Benabarre is the historical and cultural capital of the comarca. It is part of the geo-linguistic area of La Franja, where Ribagorçan dialect of Catalan is spoken. In ancient texts it appears as Benabarri.
It is a very old town, probably the Roman "Bargidum" or "Bargusia", and it is said that it was given to the Arabs taking the name of their first lord Aben Avarre. It was conquered from Islam around the year 1062 (although there is no document proving the exact date). What leaves no doubt is that it was conquered by Ramiro I of Aragon for the Kingdom of Aragon within the same military campaign in which he conquered, immediately north of the town, the places of Luzás, Viacamp y Litera, Tolva, Laguarres and Lascuarre, and to the south of the town, but north of Purroy and Caserras, the lands of Falces, Falcibus, from one of whose houses and its alloys, the king granted a franchise to Agila de Falces and brothers on February 1, 1067 (as documented on that date).
Traditionally, Benabarre was the capital of the historic County of Ribagorza, which was more expansive in territory than today, and included the comarca of Alta Ribagorça, now in the province of Lleida, Catalonia. It was during the Spanish War of Independence, from 1808 to 1814, that the French Napoleonic troops, in retaliation against the inhabitants of Benabarre, decided to make Graus the capital of the comarca. Ever since, Benabarre ceased to be the administrative capital, but it is still the most important cultural and historical center of the region. During the First Carlist War (1833–1840) it was one of the towns that suffered the most from those in the province of Huesca.
Entença. Located on the left bank of the Cajigar river. It belongs to Benabarre since 1974. The castle of the town was the origin of the Entença Barony.
Benabarre (capital of the municipality). (Its streets maintain a medieval structure). Located 1km to the north is the old Dominican Monastery of Our Lady of Linares.
Caladrones. It is located on a hill on the left bank of the Río Guart. From the old Castle of Caladrones only the tower remains. In 1974, the municipal term of Caladrones along with its towns: Caladrones, Ciscar and Entença, was annexed to the one of Benabarre.
Castilló del Pla. Located at the foot of the Corrodella range, at 762 meters of altitude. Previously it was part of the municipality of Pilzán.
Ciscar. Located at 591 meters of altitude on the right bank of the Cajigar river.
Estaña. It is located at 716 meters of altitude in the mountains that separate the Guart River and the waters of "La Sosa" (Cinca river).
Pilzán. At 905 meters of altitude above sea level. Until 1972 it was an independent municipality. The population entities that included the term were: Estaña, Castilló del Pla, the depopulated of Penavera i Cabestany, and la quadra d'Andolfa.
Purroy de la Solana. Located above the ravine "El Molí". Independent term until 1974. The municipality included the hermitage of Nuestra Señora del Pla.
The most remarkable act is the pastorada between the master and the ramadá (shepherd), and the typical dance El ball dels palitrocs. It is also held the Baixada de Carricotxes, a float ornament contest.
August
Ball dels Salvatges: Recently recovered representation. It is a type of theater with a series of dances starring men of different social status, whose purpose is to conquer a lady. Since 2010 it is a biennial representation.
The summer carnival is held on the third weekend of August.
The Holy Week procession is also well known in the Ribagorza, and begins on Holy Friday at 10pm from the Our Lady of Valdeflores church square.
Also noticeable are the Hermitage of Santa Maria of Caladrones and the Hermitage of San Salvador of Entença, as well as churches of Saint Romanus of Estaña, Saint Stephen of Estaña, Saint James of Entença, Saint Anne of Caladrones, Santa María of Aler, Saint Cristopher of Ciscar and Saint Michael of Ciscar.
Illustrious Benabarrenses
Juan II de Ribagorza (or Juan de Aragón): count of Ribagorza, lieutenant of Catalonia and viceroy of Naples (1457–1528)
↑Carlos Ángel Rizos Jiménez and Moisés Selfa Sastre (2009). Municipio de Benavarri (Benabarrre). Toponimia de Ribagorza. Editorial Milenio-Gobierno de Aragón. ISBN978-84-9743-303-7.
↑As shown in the Legislative Decree 2/2006Archived 2009-04-23 at the Wayback Machine of 27 December, of the Government of Aragon, by the revised text of the Law on Comarcal Demarcation of Aragon is approved.
↑Temprado Ordíaz, Santiago (1993). Pueblos de Aragón: Paterna (in Spanish). Ed. Alcañiz. p.230. Archived from the original on 2016-03-28. Retrieved 2020-06-24.
↑Ubieto Arteta, Antonio (1981). Historia de Aragón, la formación territorial (in Spanish). Anubar. pp.51–52. ISBN9788470131813.
↑Secretaría de Estado para las Administraciones Territoriales (Ministerio de la Presidencia y para las Administraciones Territoriales, Gobierno de España) (May 6, 2018). "Base de datos de Alcaldes. Elecciones 1979–2015". Archived from the original on April 19, 2018. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
Aragon
.svg){kind=small}
