Azkoitia

Last updated
Azkoitia
E4684-Azkoitia-Santa-Maria-La-Real.JPG
Azkoitia's central square, with Paroquia Santa Maria La Real
Armas de Azcoitia.jpg
Basque Country location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Azkoitia
Location of Azkoitia within the Basque Autonomous Community
Coordinates: 43°10′45″N2°18′38″W / 43.17917°N 2.31056°W / 43.17917; -2.31056
Country Spain
Autonomous community Basque Country
Province Gipuzkoa
Comarca Urola Kosta
Founded1331 (1331)
Government
   Mayor Ana Azkoitia (Basque Nationalist Party)
Area
  Total54.71 km2 (21.12 sq mi)
Elevation
113 m (371 ft)
Population
 (2018) [1]
  Total11,609
  Density210/km2 (550/sq mi)
Demonym Spanish: azcoitano
Time zone UTC+1 (CET)
  Summer (DST) UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
20720
Website Official website

Azkoitia (Spanish : Azcoitia) is a town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Autonomous Community of Basque Country, in northern Spain. It is also the seat of the municipality of the same name.

Contents

Geographical setting

Azkoitia and the municipality of the same name, are located on and around the upper Urola river valley, centered on a small alluvial plain surrounded by the Basque mountains. Except for the valley itself, the terrain is rather rugged, with elevations ranging to little less than 950 meters.

Population

A boulevard across the river from Azkoitia's old central square E4683-Azkoitia-boulevard.JPG
A boulevard across the river from Azkoitia's old central square

As of 2004 , the municipality numbered 10,946 inhabitants, of whom 5,324 (49.867%) were men and 5,262 (50.133%) were women. Age is distributed among the sexes rather evenly with children and adolescents (0 to 17 years of age) forming 16.235% of the population, adults (18 to 54 years of age) making up 53.744%, and senior citizens forming the remaining 30.021%.

Historical relevance

Azkoitia was the birthplace of the mother of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuit religious order. Ignatius' maternal grandfather, Don Martin Garcia de Licona, had purchased Balda Tower in the mid-15th century. Recurring bloody encounters in the region persuaded the king, Henry IV of Castile, to reduce the tower from a fortress to a courthouse. On 13 July 1467 Don Martin's daughter, Dona Marina Saenz de Licona Balda married Don Beltran Ibanez de Onaz y Loyola from neighbouring Azpeitia in the Licona family home in Azkoitia. The original wedding contract still exists.

Loyola's birth house is still preserved as a museum a part of a large Jesuit compound. It is located a few kilometers east of Azkoitia's city center, at the small community of Azpeitia, and is a major tourist attraction.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Ignacio de Loyola</i> 2016 Filipino film

Ignacio de Loyola is a 2016 Philippine historical biographical religious drama film directed by Paolo Dy in his directorial debut. It is based on the memoirs of Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuit order who was canonized as a saint in the Catholic Church. The film stars Andreas Muñoz, a Spanish actor who portrays the titular character in the film.

Loyola may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Faber</span> Jesuit priest and evangelist (1506–1546)

Peter Faber, SJ was a Jesuit priest and theologian, who was also a co-founder of the Society of Jesus, along with Ignatius of Loyola and Francis Xavier. Pope Francis announced his canonization in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gipuzkoa</span> Province of Spain

Gipuzkoa is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French department of Pyrénées-Atlantiques at the northeast, with the province and autonomous community of Navarre at east, Biscay at west, Álava at southwest and the Bay of Biscay to its north. It is located at the easternmost extreme of the Cantabric Sea, in the Bay of Biscay. It has 66 kilometres of coast land.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Urola (river)</span>

The Urola is a river and valley in Gipuzkoa, Basque Autonomous Community, Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Ignatius College, Enfield</span> Voluntary aided comprehensive all-boys school in Enfield, Greater London, England

St Ignatius College is a Catholic voluntary aided secondary school for boys aged 11–18 in Enfield, London, England, founded by the Society of Jesus in 1894 and completely moved to its present site by 1987. It was formerly a grammar school, only accepting boys who had passed the Eleven plus exam. Former students include Alfred Hitchcock, George Martin, and Cardinal John Heenan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Azpeitia</span> Town in Spain

Azpeitia is a town and municipality within the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country, Spain, located on the Urola river a few kilometres east of Azkoitia. Its population is 14,580. It is located 41 kilometres southwest of Donostia/San Sebastián.

<i>Spiritual Exercises</i> 1522–1524 set of works by Ignatius of Loyola

The Spiritual Exercises, composed 1522–1524, are a set of Christian meditations, contemplations, and prayers written by Ignatius of Loyola, a 16th-century Spanish priest, theologian, and founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). Divided into four thematic "weeks" of variable length, they are designed to be carried out over a period of 28 to 30 days. They were composed with the intention of helping participants in religious retreats to discern the will of God in their lives, leading to a personal commitment to follow Jesus whatever the cost. Their underlying theology has been found agreeable to other Christian denominations who make use of them and also for addressing problems facing society in the 21st century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leintz Gatzaga</span> Municipality in Basque Country, Spain

Leintz Gatzaga is a town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Autonomous Community of Basque Country, northern Spain. The municipality's population is 251 (2015).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martín García Óñez de Loyola</span> Royal governor of colonial Chile from 1592 to 1598

Don Martín García Óñez de Loyola was a Spanish Basque soldier and Royal Governor of the Captaincy General of Chile. Very likely Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus, was his uncle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zumarraga, Spain</span> Municipality in Basque Country, Spain

Zumarraga is a municipality and industrial town in Gipuzkoa province of the Basque Country autonomous community of northern Spain, approximately 35 miles (56 km) by road southwest of San Sebastián and 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Idiazabal. As of 2018 the municipality had a population of 9834 people. The Urola river flows through the vicinity. It is the birthplace of Miguel López de Legazpi, conquistador who explored the Pacific Islands and the East Indies, and of Iñaki Urdangarín, the husband of Infanta Cristina of Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juan de Anchieta</span> Spanish composer (1462–1523)

Juan de Anchieta was a leading Spanish Basque composer of the Renaissance, at the Royal Court Chaplaincy in Granada of Queen Isabel I of Castile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basque Country (autonomous community)</span> Autonomous community of Spain

The Basque Country, also called Basque Autonomous Community, is an autonomous community in northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay, and Gipuzkoa. It also surrounds an enclave called Treviño, which belongs to the neighboring autonomous community of Castile and León.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ignatius of Loyola</span> Spanish Catholic priest and theologian (1491–1556)

Ignatius of Loyola, venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Spanish Catholic priest and theologian, who, with six companions, founded the religious order of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), and became its first Superior General, in Paris in 1541.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loyola University Chicago</span> Jesuit research university in Illinois, US

Loyola University Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1870 by the Society of Jesus, Loyola is one of the largest Catholic universities in the United States. Its namesake is Saint Ignatius of Loyola. Loyola's professional schools include programs in medicine, nursing, and health sciences anchored by the Loyola University Medical Center. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sanctuary of Loyola</span>

The Sanctuary of Loyola or Loiola, or the Shrine and Basilica of Loyola, consists of a series of edifices built in Churrigueresque Baroque style around the birthplace of St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Comarcas of the Basque Country</span>

The autonomous community of the Basque Country within Spain contains several comarcas or eskualdeak in the Basque language, referring to local districts, grouped into its three long-established provinces.

<i>Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús, Cusco</i> Church in Cusco, Peru

The Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús is a historic Jesuit church in Cusco, the ancient capital of the Inca Empire, in Cusco Region, Peru. It is situated in the Plaza de Armas de Cusco, the city center. It is built on an Inca palace. It is one of the best examples of Spanish Baroque architecture in Peru. The architecture of this building exerted a great influence on the development of many Baroque architecture in the South Andes. Its construction began in 1576, but it was badly damaged in an earthquake in 1650. The rebuilt church was completed in 1673.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maragondon Church</span> Roman Catholic church in Cavite, Philippines

The Our Lady of the Assumption Parish Church, commonly known as Maragondon Church, is a Roman Catholic church and the only heritage structure in the municipality of Maragondon, Cavite, Philippines declared by the National Museum as a National Cultural Treasure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capul Church</span> Roman Catholic church in Northern Samar, Philippines

The San Ignacio de Loyola Parish Church, commonly known as Capul Church or Fuerza de Capul, is a Roman Catholic fortress church in the municipality of Capul, Northern Samar, Philippines within the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Catarman. It was first established as a mission station by the Jesuits in 1596 under the advocacy of Saint Ignatius of Loyola.

References

  1. Municipal Register of Spain 2018. National Statistics Institute.

Notes

  1. ^ Demographics for all Basque municipalities