Europe

11 curiosities you did not know about Madrid

We often repeat saying without even knowing why and where they come from. Then after many years it becomes such an everyday habit that the locals are so used to it that don’t even think about it. As a foreigner I find it quite curious to know those little details that make this great city so special. The truth is that after so many trips and so much time I spend in Madrid I keep discovering little corners so charming that make me love this city more and more. I know that Madrid is usually not the first choice for a little trip in Spain. I hope however that some of you will get inspired by the charm of this city and book a flight soon.

See also: Download an about the best places to eat churros app to use offline on your trip with GPSmycity.

Madrid, Spain

11 “whys” about Madrid

1. Why Madrid is called Madrid? 

Let’s start from the basics. It just sense, don’t you think? It all started in the 9th century when Muhammad I built a watch tower in the place where now stands the Royal Palace in order to look out for Christian troops coming down the hills. He also ordered to build a rather solid wall to strengthen the defense system. The city received a name ‘Mayrit’, which is Arabic means ‘place of water’ or ‘mother stream’ thanks to a stream running along Segovia street. Because in Arabic ‘y’ is pronounced ‘dj’, the name of the city was pronounced ‘Madjrit’. It is quite interesting, especially that the river in Madrid now is a joke with a few drops.

2. Why there are ‘smart’ and ‘silly’ donuts?

Donuts is a typical dessert for the celebrations of San Isidro, saint patron of Madrid. Basically the donuts are the same, but the smart ones are covered with sugar glace, and the silly donuts are simple.

See also: 5 best places to eat chocolate con churros in Madrid

Madrid, Spain

3. Why the park of Retiro is called like that?

It all started when Carlos I ordered to build an extension to the church of Jerónimos that would be called royal room, where the kings would ‘retirarse” (to retreat) in the periods of fast or mourning. During the reign of Felipe IV duke of Olivares gave it as a gift to the king some land near the place. The king then bought more land and build Palacio de Buen Retiro meant for rest.

See also: Retiro Park in Madrid- a place to fall in love.

Madrid, Spain

 

4. Why people from Madrid are called cats

This little anecdote goes back to the XI century when Alfonso VI arrived to Madrid with an intention to reconquer it he met with a wall that the Arabs build a couple of centuries earlier. One of the troops without any fear managed to get over the wall with the lightness of a cat. The people, apparently, were shouting ” Look! He seems to be a cat!”. And that’s how the nickname was born.

See also: How to spend 4 days in Prague.

Park Retiro, Madrid, Spain

5. Why the carrousel is called tiovivos (alive uncle)? 

The origin of the name tiovivos goes back to 1834 when Madrid suffered big plague of cholera. Many people died because of this illness including the owner of the carousel. When he was about to be buried, as a surprise to all, the owner woke up. Since then the carousel got the name uncle alive.

6. Why people from Madrid say “cooler than an eight”?

This expression was created thanks to the line 8 of tram in Madrid that linked el Sol and Bombilla. It was said that this line was used by the coolest  young people in Madrid to travel to party in the Bombilla neighborhood.

See also: What to pack to travel in style in Europe this summer

Madrid, Spain

 7. Why there is an old pit for monkeys in the park of Retiro?

Carlos III created in 1774 the first animal park together with the botanic garden to be able to show there animals and birds sent by viceroys of the New World. Because of that there are left a little pit for monkeys with a trunk and a few branches for the monkeys to climb.

 8. Why the oldest tree from the botanic garden is called Mr Pants

In the pure center of Madrid just next to the Prado Museum there is a botanic garden with the trees hundred years old. The tallest one is an elm tree between 180 and 200 years old of 40 meters and the oldest is between 220 and 240 years old. The most known is called Don Pantalones (Mr Pants), because the two biggest branches look like a pair of pants.

See also: 10 best vegetarian restaurants in Madrid

Madrid, Spain

 

9. Why Madrid is the capital of Spain?

It’s being said that the king Carlos I said to his son ” If you want to grow your kingdoms,  put the Cortes (royal court and parliament) in Lisbon, if you want to save them, leave it in Toledo, if you want to lose them, move it to Madrid”. In 1561 Felipe II decided to move the capital of Spain from Toledo to Madrid, but there are no documents talking about the motives of this decision.

10. Why there are two streets called Mira el Sol and Mira el Río?

In autumn of 1439 have been occuring rains so big that were lifting bridges at the river Manzanares. It’s being said that people were shouting “Mira el río” (look at the river) and that’s how the street got its name. Similarly the street Mira el Sol (look at the sun) got its name. After the months of grey skies, rain and snow, finally the sun came out and the people of Madrid with happy shouts were announcing the change.

See also: Pedraza, a trip to a fairy-tale town.

jogging in Madrid

11. Why the royal family does not live in Palacio Real? 

The last king that lived in the royal palace was Alfonso XIII who had to abandon it in 1931 and since then the palace is only used for ceremonies. The king Felipe VI and the Royal Family live in the more modest palace of La Zarzuela at the outskirts of Madrid.

Quick tip: You can visit the palace free on the 18th of May, 12th of October and from Mondays till Thursday from 4pm to 6pm (October till March) and from 6pm-8pm (April till September).

Madrid, Spain

As you might already know I have traveled to Madrid many times in the past and now it my part-time home. I know so many incredible places in this city and I hope you are interested to keep getting more posts about Madrid. I also chose a few favourite hotels to stay in that surely won’t disappoint:

  • Artrip Hotel– Simple and elegant that makes the stay very comfortable.
  • VP Jardin de Recoletos– Located in the neighborhood of Salamanca, which, I think, is one of the nicest and yet very close to the plain center.
  • Catalonia las Cortes– Very classy and elegant for those who like a little touch of royal decor.

I hope you got inspired to travel to Madrid. It is a perfect place for a short city break. Thank you for visiting and happy travels, everyone.


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Madrid, Spain

  1. Oh wow, these some cool fun facts about Madrid. I didn’t know any of these answers. And now I do. Thanks to you Anna 🙂

  2. I enjoyed reading about the historical reasons how Madrid was named and why it is the capital. Very interesting and pretty pictures of the city!

  3. Lots of interesting facts! I like that lots of Spanish-speaking countries have little joke names for things. For example, in Buenos Aires, they call croissants by their regular name of medialunas, but also call them vigilantes, in reference to anarchist bakeries that used to be really present in the past.

  4. Madrid looks beautiful and I’m packed with so much information about Madrid. Thanks for sharing!
    I really like the story of a cat 😛 describing why people of Madrid are called as cats(Lighter than the cats)

  5. This is all knew to me! I would never guess and I knew very little about Madrid until today! Now I can play the smart-ass even to my friends who have been there 😛

  6. Wow!!, such interesting little facts about Madrid!!
    Thanks for sharing why Madrid is named like that, so cool to know!! Maybe many madrileños don´t even know!!
    Indeed, Madrid is beautiful and also such a friendly city!!!
    I have already shared this nice post 🙂

  7. I would love to visit Madrid! Love the question and answer format of this post, and I will be on the lookout for doughnuts when I finally make my way there!

  8. Hi Balt,
    Let me answer your question since I was born in Madrid and I know the history.
    In the year 852, the emir of Córdoba built military barracks to the left of the Manzanares river to watch the passage to the port of Guadarrama (that is, to the North of the Iberian Peninsula), thus founding Madrid (Mayrit means place of water / mother stream, like Anna says in her post).
    Madrid, therefore, didn’t exist before the Arabs and was born as a military city with a double key mission: (i) first point of the Muslims´ contention against the Christians´ re-conquest attacks coming from the North and (ii) starting point city for the Muslims to conquer further territories to the North.
    So this is it!

    Anna, really excellent post, btw. Key little facts about Madrid in a nutshell!! Very cool!!

  9. I love Madrid and I’ve only been there once. Since I also love curiosities, you hit home. Loved the post and the pictures!

  10. I have lived in Madrid for 6 years and I must say that I had never even heard about these curiosities. Such an interesting post. This makes you think about the most random things like why Madrid is called Madrid. I had no idea. Such a great post, thanks for making us smarter about Madrid 😉

  11. Haha I loved finding out all this information about Madrid! I never knew people from Madrid were called cats, that’s what I’ll call them from now on 🙂 Thanks for sharing!

  12. ¡Buenísimo este artículo, Anna!
    ¡Qué cosas tan interesantes, y hasta desconocidas para los turistas!
    Esta vez te has superado, ¡genial !!!

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