Palencia lies in the north of the central Spanish plateau, the Meseta Central, in the middle of the Carrión river valley, near the river's confluence with the Pisuerga, which flows through the town and creating four small islands, Dos Aguas

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The region of Palencia has a Continental Mediterranean climate with cool winters, due to altitude (749 m) and isolation from maritime influences, chilly winds, including some days of snow in the

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Ancient era
The fortified Celtiberian settlement is mentioned as Pallantia (Παλλαντία) by Strabo and

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The Roman bridge across the Carrión riverwas replaced by the medieval one of three arches: the old section of the city is on the left bank, the modern suburban development is on the right bank: it seems likely that the first inhabitants settled on the right bank, and later

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Vegetation
The countryside is green from October into June, as it is altered by the snow and the invernal ice. From June or July the countryside becomes a dry place.
The city has the largest landscaped area of Spain in relation to its

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The first university in Spain, the studium generale of Palencia was founded by Alfonso VIII in 1208; however, the school did not long survive him. The 13th-century poet Gonzalo de Berceoand Saint Dominic, Founder of the Dominican Catholic Order, studied at the University

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Palencia's population has increased in the last 10 years, from 78,800 inhabitants in the year 1996 to 81,552 in 2011. The town has historically been a centre for immigration from other parts of Spain, particularly between 1950 and 1970 receiving rural immigrants

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