Oiartzun
Oiartzun (Basque: Oiartzun, Spanish: Oyarzun) is a town and municipality located in the Basque Country, in the province of Gipuzkoa lying at the foot of the massif Aiako Harria (Peñas de Aya in Spanish).
Oiartzun | |
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 Coat of arms | |
  Oiartzun Location of Oiartzun within the Basque Autonomous Community | |
| Coordinates: 43°17′55″N 1°51′40″W | |
| Country |  |
| Autonomous community |  |
| Province | Gipuzkoa |
| Eskualdea | Oarsoaldea |
| Founded | 1453 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Jexux Leonet Elizegi (EH Bildu) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 59.71 km2 (23.05 sq mi) |
| Population (2018)[1] | |
| • Total | 10,276 |
| • Density | 170/km2 (450/sq mi) |
| Demonym(s) | Basque: oiartzuar Spanish: oyarsonense |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Postal code | 20180 |
| Website | Official website |
The name traces back to the Oiasso or Oiarso of the Roman period, an important town dedicated to mining and marine activities. However, it has been pinpointed to the current border town of Irun, so the name may have referred to the whole area.
A river bearing the same name meanders through the meadows and neighbourhoods of this sparse municipality. That is one of its main features, it is scattered in different quarters across the valley. Elizalde lies on a prominence and it is the central nucleus of the town, with the main church San Esteban and town hall being located there. At the foot of Elizalde lies Altzibar by the Oiartzun River. Ugaldetxo developed into an urban built-up area surrounded by industrial estates near the AP-8 motorway, while the rest of the neighbourhoods have hung onto their rural and picturesque landscape to a large extent.
Alfonso VIII of Castile chartered it as town but it took some decades before its independence from Orereta was total.
The town's football club, Oiartzun KE, plays at Karla Lekuona. The women's side has competed in the highest division of Spanish football, making Oiartzun one of the smallest towns in the country home to a top-flight club.
Notable people born in Oiartzun
- Xabier Lete, (1944 - 2010), writer, poet, singer and politician.
- Izaskun Zubizarreta Guerendiain, (1970 - ), Spanish ski mountaineer.
- Juan María Lekuona, (1927 - 2005), priest, poet and linguist
- Rafael Picavea y Leguía, (1867 - Paris, France, 1946), industrialist, politician and journalist.
Twinnings
References
- Municipal Register of Spain 2018. National Statistics Institute.
External links
- Roman Museum of Oiasso (Basque, Spanish, English and French)
- Town Hall official site (Basque and Spanish)
- Guispuscoa Government site: Oiartzun (Basque and Spanish)
- OIARTZUN in the Bernardo Estornés Lasa - Auñamendi Encyclopedia (Euskomedia Fundazioa) Information available in Spanish
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