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Almería

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"Almeria" redirects here. For other uses, see Almeria (disambiguation).
Almería
Flag of Almería
Flag
Official seal of Almería
Seal
Country Spain
Region Andalusia
ProvinceAlmería
ComarcaComarca Metropolitana de Almería
Government
 • BodyAyuntamiento de Almería
 • MayorLuis Rogelio Rodríguez-Comendador Pérez (PP)
Area
 • Total295 km2 (114 sq mi)
Elevation
23 m (75 ft)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total190,013
 • Density640/km2 (1,700/sq mi)
Demonym(s)almerienses, urcitanos
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)

Almería (Spanish pronunciation: [almeˈɾi.a]) is a city in Andalusia, Spain, on the Mediterranean Sea. It is the capital of the province of the same name.

Toponym

Tradition says that the name Almería stems from the Arabic المرية Al-Mariyya: "The Mirror", comparing it to "The Mirror of the Sea". Nowadays, the most accepted interpretation is that it derives from the Arabic term مرأى Al-Mara'ā, which means "The Watchtower".

History

The city was founded by Calipha Abd-ar-Rahman III of Cordova in 955 AD. It was to be a principal harbour in his extensive domain to strengthen his Mediterranean defences.

Alcazaba of Almería.

Its Moorish castle, the Alcazaba of Almería, is the second largest among the Muslim fortresses of Andalusia, after the Alhambra.

The ancient walls of Jayrán.

In this period, the port city of Almería reached its historical peak. After the fragmentation of the Caliphate of Córdoba, Almería continued to be ruled by powerful local Muslim Taifa emirs like Jairan, the first independent Emir of Almería and Cartagena, and Almotacin, the poet emir. Both Jairan and Almotacin were fearless warriors, but also sophisticated patrons of the arts. A silk industry, based upon plantings of mulberry trees in the hot, dry landscape of the province, supported Almería in the 11th century and made its strategic harbour an even more valuable asset.

The statue of San Cristóbal.

Contested by the emirs of Granada and Valencia, Almería experienced many sieges, including one especially fierce siege when Christians, called to the Second Crusade by Pope Eugene III, were also encouraged to attack the Muslim 'infidels' on a more familiar coast. On that occasion Alfonso VII, at the head of mixed forces of Catalans, Genoese, Pisans and Franks, led a crusade against the rich city, and Almería was occupied in October 1147.

Within a decade, however, Almería had passed to the control of the puritanical Muslim Almoravid emirs, and not until the late 15th century did it fall permanently into Christian hands. The city surrendered to the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, on December 26, 1489.

The former train station.

The 16th century was for Almería a century of natural and human catastrophes; for there were at least four earthquakes, of which the one in 1522 was especially violent, devastating the city. The people who had remained Muslim were expelled from Almería after the War of Las Alpujarras in 1568 and scattered across Spain. Landings and attacks by Berber pirates were also frequent in the 16th century, and continued until the early 18th century. At that time, huge iron mines were discovered and French and British companies set up business in the area, bringing renewed prosperity and returning Almería to a position of relative importance within Spain.

During the Spanish Civil War the city was shelled by the German navy, and the front page headlines of the Diario de Almería, dated June 3, 1937, referred to the press in London and Paris carrying the news of the "criminal bombardment of Almería by German planes".[1] Almería and Málaga were the last Andalusian cities to surrender to Francisco Franco's nationalist forces.

In the second half of the 20th century, Almería witnessed spectacular economic growth due to tourism and intensive agriculture, with crops grown year-round in massive invernaderos – plastic-covered "greenhouses" – for intensive vegetable production.

After Franco's death and popular approval of the new Spanish Constitution, the people of southern Spain were called on to approve an autonomous status for the region in a referendum. Although there were 118,186 votes for and 11,092 votes against it in the province of Almería,[2] an absolute majority was needed, and the results in Almería were just 42%. The Government impugned that result, and Almería is now part of the newly autonomous region of Andalusia as we know it today.[3]

Cable Inglés, at night.

Main sights

  • The Alcazaba, a medieval fortress that was begun in the 13th century but destroyed by an earthquake in 1522. It includes a triple line of walls, a majestic keep and large gardens. It commands a city quarter with buildings dressed in white colours, of Muslim-age aspect.
  • The Cathedral has a fortress-like appearance due to its towers, merlons and protected paths, created to defend it from Mediterranean pirates. Originally designated as a mosque, it was later converted into a Christian church, before being destroyed in the 1522 earthquake. In the 16th century it was rebuilt in the Renaissance style, whilst keeping some of its defensive features.
  • Renaissance church of Santiago, built in 1533, with tower and portal decorated with reliefs.
  • Chanca, a group of houses carved into rocks.
  • Castle of San Cristobal, now in ruins. It is connected to the Alcazaba by a line of walls.
  • Museum of Almería. Includes findings from Prehistoric, Iberic, Roman, Greek ages and Muslim objects, mostly from the Alcazaba.
  • Paseo de Coches, a modern seaside promenade with gardens and palms.

Demographics

Historical population of Almería
(Source: INE (Spain))
Year199920002001200220032004200520072008200920102011
Population169,027168,946170,994173,338176,727177,681181,702189,798187,521188,810190,013190,349

People and culture

Casa de las Mariposas.

Famous natives of Almería include Nicolás Salmerón y Alonso, who in 1873 was the third president of the First Spanish Republic, and several musicians, like the popular folk singer Manolo Escobar, renowned Flamenco guitar player José Tomás "Tomatito" and Grammy Award winner David Bisbal, record-breaking album seller in America and Spain. The motorcyclist Antonio Maeso came from here.

Although administratively annexed to the Autonomous Community of Andalucia, in Southern Spain, some people of the province have shown a clear desire for regional autonomy in different referendums. The insular effect produced by its geographical situation has made several customs, accents and history different from the rest of the Autonomous Region of Andalucia. Almería hosted the Mediterranean Games in 2005. The city has 2 football teams: UD Almería plays in the Segunda División following relegation from La Liga in 2011 and CP Almería plays in a regional fivision. The Irish folk-rock group The Pogues paid tribute to Almeria in "Fiesta," a rollicking Spike Jones-flavored song on the band's third album, If I Should Fall From Grace with God.

Economy

Ayuntamiento of Almería.

The economy of Almería is mostly based on agriculture, which is located mainly in the western part of the region. Numerous greenhouses produce tonnes of fruit and vegetables, more than 70% of their product being exported to the rest of Europe.

The province of Almería is home to the largest naturist beach in Europe (also surrounded by naturist accommodations), El Playazo in Vera, despite current attempts to reduce the naturist extent of it.

Rambla of Almería.

Transportation

By land, Almería can be reached by the A-7 Mediterranean Highway, which connects the Mediterranean area with the Spanish A-92 that unites it with the rest of Andalusia.

See also main-article Port of Almeria

By sea, the port of Almería has connections to Melilla, Algeria and Morocco, and also tourist cruises in the Mediterranean. It also has a marina with moorings for pleasure boats. Currently the port of Almería is being expanded with new docks and transformed into a container port to take large-scale international shipping and thereby increase its freight traffic. It normally connects with the following destinations:

By air, Almería is served by Almería Airport which is the fourth largest in Andalusia and has domestic and international flights, mainly to Amsterdam, Madrid, Barcelona, Melilla, London, Manchester, Birmingham, Brussels, Dublin and Swiss, German and other EU cities.

Harbour of Almería.

Geography

Due to its arid landscape, numerous spaghetti westerns were filmed in Almería. According to Christopher Frayling, the author of Once Upon A Time in Italy: The Films of Sergio Leone, some of the sets are still there.[4] These sets are located in the desert of Tabernas. The town and region were also used by David Lean in Lawrence of Arabia (1962), John Milius in The Wind and the Lion (1975), and others. One of Almería's most famous natural spots is the [1] Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park. This park is of volcanic origin, and is the largest and most ecologically significant marine-terrestrial space in the European Western Mediterranean Sea. With one of the most beautiful and ecologically rich coasts of the western Mediterranean and an area of 380 square kilometres it is one of Spain’s natural jewels. The Cabo de Gata Natural Park runs through the municipal areas of Níjar, Almería and Carboneras. Its villages, previously dedicated to fishing, have become tourism spots for those interested in nature. One of the greatest attractions of the Cabo de Gata Natural Park is its beaches.

Panorama of the city taken from La Alcazaba

Climate

Almería has a Subtropical arid climate (Köppen climate classification BWh) as annual precipitation is below 200mm; it is the only major European city with this type of climate. The average annual temperature is above 19 °C (66 °F).

Almería has hot summers and warm winters; it has one of the sunniest, warmest and driest climates in Europe. It experiences the warmest winters of any European city with a population over 100,000, and hot and dry summers with no precipitation between June and September.

Almería enjoys about 3000 hours of sunshine annually with over 320 sunny days a year on average (6 hours of sunshine in January and 12 in July). The city has an average annual temperature of about 19 °C (66 °F) and on average only 26 days with precipitation annually.

During the winter, daily maximum temperatures tend to stay around 18 °C (64 °F). At night, the temperature rarely drops below 8 °C (46 °F). Precipitation even during the wettest months is rare, this falls in short showers or thunderstorms.

During the warmest months - July and August, the sky is clear and sunny and no rainfall occurs. The typical daily temperatures are around 33 °C (91 °F) during the heat of the day. However, this is often influenced by the Levante wind, a hot dry easterly wind that blows from the interior desert that makes temperatures soar to 38 °C (100 °F) or higher. These can also carry dust or sand. The minimum temperatures stay around 24 °C (75 °F) during July and August. Heatwaves in Almería are quite common; Almería reached up to 43 °C (109 °F) in August 2011.[5]

Climate data for Almeria (airport)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 16.9
(62.4) 		17.7
(63.9) 		19.2
(66.6) 		21.0
(69.8) 		23.6
(74.5) 		27.3
(81.1) 		30.3
(86.5) 		30.7
(87.3) 		28.3
(82.9) 		24.3
(75.7) 		20.4
(68.7) 		17.9
(64.2) 		23.1
(73.6)
Daily mean °C (°F) 12.5
(54.5) 		13.2
(55.8) 		14.7
(58.5) 		16.4
(61.5) 		19.1
(66.4) 		22.7
(72.9) 		25.7
(78.3) 		26.4
(79.5) 		24.0
(75.2) 		20.0
(68.0) 		16.2
(61.2) 		13.7
(56.7) 		18.7
(65.7)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 8.2
(46.8) 		8.8
(47.8) 		10.1
(50.2) 		11.9
(53.4) 		14.6
(58.3) 		18.2
(64.8) 		21.1
(70.0) 		22.0
(71.6) 		19.6
(67.3) 		15.7
(60.3) 		12.0
(53.6) 		9.4
(48.9) 		14.3
(57.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 23
(0.9) 		21
(0.8) 		15
(0.6) 		20
(0.8) 		14
(0.6) 		10
(0.4) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		12
(0.5) 		28
(1.1) 		28
(1.1) 		23
(0.9) 		196
(7.7)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1 mm) 3 3 3 3 2 1 0 0 1 3 3 3 26
Mean monthly sunshine hours 191 191 228 250 299 322 338 312 257 221 187 176 2,965
Source: Agencia Estatal de Meteorología[6] 1971-2000

Films

Main article: List of films shot in Almería

Sister cities

Crystal Cave

In 2000, a team of geologists found a cave filled with giant gypsum crystals in an abandoned silver mine near Almería. The cavity, which measures 1.8x1.7 metres, would be the largest [2] geode ever found. The entrance of the cave has been blocked by five tons of rocks, and is under police protection (to prevent looters from entering). According to geological models, the cave was formed during the Messinian salinity crisis 6 million years ago, when the Mediterranean sea evaporated and left thick layers of salt sediments (evaporites). The cave is currently not accessible to tourists.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Almería.

See also

References

  1. ^ Abella, Rafael La vida cotidiana durante la guerra civil: la España republicana. p.254 Editorial Planeta 1975
  2. ^ http://www.congreso.es/consti/elecciones/referendos/ref_and_80.htm
  3. ^ http://servicios.lavozdigital.es/referendum-estatuto-andalucia/historia-estatuto-autonomia.html
  4. ^ http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4780340
  5. ^ "Meteo Almeria- Current weather Almeria".
  6. ^ "Valores Climatológicos Normales. Almeria / Aeropuerto".

External links

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