On his visit to the city in 1862, Hans Christian Andersen remarked that Barcelona was the “Paris of Spain.” The city is indeed a major cultural centre with a remarkable history. It abounds with archives, libraries, museums, and buildings of interest, featuring superb examples of Modernist and Art Nouveau decor and architecture. Since the late 1970s, with the official recognition of the Catalan language and the granting of significant levels of regional self-government, cultural life has been revitalized, bringing with it a new awareness of the depth and variety of Catalan culture. This vitality combines with the striking physical setting of Barcelona—between scenic mountains and the Mediterranean Sea, with a benign climate that fosters street life—and its significance as an economic power and a major port to create a city of infinite variety. Area city, 38 square miles (98 square km); metropolitan area, 1,249 square miles (3,235 square km). Pop. (2006 est.) 1,605,602.

Barcelona, facing the Mediterranean to the southeast, is located on a plain generally confined by the Besós River (north), the Llobregat River (south), the rocky outcrop of Montjuich (567 feet 【173 metres】 high), and the semicircle of mountains of which Tibidabo (1,680 feet 【512 metres】) is the highest point. Throughout its past Barcelona has had to contend with the consequences of its strategic location and political significance. The city was heavily fortified and did not spread much beyond its medieval confines until the 19th century, a factor that contributed to the emergence of industrial satellite suburbs and towns around the city proper. This combination of a concentrated core with a highly developed industrial belt has made Barcelona one of the most congested cities in the world.

Although Barcelona is sometimes windy, its protective semicircle of mountains shields it from the harsh, cold winds that blow out of the north and west. The average annual temperature is 61 °F (16 °C); January is the coldest month, averaging 49 °F (9 °C), and August is the hottest, at 76 °F (24 °C). Precipitation amounts to about 23 inches (600 mm) per year.

At the core of the city lies the Gothic Quarter. Located between the Ramblas, a series of connected boulevards, going southeastward to the sea, and the Via Laietana, it is a close-packed maze of narrow streets punctuated by magnificent medieval buildings. The cathedral, episcopal palace, and churches bear witness to Barcelona's importance as a religious centre. The government buildings—such as the Palace of the Generalitat (the seat of the autonomous community of Catalonia), a 14th–15th-century building with Baroque and Neoclassical facades, and the Royal Palace—attest to the city's importance as an administrative capital. The Roman walls survive in places largely because stretches of them were incorporated into the medieval city, and the wall built in the 13th century along the Ramblas effectively hemmed it in. The defenses that played such a large part in the battle for Barcelona during the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–14) were augmented by the construction of a citadel after the city was taken.

By the mid-19th century the need for elaborate defenses had passed, and the city was bursting at the seams. Accordingly, plans were devised to extend the city. The final plans were based on geometric blocks, allowing for open spaces, greenery, and social areas. The area into which the town expanded, now called L'Eixample (“the Extension”), was open land left originally to give a clear field of fire from the city walls. Unfortunately, the plans were not carried out completely, and within 30 years the open areas were exploited, causing the density of buildings to triple. The city expanded following the annexing of the old municipalities surrounding Barcelona. Urban sprawl and uncontrolled development during the Francisco Franco era added to the congestion. The 1992 Olympic Games allowed for some renovation of deteriorated and poorly planned areas.

Immigration has played a key part in the economic growth of the region. Up to one-third of the population of modern Barcelona was born outside Catalonia, a condition that has caused some social strain, given the Catalans' firm sense of national identity and their aloof attitude, which is often displayed toward the rest of Spain as a whole. In many respects, however, the city is outward-looking, conscious of cultural trends in the rest of Europe and of its historical links with other Mediterranean countries.

The Catalans are renowned for their business acumen. Emphasis commercially is on small firms, large chain stores, and among the companies registered in Catalonia few have more than 200 people on their payrolls. Nonetheless, it has become policy to attract major international investors to the region. The city has a free economic zone near the port, the zona franca, where distribution centres are concentrated. Barcelona is a major site for conferences, exhibitions, and trade fairs. The main event, La Fira (Feria de Barcelona), has been held annually since 1929 at the Palacio de las Naciones, the exhibition centre on Montjuich. Barcelona has a thriving stock exchange and is a major international commercial and financial centre.

Barcelona, the traditional centre of Catalan movements for independence, is the capital of both the province of Barcelona and the autonomous community of Catalonia. The city is governed as a municipio (municipality) of Spain, and its elections are held every four years. The councillors elect the mayor, who selects three deputies from their number to assist in the duties of the mayor's office.

Under the present government, services have been decentralized and made more accountable to the public. Electricity is supplied from sources in France as well as elsewhere in Spain, and some hydroelectric power comes from the Pyrenees. Nuclear power plants at Vandellós, in the province of Tarragona, are of particular importance to the city. A receiving terminal for natural gas has been installed in the port to supply a regional distribution network, but many private houses rely on bottled butane gas. With the rapid growth of the population after World War II, water supply has become a problem. Local rivers cannot supply both industrial and domestic needs. Some drinking water is drawn upstream from the Llobregat, but more is provided by the Ter River in the province of Girona.

The University of Barcelona was founded in 1450. It is one of seven public and private universities in the city. Others include the Autonomous University of Barcelona (1968) and the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (1971). Most courses in the municipality's schools are taught in Spanish and Catalan.

Barcelona has long been a major cultural centre. It has an abundance of archives and libraries, including dozens of specialized collections, many of which are in private hands. Barcelona is in fact one of the major publishing centres for the Spanish-speaking world, and the Fiesta del Libro (“Book Party”), held on April 23, is a historical and social tradition and a major event for the book trade. April 23 is also the feast day of Catalonia's patron saint, St. George.

The more classical forms of culture are well represented. The Liceu Opera House, founded in 1847, presents opera and ballet performances. A fire destroyed the landmark building in 1994; it has since been rebuilt. The Romea Theatre has been a focal point of Catalan-language drama since the 19th century. Classical music is amply provided by the Music Palace and the city's symphony orchestra.

Perhaps the most striking feature of culture in Barcelona is its easy availability at many levels—from major art exhibitions at the Pedralbes Palace to the pavement artists in the Ramblas. A large copper fish sculpture by architect Frank Gehry stands at the Olympic Port entrance. The city's financial and cultural wealth drew international attention when Barcelona hosted the Olympic Games in 1992. There is a zoo in Ciutadella Park.

According to tradition, Barcelona was founded by either the Phoenicians or the Carthaginians, who had trading posts along the Catalonian coast. It is no longer thought, however, that the city owes its name to the family of the Carthaginian leader Hamilcar Barca. In Roman times the Colonia Faventia Julia Augusta Pia Barcino did not become a centre of any real importance until the 3rd century AD. During the three centuries of Visigothic occupation, the city was known as Barcinona. It became an important religious centre before the arrival of the Moors in AD 717.

Barjelūnah, as the Moors called the city, was seen as a prime objective by the Carolingian (Carolingian dynasty) Franks, who gained control of it in 801 and, under an appointed count, established the Ebro River on the edge of Catalonia as the southerly limit of their power. In 985 the city was sacked by the forces of al-Manṣūr, chief minister of the Umayyad caliphate of Córdoba. The counts of Barcelona consolidated their influence over Catalonia in the 10th and 11th centuries, and, after the union of Catalonia and Aragon in 1137, Barcelona grew into a major trading city.

Barcelona was weakened by outbreaks of plague in the 14th century and began to decline when Naples became the capital of the Catalan-Aragonese kingdom in 1442. The advent of the Habsburg monarchy, the rise of Turkish power in the Mediterranean, and the discovery of America all furthered this decline. Relations with the court in Madrid worsened in the 17th century. After 1705, when the Catalans permitted the archduke Charles III of Austria to establish his court in Barcelona, honouring his claim to the Spanish throne during the War of the Spanish Succession, Philip V of Spain besieged Barcelona. After the city fell in 1714, Philip dismantled all forms of local self-government. Ironically, this led to a period of prosperity spurred largely by the development of the cotton industry.

Barcelona found itself occupied again, this time by Napoleon's troops, from 1808 to 1813. The war with the French left the province ravaged, but the postwar period saw the start of industrialization. The growth of the textile industry was to have a twofold effect: It led to the development of a modern industrial sector and to the emergence of Catalonia as Spain's wealthiest region. It also led to rapid population growth and the development of class conflict between the bourgeoisie and industrial workers. Anarchist movements flourished, and the period up to the Spanish Civil War was punctuated by unrest. Notable incidents include the uprising of 1835 in which a number of convents were burned; the riots in the mid-1850s over the introduction of automated machinery; and the Setmana Tràgica (Catalan: “Tragic Week”) in 1909, which led to more church burning.

On a positive note, the exhibition of 1888 attracted 400,000 visitors, and by 1900 nearly half of Spain's imports came via Catalonia. The area's economic strength led to the reemergence of calls for self-rule, culminating in a period of semiautonomy from 1913 to 1923. In 1931 a Catalan republic was declared in Barcelona. The following year the region attained a significant level of self-government, and it was the main centre of Republican strength when the Civil War broke out in 1936. Its fall in January 1939 led to the final surrender of the Republic.

Defeat brought the loss of many regional rights and privileges, and even the Catalan language was prohibited for a time. Only in 1977 was the Generalitat, an autonomous Catalan government, restored. Agreements with the Spanish national government, signed in 1979, outlined new areas for self-government and encouraged a wide range of developments in Barcelona.

Barcelona hosted the Olympic Games in 1992, which helped revitalize the city; the once run-down waterfront was renovated to include a promenade, marina, restaurants, beaches, and cultural attractions. A convention centre and auditorium were built in the east of the city to host Forum 2004, an international conference promoting economic development and cultural diversity.

city, capital of Anzoátegui estado (state), northeastern Venezuela. Established in 1671 from a merger of two settlements, the town was named for the capital of the Spanish home province of its Catalan founders. On the west bank of the Neverí River, 3 miles (5 km) inland from the Caribbean Sea and about 200 miles (320 km) east of Caracas, it lies in the Barcelona Gap, through which the Llanos (plains) extend from the interior to the sea. Barcelona is an important cattle-shipping centre as well as an outlet for coffee grown in the high interior valleys and for the important oil fields nearest the northern Venezuelan coast. Although the city's commercial and industrial development has been erratic, it has prospered as a part of the Barcelona–Guanta–Puerto La Cruz industrial complex. The country's principal coalfields (lignite and semibituminous) are nearby. Pop. (2001) 328,000.