Barcelona’s street names read like a compressed history of Catalonia itself. Politicians, royals, philosophers, poets, artists, generals, and saints all leave their mark, etched into plaques on street corners across the city. Look up as you walk: these names quietly reveal how Barcelona was shaped as much by ideas, ambition, and power struggles as by stone and steel.
Once you get to know the people and stories behind the names, the city becomes a living archive you walk through every day.
Politicians, Statesmen and Royalty
Plaça de Francesc Macià
Named after Francesc Macià, one of the most emblematic figures in modern Catalan history.
A former Spanish army officer turned independence leader, Macià proclaimed the Catalan Republic in 1931, forcing negotiations that led to the restoration of Catalan autonomy within Spain. Revered by supporters as l’Avi (“the Grandfather”), Macià symbolizes defiance, self-government, and the emotional roots of Catalan nationalism. The large, traffic-heavy plaça that bears his name reflects his outsized role in the political imagination of Catalonia.
Passeig de Lluís Companys
Named after Lluís Companys, president of Catalonia during the Spanish Civil War and one of the most tragic figures in modern Catalan history.
Companys governed during extreme political turmoil and was executed in 1940 after being arrested in exile and handed over to Franco’s regime, making him the only democratically elected European president executed by a fascist state. The broad promenade from Arc de Triomf to Parc de la Ciutadella, lined with courts and civic buildings, quietly echoes themes of justice, repression, and historical memory.
Avinguda de Josep Tarradellas
This major artery honors Josep Tarradellas, the president who returned Catalan institutions from exile after Franco’s dictatorship.
In 1977, Tarradellas famously arrived in Barcelona declaring, “Ciutadans de Catalunya, ja sóc aquí!” (“Citizens of Catalonia, I am here!”). His pragmatic leadership helped reintegrate Catalonia into Spain’s new democratic framework. Naming one of the city’s longest avenues after him underscores his role as a stabilizing figure during Spain’s fragile democratic transition.
Passeig d’Isabel II
Named after Isabel II, the 19th-century queen whose reign coincided with Barcelona’s transformation into a modern port city.
Isabel II ruled during a period of political instability, civil wars, and rapid urban change. In Barcelona, her name became attached to a waterfront promenade developed as the medieval walls came down and the city opened itself to trade, industry, and imperial commerce. While her monarchy ended in exile and revolution in 1868, the boulevard that bears her name reflects a moment when Barcelona was turning outward.
Passeig de Joan de Borbó
Named after Joan de Borbó, the Count of Barcelona and father of King Juan Carlos I.
Joan de Borbó spent much of his life in exile after the Spanish Civil War, positioning himself as a constitutional monarch in opposition to Franco’s dictatorship. Although he never reigned, his decision to renounce his claim in favor of his son helped pave the way for Spain’s transition to democracy. The seaside promenade linking Barceloneta to Port Vell quietly honors a figure associated less with power than with restraint, continuity, and the negotiated return of the monarchy in modern Spain.
Writers, Thinkers & Cultural Figures
Carrer de Balmes
This street commemorates Jaume Balmes, a 19th-century philosopher, priest, and political thinker.
Balmes argued for reconciling Catholic tradition with modern rationalism at a time when Spain was deeply divided. Though conservative by today’s standards, his influence on theology, ethics, and political thought made him one of Catalonia’s most widely read intellectuals of his era.
Carrer d’Aribau
Named for Bonaventura Carles Aribau (1798–1862), a poet, journalist, and liberal intellectual linked to the early revival of the Catalan language.
Aribau is best remembered for his 1833 poem La Pàtria, widely regarded as the symbolic beginning of the Renaixença. Beyond literature, he was active in journalism and politics during Spain’s liberal period, helping introduce romantic thought to Catalonia and reassert Catalan as a modern language of culture, debate, and national identity.
Carrer de Muntaner
This long, vertical street honors Ramon Muntaner, a medieval soldier and writer.
Muntaner authored one of the great chronicles of the Crown of Aragon, documenting Mediterranean expansion, warfare, and court politics. His work shaped how Catalonia understood its own medieval power and influence.
Carrer d’Enric Granados
Named after Enric Granados (1867 – 1916), one of Catalonia’s most celebrated composers and pianists.
Granados was a central figure of Catalan musical modernism, blending Romantic expressiveness with Spanish and Catalan folk traditions. Trained in Barcelona and Paris, he achieved international fame with works such as Goyescas and the Spanish Dances. His life ended tragically in 1916 when he drowned after his ship was torpedoed during World War I, turning the elegant Eixample street that bears his name into a quiet memorial to artistic brilliance cut short.
Plaça de George Orwell
Named after George Orwell, the British writer who fought in Barcelona during the Spanish Civil War.
Orwell arrived in 1936 and joined the POUM militia, later chronicling his experiences in Homage to Catalonia. Wounded in combat and disillusioned by political repression within the Republican side, he left Spain with a lifelong distrust of authoritarianism. The Gothic Quarter square that bears his name mirrors his legacy in Barcelona: sharp-eyed, unsentimental, and quietly resistant to power.
Passeig Picasso
Named after Pablo Picasso, whose formative years in Barcelona helped shape modern art.
Picasso arrived in the city as a teenager, studying at La Llotja and immersing himself in its bohemian scene. Long before international fame, Barcelona was where he developed the experimental instincts that would later define Cubism. The promenade beside Parc de la Ciutadella quietly marks the city’s role in the early life of one of the 20th century’s most influential artists. See also: Picasso’s Barcelona
Carrer del Doctor Fleming
Named after Alexander Fleming (1881 –1955), the Scottish bacteriologist whose discovery of penicillin in 1928 revolutionized modern medicine.
Fleming’s work transformed the treatment of infections and saved millions of lives, reshaping public health in the 20th century. In Barcelona, his name appears not in a historic old-town alley but in a modern residential area of Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, reflecting how scientific progress and global figures entered the city’s street map alongside kings, writers, and revolutionaries.
Avinguda de Gaudí
Named after Antoni Gaudí, the architect whose work reshaped Barcelona’s identity and pushed architecture into the realm of art, symbolism, and spiritual expression.
Antoni Gaudí is most closely associated with the La Sagrada Família, the unfinished basilica that dominates the skyline at one end of this avenue. Designed as a pedestrian-friendly boulevard, Avinguda de Gaudí creates a deliberate visual axis between the La Sagrada Família and the Hospital de Sant Pau, linking two masterpieces of Catalan modernisme.
Power, Revolt & Resistance
Carrer de Pau Claris
Named for Pau Claris, a cleric and political leader during the Catalan Revolt of 1640.
As president of the Generalitat, Claris briefly placed Catalonia under French protection in an attempt to resist Spanish central authority. His street name reflects an early and controversial moment of Catalan resistance.
Carrer de Roger de Llúria
Honors Roger de Llúria (1245-1345), one of the Mediterranean’s most feared naval commanders.
Llúria’s victories helped establish the Crown of Aragon as a dominant maritime power. His name speaks to an era when Catalonia’s influence extended far beyond the Iberian Peninsula.
Carrer de Casanova
Named after Rafael Casanova (1660-1743), a symbolic figure of Catalan resistance during the War of the Spanish Succession.
Casanova defended Barcelona in 1714 against Bourbon forces, a defeat that led to the abolition of Catalan institutions. Each September 11th, flowers are still laid at his monument on Diada, Catalonia’s national day.
Saints & Religious Figures
Carrer de Sant Pau
Named after Saint Paul, reflecting Barcelona’s long religious and charitable traditions.
The street historically connected hospitals, convents, and aid institutions, tying faith directly to social care.
Carrer de Santa Anna
Named for Saint Anne, associated with the medieval convent that once stood near today’s Plaça de Catalunya.
Saint Anne is traditionally venerated as the mother of the Virgin Mary and grandmother of Jesus. Though not mentioned in the Bible, early Christian tradition portrays her as a woman of faith and patience. She is honored as the patron saint of mothers, grandparents, and educators, symbolizing family devotion and perseverance.
Plaça Sant Jaume
Dedicated to Saint James, this square is also Barcelona’s political core.
Plaça Sant Jaume takes its name from the medieval Church of Sant Jaume that once occupied the site. Beneath it lay the Roman forum of Barcino, where the city’s main streets crossed, making this a center of power for over two millennia. Though the church was demolished in the 19th century, City Hall and the Palau de la Generalitat still face each other here, preserving the square’s civic authority.
Plaça de Sant Felip Neri
Saint Philip Neri (1515–1595) was an Italian priest who founded the Congregation of the Oratory and became a leading figure of the Counter-Reformation in Rome. Known for his joy, humility, and practical spirituality, he renewed religious life through preaching, music, and direct service to the poor. Canonized in 1622, he is remembered as an “Apostle of Rome” and a lasting influence on Catholic devotion and sacred music.
The church façade in Plaça de Sant Felip Neri still bears scars from a 1938 bombing during the Spanish Civil War that killed dozens of civilians, many of them children.
