Tarraco is the ancient name of the current city of Tarragona (Catalonia, Spain). It was the oldest Roman settlement on the Iberian Peninsula. It became the capital of Hispania Tarraconensis following the latter's creation during the Roman Empire.

In 2000, the archaeological ensemble of Tarraco was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Ta-Aragona name in Phoenician means the Aragona, which was the native Iberian term for the Ebro Valley.

The area was inhabited from the 5th century BC by Iberians, mainly in the Ebro Valley, who had commercial contacts with the Greeks and Phoenicians settled on the coast.

Tarraco is first mentioned after the arrival of Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus at Empúries in 218 BC at the start of the Second Punic War which began the Roman conquest of Hispania. The Romans conquered a field of Punic supplies for Hannibal's troops near Cissis and took the city. A short time later, the Romans were attacked "not far from Tarraco". Cissis and Tarraco may have been the same city. Cissis may be equated with Kesse, the name on coins of Iberian origin from the 1st and 2nd century BC that were marked according to Roman weight standards.

In 217 BC Roman reinforcements arrived under the command of Publius Scipio, and he and his brother Gnaeus Cornelius are attributed with the enhanced fortification of Tarraco and the establishment of a military port. The Roman city wall was probably constructed on top of the more ancient wall characteristic of the Iberian stonemason.

After the death of the Scipio brothers, Tarraco was Scipio Africanus's (son of Publius) winter base between 211 and 210, and where he met the tribes of Hispania in conventus. The population was largely loyal to the Romans during the war and the fishermen of Tarraco (piscatores Tarraconenses) served with their boats during the siege of Carthago Nova.

The conquest of the Iberian Peninsula by the Romans took over 200 years.