TodoPortugal.pt

and if more World there had been, there would they have gone

União das freguesias de Vila Chã (São João Baptista e Santiago)

Parish of the municipality of Ponte da Barca (Ponte da Barca), district of Viana do Castelo.

União das freguesias de Vila Chã (São João Baptista e Santiago) had 540 residents in the 2021 Census, 37,4% of whom were aged 65 or over, and 6,0% of the population aged 15 or over had completed higher education. It borders 6 parishes and its centroid is 2,1 km in a straight line from the centroid of the municipality of Ponte da Barca.

Population (inh.)
  • 240 – 303
  • 307 – 327
  • 373 – 447
  • 498 – 600
  • 766 – 4.192
Density (inh./km²)
  • 8,1 – 32,2
  • 35,9 – 53,7
  • 68,0 – 90,6
  • 122,2 – 143,9
  • 187,9 – 474,2
Area (km²)
  • 1,6 – 3,4
  • 3,8 – 4,2
  • 6,1 – 8,4
  • 8,8 – 12,9
  • 16,8 – 46,0
Quantile classes · current parish
Parish highlighted. Click a neighbouring parish to open its page. Geometry: CAOP2025, Direção-Geral do Território (simplified).

The 17 parishes of Ponte da Barca

Hover a row to highlight it on the map. Click a header to sort.

#ParishPopulationArea (km²)Inhab./km²
1Azias3038,4435,9
2Boivães2663,9168,0
3Bravães6004,17143,9
4Britelo37912,9029,4
5Cuide de Vila Verde3113,8281,4
6Lavradas8266,76122,2
7Lindoso37346,038,1
8Nogueira3741,99187,9
9Oleiros4473,41131,1
10Sampriz3076,5646,8
11União das freguesias de Crasto, Ruivos e Grovelas7669,5480,3
12União das freguesias de Entre Ambos-os-Rios, Ermida e Germil49838,6712,9
13União das freguesias de Ponte da Barca, Vila Nova de Muía e Paço Vedro de Magalhães4.1928,84474,2
14União das freguesias de Touvedo (São Lourenço e Salvador)3276,0953,7
15União das freguesias de Vila Chã (São João Baptista e Santiago)54016,7632,2
16Vade (São Pedro)2402,6590,6
17Vade (São Tomé)2951,57187,9
Code (DTMNFR)
160630
Resident population (2021)
540
Area
16,76 km²
Density
32,2 inh./km²
Share of the municipality (population)
4,9%
Rank in the municipality (population)
5th of 17

Simplified designation (CAOP2025): “Vila Chã (São João Baptista e Santiago)”.

INE, Censos 2021 (população residente por freguesia, geografia 2025, ind. 0014584); DGT, CAOP2025 (área). Population refers to the 2021 census moment, compiled by INE for the parish boundaries in force in 2025.

2021 Census in detail

Men
258 (47,8%)
Women
282 (52,2%)
Portuguese nationality
521 (96,5%)
Foreign nationality
19 (3,5%)
Ageing index
531,6 elderly per 100 young people
Private households
226
Average household size *
2,38 people
Dwellings
540
Classic family dwellings
540
Buildings
530
Buildings with 7 or more floors
0
With higher education (15+)
6,0% (30)
Unemployment rate *
6,59% (H 7,84% · M 4,62%)
Active / employed population
167 / 156

Population by age group

Population by age group0-14 years: 38 (7,0%); 15-24 years: 41 (7,6%); 25-64 years: 259 (48,0%); 65+ years: 202 (37,4%)0-1438 · 7,0%15-2441 · 7,6%25-64259 · 48,0%65+202 · 37,4%
Residents by age group and share of the total (540).
Age groupTotalMenWomen
0-14 years382315
15-24 years412417
25-64 years259132127
65+ years20279123

Source: INE, Censos 2021 — indicators 0014630, 0014631, 0014627, 0014623, 0014621, 0014635, 0014636, 0012481, 0012328, 0014632, obtained from the INE indicators API on 24/09/2026 (licence CC BY 4.0). Parish geography of 2025 (CAOP2025). Nationality (Portuguese, foreign, stateless) is INE indicator 0014632. * Indicator published by INE only for 2013 parish geography (NUTS 2024); used because the parish has the same territory in both geographies (identical population by sex and age group). Ageing index = population aged 65+ ÷ population aged 0–14 × 100; share with higher education = residents with completed higher education ÷ residents aged 15 or over (our calculations from INE figures).

Neighbouring parishes

Straight-line distance to the centroid of the municipality of Ponte da Barca
2,1 km

Neighbourhood calculated from official boundaries: DGT, Carta Administrativa Oficial de Portugal (CAOP) 2025 (licence CC BY 4.0); two parishes are neighbours when they share a boundary segment. The distance is the straight-line (great-circle) distance between the geometric centroid of the parish and that of the municipality (in territories with islets, of the main part), not a road distance.

2025 local elections — Parish assembly

Registered voters
697
Voters
471
Turnout
67,58% (2021: 56,97%)
Seats
7
ListVotes%Seats
PPD/PSD
Partido Social Democrata
24351,59%4
PS
Partido Socialista
22347,35%3
Blank votes20,42%
Null votes30,64%

Most-voted list, which elects the parish-council president: PPD/PSD.

Source: SGMAI — official results of the local elections of 12 October 2025 (Secretary-General of the Ministry of Internal Administration), consulted on 25/09/2026. Percentages calculated by SGMAI over total voters.

Parish-council contacts

Address
Rua de S. João Baptista, N.º762
PONTE DA BARCA
4980-744 VILA CHÃ (S J BAPTISTA)
Email
uf.vilacha2013@sapo.pt
Website
www.uf-vilacha.pt

Source: DGAL - Portal Autárquico (Direção-Geral das Autarquias Locais), consulted on 25/09/2026.

More information

Coordinates
41,78700, -8,32310
Wikipedia
Vila Chã (Ponte da Barca)
Wikidata
Q17294287

Source: Wikidata (data under CC0 1.0), consulted on 24/09/2026. The patron saint and coordinates are those recorded on Wikidata.

Sources: INE, 2021 Census (resident population) · DGT, CAOP2025 (area and parishes) · more details · Data updated on 24/09/2026