Arouca, Portugal

Arouca (Portuguese pronunciation: [ɐˈɾokɐ] ⓘ) is a town and a municipality in the Metropolitan Area of Porto, in the Norte Region of Portugal and in the Aveiro District.[4] From archaeological excavations, it is known that the area was settled late in the Roman conquest of the Iberian Peninsula (due to its distance from coastal and north–south accesses).[4] From local toponomy, the permanence of Germanic tribes is evident; names such as Sá, Saril, Alvarenga, Burgo, Escariz, Friães and Melareses, are examples of this influence.[4] In the first years of the 13th century, the monastery of Arouca passed into the hands of the Crown, and D. Sancho I left the complex in his testament to his daughter D.[4] She was beatified in 1792 and her remains placed in an urn, executed in ebony, crystal, silver and bronze in one of the wings of the monastery's church (where her body was later moved in 1793).[4] The Arouca is a fertile valley, almost entirely enclosed with a mountainous plateau, with only the western edge open to the rest of the country.
The centre of Arouca, with the Chapel of Misericórdia
A symbol of the Christian influence in the region: the Alminhas do Calvário
The rural village of Tebilhão in the terraced foothills of Arouca
MunicipalityPortugalRegionMetropolitan areaMetropolitan Area of PortoDistrictAveiroParishesPresidentTime zoneNorte RegionAveiro DistrictGeoparkEuropean Geoparks NetworkGlobal Geoparks NetworkgeotourismReconquistaAfonso HenriquesfreguesiasAlvarengaCanelas e EspiuncaEmmanuel d'AbreuPedro CostaSimão OliveiraJunior Eurovision Song Contest 2021São João de ValinhasArouca 516Paiva RiverDiário da RepúblicaPorto Metropolitan AreaEspinhoGondomarMatosinhosOliveira de AzeméisParedesPóvoa de VarzimSanta Maria da FeiraSanto TirsoSão João da MadeiraVale de CambraValongoVila do CondeVila Nova de Gaia