The term spa is associated with water treatment which is also known as balneotherapy, spa towns or resorts offering such treatment, or the medication or equipment for such treatment. The term thus has various related meanings.
Origins of the term
The term is derived from the name of the town of Spa, Belgium, where since medieval times illnesses caused by iron deficiency were treated by drinking chalybeate (iron bearing) spring water.[1] In 16th century England the old Roman ideas of medicinal bathing were revived at towns like Bath, and in 1571 William Slingsby who had been to the Belgian town (which he called Spaw) discovered a chalybeate spring in Yorkshire. He built an enclosed well at what became known as Harrogate, the first resort in England for drinking medicinal waters, then in 1596 Dr Timothy Bright called the resort The English Spaw, beginning the use of the word Spa as a generic description rather than as the place name of the Belgian town. At first this term referred specifically to resorts for water drinking rather than bathing, but this distinction was gradually lost and many spas offer external remedies.[2]
There are various stories about the origin of the name. A Belgian spring of iron bearing water was called Espa from the Walloon language term for "fountain", and was used in 1326 as a cure by an iron master with such success that he founded a health resort which developed into the town.[3] It is also suggested that the term Espa may be derived from the name of the resort, and that its source could be the Latin word "spagere" meaning to scatter, sprinkle or moisten.[4]
It is often suggested, with little evidence, that the word is an acronym of various Latin phrases such as "Salus Per Aquam” or "Sanitas Per Aquam" meaning "health through water", all of which seem to have modern sources.[2] Although such expansions are widely used, they are almost certainly backronyms – words formed from acronyms are very much a twentieth-century phenomenon
Spa is a brand of mineral water from Spa Belgium and is owned by the Spadel Group. Spa mineral water has been bottled since the end of the 16th century and is very common in Western Europe and especially in the Benelux countries and Germany but is also exported to other parts of the world. Spa mineral water comes from the grounds of the Hautes Fagnes, of which the upper layers exists from heath land and peat.
Spa mineral water is available in bottles of three litres, two litres, one and a half liter, one liter, 75 cl, 50 cl, 30 cl and 25 cl. It's also available in 33 cl cans. There are several types of Spa mineral water.
The several types of Spa mineral water are instantly recognizable by their color of the label. These labels are blue, red or green.
Spa Reine (Spa blue). It contains no carbonation and has a very low amount of minerals.
Spa Barisart (Spa red). It contains few minerals and some carbonation.
Spa Marie-Henriette (Spa green). It contains natural carbonation. The water comes from different sources which are characterised by their difference in minerals.
Spa is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Liège, in the French speaking part of Belgium. It is situated in a romantic valley amid hills which form part of the Ardennes chain, some 35 km (22 miles) southeast of Liege, and 45 km (28 miles) southwest of Aachen. On 1 January 2006, Spa had a total population of 10,543. The total area is 39.85 km², giving a population density of 265 inhabitants per km².
famed site of healing hot springs, Spa has been frequented as a watering-place since as early as the 14th century. Though other sources of healing hot mineral springs have become famous throughout the world, it is the town of Spa which has become eponymous with any place having a natural water source that is believed to possess special health-giving properties. As a generic term, the word "spa" may also refer to a resort hotel – usually located near a source of mineral water or hot spring – which offers hot-tub or similar warm-water hydromassage facilities.
In 1918 the German Army established its principal Headquarters in Spa, and it was from here that the delegates set out for the French lines to meet Marshal Foch and sue for peace in the consultations leading up to the Armistice which ended the First World War.
The town is perhaps best known today as home to the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, which hosts the annual Formula One Belgian Grand Prix. It is also the location of mineral water producer Spa.
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