Machico
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| Machico | |
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| Coat of Arms | Flag |
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| Statistics | |
| Region: | Madeira Islands |
| District: | Madeira Island |
| Population: | 21,747 2001 |
| Area: | 67.73 km² |
| Density | 321.08/km² |
| Altitude: | Lowest: Atlantic Ocean Centre: 122 m (403 ft) Highest: - |
| Number of parishes: | 5 |
| Time Zone: | Greenwich Mean Time (GMT-0) Western Africa Time during daylight? |
Machico (pron. IPA: [mɐ'ʃiku]) is a city and a municipality located in the northeastern part of the Madeira Islands. The city was founded in 1451. Machico is the easternmost municipality on the island and is the third most populous city after the capital Funchal and Câmara de Lobos. The population of the municipality was 21,747 in 2001. The city itself has a population of 10,894.[1]
It is located 17 km NE of Funchal, NW of the Savage Islands, 20 km SE of Santana and WSW of Porto Santo.
- Location:
- Latitude: 32.7 (32°42') N
- Longitude: 16.7667 (16°46') W
Machico is linked with road to Funchal and Santana and a small road connecting Ribeira Seca and Caniçal. The mountains lie to the west and a smaller range to the northeast.
The main source of the economy is agriculture, tourism, and fishing while a small number of businesses are in the downtown area. The forests lie to the central and western parts while the grasslands covers the northeastern portion. The harbor has an excellent promenade with lights and offers a view of Machico, the mountain slopes and the road linking to Santana and the northern part of the island. A small harbor filled with yachts lies east of Machico.
Machico has several primary schools, lower secondary school, an upper secondary school, banks, a post office, a small port, beaches and squares or plazas (praças).
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[edit] History
Legend has it that the name Machico has a romantic origin: apparently two desperate lovers, Robert Machim, (or McKean) and Anna d'Arfet (or Dorset) fled from Bristol by boat around 1370. A terrible storm caused them to crash on the shores of Madeira, right around where modern day Machico is. Sadly, the two lovebirds didn't last long on the island, but local lore has it that Machico was named after Robert Machim.
[edit] Parishes
The 5 parishes of Machico include:
The largest parish in population and density is Machico, while the smallest parish in population is Santo António da Serra. The largest parish in area and the smallest parish in density is Porto da Cruz, while the smallest in area is Água de Pena. The highest parish is Santo António da Serra.
[edit] Settlements and geographic areas
[edit] Parish of Machico
The parish has a population of 10,894, its density is 686.2/km² and the area is 17.41 km².
