The comarques of the Valencian Community form an intermediate level of administrative subdivision between municipalities and provinces. They are used as a basis for the provision of local services by the Generalitat Valenciana, but do not have any representative or executive bodies of their own.
Maestrat
Maestrat
Alta
Mijares
Baixa
Palancia
Ademuz
Morvedre
Túria
Buñol
Sud
Ayora
Navarrés
Baixa
Alta
Alta
d'Albaida
Baixa
Vinalopó
Mitjà
Vinalopó
Baja
La Mancha
In 1987, the Generalitat Valenciana published an official proposal for Homologated Territorial Demarcations, Demarcacions Territorials Homologades (DTH), of three degrees, where the first degree largely coincides with the territorial concept of comarca. Until now, the practice of these demarcations has been limited as a reference to the administrative decentralisation of the different services offered by the Generalitat, such as education, health, or agriculture. In fact, there is no legal provision for these DTHs to ultimately have the intended “territorial impact”, that is, comarca-level political or administrative bodies. Instead, the powers shared between several municipalities are being articulated through mancomunitats, or commonwealths.
Article 65 of the 2006 Statute of Autonomy provides the first legislative foundation for the comarques.
As of 2021, there are thirty-three comarques (including the city of Valencia).
List of comarques
| Comarca | Population (2023) | Area (km²) | Density (i./km²) | Capital | Linguistic domain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alacantí | 509,049 | 673.59 | 755.72 | Alicante / Alacant | Valencian |
| Alcalatén | 14,050 | 391.4 | 35.89 | L'Alcora | Valencian |
| Alcoià | 112,028 | 539.66 | 207.58 | Alcoi | Valencian |
| Alt Maestrat | 6,392 | 846.05 | 7.55 | Albocàsser | Valencian |
| Alto Mijares | 4,232 | 667.06 | 6.34 | Cirat | Spanish |
| Alto Palancia | 25,269 | 965.15 | 26.18 | Segorbe | Spanish |
| Alto Vinalopó / Alt Vinalopó | 52,905 | 644.76 | 82.05 | Villena | Spanish (mainly) / Valencian |
| Baix Maestrat | 86,349 | 1,221.32 | 70.70 | Vinaròs | Valencian |
| Baix Vinalopó | 306,300 | 488.78 | 626.66 | Elche / Elx | Valencian |
| Camp de Morvedre | 97,826 | 271.1 | 360.84 | Sagunt | Valencian |
| Camp de Túria | 177,195 | 823.37 | 215.20 | Llíria | Valencian (mainly) / Spanish |
| Canal de Navarrés | 15,754 | 709.29 | 22.21 | Enguera | Spanish |
| Comtat | 28,119 | 376.4 | 74.70 | Cocentaina | Valencian |
| Costera | 72,297 | 528.1 | 136.9 | Xàtiva | Valencian |
| Horta Nord | 311,632 | 184.44 | 1,689.61 | Puçol | Valencian |
| Horta Sud | 482,569 | 309.73 | 1,558.03 | Torrent | Valencian |
| Hoya de Buñol | 46,039 | 817.37 | 52.08 | Buñol | Spanish |
| Marina Alta | 191,265 | 759.3 | 251.89 | Dénia | Valencian |
| Marina Baixa | 198,888 | 605.3 | 328.57 | La Vila Joiosa | Valencian |
| Ports | 6,674 | 998.54 | 6.68 | Morella | Valencian (Spanish for Olocau del Rey) |
| Plana Alta | 264,381 | 942.2 | 280.59 | Castelló de la Plana | Valencian |
| Plana Baixa | 196,605 | 605.2 | 324.85 | Borriana | Valencian |
| Requena-Utiel | 37,926 | 1,721.03 | 22.03 | Requena | Spanish |
| Ribera Alta | 228,406 | 1,011.5 | 225.80 | Alzira | Valencian |
| Ribera Baixa | 82,663 | 276.81 | 298.62 | Sueca | Valencian |
| Rincón de Ademuz | 2,221 | 370.22 | 5.99 | Ademuz | Spanish |
| Serranos | 17,115 | 1,405.28 | 12.17 | Chelva | Spanish |
| Safor | 179,185 | 429.80 | 416.90 | Gandia | Valencian |
| València | 807,693 | 134.63 | 5,999.35 | València | Valencian |
| Vall d'Albaida | 88,114 | 722.22 | 122 | Ontinyent | Valencian |
| Valle de Ayora-Cofrentes | 9,656 | 1,141.15 | 8.46 | Cofrentes | Spanish |
| Vega Baja / Baix Segura | 379,975 | 957.28 | 396.93 | Orihuela | Spanish (Valencian for Guardamar del Segura) |
| Vinalopó Mitjà / Vinalopó Medio | 171,828 | 798.6 | 215.16 | Elda | Valencian (mainly) / Spanish (for Aspe and Monforte del Cid) |
| Total | 5,210,600 | 23,254.49 | 224.06 |
Subcomarques
Some comarques are made up of two or more subcomarques. Most of them correspond with local geographical features. For instance, Alcoià is made up of two subcomarques: Foia de Castalla and Valls d'Alcoi.
Historical comarques
Historical comarques refer to former comarques that are no longer extant.
Some historical comarques of the Valencian Community are now part of other comarques in the new territorial demarcation, such as Tinença de Benifassà and Ports de Morella.
Before 2021, Horta Oest was a formerly a comarca, when it was mostly annexed by Horta Sud with the municipality of Paterna joining Horta Nord.
Bibliography
- Proposta de demarcacions territorials homologades, Direcció General d'Administració Local, València, D.L. 1988. Conselleria d'Administració Pública. ISBN 84-7579-587-0
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