La Seu d'Urgell

La Seu d'Urgell
Municipality
Seu d'Urgell Cathedral
Seu d'Urgell Cathedral
Coat of arms of La Seu d'Urgell
Coat of arms
Location in Alt Urgell county
La Seu d'Urgell is located in Catalonia
La Seu d'Urgell
La Seu d'Urgell
La Seu d'Urgell is located in Spain
La Seu d'Urgell
La Seu d'Urgell
Coordinates: 42°21′29″N 1°27′22″E / 42.358°N 1.456°E / 42.358; 1.456
Sovereign state Spain
Community Catalonia
RegionAlt Pirineu
CountyAlt Urgell
ProvinceLleida
Government
 • MayorJoan Barrera i Aranda (2023) (PSC)
Area
[1]
 • Total15.4 km2 (5.9 sq mi)
Elevation
691 m (2,267 ft)
Population
 (2018)[2]
 • Total12,041
 • Density780/km2 (2,000/sq mi)
DemonymsUrgellenc, urgellenca
or Urgellès, urgellesa
ClimateCfb
Websitewww.laseu.cat

La Seu d'Urgell (Catalan: [la ˈsɛw ðuɾˈdʒeʎ] ⓘ; Spanish: Seo de Urgell [seo ðe uɾˈxel] ⓘ, formerly Urgell[3]) is a town located in Alt Urgell county in Alt Pirineu, Catalonia, Spain. The town is also the head of its judicial district and the seat of the Bishop of Urgell, one of the co-princes of Andorra. It is located the most populated town of the region, with 17.4% of its population. La Seu d'Urgell and Puigcerdà together have 30% of the population of the area.[4]

It is located at the confluence of the Segre and the Valira rivers.[5] The city is in the local region of Urgellet,[6] a Pyrenean region formed by 16 municipalities of Alt Urgell. Urgellet and Andorra were the originary County of Urgell with capital in la Seu d'Urgell before the county expansion to the south.[7]

Alt Urgell is the gateway to the state of Andorra and the proximity to this important population center and economic activity is one of the main reasons for the current vigour of the city of la Seu d'Urgell within Alt Pirineu.[8]

The town's patron saints are Saint Ot of Urgell,[9] Saint Sebastian, and the Virgin of Urgell.[10] While the Virgin of Núria and Sant Ermengol[11] are the main patrons of the diocese of Urgell, Sant Ermengol is the most prominent in the city than other patrons. Probably that is why there are various events throughout the year dedicated to Sant Ermengol, such as the Sant Ermengol Fair, one of the oldest in Catalonia,[12] and the altarpiece of Sant Ermengol.

The Segre Olympic Park, built in 1992 for the Barcelona Summer Olympic Games, is a pump-driven canoe and kayak sports venue located adjacent to the historical centre of la Seu d'Urgell.

  1. ^ "El municipi en xifres: La Seu d'Urgell". Statistical Institute of Catalonia. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
  2. ^ Municipal Register of Spain 2018. National Statistics Institute.
  3. ^ "la Seu d'Urgell | enciclopedia.cat". www.enciclopedia.cat. Retrieved 2024-02-03.
  4. ^ "The population and the urban structure of Alt Pirineu i Aran" (PDF).[permanent dead link] (2.87 MB) (in Catalan)
  5. ^ GGCC, la Seu d'Urgell: Archived 2013-01-01 at archive.today Urban morphology. (in Catalan)
  6. ^ L'Enciclopèdia Catalana (The Encyclopedia) Archived 2010-07-01 at the Wayback Machine, Urgellet. (in Catalan)
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference origens was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ "Key factors of the territorial structure" (PDF).[permanent dead link] (1.72 MB) (in Catalan)
  9. ^ Diocesan Museum of Urgell Archived 2012-02-22 at the Wayback Machine the work of Sant Ot. (in Catalan)
  10. ^ L'Enciclopèdia Catalana (The Encyclopedia) Archived 2008-10-14 at the Wayback Machine, Cathedral of Urgell. (in Catalan)
  11. ^ Diocesan Museum of Urgell Archived 2012-02-22 at the Wayback Machine the work of Saint Ermengol. (in Catalan)
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference firaantiga2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).