A parroquia (Spanish: [paˈroki̯a], Galician: [paˈrɔkia], Asturian: [paˈrokja]) is a population entity or parish found in Galicia and Asturias in north-west Spain. The term may have its origins in Roman Catholic Church usage, similar to the British term parish. The concept forms a very settled part of the popular consciousness, but it has never become an official political division. They are equivalent to freguesias in Portugal. Some say that it constitutes an attempt, as originally created, to more or less match up with tribes predating the Roman presence.