Santillana del Mar

This article uses bare URLs, which are uninformative and vulnerable to link rot. Please consider converting them to full citations to ensure the article remains verifiable and maintains a consistent citation style. Several templates and tools are available to assist in formatting, such as reFill (documentation) and Citation bot (documentation). (August 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Santillana del Mar
Municipality
Church of the Colegiata in Santillana
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Santillana del Mar
Santillana del Mar Location in Spain
Coordinates: 43°23′36″N 4°6′17″W / 43.39333°N 4.10472°W / 43.39333; -4.10472
Country	Spain
Autonomous community	Cantabria
Province	Cantabria
Comarca	Western coast
Judicial district	Torrelavega
Capital	Santillana del Mar
Government
• Alcalde	Isidro Rábago León (2007) (PSC-PSOE)
Area
• Total	28.46 km2 (10.99 sq mi)
Elevation	82 m (269 ft)
Highest elevation	275 m (902 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2018)[1]
• Total	4,172
• Density	150/km2 (380/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	39330
Official language(s)	Spanish
Spanish Cultural Heritage
Type	Non-movable
Criteria	Historic ensemble
Designated	27 July 1943
Reference no.	RI-53-0000008

Santillana del Mar (Spanish pronunciation: [santiˈʎana ðel maɾ]) is a historic town situated in Cantabria, Spain. Its many historic buildings attract thousands of visitors every year.

There is an old saying that Santillana del Mar is The Town of Three Lies, since it is neither a Saint (Santo), nor flat (llana), nor is it by the sea (Mar) as implied by its name. However, the name actually derives from Santa Juliana (or Santa Illana) whose remains are kept in the Colegiata, a Romanesque church and former Benedictine monastery. The UNESCO World Heritage Site Cave of Altamira is nearby.^[2]