Today is a public holiday in Valencia, the third largest city in Spain, called the Dia de la Comunitat Valenciana. It commemorates the historic entry of King James I into the city of Valencia in 1238, marking the founding of the Kingdom of Valencia. 10 things you might not know about Valencia.
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The name of the city derives from the name given to it by the Romans, who founded a settlement here as a reward for soldiers who had fought under Decimus Junius Brutus Callaicus during the Lusitanian wars. They named it Valēntia, meaning valour or strength. Although for a while, the place was under Islamic rule, and was then known as Medina at-Tarab, which depending on the transliteration, means either “City of Sands” or “City of Joy.”
Valencia is responsible for several “firsts”: the first printed book, a collection of poems was published in Valencia in1474; the first psychiatric hospital, opened in 1410; the first public bank, opened for merchants in the early 1400s; dating back even further, to the year 960, the oldest functioning judicial body in the world, Tribunal de las Aguas (Water Tribunal). Every Thursday, at noon, eight farmers dressed in black sit in a circle and settle irrigation disputes in public, with no written records. And a notable “last” – Valencia was the location of the last Spanish Inquisition execution. A schoolteacher called Cayetano Ripoll was executed for not believing in God in 1826.
The symbol of the city is a Bat, referred to as Lo Rat Penat (the Flying Rat). The reason? A legend regarding King Jaume I, who set out to take the city back from the Moors in 1238. One night, a bat got into his room and woke him up, which was lucky for him, because it meant a raid by the Moors didn’t catch him napping! It’s said he put the animal on the city’s coat of arms in gratitude.
The world’s second narrowest building is here (the narrowest is in Brazil), just 107cm wide. It was built that way for tax reasons, as property tax was based on how wide a building was. It was once an actual home, although today it’s an extension to a neighbouring Tapas bar.
A rather larger building is The City of Arts and Sciences, futuristic edifice designed by Santiago Calatrava which cost over a billion euros to build. Inside, there are a science museum, opera house, a planetarium and the world’s largest aquarium.
Valencia’s largest park, Turia park, used to be a river. However, when the river flooded in 1957, causing a fatal disaster, it was decided to divert the river away from the city. The original plan was to turn it into a motorway, but locals protested against that idea and it was made into a park instead.
Valencia’s cathedral is home to what could be the actual Holy Grail, or so it’s claimed. There’s no definite proof, and Jerusalem and Rome make similar claims. That hasn’t stopped thousands of tourists from going to have a look, or Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI from using it ceremoniously.
Every March there is a famous spring festival called Las Fallas, which lasts 19 days. There’s food, processions, music, Fireworks, and giant paper mache sculptures which are burned to the ground on the last day.
Valencia is said to be the birthplace of Paella, since the Moors introduced it in the 10th century. It’s also nicknamed the Orange capital of Spain as 50% of the country’s oranges are grown here.
Valencia has its own language – Valenciano, a regional language closely related to Catalan.
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