comarques is sometimes ambiguous, many new proposals have been made since the comarques were first officially designated as attempts to modify the official distribution with what some regions consider to be a traditional comarca. As a result, some revisions to the official division have been made, such as the additions ofMoianès andLluçanès to the map, in 2015 and 2023 respectively.
Comarques exist as a local government area, and have a representativecounty council. They are often known ascounties in the English language, but this can be confused with thecounties that were ruled bycounts.
Borders of comarques generally do not cross those of the four state-levelprovinces (Barcelona,Girona,Lleida,Tarragona). However, since the provinces are defined by the Spanish government, while comarques are defined by the Catalan government, exceptions do exist – most notably in the case ofCerdanya, which is roughly evenly split between the provinces of Lleida and Girona (other exceptions generally involve only a handful of municipalities).
Aran, which is included here, is officially not a comarca but a "unique territorial entity" with additional powers. Its current status was formalised in February 2015.[4]
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| Comarca | Date created | Capital | Number of municipalities [needs update] | Population (2014)[6] | Area (km2)[6] | Density | Region (vegueria) | Province(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alt Camp | 1987 | Valls | 23 | 44,578 | 538.2 | 82.8 | Camp de Tarragona | Tarragona |
| Alt Empordà | 1987 | Figueres | 68 | 140,214 | 1,357.4 | 103.3 | Comarques Gironines | Girona |
| Alt Penedès | 1987 | Vilafranca del Penedès | 27 | 106,262 | 592.7 | 179.3 | Penedès | Barcelona |
| Alt Urgell | 1987 | La Seu d'Urgell | 19 | 20,878 | 1,447.5 | 14.4 | Alt Pirineu | Lleida |
| Alta Ribagorça | 1988 | El Pont de Suert | 3 | 3,873 | 426.8 | 9.1 | Alt Pirineu | Lleida |
| Anoia | 1987 | Igualada | 33 | 117,842 | 866.3 | 136.0 | Penedès,Central Catalonia | Barcelona |
| Aran | 1987 | Vielha e Mijaran | 9 | 9,993 | 633.5 | 15.8 | Aran | Lleida |
| Bages | 1987 | Manresa | 30 | 175,527[b] | 1,092.2[b] | 160.7 | Central Catalonia | Barcelona |
| Baix Camp | 1987 | Reus | 28 | 190,249 | 697.3 | 272.8 | Camp de Tarragona | Tarragona |
| Baix Ebre | 1987 | Tortosa | 14 | 80,637 | 1002.6 | 80.4 | Terres de l'Ebre | Tarragona |
| Baix Empordà | 1987 | La Bisbal d'Empordà | 36 | 132,886 | 701.8 | 189.4 | Comarques Gironines | Girona |
| Baix Llobregat | 1987 | Sant Feliu de Llobregat | 30 | 806,249 | 486.2 | 1,658.3 | Barcelona | Barcelona |
| Baix Penedès | 1987 | El Vendrell | 14 | 100,262 | 296.4 | 338.3 | Penedès | Tarragona |
| Barcelonès | 1987 | Barcelona | 5 | 2,227,238 | 145.8 | 15,276.0 | Barcelona | Barcelona |
| Berguedà | 1987 | Berga | 31 | 40,039 | 1,185.3 | 33.8 | Central Catalonia | Barcelona, Lleida |
| Cerdanya | 1987 | Puigcerdà | 17 | 18,063 | 546.6 | 33.0 | Alt Pirineu | Girona, Lleida |
| Conca de Barberà | 1987 | Montblanc | 22 | 20,723 | 650.2 | 31.9 | Camp de Tarragona | Tarragona |
| Garraf | 1987 | Vilanova i la Geltrú | 6 | 145,886 | 185.1 | 788.1 | Penedès | Barcelona |
| Garrigues | 1987 | Les Borges Blanques | 24 | 19,762 | 797.7 | 24.8 | Ponent | Lleida |
| Garrotxa | 1987 | Olot | 21 | 56,036 | 734.5 | 76.3 | Comarques Gironines | Girona |
| Gironès | 1987 | Girona | 28 | 185,085 | 575.6 | 321.6 | Comarques Gironines | Girona |
| Lluçanès | 2023 | Prats de Lluçanès | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | Central Catalonia | Barcelona |
| Maresme | 1987 | Mataró | 30 | 437,919 | 398.6 | 1,098.6 | Barcelona | Barcelona |
| Moianès | 2015 | Moià | 10 | 13,056 | 337.9 | 38.6 | Central Catalonia | Barcelona |
| Montsià | 1987 | Amposta | 12 | 69,613 | 735.5 | 94.6 | Terres de l'Ebre | Tarragona |
| Noguera | 1987 | Balaguer | 30 | 39,376 | 1,784.1 | 22.1 | Ponent | Lleida |
| Osona | 1987 | Vic | 50 | 154,559[b] | 1,245.1[b] | 124.1 | Central Catalonia | Barcelona, Girona |
| Pallars Jussà | 1987 | Tremp | 14 | 13,530 | 1,343.2 | 10.1 | Alt Pirineu | Lleida |
| Pallars Sobirà | 1987 | Sort | 15 | 7,220 | 1,378.0 | 5.2 | Alt Pirineu | Lleida |
| Pla de l'Estany | 1988 | Banyoles | 11 | 31,554 | 262.8 | 120.1 | Comarques Gironines | Girona |
| Pla d'Urgell | 1988 | Mollerussa | 16 | 37,128 | 305.2 | 121.7 | Ponent | Lleida |
| Priorat | 1987 | Falset | 23 | 9,550 | 498.7 | 19.1 | Camp de Tarragona | Tarragona |
| Ribera d'Ebre | 1987 | Móra d'Ebre | 14 | 22,925 | 827.1 | 27.7 | Terres de l'Ebre | Tarragona |
| Ripollès | 1987 | Ripoll | 19 | 25,700 | 956.6 | 26.9 | Comarques Gironines | Girona |
| Segarra | 1987 | Cervera | 21 | 22,713 | 722.8 | 31.4 | Ponent | Lleida |
| Segrià | 1987 | Lleida | 38 | 209,768 | 1,396.4 | 150.2 | Ponent | Lleida |
| Selva | 1987 | Santa Coloma de Farners | 26 | 170,249 | 994.9 | 171.1 | Comarques Gironines | Girona, Barcelona |
| Solsonès | 1987 | Solsona | 15 | 13,497 | 1001.1 | 13.5 | Central Catalonia | Lleida |
| Tarragonès | 1987 | Tarragona | 22 | 250,306 | 319.2 | 784.2 | Camp de Tarragona | Tarragona |
| Terra Alta | 1987 | Gandesa | 12 | 12,119 | 743.0 | 16.3 | Terres de l'Ebre | Tarragona |
| Urgell | 1987 | Tàrrega | 20 | 36,526 | 579.6 | 63.0 | Ponent | Lleida |
| Vallès Occidental | 1987 | Sabadell,Terrassa | 23 | 899,532 | 583.1 | 1,542.7 | Barcelona | Barcelona |
| Vallès Oriental | 1987 | Granollers | 39 | 399,781[b] | 734.5[b] | 544.3 | Barcelona | Barcelona |
| Totalcomarques–43 | Barcelona | 948 | 7,518,903 | 32,108.0[7][c] | 234.2 |
Revisions to the comarques took place in 1988 (creation of Pla d'Estany, Pla d'Urgell, and Alta Ribagorça),[8] 1990 (various adjustments),[9] and May 2015 (creation of Moianès).[10] TheCatalan government's "Report on the revision of Catalonia's territorial organisation model" (theRoca Report [ca]), published in 2000, recommends many more changes to comarques, which have not yet been adopted except for the 2015 creation of Moianès.[11] The other proposed new comarques are:Vall de Camprodon [ca] (capital atCamprodon),Selva Marítima [ca] (capital atBlanes),Alta Segarra [ca] (capital atCalaf),Segre Mitjà [ca] (capital atPonts), andBaix Llobregat Nord [ca] (capital atMartorell).
In a non-binding referendum in July 2015, a majority of municipalities of theLluçanès region of Osona voted to join a proposed new comarca of that name. It was finally added to the list of Comarques on the 3rd of May 2023.[12]
There are six comarques which are often referred to as thehistorical comarques of Catalonia, because their present-day territory was a part of the formerPrincipality of Catalonia, but nowadays they lie inNorthern Catalonia, administered byFrance.
| Comarca | Capital |
|---|---|
| Alta Cerdanya | Font-romeu |
| Capcir | Els Angles |
| Conflent | Prada de Conflent |
| Rosselló | Perpinyà |
| Vallespir | Ceret |