Coimbra information

Coimbra is a city and a municipality in Portugal, former capital of the country during the first dinasty period. The city proper has a population of 101,069 and the municipality has a population of 148,443 inhabitants in a 319.4 km² land area. Over 430,000 inhabitants live in the Greater Metropolitan Area of Coimbra made of 16 municipalities comprising a 3372 km² territory. It is the district seat of Coimbra district, being located in Baixo Mondego subregion, which belongs to the larger Centro region of which it is the capital. Like most university cities, there are also a large number of dislocated students from outside Coimbra residing in the city.
Coimbra is one of the most important urban centers of Portugal after the much larger Lisbon Metropolitan Area and Porto Metropolitan Area conurbations, and plays a role as the chief city of the central part of the country. The city, which was the capital of Portugal from 1139 to about 1260, has a few archeological remains of ruins dating from the time it was a Roman town called Aeminium. Coimbra developed into an important cultural centre, mainly because of the University of Coimbra, founded in 1290, and has notable monuments from that era and beyond. The university is one of the oldest in Europe, and due to its monumental buildings and history, attracts tourists from around the world. (...) more....

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