Nazare

The name Nazaré is the Portuguese version of Nazareth, the biblical city in the Holy Land.

The earliest settlements were in Pederneira and in Sítio, above the beach. They provided the inhabitants with refuge against raids by Viking and, later, French, English and Dutch pirates that lasted until as late as the beginning of the 19th century. In fact, only in the 19th century, with the gradual end of maritime piracy, was it possible for the people to start occupying the Praia, which is today considered the town center. According to the Legend of Nazaré, the town derives its name from a small wooden statue of the Virgin Mary, brought from Nazareth, in the Holy Land, to a monastery near the city of Mérida, Spain, by a monk in the 4th century. The statue was brought to its current location in 711 by another monk, Romano, accompanied by Roderic, the last Visigoth king of today's Portugal. After their arrival at the seaside, they became hermits. …

The municipality of Nazaré borders the Atlantic to the west and is surrounded entirely by the municipality of Alcobaça to the north, east and south. Nazaré has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen: Csb) with warm, dry summers and mild, wet winters. The town's climate is moderated by the Atlantic Ocean and the seasonal upwelling phenomena typical of western Portugal, which gives it cool to warm, dry and overall sunny summers. As a result of the marine layer, morning and evening fogs are frequent in the summer, persisting all day on rare occasions. In winter, seasonal downwellings frequently cause more unstable, Atlantic dominated weather and overcast, rainy and stormy days alternating with clear days. …

Over the 20th century, Nazaré progressively evolved from a fishing village to a point of interest among Portuguese and international tourists, advertising itself as a picturesque seaside village. Located on the Atlantic coast, it has long sandy beaches, attracting many tourists in the summer. The town used to be known for the traditional costumes worn by the fishermen. Women traditionally wear a headscarf and flannel skirt, embroidered in seven different colours. The costumes are still worn occasionally. It is quite visited due to the religious festivals dedicated to Our Lady of Nazaré, in which there are processions and also some profane celebrations. …

Luis Soares (born 1964 in Nazaré), a long-distance runner, competed for France at the 1992 Summer Olympics Brothers Ricardo Esgaio (born 1993) & Tiago Esgaio (born 1995), Portuguese footballers Brothers Mauro Eustáquio (born 1993) & Stephen Eustáquio (born 1996), Canadian footballers