In the small river basin created by the Ribeiro do Mouro, the founding inhabitants of the settlement exploited the sunny side of a small, gently sloping prominence.

The choice of this location is directly related to the existence of a spring on its upper slopes. The surrounding gentle slopes favoured agriculture and proximity to pastures at the mountain’s higher altitudes provided grazing for livestock.

Aigra Nova is included in the Serra da Lousã Site of Community Importance of the Natura 2000 Network.

The region’s very rich natural heritage includes in particular the Penedos de Góis crags and Oitava Forest Park, the habitat of endangered birds and mammals such as red deer and roe deer which are rarely found elsewhere in Portugal.

Aigra Nova is the only village in Portugal which has a Tree Nursery.

In front of the village, in the bottom of the valley, runs the Ribeira do Mouro stream hidden among trees, including some rare species, forming a dense and lush riverside corridor. It continues its course to Ponte de Sótão where it joins the Ribeira da Pena. It later flows into the Ceira and thence into the Mondego. Its waters finally meet the Atlantic at Figueira da Foz.

Little has been written about the history of this village, but from the “Register of the population of the Kingdom (1527)” we know that in the 16th century there existed in the entry for the villa de Goys what was then called hegra fumdeyra where there lived four residents. The name seems to indicate that at that time there was a “field” or “farm” here which was cultivated.

The first forms of settlement that are known of in Góis municipality date from the Neolithic or Bronze I period, as proved by the many archaeological remains and finds (stone and metal axes, adornments, coins, rock art –stone inscriptions) found to the north of this area. The origin of these villages dates from the Iron Age with the foundation of small settlements on the slopes and the tops of hills, some of them subsequently abandoned during the Middle Ages.

To overcome the difficulty of crossing the region, it is said that there was probably a “Roman” or “medieval” road whose course would have passed through Aigra Velha and Pena, forming part of the trade route that extended from Lisbon to the north of the country.

Breasting the rise to Aigra Nova we find a block of buildings situated in the village which appears relatively ancient to judge by the nature of their construction and degree of dilapidation, and which marks the start of the community of Aigra Velha.

Origin of the name
The name Aigra Nova evolved from its designation as “aigra fundeira”, relating to a farm or new crop field, in contrast to another Aigra (Aigra Velha). Locally, the name is said to originate from acrum, meaning harsh, bitter, hard, difficult, in reference to the working conditions and life in that place.

The village has a simple layout, corresponding to a single access road which at the start of the village divides into three small streets that cross it and which meet at the exit road on the opposite side of the village. The predominant building material is schist, with some buildings being rendered. The lintels and door frames are generally made of oak or chestnut.

All the houses built from schist blocks are constructed so as to ensure they are resistant to weather and the passage of time. Arranged in small groups, they have two floors: the upper, or first, floor and the ground floor, which would normally house the livestock. However, there are exceptions to this rule and several groups of animal pens were built on the outskirts of each village. In each case one or more of these buildings belonged to the respective house in the community, according to the owner’s property and wealth in head of cattle. The second floor also acted as a storage area where cereals, earthenware jars filled with olive oil, salting boxes for pork and farming implements would be stored. They sometimes even had a small wine cellar with barrels and vats for making wine.

It is a living village: there are market gardens, there are livestock and there are many new activities that will surprise us.

• January: Cantar as janeiras (carolling)
• February: Traditional Shrovetide in the Schist Villages of Góis
• July: Meeting of mountain people (Santo António da Neve)

• Horticultural produce
• Kid
• Honey
• Chestnuts
• Shelled and dried chestnuts
• Maize bread broa, simple or with ground meat, cooked in a wood oven

A aldeia dista 12km de Góis. De Góis é preferencialmente servida pela EN342, a apenas 4km, utilizando uma estrada municipal que sobe até à aldeia pelo flanco Norte da Serra da Lousã. De Góis também pode ser utilizada a EN2 até Esporão e daqui seguir por Ribeira Cimeira e pela Aldeia do Xisto da Pena, utilizando um troço de 2km em terra batida para atingir Aigra Nova.