Eibar
Municipality
Panorámica de Éibar
Flag of Eibar
Flag
Coat of arms of Eibar
Coat of arms
Eibar is located in the Basque Country
Eibar
Eibar
Location of Eibar within the Basque Autonomous Community
Eibar is located in Spain
Eibar
Eibar
Eibar (Spain)
Coordinates: 43°11′N 2°28′W / 43.183°N 2.467°W / 43.183; -2.467
CountrySpain
Autonomous communityBasque Country
ProvinceGipuzkoa
EskualdeaDebabarrena
Government
 • MayorJon Iraola (PSE-EE)
Area
 • Total24.56 km2 (9.48 sq mi)
Elevation
121 m (397 ft)
Population
 (2018)[1]
 • Total27,406
 • Density1,100/km2 (2,900/sq mi)
WebsiteOfficial website

Eibar (Basque: Eibar, Spanish: Éibar) is a city and municipality within the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country of Spain. It is the capital of the eskualde / comarca of Debabarrena.

Eibar has 27,138 inhabitants (Eustat, 2018).[2] Its chief industry is metal manufacturing, and the city has been known since the 16th century for the manufacture of armaments, particularly finely engraved small arms. It was also the home of Serveta scooters.

It is home to the SD Eibar football team.

Geography

Eibar lies at an altitude of 121m above sea level, in the west of the province of Gipuzkoa, very close to Biscay.[3] Eibar has an oceanic climate. The town lies in a narrow valley in a mountainous area, with mountains like Karakate, Kalamua and Akondia being between 700 and 800 metres tall. Eibar is traversed by the river Ego, which is a tributary of the Deba.[4]

Apart from the urban area, the municipality consists of five rural neighbourhoods: Otaola-Kinarraga, Aginaga, Arrate, Mandiola and Gorosta.[5]

History

The city was chartered by Alfonso XI of Castile in 1346, receiving the name of Villanueva de San Andrés de Heybar.[6][7]

The feudal families that dominated the territory engaged in the War of the Bands. Eibar, like the rest of settlements in the valley, had an industry based on finery forges and arms manufacturing. In 1766, Eibar was engaged in a social revolt known as the Machinada, and years later, in 1794, it was attacked by the French, who destroyed the town.[6]

In the 19th century, industrialisation transformed the systems of production in the city and spawned a powerful social movement. In the Carlist Wars, Eibar sided with the Liberals. The labour movement and socialism became particularly strong in Eibar. In 1931, it was the first city in Spain to proclaim the Second Spanish Republic; in recognition it was given the title of "Very Exemplary City".[6][8]

In the Spanish Civil War, Eibar was practically destroyed by Italian bombers aiding the Nationalists. The subsequent rebuilding brought significant industrial development and a demographic increase, as Eibar's population increased to nearly 40,000 within a few years.[6][9]

Due to the lack of space for expansion, several factories moved to Durangaldea and Álava.[10] The industrial crisis in the 1980s also caused Eibar to lose a great part of its population.[6]

At the beginning of the 21st century, Eibar's economy is based on industry and services.[6]

Main sights

  • Church of San Andrés, built during the 16th and 17th centuries, it has a Gothic style with Renaissance and Baroque elements.[13]
  • Sanctuary of the Virgin of Arrate, from the beginning of the 17th century.[14]
  • Hermitage of Azitain, it contains a rare 17th-century beardless Christ.[15]
  • Palace of Unzueta, from the 17th century.[16]
  • Palace of Aldatze, from the 17th century.[17]
  • Palace of Markeskua, from the 16th century.[18]
  • City Hall, built in concrete over the river Ego, designed by architect Ramón Cortázar and inaugurated on 14 September 1901.[19]
  • Coliseo Theatre, inaugurated in 1947 and refurbished in 2007.[20]

Transport

Road

Eibar is traversed by the AP-8 motorway connecting Bilbao and the French border, and the N-634 road running parallel to it. The AP-1 motorway connects Eibar and Vitoria-Gasteiz. AP-8 and AP-1 meet at the Maltzaga motorway junction located in the east of Eibar.[21]

Regular and frequent bus services under Lurraldebus connect Eibar to neighbouring towns, San Sebastián, Vitoria-Gasteiz and Bilbao Airport.[22] BizkaiBus provides regular and frequent bus services to and from Bilbao.[23] ALSA runs a daily service to and from Madrid-Barajas Airport and Madrid.[24]

Eibar also has an urban bus service called Udalbus.[25]

Railway
Train station.

Eibar is located on the Bilbao-San Sebastián narrow gauge railway line. Trains operated by Euskotren run frequently and regularly to Bilbao-Matiko station and Donostia-Amara station. Services are more frequent in the Ermua-Eibar-Elgoibar section.

There are five stations in Eibar, from west to east: Unibertsitatea-Eibar, Amaña-Eibar, Ardantza-Eibar, Eibar and Azitain-Eibar.

Education

The Gipuzkoa Faculty of Engineering of the University of the Basque Country has a campus in Eibar. The campus offers an undergraduate program in renewable energy engineering.[26]

The Escuela de Armería, founded in 1913, is the oldest vocational training school in Spain.[27]

Sport

Football

Eibar is home to SD Eibar, who earned promotion to La Liga in the 2013-14 season. After seven seasons in the top division, it was relegated to Segunda División in the 2020–21 season. The team plays at the Ipurua Municipal Stadium.

The women's section of SD Eibar was granted promotion to the Primera División in the 2019–20 season. After two seasons in the top division, it was relegated to Primera Federación in the 2021–22 season. The team plays at the Unbe Sports Complex.

Basque pelota

The Astelena fronton, nicknamed the Cathedral of Basque Hand-pelota, is a regular venue of the hand-pelota professional circuit competitions the Bare-handed Pelota First League, the Bare-handed Pelota First League Doubles and the Cuatro y Medio Euskadi Championship.

Cycling

Since 2009, the city has hosted an annual stage finish in the Tour of the Basque Country, usually after the riders have climbed the Alto de Arrate. Before 2009, this was a traditional finish in the Euskal Bizikleta, which originated in Eibar as Bicicleta Eibarresa.[28] The Arrate finish has also been included in the Vuelta a España in 1972, 1974, 2012 and 2020.[29][30]

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ↑ Municipal Register of Spain 2018. National Statistics Institute.
  2. ↑ "Eibar". Basque Statistics Office. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  3. ↑ "Eibar". Foral Council of Gipuzkoa (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  4. ↑ "Eibar". Egoibarra (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  5. ↑ "Baserriak eta auzoak". Egoibarra (in Basque). Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Historia de Eibar". Egoibarra (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  7. ↑ "Año 1346". Cronología Histórica (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  8. ↑ Ormazabal, Mikel (14 April 2011). "Eibar, el orgullo republicano". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  9. ↑ "Habitantes de Eibar". Egoibarra (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  10. ↑ "La inmigración llegada a Eibar contribuyó a la construcción de una ciudad mejor". El Diario Vasco (in Spanish). 2 April 2016. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  11. ↑ Eibarko ahozko ondarea, from Ahotsak.com website.
  12. ↑ Ahotsak.com. Youtube (January 2014). Eibarko ahozko ondarea. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6P7TxE8OLY
  13. ↑ "Parroquia San Andrés". Egoibarra (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  14. ↑ "Santuario de Arrate". Egoibarra (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  15. ↑ "El Cristo imberbe, uno de los pocos que hay en el mundo". El Correo (in Spanish). 26 February 2010. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  16. ↑ "Casa-Torre de Unzueta". Basque Country Tourism Department (in Spanish). 15 January 2007. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  17. ↑ "Palacio Iñarra (Aldatze)". Egoibarra (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  18. ↑ "Palacio de los Isasi (Markeskua)". Basque Country Tourism Department (in Spanish). November 2007. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  19. ↑ "Casa Consistorial de Eibar". Basque Country Tourism Department (in Spanish). 15 January 2007. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  20. ↑ "Teatro Coliseo". Eibar City Council (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  21. ↑ "Carreteras". Foral Council of Gipuzkoa (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  22. ↑ "Líneas y Horarios". Lurraldebus (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  23. ↑ "Bizkaibus". Foral Council of Biscay (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  24. ↑ "Se pone en marcha el nuevo servicio de autobús desde Eibar hasta Madrid". El Diario Vasco (in Spanish). 21 September 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  25. ↑ "Servicio Udalbus Eibar". City Council of Eibar (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  26. ↑ "We Are Two Sections". University of the Basque Country (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  27. ↑ Zubía y otros, Rafael (1989). Escuela de Armería de Éibar Eibarko Armeria Eskola 75 urteurrena. CIUDAD: Eibar EDITORIAL: Escuela de Armería. BI 1171/89.
  28. ↑ "Euskal Bizikleta: una carrera con base histórica". Juanjo Sebastian (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  29. ↑ "El Santuario de Arrate, final de etapa de la Vuelta Ciclista a España" (in Spanish). SER. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  30. ↑ "La Vuelta de otoño pierde tres etapas". El País (in Spanish). 19 April 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  31. ↑ Lorenzo, Clara G. (2021-09-09). "Muere la pintora Alicia Iturrioz a los 94 años" [The Painter Alicia Iturrioz Dies at 94]. La Nueva España (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2021-09-09. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
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