Terrassa

Terrassa is a city in the autonomous community of Catalonia in Spain, in the province of Barcelona. It is one of the two capitals of Vallès Occidental county, being the larger in both area and population, and 228,294 respectively.
The name Terrassa derives from Latin Terracia, either from earlier Terracium castellum, 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, 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, at the feet of the Prelitoral mountain range 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.

History

Prehistory

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.

Ancient Egara

Terrassa originated as the Roman town of Egara, which was founded during the time of the emperor Vespasian, alongside the torrent of Vallparadís close to the Iberian town of Egosa, on the site of which some ceramics and coins have been found.

Modern Terrasa

In the 17th century it was the sight of the Terrasa witchtrials, where 6 women were arrested, tortured and convicted of witchcraft. Five of them were hanged on 27 October 1619 near a present-day railway bridge.
Other important remains from the Middle Ages are the former cathedral, the castle of Vallparadís and the tower of the castle-palace of the count-king.
In the 19th century the city played an important role in the industrial revolution, specializing in woollen fabrics, and today there is a major Modernista legacy as a result of the city's importance at that time. Particularly notable Modernista buildings include the Masia Freixa, the Vapor Aymerich, Amat i Jover textile mill , the Principal theater, the city hall, the Alegre de Sagrera house/museum, the Industrial School, the Gran Casino, the Parc de Desinfecció, and the Independència market.
Terrassa is a partner city of the Art nouveau network, a European network of co-operation created in 1999 for the study, preservation and development of Art Nouveau.
Terrassa is a famous movie production center in Europe and was named a City of Film by UNESCO. The city is home to the largest film studios in Catalonia and the Iberian Peninsula, the Parc Audiovisual de Catalunya, where numerous movies and TV Shows such as REC, A Monster Calls and Operación Triunfo have been filmed.

Catastrophes

On 25 September 1962, after a long dry summer, between 212 and 252 litres of rain per square metre fell in three hours. It caused the rivers Llobregat and Besòs and their tributaries to overflow, creating a water avenue that caused 700 victims and heavy material losses.
The Vallès Occidental comarca was the most damaged. In particularly Terrassa, with 327 victims. The reason of these numbers was that building was permitted around two dry streams used to bring rain water to the Llobregat river. They met in a wedge shape and were not properly channelized. When the streams overflowed it created what was called "the dead triangle", with more than a hundred victims in the Ègara neighbourhood alone.

Ecclesiastical history

The episcopal see of Ègara already existed by about 450 CE, when it was established on territory split off from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Barcelona, under the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Tarragona. Pope Hilarius confirmed its autonomy by denying a request around 469 to unite it with the Barcelona under its own first bishop, Ireneus.
It comprised parts of these Comarques of Catalonia : Alt Penedès, Anoia, Baix Llobregat, Vallès Occidental and Vallès Oriental. A Provincial Council of Tarragona was held there in 615.
It effectively succumbed to the Arab conquest in the 8th century and was probably suppressed, its territory being returned to the Diocese of Barcelona. The Marian cathedral continued to exist until 718, when it was taken over during the Umayyad conquest of Hispania, but was rebuilt in the 12th century, and remains part of a monumental complex of ancient Visigothic-Romanesque churches of Sant Pere de Terrassa and Sant Miquel on the site.
After the Catholic Reconquista of the region in the tenth century, the see was not restored, its territory being incorporated in the diocese of Barcelona. Why a request to restore the bishopric by its Metropolitan of Tarragona, Cesareo, wasn't honored by Pope John XII is unclear.
In 2004, Pope John Paul II created the new Diocese of Terrassa on territory taken from the Archdiocese of Barcelona. Its seat is the Cathedral of Holy Spirit.

Diocese of Egara

;Suffragan Bishops of Egara

Ireneo
Saint Nebridio, who was possibly transferred to Barcelona, which had a homonym incumbent in 540.
Tauro
Sofronio
Ilergio
Eugenio
Vincenzo
Giovanni

; Titular see of Egara
In 1969 Pope Paul VI created the titular see of Egara.
The title has been held by:

Justo Goizueta Gridilla, O.A.R., as Bishop-Prelate of Territorial Prelature of Madera , previously Apostolic Administrator of same Madera ; died 1991
Juan Francisco Sarasti Jaramillo, C.I.M. as Auxiliary Bishop of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cali ; later Bishop of Barrancabermeja , Metropolitan Archbishop of Ibagué , Metropolitan Archbishop of above Cali and Apostolic Administrator of Buenaventura
Paulius Antanas Baltakis, O.F.M.
Luis Miguel Romero Fernández, M. Id., Auxiliary Bishop of Rockville Centre, New York City
Government

The Municipal Council has 27 seats and according to the result of the local elections of May 2023 is formed by:

All for Terrassa – 11 seats
Socialists' Party of Catalonia – 7 seats
Vox - 3 seats
Republican Left of Catalonia – 2 seats
Together for Catalonia – 2 seats
People's Party - 2 seats

The municipal government is formed by a coalition of the left of center municipalist Tot per Terrassa and the center-right pro-independence JUNTS. The Mayor is Jordi Ballart.

Demographics

As of 2024, the population of Terrassa is 228,294, of whom 49.1% are male and 50.9% are female, compared to the nationwide average of 49.0% and 51.0% respectively. People under 16 years old make up 16.2% of the population, and people over 65 years old make up 17.8%, compared to the nationwide average of 14.3% and 20.4% respectively.
As of 2024, the foreign-born population is 45,820, equal to 20.1% of the total population. The 5 largest foreign nationalities are Moroccans, Colombians, Ecuadorians, Venezuelans and Argentinians.

Country

Population

Morocco

Culture

Music and theater

A lot of musicians and actors are based in Terrassa because of the large number of music schools, a long amateur theater tradition and the local seat of the Institut del Teatre. Since 1982, the Terrassa Jazz Festival has been especially outstanding, with guests like Stan Getz, Chet Baker, Dexter Gordon, Tete Montoliu, Dizzy Gillespie. Local bands and musicians such as Doctor Prats, Lildami or Miki Núñez have also developed a national and international following.

Traditional Catalan Culture

The city is also home to a lively Catalan culture scene. Compared to other cities its size, like Sabadell or l'Hospitalet de Llobregat it houses a significant number of colles of different Catalan cultural traditions. Most notably the Minyons de Terrassa, one of the three colles castelleres of the city, is considered among the best in the world and were the first to complete a 10-story human tower in 1998. Alongside the Minyons, the city also houses two other colles castelleres: the Castellers de Terrassa and the university's colla, the Bergants del Campus Terrassa.
The city is also home to a multitude of diables and bestiari de foc such as the Diables de Terrassa, Pàjara de Terrassa, Drac de Terrassa, Drac Baluk Asharot i Diables de Ca n'Aurell, Bitxo del Torrent Mitger, among many others. The bestiari extends also to non-fire figures such as the water-spewing Hipodragona, Cuca Japonesa or the Papallona de Sant Pere or the purely processional figures like the Àliga de Terrassa or the Mulassa de Terrassa.
In the realm of Gegants, the city has a very prominent colla which manages over 3 pairs of processional giants, as well as a colla gegantera from the Les Fonts district and the Gegants Bojos de Terrassa group.
Several Sardana-dancing groups as well as Esbart dancers, two Bastoners groups, Ball de Gitanes dancers and Trabucaires also call the city home.