It comprises a core built-up area consisting of three historical streets running north to south, Zapatari, Mayor, and Carnicería, with ancient guild clusters on each.

Two watercourses at the foot of the ridge, the Santa Barbara and Zadorra, historically outlined the town's north and west limits but are now increasingly absorbed by rapid urban development.

In the 1950s and 1960s, a spraw called La Moncloa developed on both sides of the road connecting the Portal del Rey (the main south entrance to the town) and the train station.

Villages in the vicinity of the municipality of Salvatierra include: The main road E-5 A-1 (Nacional I) passes by the town west to east en route to France.

As of 2008, the town has three industrial estates, two existing so far and a new one under construction: Litutxipi across the train station, Agurain on the west (with PEM, formerly PUM Española, as its traditional flagship factory) and Galzar (urbanization works underway in 2008).

The pass through the San Adrian tunnel and the plains around Salvatierra have evidence of prehistoric seasonal cattle migration, dolmens, and burial mounds.

[citation needed] The town of Salvatierra was founded in 1256 by the Castilian king Alfonso X on the former village of Hagurahin on top of a hill, a highly defensible position.

To strengthen these territories, and also to foster Castilian trade, the king founded various strongholds or free towns (salvas terras, seguras and villas francas) over the lands of Gipuzkoa and Álava en route to Gascony through the northern Way of St. James.

Almost the whole town was destroyed except for the walls and both main churches, a fact reflected in a poem by Basque writer Joan Perez de Lazarraga.

The use of the Way of St. James diminished with the construction of newer and more convenient roads, such as the one built through Salinas de Leniz in 1765, which proved more practical for carriages, resulting in traffic transferring to the latter.

The murders received particular notoriety because the local priest, Ismael Arrieta Pérez de Mendiola, provided details to help the terrorists plan the attack.