Alijó

Alijó is a municipality in the Norte Region of Portugal, located in the district of Vila Real. The population in 2011 was 11,942, in an area of 297.60 km2.HistoryThere are several megalithic structures, dolmens and castros in Alijó evidencing the pre-historic occupation of the region by semi-nomadic tribes, dating back to the 10th century BC. Many of the archaeological sites are well documented, and most of the archaeological evidence continue to be unearthed in reasonable condition.The remains of Roman-era settlements in the region are primarily limited to the fountains, roads and bridges that cross Alijó.During the 6th century some of the settlements were ecclesiastical parishes during the Suebi occupation: many of the local toponymies date to this era, including Sanfins (de São Félix), Santa Eugénia, São João Baptista (de Castedo), São Domingos (at that time an organ of Favaios), Santa Águeda (de Carlão) or São Tiago (de Vila Chã).But, its southern border along the Douro made the region susceptible to Spanish and Moorish conflict. But, with the Christian Reconquista, after the reigns of Alfonso I and Alfonso II the region of the Trás-os-Montes and Entre-Douro-e-Minho regions became uninhabited (by both Christians and Moors). The territory began to be slowly re-populated, with the new settlements founded around existing Roman castros, rustic villages and abandoned hereditary lands.