São Sebastião

Loulé ) is a municipality in the Portuguese Algarve, district of Faro. In 2011, the population had 70,622 inhabitants, in an area of approximately 763.67 square kilometres . The municipality has two principal cities: Loulé and Quarteira.

Human presence in the territory of Loulé remotes to the Later Paleolithic. The growth of the settlement of Loulé likely stemmed from the late Neolithic, when small bands began rotating agricultural crops and herds around numerous subterranean cavities in its proximity . Within the following millennium, the settlements began to grow and intensify with spread of Mediterranean cultures, that progressively penetrated the southwestern part of the peninsula. This culminated in the arrival of the Phoenicians and Carthaginians, who founded the first trading posts along the maritime coast, increasing fishing, prospecting for minerals and commercial activities.

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