Relva City Map Poster

About Relva

History [ edit ] Relva was a parish of the municipality of Ponta Delgada, until 1852 when it became part of the municipality (and later city) itself.[1] The name Relva is derived from relvas (Portuguese for "grass"), which were abundant in this region. It was at one time referred to as Fonte de Santo António da Relva, owing to its proximity with a small fountain dedicated to Saint Anthony. This fountain had been constructed by Father Manuel Álvares do Canto and his wife D. Maria Lourenço de Sousa e Menezes;[2] they also donated their lands for construction of the church.[3][4] In 1580, there existed only two homes in this area: those belonging to João Rodrigues and Francisco Fernandes Pacheco; these residents paid an annual tax equivalent 1/8th that paid by residents on Ponta Delgada's main square.