Terrassa
Terrassa
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Terrassa

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Terrassa

Terrassa (Catalan pronunciation: [təˈrasə]) is a city in central-eastern Catalonia and in the province of Barcelona (Spain). It is one of the two capitals of Vallès Occidental county, being the larger in both area and population.

The name Terrassa derives from Latin Terracia, either from earlier Terracium castellum (“earthen castle”), or meaning "terrace", "area of flat land". Historically, the name of the city has been spelled Terraça, Terraza, Terraca and Tarrassa in the native Catalan language whilst it's been traditionally spelled Tarrasa in Spanish. The Spanish spelling is now largely out of use given its ties with the Francoist Regime and the sole official spelling being the Catalan Terrassa since 1978.

Terrassa is known for its industrial past and present, its lively cultural scene, its industrial modernist architecture, its status as a "City of Film" and as the seat of several universities such as UPC, ESCAC, Institut del Teatre and EUIT. It was also awarded in 2024 the Council of Europe's "The Europe Prize" for cities with an outstanding commitment to European values.

It is the site of Roman Egara [ca], a former Visigothic bishopric, which became a Latin Catholic titular see. Since 2004, it is again the see of a bishopric.

The city is located in the Catalan Prelitoral depression (Depressió Prelitoral), at the feet of the Prelitoral mountain range (natural reserve of Sant Llorenç del Munt [ca]) and the average altitude of the city is 277 meters above sea level. It is 20 and 18 kilometres from Barcelona and Montserrat respectively. Terrassa's location as the most-inland city in the Barcelona Metropolitan Region makes it sometimes be referred to as the "entrance to Central Catalonia".

As of 2024, Terrassa is the third largest city in Catalonia, after Barcelona and l'Hospitalet de Llobregat. Terrassa is also the largest municipality in what's considered the second most important urban, economic and cultural center of Catalonia, the Vallès region.

The remains that have been found indicate that the area where Terrassa stands has been inhabited since prehistory. In 2005, during the construction of a tunnel for one of the city's railway lines, a prehistoric site was found in Vallparadís Park, with stone tools and fossils of hunted animals dating back 800,000 to 1,000,000 years, making this one of the oldest prehistoric sites in Europe.

Terrassa originated as the Roman town of Egara (Municipium Flavium Egara), which was founded during the time of the emperor Vespasian (69–79 CE), alongside the torrent of Vallparadís (nowadays an urban park) close to the Iberian town of Egosa, on the site of which some ceramics and coins have been found.

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