Braga

Municipality

From left to right: Bom Jesus do Monte, Braga Cathedral, Braga Baixa, Republic Square, Municipal Palace

Flag

Coat of arms

Coordinates: 41°33′4″N 8°25′42″W / 41.55111°N 8.42833°WCoordinates: 41°33′4″N 8°25′42″W / 41.55111°N 8.42833°W

Country

Portugal

Government

• President

Ricardo Bruno Antunes Machado Rio (PSD)

Area

• Total

183.40 km² (70.81 sq mi)

Elevation

200 m (700 ft)

Highest elevation

558 m (1,831 ft)

Population (2011)

• Total

181,494

• Density

990/km² (2,600/sq mi)

Time zone

WET/WEST (UTC+0/+1)

Postal code

470x

Area code

253

Website

www.cm-braga.pt

Braga [Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈbɾaɣɐ]] (Latin: Bracara Augusta) is a city and a municipality in the northwestern Portuguese district of Braga, in the historical and cultural Minho Province. The city has 137,000 inhabitants, and the municipality, which includes 37 civil parishes has a resident population of 181,494 inhabitants (in 2011), representing the seventh largest municipality in Portugal (by population). Its area is 183.40 km². Its agglomerated urban area extends from the Cávado River to the Este River. The city was the European Youth Capital in 2012. It is host to the archdiocese, the oldest in Portugal. Under the Roman Empire, known as Bracara Augusta, the settlement was centre of the province of Gallaecia. Braga is a major hub for inland Northern Portugal.

Human occupation of the region of Braga dates back thousands of years, documented by vestiges of monumental structures starting in the Megalithic era. During the Iron Age, the Castro culture extended into the northwest, characterized by Bracari peoples who occupied the high ground in strategically located fortified settlements (castrum). The region became the domain of the Callaici Bracarii, or Bracarenses, a Celtic tribe who occupied what is now northern Portugal, Galicia and Asturias in the north west of Iberia.

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Wikipedia