Elorrio

Elorrio
Municipality
An archway in Elorrio
Postal code		48230
Website	Official website

Elorrio is a town and a municipality located in the eastern part of the province of Biscay, in the Basque Country, in northern Spain. As of 2017^[update], it has a population of 7,307 inhabitants.^[2] It covers an area of 37.20 square kilometers and it has a population density of 193.58 people per square kilometer. It holds the medieval title of Most Loyal and Noble Villa (Spanish: Muy Noble y Muy Leal Villa).

Elorrio was founded in 1356 by the

The town has been affected by its main economic activity: the

In the Basque language, elorrio is the word for the red fruit (haw) of the common hawthorn. The Basque word elorri means "hawthorn". The coat of arms of the town shows a hawthorn. Colloquially, the town was called Elorrixo in Basque.

History

The Argiñeta tombs that today lie just outside the town of Elorrio are both pre-Christian and Christian (the earliest date of the latter is recorded as 893). In 1053, the San Agustín de Etxebarria monastery was founded, which in time was renovated and eventually became present-day church (an example of

As a result of this economic expansion, a number of important buildings were constructed (mostly during the sixteenth century) that are today considered monuments of significant historical and architectural importance. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Elorrio, although it remained a predominantly rural town, became a tourist destination, as people visited the locality to attend one of its two well-known spas. After the

Elorrio is located at the easternmost point of Biscay, in the comarca of Durangaldea, northern Spain. It limits at north with Berriz and Zaldibar at northwest with Abadiño, at west with Atxondo, at east with the province of Gipuzkoa and at south with the province of Álava.

The town is surrounded by various mountains, such as Intxorta (797m) and Udalatx (1092m), and is traversed by the Zumelegi river that, after joining the River Arrazola in Atxondo, goes on to form the Ibaizabal river.

The town is situated 39

Demographics

The

• Aniceto Sagastizabal, born in 1940 and using the name 'Gasti', had a successful career as a professional player of the Basque sport Cesta Punta (known as Jai Alai in the U.S.) from the mid-1950s thru the early 1980s in Spain, Italy, Mexico and the United States.
• Saint Balendin Berrio-Otxoa (Valentín de Berrio-Ochoa in Spanish), one of the
  John Paul II in 1988.^[5]
• Basque Autonomous Community, 1985-1999. He was the CEO of Euskaltel
  , a Basque telecommunications company, until his retirement in 2011.
• Alejandro Goicoechea, born in 1895, was the engineer who developed with José Luis Oriol the Talgo railway vehicle. He died in 1984.
• Anne Igartiburu, born in 1969, is a Spanish TV presenter and actress.
• Victor Maria Bereicua, born in 1954, is a professional Jai-Alai player, who used the name 'Elorrio,' in honor of his hometown. Elorrio is famous for being the Jai-Alai player shown in the opening credits of the television series Miami Vice.

References