Feteira (Horta)
| Feteira | |
| Civil Parish | |
 The coast of Feteira, showing the rocky cliffs and vista of Monte da Guia (to the east), Faial Island
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| Official name: Freguesia de Feteira | |
| Name origin: feto, Portuguese for fern | |
| Country |  Portugal |
|---|---|
| Autonomous Region |  Azores |
| Island | Faial |
| Municipality | Horta |
| Civil Parish | Feteira, Granja, Portela |
| River | Ribeira da Granja |
| Center | Feteira |
| - coordinates | 38°31′36″N 28°40′33″W / 38.52667°N 28.67583°WCoordinates: 38°31′36″N 28°40′33″W / 38.52667°N 28.67583°W |
| Highest point | Cangueira |
| - location | Serra de Feteira |
| - elevation | 737 m (2,418 ft) |
| - coordinates | 38°33′40″N 28°41′52″W / 38.56111°N 28.69778°W |
| Lowest point | Sea level |
| - location | Atlantic Ocean |
| - elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Area | 14.46 km2 (6 sq mi) |
| - urban | 1.0 km2 (0 sq mi) |
| Population | 1,899 (2011) |
| Density | 131/km2 (339/sq mi) |
| Settlement | fl. 1562 |
| - Parish | 30 June 1568 |
| LAU | Junta Freguesia |
| - location | Estrada Regional |
| - coordinates | 38°38′4″N 24°41′46″W / 38.63444°N 24.69611°W |
| President Junta | Eduardo Humberto Silveira Pereira |
| President Assembleia | Conceição Maria Stattmiller S.S. Machado Lourenço |
| Timezone | Azores (UTC-1) |
| - summer (DST) | Azores (UTC0) |
| Postal Zone | 9900-361 |
| Area Code & Prefix | (+351) 292 XX XX XX |
| Demonym | Feteirense |
| Patron Saint | Divino Espírito Santo |
 Location of the civil parish of Feteira within the municipality of Horta
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| Website: http://www.feteira.com/ | |
| Geographic detail from CAOP (2010)produced by Instituto Geográfico Português (IGP) | |
Feteira is a civil parish in the southern part of the municipality of Horta, on the island of Faial in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. The population in 2011 was 1,899, in an area of 14.46 km². It occupies the southern foothills of the Cabeço Gordo, along the coast. The name Feteira is derived from the Portuguese word for "fern", and indicates a "location of [many] ferns"; the name likely refers to the original colonists discovery of this area covered with ferns.
The early inhabitants colonized the area around Ribeira da Granja, along the coast near Lajinha and Ponta Furada. They built their first community along the coast, although on higher ground.
The Church of Feteira, consecrated in honor of the Holy Spirit, is one of the older churches on the island. Lost to history, its date of construction is currently unknown, although the first references to the sanctuary refer to 1562. In that Year, the local residents were forced to pay higher taxes to the parish. On June 30, 1568, King D. Sebastião passed a provision in favor of People of Feteira who sought the Crown's intervention. Relating to its church, the historian Gaspar Frutuoso mentioned that it had three naves, supported by five columns, with arterial chapels on either side. It was a temple of good proportions (35 m in width) with a single bell-tower. The parish also had a nearby 15th century chapel dedicated to Saint Peter. In 1597, it was sacked and burned by English pirates. The chapel was a place of pilgrimage and popular religious festivities. Due to lack of attention and care, over time it was abandoned. Because of a history of piracy, there were small forts along the rugged coastline for the protection of the residents. They were part of an overall system of defenses around the island of Fayal, which suffered most of the time from lack of sufficient manpower and artillery. These fortified outposts decayed with time and the erosive action of the sea and tempests. Today, the ruins of these defensive positions have disappeared.
Following economic and social hardship in 1862, and weakness of political leaders to satisfy their demands, an uprising occurred in 1862 in several of the island's towns over the imposition of new taxes. The people of Feteirs adhered to the protests.
It is located 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) west of the center of the city of Horta, connected by the southern extension of the regional E.R.1-1ª roadway and a northern municipal road in the interior. Farmlands dominate the coastal plain between the neighbouring parishes of Angústias and Castelo Branco, while the coast is a rocky area formed by rugged lava stones and cliffs undercut by the Atlantic Ocean. The highest point in the parish is the peak of Cangueiro, approximately 706 metres (2,316 ft) above sea level, below the crater rim of Cabeço Gordo. The coastal cliffs, which mark the southern border of the town, are at most 61 metres (200 ft) above sea level. Lava flows formed intricate geomorphological structures, highlighted by the area of Lajinha (on the eastern border). Wave motion and currents have carved this region forming coastal arches, and undercutting the E.R. 1-1ª at points near the Rua da Além.
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