Getaria (Spain)

Getaria
Getaria view from the sea
Country	Spain
Autonomous community	Basque Country
Province	Gipuzkoa
Government
• Mayor	Nika Lertxundi (Bildu)
Area
• Total	10.6 km2 (4.1 sq mi)
Population
• Total	2,726
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	20808
Area code(s)	34 (Spain) + 943 (Gipuzkoa)
Website	http://www.getaria.net

Getaria is a coastal town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of Basque Country, in the North of Spain. This coastal village is located on the Urola Coast, with Zarautz to the east and Zumaia to the west.

Getaria is known for being Juan Sebastián Elcano’s hometown, a seaman well-known for being the first man to circumnavigate the earth. He was captain of the Nao Victoria, the one ship in Magellan's ill-fated fleet which completed the voyage.

Today, Getaria is also famous for its restaurants serving grilled fish and a white wine with a protected designation of origin which is cultivated in the surroundings of this coastal town and takes the name of Getariako Txakolina. Moreover, the Cristobal Balenciaga Museum is also located in this village.

Thus, its most famous sons are Juan Sebastián Elcano, captain of the Nao Victoria, Admiral Miguel de Oquendo, who commanded the Guipúzcoa Squadron of the Spanish Armada, the explorer Domingo de Bonechea, and the couturier Cristóbal Balenciaga Eizaguirre.

In May 2012, a two-man team from Getaria won Google's "Model Your Town" competition by creating a complete 3D representation of their hometown.

Traditionally, the town's name has been written as Guetaria. However, since 1980, the official toponym has become Getaria, which is the adaptation of the modern Basque orthography. Thus, in Spanish it is written Guetaria, and, though pronounced the same, in Basque it is written Getaria.

Apart from the Getaria of Gipuzkoa, there is another town 61 kilometers up the coast in Lapurdi (Labourd), the French Basque Country, which is called Guéthary. The Basque pronunciation and spelling of the two towns is the same. Both villages are located on the Basque coast, and throughout history, many have sought the origin of the towns' names. Based on archaeological findings, the most convincing hypothesis is that the name of Getaria comes from the Latin word "cetaria". In the classic Latin, pronounced as [ketaria], it means a place were fish is canned. Indeed, in both places, evidence of Roman installations for canning fish have been found.