Cangas de Onís

For the Cangas de Onis meteorite of 1866, see Meteorite falls.
Cangas de Onís
Cangues d'Onís
Municipality

The hump-backed "Roman Bridge" on the Sella River

Flag
Coat of arms
Cangas de Onís

Location in Spain

Coordinates: 43°21′N 5°8′W / 43.350°N 5.133°W / 43.350; -5.133
Country  Spain
Autonomous community  Asturias
Province Asturias
Comarca Oriente
Judicial district Cangas de Onís
Capital Cangas de Onís
Government
 • Alcalde Jose Manuel González Castro (PP)
Area
 • Total 212.75 km2 (82.14 sq mi)
Highest elevation 2,478 m (8,130 ft)
Population
 • Total 6,731
 • Density 32/km2 (82/sq mi)
Demonym(s) cangués
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 33547 to 33559
Website Official website

Cangas de Onís (Asturian: Cangues d'Onís) is a municipality in the eastern part of the province and autonomous community of Asturias in the northwest of Spain. The capital of the municipality is also Cangas de Onís.

More than seventy square kilometres of the concejo form part of the Parque nacional de los Picos de Europa. Within the park is the village of Covadonga, where the battle of Covadonga (about 722), the first major victory by a Christian military force in Iberia after the Islamic conquest, marks the starting-point of the Reconquista.

Until 774, Cangas de Onís was the capital of the Kingdom of Asturias. It was the site of the first church constructed in post-conquest Iberia, Santa Cruz de Cangas de Onís (737), built on an ancient dolmen.

Vegetation

Given its varied height it has many types of plants, including many mountain shrubs, heather; oak, have and ash trees, rounded by grassland and copes.

Economy

The main economic activities of this region are agriculture and cattle rearing along with rural tourism. The nearby Covadonga Sanctuary and its surrounding lakes are one of the main tourist destinations in Asturias.

Parishes

Cangas de Onís is divided in eleven parishes:

The capital of the municipality is the parish of Cangas de Onís. It is 27.22 km2 (10.51 sq mi) in size with a population of 4,326 (INE 2005). The postal code is 33550 and is divided in several villages:

Gallery

External links

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Cangas de Onís.

Coordinates: 43°21′00″N 5°07′00″W / 43.35°N 5.116667°W / 43.35; -5.116667

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