The name Valladolid

According to some historians, the name came from “Valle de Lid,” a plain where pre-Roman tribes gathered to hold their contests.

Others said that it came from “Valle de Ulit,” a Moorish captain who settled here in the eighth century, although this theory seems to have been discarded today.

Another theory is that it comes from “Vallis Olivetum” or Valley of the Olives, although given the extreme climate of the area, it is not very likely that there were enough olive trees to give it that name.

According to experts, the most likely origin is the Celtic expression “Vallis Tolitum” or “Valley of the Waters,” given the confluence of the Pisuerga and Esgueva rivers, which once branched out into several channels.

There is also another theory, quite likely, regarding the demonym “Vallisoletano,” which is believed to come from the Middle Ages when the city was called “Vallisoletum” or “Valley of the Sun” due to the large number of hours of sunshine the valley receives each year.