Gavà is a municipality in the Baix Llobregat area, stretching from the Garraf massif (part of the mountain range known as the Serrelada Litoral) to the sea, including the lands of the Llobregat delta.
The name Gavà first appears in a document from the year 1002 and there is archaeological evidence of occupation going right back to prehistory.
According to the archaeological record, the first inhabitants lived in the Can Tintorer area some 6,000 years ago.
Dating from this period of prehistory, when man first discovered the means to control and develop his own sources of subsistence, are the town´s prehistoric mines, the oldest tunnelled mines in Europe, which have been open to visitors since 1993. The mines were a source of variscite, a green stone that was used to make jewellery.

Gavà has conserved important remains from its past

The territory of Gavà was also exploited by the Iberians, who lived in villages such as the one on the Turó de Calamot hill, near the modern town centre. The arrival of the Romans changed this and gradually most of the population began to settle around villas, such as the ones at Can Valls del Racó or Sant Pere de Gavà, located in what is now the old town centre of the modern-day municipality. The intense commercial activity of the period is reflected in remains such as the boats buried in Sorres de Gavà, a spot that 2,000 years ago was under the sea and part of an important anchorage. Among the objects found at the Sorres site, on display at the Gavà Museum, are amphorae, marbles and metalwork, such as helmets, including a reproduction of an Etruscan helmet dating from the 5th century B.C. Such objects are further evidence of intense commercial activity.

After the end of Roman and Visigoth domination, the territory formed part of the frontier between Al-Andalus and the Frankish Empire. The Middle Ages saw the development of feudal structures, which lasted up to the modern period. The territory was organised around the Eramprunyà estate, presided over by the castle of the same name, dating back to the 10th century. The castle dominated a large area covering the modern-day municipalities of Gavà, Castelldefels, Begues, Sant Climent de Llobregat, Viladecans and part of Sant Boi de Llobregat.
Previously the property of the Counts of Barcelona, in the 14th century the estate of Eramprunyà was passed on to the Marcs, a family of knights and poets, who were the lords of the castle until the end of the 16th century, when the fortification, severely damaged by the civil war in the 15th century, began to fall into ruin. A visit to the ruins of the castle and the hermitage of Sant Miquel d´Eramprunyà, with extensive views of the Llobregat Delta and part of the Garraf, provides a unique view of this medieval past. The visit can also take in the hermitage of Mare de Déu de Bruguers, at the foot of the hill on which the ancient castle stands.

Asparagus is the town´s most popular crop and gives the well-known Fira d´Espàrrecs (Asparagus Fair) its name.

From the second half of the 18th century onwards, Gavà, with an agriculture-based economy, began to grow demographically and economically, when the lands of the Llobregat Delta were drained for farming. The centre of the town of Gavà gradually consolidated around the parish church of Sant Pere, on the same site as the modern church. The old centre of Gavà, still largely maintains the original street plan, along with buildings from the period such as Can Lluc, the site of the modern Gavà Museum, Casa Gran and the Rectoria. In the hilly part of the municipality there was an area of dispersed farms, some of which can still be seen today.

For centuries, the main activities were the cultivation of asparagus (an emblematic product that gives its name to the nationally known Fira d´Espàrrecs), vines, cereals and fruits, together with and goat and sheep farming on the mountains and flatter lands. This began to change at the start of the 20th century, influenced by the development of Barcelona and the arrival of the railways (at the end of the 19th century). Industrial activity began to expand, to become, in modern times, the main economic activity, along with services. Commerce is one of the most dynamic sectors in the town and has undergone dramatic growth in recent years to become the real driving force in town life.

Gavà, a modern city meeting new challenges

The economic and social changes that began at the start of the 20th century also shaped the town centre as we now know it.

At that time, the first industries arrived (Electra de Llobregat, Roca Radiadors, Serra i Balet and Societat General d´Hules, among others) along with the first private and public facilities, such as the American Lake park and the Salvador Lluch school. The town underwent its first and biggest demographic growth, leading to the building of new suburbs and the appearance of modern services, such as transport and street lighting, the first schools, cinema, telephones and municipal markets.

With the restoration of democracy, the area began to restore its public use; major public facilities and basic infrastructure were built, the communications network was modernised, new leisure areas were opened, local associations and clubs grew and local traditions were revived. Currently, the town´s inhabitants, over 44,000, mainly work in industry, commerce and service.

Gavà has begun the 21st century by meeting the challenge of becoming an increasingly modern, competitive and lively town.