Vallès
historical county in Catalonia, Spain
El Vallès (Catalan pronunciation: [əl βəˈʎɛs], or simply Vallès) is a historical county in Catalonia, Spain, located in the center of the Catalan Pre-Coastal Range. It is nowadays represented by two separate administrative divisions (comarques) which are part of the Barcelona Province: the Western Vallès, which has two capitals, Sabadell and Terrassa; and the Eastern Vallès, with Granollers as its capital.
The present division of Vallès has its historical roots in the legal districts of Granollers and Terrassa, established in 1834. However, the first time this subdivision was explicitly used as sanctioned by law was in 1936, with the official division of Catalonia in comarques. In 2015, four of the municipalities in Eastern Vallès became part of a newly created comarca: the Moianès. Some parts of the Vallès region belong to the metropolitan area of Barcelona and the Àmbit Metropolità de Barcelona(metropolitan region of Barcelona), and is nowadays connected with Barcelona with public transportations systems such as FGC's so-called Metro del Vallès.
The public source identifies “Vallès” as historical county in Catalonia, Spain. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Vallès, historical and county.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Vallès”, the useful work is to connect “historical county in Catalonia, Spain” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 27, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3320618. Authority coordinates are 41.565, 2.258. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1834, 1936 and 2015.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Vallès”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Vallès primary sources, Vallès archive and Vallès research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Vallès”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Vallès” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.