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Loures is a municipality (concelho) to the north of Lisbon. Created on 26th July 1886 by a royal decree, it occupies nowadays an area of 168 km² and about 200 000 inhabitants (2001). It confines with the municipalities of Odivelas, Sintra, Mafra, Arruda dos Vinhos, Vila Franca de Xira and Lisbon.
The municipality comprises actually (after the secession of Odivelas and six other parishes Caneças, Famões, Olival Basto, Póvoa de Santo Adrião and Ramada in 1997, to form itself another municipality), 18 parishes (freguesias): Apelação, Bobadela, Bucelas, Camarate, Fanhões, Frielas, Loures (seat of the municipality), Lousa, Moscavide, Portela de Sacavém (where stays the Lisbon airport with that same name), Prior Velho, Sacavém (well known by its ceramics), Santa Iria de Azóia, Santo Antão do Tojal, Santo António dos Cavaleiros, São João da Talha, São Julião do Tojal and Unhos. From these, both Loures (with 24 000 habs.) and Sacavém (c. 18 000 habs.) are towns (cidades), being the rest villages (vilas).
The municipality is basically divided in three areas: the rustic one, to the north (Lousa, Fanhões, Bucelas, Santo Antão do Tojal and São Julião do Tojal); the urban one, to the south (Frielas, Loures and Santo António dos Cavaleiros); and the urban-industrial, to the east (Apelação, Bobadela, Camarate, Moscavide, Portela de Sacavém, Prior Velho, Sacavém, Santa Iria de Azóia, São João da Talha and Unhos).
In this eastern area, the ten local parishes claim to became independent from Loures, and form his own municipality, with is own set in the town of Sacavém. This struggle dates from the beginnings of the Portuguese Republic, and has a very strong support among the people today.
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