Xàtiva

Xàtiva

**Xàtiva**(Valencian)
**Játiva**(Spanish)
Xàtiva Xàtiva(Valencian); Játiva(Spanish)
Municipality
	View of Xàtiva
	Flag Coat of arms
	Location of Xàtiva
	Xàtiva Xàtiva
	Coordinates:38°59′25″N0°31′16″W/ 38.99028°N 0.52111°W
Country	Spain
Autonomous community	Valencian Community
Province	Valencia / València
Comarca	Costera
Judicial district	Xàtiva
Government
• Mayor	Roger Cerdà i Boluda (2015) (PSPV-PSOE)
Area
• Total	76.56 km2(29.56 sq mi)
Elevation	115 m (377 ft)
Population (2018)
• Total	29,045
• Density	380/km2(980/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	xativí,-ina(Val.); jativés,-esa/setabense(Sp.)
Time zone	UTC+1(CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2(CEST)
Postal code	46800
Official language(s)	SpanishandValencian
Website	xativa.es

Xàtiva(Valencian:[ˈʃativa];Spanish:Játiva[ˈxatiβa]) is a town in easternSpain,in theprovince of Valencia,on the right (western) bank of the river Albaida and at the junction of theValencia–Murciaand ValenciaAlbaceterailways.^[2]It is located 25 km west of the Mediterranean Sea. During theAl-AndalusIslamic era,Arabsbrought the technology to manufacturepaperto Xàtiva. In the 12th century, Xàtiva was known for its schools, education, and learning circles. Islamic scholarAbu Ishaq al-Shatibi's last name refers to Xàtiva where he lived and died.^[3]After theReconquistaby Northern Christian kingdoms and the following Christian repopulation, the city became the cradle of one of the most powerful and controversial families of theRenaissance,theHouse of Borgia,which produced Popes likeCallixtus III(Alfonso de Borgia) andAlexander VI(Rodrigo de Borgia).

History

Municipal charterof Xàtiva (1252).

Xàtiva (Saetabisin Latin)^[4]was famous in Roman times for its linen fabrics, mentioned by the Latin poetsOvidandCatullus.Xàtiva is also known as an early European centre ofpaper manufacture.In the 12th century,Arabsbrought the technology to manufacturepaperto Xàtiva (Arabic:شاطبةShāṭiba).

It is the birthplace of two popes,Callixtus IIIandAlexander VI,and also the painterJosé Ribera(Lo Spagnoletto). It suffered a dark moment in its history at the hands ofPhilip V of Spain,who, after his victory at theBattle of Almansaduring theWar of the Spanish Succession,had the citybesiegedthen ordered it to be burned and renamedSan Felipe.In memory of the insult, the portrait of the monarch hangs upside down in the localmuseum of l'Almodí.^[5]

Xàtiva was briefly a provincial capital under the short-lived1822 territorial division of Spain,^[6]during theTrienio Liberal.TheProvince of Xàtivawas revoked with the return toabsolutismin 1823.

Main sights

Xàtiva is built on the margin of a fertile plain, and on the northern slopes of the Monte Vernissa, a hill with two peaks crowned byXativa Castle.^[2]

TheCollegiate Basilica,dating from 1414, but rebuilt about a century later in the Renaissance style, was formerly a cathedral, and is the chief among many churches and convents. The town-hall and a church on the castle hill are partly constructed of inscribed Roman masonry, and several houses date from theMoorishperiod.^[2]

Other sights include:

Royal Monastery of the Assumption, Gothic and Baroque style, built during the 14th century and renovated in the 16th–18th centuries.
Natal house of the Pope Alexander VI.
Sant Feliu(St Felix) – 13th century church.
Sant Pere(St Peter) – 14th century church. The interior has aCoffered ceilingdecorated in Gothic-Mudéjar style.
Hermitage of Santa Anna(15th century), in Gothic style.
Almodí,a 14th-century Gothic edifice (1530–1548) now housing a Museum.
Casa de l'Ensenyança, Xàtiva.
Sant Francesc.
Village ofAnahuir.

Panoramic view of Xàtiva

Notable people

Abu al-Qasim al-Shatibi(538–590AH/ 1144–1194 CE)
Abu Ishaq al-Shatibi(720–790 AH / 1320–1388 CE)
Pope Calixtus III(1378–1458)
Pope Alexander VI(1431–1503)
Tomás Cerdán de Tallada(1530–1614)
Diego Ramírez de Arellano(1580–1624)
Jusepe de Ribera(1591–1652)
Jaime Villanueva(1765–1824)
Raimon(born 1940)
Joan Ramos(born 1942)
Toni Cucarella(born 1959)
Feliu Ventura(born 1976)

Gallery

Drawing of Xàtiva byAnton van den Wyngaerdein 1563, commissioned by KingPhilip II of Spain.
Portrait ofPhilip V of Spainpurposefully exhibited upside down in theMuseum of Almodí[es]
Collegiate church
Hospital
Town hall

References

^Municipal Register of Spain 2018.National Statistics Institute.
^^a ^b ^cOne or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Játiva".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 280.
^Muhammad Khalid Masud, Islamic Legal Philosophy: A Study of Abu Ishaq al-Shatibi's Life and Thought, McGill University 1977
^"Definition - Numen - The Latin Lexicon - An Online Latin Dictionary - A Dictionary of the Latin Language".latinlexicon.org.
^"Objectivas"(in Spanish). Archived fromthe originalon May 27, 2007.
^(in Spanish)División provisional del territorio español de 27 de Enero de 1822 ArchivedDecember 14, 2009, at theWayback Machine,the text of the proposed 1822 territorial division of Spain, Instituto de Historia, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CSIC,Spanish National Research Council). Accessed online 2010-01-03.

External links

Official website
Media related toXàtivaat Wikimedia Commons
Xàtivatravel guide from Wikivoyage

[1] Municipal Register of Spain 2018.National Statistics Institute.

[EB1911-2] One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Játiva".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 280.

[3] Muhammad Khalid Masud, Islamic Legal Philosophy: A Study of Abu Ishaq al-Shatibi's Life and Thought, McGill University 1977

[4] "Definition - Numen - The Latin Lexicon - An Online Latin Dictionary - A Dictionary of the Latin Language".latinlexicon.org.

[5] "Objectivas"(in Spanish). Archived fromthe originalon May 27, 2007.

[6] (in Spanish)División provisional del territorio español de 27 de Enero de 1822 ArchivedDecember 14, 2009, at theWayback Machine,the text of the proposed 1822 territorial division of Spain, Instituto de Historia, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CSIC,Spanish National Research Council). Accessed online 2010-01-03.

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