Province of León
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Coordinates: 42°40′N 6°00′W / 42.667°N 6°W
| Province of León / Provincia de Llión | |||||
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| Capital | León, Spain | ||||
| Official language(s) | Spanish | ||||
| Area – Total – % of Spain |
Ranked 7th 15,581 km² 3.08% |
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| Population – Total (2008) – % of Spain – Density |
Ranked 30th 500,200 (2008) 1.08% 32.10/km² |
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| Demonym – English – Spanish |
Leonese Leonés/Leonesa |
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| Autonomous Community | Castilla y León | ||||
| Government | Diputación de León | ||||
| President | Isabel Carrasco | ||||
| http://www.dipuleon.es | |||||
León (Leonese: Llión) is a province of northwestern Spain, in the northwestern part of the autonomous community of Castile and León.
About one quarter of its population of 500,200 (2008) lives in the capital, León. The weather is cold and dry during the winter.[vague]
There are Roman Catholic cathedrals at León and Astorga. The province shares the Picos de Europa National Park (in the Picos de Europa mountain range) with Cantabria and Asturias. It has 211 municipalities.
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[edit] History
The province of León was born in 1833 with the new Spanish administrative organisation in regions and provinces instead of the Kingdoms. Leonese Region was composed by León, Salamanca and Zamora.
Previously, the Kingdom of León had been an independent kingdom situated in the northwest region of the Iberian Peninsula. It was founded in 910 A.D. when the Christian princes of Asturias along the northern coast of the peninsula shifted their main seat from Oviedo to the city of León. The Atlantic provinces became the Kingdom of Portugal in 1139, and the eastern, inland part of the kingdom was joined to the Kingdom of Castile by 1230 and then in 1301. In 1188 the Kingdom of León developed first Parliament in Europe, and in 1202 a legislation about economics.
From 1296 to 1301, the Kingdom of León was again independent and, after the union with Castile, kept as a Kingdom until 1833, being composed by "Adelantamientos Mayores", where Leonese Adelantamiento was made with[clarification needed] the territories between the Picos de Europa and the Duero river.
[edit] Language
The Leonese language is recognised by the Statute of Castile and León. The Provincial Government of León signed accords with language associations for promoting Leonese. Leonese is taught in León city, Mansilla de las Mulas, La Bañeza, Valencia de Don Juan or Ponferrada for adult people, and in sixteen schools of León city. The City Council of León writes some of their announcements in Leonese in order to promote the language.
[edit] Cuisine
Embutidos
- Cecina from León: from beef. In Leonese, cecina means "meat that has been salted and dried by means of air, sun or smoke". Cecina de León is made of the hind legs of beef, salted, smoked and air-dried in the province of León in Northwestern Spain, and has PGI status.
- Botillo: from pig. Traditionally made in the western leonese regions. Botiellu, in Leonese language, is a dish of meat-stuffed pork intestine. It is a culinary specialty of El Bierzo, a county in the Spanish province of León and also of the region of Trás-os-Montes, in Portugal. This type of Embutido is a meat product made from different pieces left over from the butchering of a pig, including the ribs, tail, and bones with a little meat left on them. These are chopped; seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, and other spices; stuffed in the cecum of the pig; and partly cured via smoking. It can also include the pig's tongue, shoulder blade, jaw, and backbone, but never exceeding 20% of the total volume. It is normally consumed cooked, covered with a sheet. Also has a PGI status.
Wines
- Bierzo: in the west of the Province of León and covers about 3,000 km². The area consists of numerous small valleys in the mountainous part (Alto Bierzo) and of a wide, flat plain (Bajo Bierzo). The DO covers 23 municipalities.
- Tierras de León: in the southeast of the Province of León.
Sweets
- Mantecadas de Astorga.
- Hojaldres de Astorga.
- Lazos de San Guillermo.
- Nicanores de Boñar.
[edit] Municipalities
[edit] Shires (Comarcas)
- El Bierzo
- Maragatería
- Tierra de Campos
- La Montaña
- La Ribera
- La Cabrera
- Tierras de La Bañeza
- Tierras de León
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- The Official Tourism Website of the Province of Leon
- Leonese Provincial Government
- Leonese City Council
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