Priory (comarca)

Priory
	The location of the Comarca Priory in Catalonia
Basic data
Province:	Tarragona
Main place:	Falset
Surface:	498.6 km²
Residents:	9245 (2019)
Municipalities:	23

The Comarca Priorat is located in the province of Tarragona of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia ( Spain ). The community association has an area of 498.6 km² and 9245 inhabitants (2019). Priorat has the lowest population of all comarcas in Catalonia. The name of the Comarca Priorat can be traced back to the head of the monastery , the prior of the Carthusian monastery of Santa Maria d'Escaladei , founded in the 12th century .

location

The community association is located in the southwestern part of Catalonia, west of the provincial capital Tarragona . It borders in the north on the Comarca Garrigues , in the northeast on Conca de Barberà , in the east on Baix Camp , in the south and west on Ribera d'Ebre . Together with the comarcas Alt Camp , Baix Camp, Baix Penedès , Conca de Barberà and Tarragonès , the region forms the territory of Camp de Tarragona .

The entire comarca lies in the catchment area of the rivers Siurana and Montsant . The landscape is mostly hilly, in the north of the comarca the Montsant Mountains extend with mountains of over 1000 m height. The highest point of the comarca is the Roca Corbatera (1,163 m). To the south are the Serra Paradell, Serra Llaberia, Serra del Montalt and Mola de Colldejou mountain ranges (912 m).

climate

The climate is continental , dry in summer and cold in winter.

economy

Ruins of the Santa Maria d'Escaladei Charterhouse

The comarca is fully covered by two appellations of origin for viticulture and has a very old winemaking tradition. The former Carthusian monastery of Santa Maria d'Escaladei has been dedicated to viticulture since it was founded in the 12th century. The interior of the comarca, the "Priorat històric" (historical priory), belongs to the Denominación de Origen Calificada (DOCa) priory , the rest of the comarca to the Denominación de Origen (DO) Montsant .

Another important agricultural product is olive oil . An average of 4,800 tons of olives and 950 tons of oil are produced on around 3,500 hectares of cultivation area. The small olive variety "Arbequina" (95%) is mainly grown. This olive oil has the protected designation of origin Siurana .

The area is also known for its hazelnut cultivation .

The priory suffered from a steady population decline through rural exodus in the 20th century . More recently, however, since around 2004, this development has ended thanks to the positive economic development.

Communities

Map of the priory

Status: 2019

local community	Residents	Area (km²)	local community	Residents	Area (km²)
Bellmunt del Priorat	280	9.00	Masroig, el	497	15.79
Bisbal de Falset, la	216	14.08	Molar, el	297	22.97
Cabacés	298	31.21	Morera de Montsant, la	152	53.17
Capçanes	398	22.39	Poboleda	313	13.76
Cornudella de Montsant	941	62.90	Porrera	439	28.77
Falset	2834	32.02	Pradell de la Teixeta	152	21.92
La Figuera	111	18.67	Torre de Fontaubella, la	138	7.15
Gratallops	229	13.38	Torroja de Priorat	149	13.20
Guiamets, els	270	11.76	Ulldemolins	396	38.05
Lloar, el	107	6.79	Vilella Alta, la	135	5.25
Margalef	97	34.62	Vilella Baixa, la	202	5.55
Marçà	594	16.17

Web links

Commons : Priorat - collection of images, videos and audio files

Comarca website (Catalan)
Association of municipalities (Catalan, Spanish, English, German, French, Italian)
Tourism (in Catalan) (German, Catalan, Spanish, English, French)
gencat-Turisme (Catalan, Spanish, English, German, French)
IDESCAT: statistical information on the comarca