Alicante in Spanish or Alacant (in Valencian) is a province of eastern Spain, in the southern part of the Valencian Community. Valencian ( valencià) is the historical traditional and official name used in the Valencian Community of Spain to refer to the region's native language In addition to its autonomous communities, Spain is divided into fifty Provinces. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The Valencian Community ( Valencian and official Comunitat Valenciana; Comunidad Valenciana is an Autonomous community located in central to It is bordered by the provinces of Murcia on the southwest, Albacete on the west, Valencia on the north, and the Mediterranean Sea on the east. The Autonomous Community of the Region of Murcia (Spanish Comunidad Autónoma de la Región de Murcia) is one of Spain 's seventeen autonomous communities Albacete is a province of central Spain, in the southern part of the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. Valencia ( Spanish: Valencia /ba'lenθja/ Valencian: València /va'łen The province is named after its capital, the city of Alicante. ||-||} Alicante ( Spanish language) or Alacant ( Valencian) is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the
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Territory and resources
According to the 2007 census, Alicante ranks as the 5th most populous province in Spain, with 1,825,264 inhabitants, from which at least 350,000 are foreign,. [1] one of the highest ratio in Spain. Cities with more than 50,000 inhabitants in the province are Alicante (322,673 inhab. ||-||} Alicante ( Spanish language) or Alacant ( Valencian) is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the ), Elche (222,422 inhab. ), Torrevieja (94,006 inhab. Torrevieja in Spanish or Torrevella in Valencian is a seaside city and Municipality located on the Costa Blanca in the province ), Orihuela (80,468 inhab. For the town in the province of Teruel Spain see Orihuela del Tremedal Orihuela in Spanish or Oriola in Valencian ), Benidorm (69,058 inhab. Benidorm (beniˈðɔɾm] in Valencian in Spanish) is a Valencian coastal town and municipality located in the comarca of ), Alcoy (60,700 inhab. Alcoy (in Spanish) or Alcoi (in Valencian) is a city and municipality located in the province of Alicante, Spain. ), and Elda (55,289 inhab. Elda is a city located in the province of Alicante, Spain. It has an area of and according to the 2002 census a total population of 55571 inhabitants ).
From the 50 provinces of Spain, Alicante is the only one with three metropolitan areas (Alicante-Elche, Elda-Petrer, Benidorm area) even though only one of these (Alicante-Elche) is ranked within the Spanish top ten metropolitan areas. A metropolitan area is a large population center consisting of a large Metropolis and its adjacent zone of influence or of more than one closely adjoining neighboring central [2] It has an area of 5. 816,5 km², and so it has a population density of 313. 8 hab/km².
Geography and Climate
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The province is mountainous, specially to the north and west, whereas it is mostly flat to the south, in the Vega Baja del Segura area; the most elevated points in the province are Aitana (1,558 m), Puig Campana (1,410 m), Moncabrer (1,389 m), Carrascal de Alcoy (1,354 m), Maigmó (1,296 m), Sierra de Crevillente (835 m) and El Montgó (753 m). Vega Baja del Segura ( Valencian: Baix Segura) is a ''comarca'' in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, All of these peaks are a part of the Subbaetic Range. The Baetic Cordillera is a mountain system streching from Morocco, through Gibraltar and along the southern and eastern parts of Spain.
The coast extends from Cabo de la Nao (Nao Cape) in the north to almost reaching the Mar Menor (Minor Sea) in the south. Cap de la Nau, Cabo de la Nao in Spanish literally Cape of the Ship, is a headland Mar Menor ( little sea or small sea) is a salty lagoon in the south-east of the autonomous Community of Murcia, in Spain, separated from the With regard to water sources, due to the dry rain regime there are no major rivers, but mostly ramblas (dry rivers which fill in with water when torrential rains occur).
The only remarkable streams are the Vinalopó, Serpis and, specially, the river Segura. The Vinalopó is a small river flowing through the Alicante province, in Spain. Segura ( Latin Thader, Arabic War-Alabiat, Spanish and Catalan Segura) is a medium-sized Other minor seasonal creeks (some completely dried out in summer) are Girona, Algar, Amadorio or Ebo.
There are remarkable saline wetlands and marshlands along the coast such El Fondó and the former wetlands and now salt evaporation ponds in Santa Pola and Torrevieja. Salt evaporation ponds are shallow man-made Ponds designed to produce Salt from Sea water. All of them are key RAMSAR sites which make the Alicante province of high relevance for both migratory and resident seabirds and waterbirds. The Ramsar Convention is an international Treaty for the conservation and sustainable utilization of Wetlands i
Important coastal dunes are present in the Guardamar area which were planted with thousands of pine trees during the 19th century in order to protect the ville from the dunes advancing, which has created now an area of remarkable ecologic value. In physical Geography, a dune is a Hill of Sand built by Aeolian processes. Guardamar del Segura is a Municipality of the province of Alicante located at the mouth of the river Segura in southern Valencia (autonomous community
The climate is strikingly diverse for such a reduced area. Three major areas can be cited
- Most of the province belongs to a Semiarid climate. A Semi-arid climate or steppe climate generally describes climatic regions that receive low annual Rainfall (250-500 mm or 10-20 in It roughly goes along the coastal plain from Vila Joiosa through the southernmost border (cities included here are, amongst others, Alicante, Elx, Orihuela and Torrevieja). Summers are very long, hot to very hot and very dry, winters are cool to mild and its most prominent feature is very scarce precipitation, typically below 300mm. per year and most likely to happen during spring and autumn. The reasons for this lack of precipitation is mostly the marked Rain shadow effect caused by hills to the west of the Alicante province (and, to a lesser degree, those in the northern part of the province which, in turn, enhance the inverse Orographic lift effect around Cabo de la Nao). For the Australian television series see Rain Shadow (TV series. Most of its few rainy days happen during Autumn and Spring.
The predominant vegetation in this part of the province is Matorral Scrublands including thyme, esparto, juniper and the like. Matorral is a Spanish word for Shrubland, Thicket or Bushes. Matorral originally referred to the Matorral shrublands of Scrubland is a Plant community characterized by scrub Vegetation. Thyme (ˈtaɪm is a well known herb in common usage the name may refer to either the any or all members of the plant Genus Thymus, Esparto, or esparto grass, also known as "halfah grass" or "needle grass" Macrochloa tenacissima and Stipa tenacissima, is a perennial Junipers are Coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae.
- Proper Mediterranean climate is present in the northeastern areas around Cabo de la Nao, mostly to its North but also to its South, in diminishing grades until disappearing slightly north of Benidorm. A Mediterranean climate is one that resembles the Climate of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, which includes over half of the area with this climate type world-wide Cap de la Nau, Cabo de la Nao in Spanish literally Cape of the Ship, is a headland It roughly goes along the coastal plain from the northern border of the province through the Benidorm area. The north slopes of the mountains in the Marina Alta have a remarkably wetter micro climate which allows to accumulate an average of up to 900mm. Marina Alta is a comarca in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain. A microclimate is a local atmospheric zone where the Climate differs from the surrounding area due to the Orographic lift phenomenon with most of the precipitation occurring in Autumn and Spring. Orographic lift occurs when an Air mass is forced from a low Elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain The precipitation in this area is an average four times the one of the semiarid South, with this big precipitation gap occurring in a matter of just 100 km.
The vegetation of this part is an enriched version of the Matorral shrubland and also Mediterranean pine woods.
- The Alicante province also has a mostly dry Mediterranean to Continental climate transition zone. Continental climate is a Climate that is characterized by Winter Temperatures cold enough to support a fixed period of Snow cover each Year These are the innermost part of the Province (for example Villena) and some closer to the sea but at a higher elevation (for example Alcoy). Here winters are cool to cold and a few days of snow are not unusual; summers are mild to hot and rains at about 500 mm average and slightly more evenly distributed through the year than in the previous mentioned areas. The innermost part of this domain is more quite dry while the mountainous part reach slightly higher precipitation figures which allow Kermes Oak woods to thrive, such as the one in La Carrasqueta or in the Mariola range, both near Alcoy. The Kermes Oak ( Quercus coccifera) is an Oak in the Turkey oak section ''Quercus'' sect
Economy
The main industries in Alicante province are, in the primary sector, intensive agriculture, specially in the fertile Vega Baja del Segura, Camp d'Elx (Elche's countryside) and vineyards in the inner part of the province (Monforte, Novelda, Pinós), also near the coast in the Marina Alta area. Benidorm (beniˈðɔɾm] in Valencian in Spanish) is a Valencian coastal town and municipality located in the comarca of Fishing is important all along the coast, with important fishing harbours such as Santa Pola, Calp or Denia.
Industry has been historically important in the textile sector around Alcoy. Footwear still remains as the flagship industrial sector of the province, which occurs in Elche, Elda, Petrer and Villena, both labour intensive footwear and, specially, textile are at a low ebb due to harsh competition from fast pace growing economies in Asia. The traditionally important toys industry around the Ibi and Onil area is another one competing internationally with those same areas. Ibi is a town located in the Comarca of Alcoià, in the province of Alicante, Spain.
A sector which has gained preeminence during the last 20 years is marble quarrying and processing, it happens mostly in the Novelda and Pinós area.
Still, what the province is known for is its massive tourism sector. The Costa Blanca generally mild and sunny weather attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists from other European countries such as the UK, Germany, Belgium, Norway or France and also from other parts in Spain like Madrid. Costa Blanca ( English: White Coast) refers to the over 200 Kilometres of coastline belonging to the Province of Alicante in Spain Thousands of families from other places own a second home in the Alicante province which they use for their vacation time.
Traditional subdivisions
Traditionally, the province of Alicante is divided into nine comarcas or comarques (in Valencian):
- Comtat: 27,854 inhabitants; its capital is Cocentaina; textile industry and agriculture. A comarca (meaning Shire or County, Spanish and Portuguese plural comarcas, Catalan plural Valencian ( valencià) is the historical traditional and official name used in the Valencian Community of Spain to refer to the region's native language Comtat (Condado is a ''comarca'' in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain. Cocentaina (also rarely Concentaina) is a town located in the Comarca of Comtat, in the province
- Alcoià: It is subdivided into two clearly differentiated subcomarcas:
- Valls d'Alcoi: 68,348 inhabitants; its capital is Alcoy; olive trees and textile industry; Moros y Cristianos festivals. Alcoià is a ''comarca'' in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain. Alcoy (in Spanish) or Alcoi (in Valencian) is a city and municipality located in the province of Alicante, Spain. Moros y Cristianos (in Spanish) or Moros i Cristians (in Valencian) literally means Moors and Christians, and
- La Foia de Castalla or Hoya de Castalla: 42,529 inhabitants; its capital is Castalla; its most populous city is Ibi; industry of toys. Castalla is a city located in the Comarca of L'Alcoià, in the province of Alicante, Spain. Ibi is a town located in the Comarca of Alcoià, in the province of Alicante, Spain.
- Marina Alta: 188,567 inhabitants; its capital is Denia; it is the most rainy comarca; tourism. Marina Alta is a comarca in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain. Dénia (in Catalan; Spanish: Denia) is the judicial seat of the ''comarca'' of Marina Alta, in the province of Alicante
- Marina Baixa or Marina Baja: 179,549 inhabitants; its capital is Benidorm; eminently tourist; beautiful beaches and mountains. Marina Baixa is a comarca in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is bordered by the comarques of Comtat on the northwest Benidorm (beniˈðɔɾm] in Valencian in Spanish) is a Valencian coastal town and municipality located in the comarca of
- Alto Vinalopó or Alt Vinalopó: 52,899 inhabitants; its capital is Villena; agriculture and footwear; Moros y Cristianos festivals. Alto Vinalopó ( Valencian: Alt Vinalopó is a ''comarca'' in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain Villena is a city located in the province of Alicante, Spain. Moros y Cristianos (in Spanish) or Moros i Cristians (in Valencian) literally means Moors and Christians, and
- Vinalopó Mitjà or Vinalopó Medio: 169,122 inhabitants; its capital is Elda; footwear industry, marble, wines and grapes. Vinalopó Mitjà (Vinalopó Medio is a ''comarca'' in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain. Elda is a city located in the province of Alicante, Spain. It has an area of and according to the 2002 census a total population of 55571 inhabitants Marble is a nonfoliated Metamorphic rock resulting from the Metamorphism of Limestone, composed mostly of Calcite (a crystalline form of For the Tokyo University supercomputer see Gravity Pipe. GRAPE, or GRA phics P rogramming E nvironment is
- Baix Vinalopó or Bajo Vinalopó: 279,815 inhabitants; its capital is Elche; agriculture, footwear and carpet industry, tourism; Misteri d'Elx festival.
- L'Alacantí: 455,292inhabitants; its capital is Alicante; services and tourism; highly urbanised comarca; Bonfires of Saint John festival. ||-||} Alicante ( Spanish language) or Alacant ( Valencian) is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the Bonfires of Saint John (Hogueras de San Juan is a popular festival celebrated in June from the 19th to the 24th in Spain.
- Vega Baja del Segura or Baix Segura: 361,292 inhabitants; its capital is Orihuela; its most populous city is Torrevieja; agriculture and tourism. Vega Baja del Segura ( Valencian: Baix Segura) is a ''comarca'' in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, For the town in the province of Teruel Spain see Orihuela del Tremedal Orihuela in Spanish or Oriola in Valencian Torrevieja in Spanish or Torrevella in Valencian is a seaside city and Municipality located on the Costa Blanca in the province
History and Politics
The Iberians were the oldest documented people living in what today is the Alicante province. The Iberians were a set of peoples that Greek and Roman sources (among others Hecataeus of Miletus, Avienus, Herodot and Strabo Belonging to these there are several archaeologic sites from which is specially known the one in La Serreta (near Alcoy) because the longest inscriptions remaining in the undeciphered Iberian language were found there. The Iberian language was the language of a people identified by Greek and Roman sources who lived in the eastern and southeastern regions of the Iberian
Along the coast and contemporarily to the Iberians, the seafaring Phoenicians (in Guardamar) and Greeks (along the coastal section to the north of the Alicante city) settled stable trading colonies and interacted with the former (see Lady of Elche for the most renowned archeological piece of this period). Phoenicia ( Phoenician: Phoenician nunsvg|12px|נ]]Phoenician nun The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca The enigmatic Lady of Elx ( Dama de Elche in Spanish, Dama d'Elx in Valencian) is a polychrome stone Bust that was discovered
After a brief Carthaginian period, the Romans took over. Carthage (Καρχηδών Karkhēdōn, Carthago from the Phoenician קרת חדשת phn-Latn Qart-ḥadašt meaning new town) refers Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC Romanization in this part of Iberia was intense, the Via Augusta communicated this part of the Empire to the metropoli and so several cities thrived, from which the one known as Ilici Augusta (now Elche) even reached the status of colonia. Via Augusta (also known as Via Herculea or Via Exterior) was a Roman road crossing all the Hispania Province from Cádiz in the southern A Roman colonia (plural coloniae) was originally a Roman outpost established in conquered territory to secure it
After a brief period of Visigothic ruling, the area was taken by Islamic armies and became a part of Al Andalus. The Visigoths (Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, or Wisi were one of two main branches of the Goths, an East Al-Andalus (الأندلس was the Arabic name given to those parts of the Iberian Peninsula governed by Muslims or From the 13th century, kings like Ferdinand III of Castile, James I of Aragon, Alfonso X of Castile, James II of Aragon reconquered the cities that Moors occupied. Saint Ferdinand III (July 30 or August 5 1199 &ndash May 30, 1252) was the King of Castile from 1217 and King of León from 1230 James I the Conqueror ( Catalan: Jaume el Conqueridor, Aragonese: Chaime lo Conqueridor, Spanish: Jaime el Conquistador Alfonso X (November 23 1221 Toledo Spain &ndash April 4 1284 Seville Spain) was a Spanish monarch who ruled as the King of Castile, James II ( 10 August 1267 in Valencia &ndash 2 November or 5 November 1327 in Barcelona) called the Just The Reconquista (a Spanish and Portuguese word for "Reconquest" Arabic: الاسترداد, "Recapturing" was a period The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of Muslim (and earlier non-Muslim people of Berber and Arab descent What today is the Alicante province was initially split between the Crown of Castile and the Crown of Aragon by means of the Treaty of Almizra, however later on the whole territory became under the control of the Kingdom of Valencia, which was a component Kingdom of the Crown of Aragon. The Crown of Aragon was a permanent union of multiple titles and states in the hands of the King of Aragon. The Treaty of Almizra (or Treaty of Almiçra) was the third of a series of three treaties between the Crowns of Aragon and Castile meant to determine the The Christian Kingdom of Valencia, located in the Eastern shore of the Iberian Peninsula, was one of the component realms of the Crown of Aragon.
for more details on the Medieval period, see Kingdom of Valencia
Alicante contributes with 11 deputies in the Spanish Parliament and with 36 deputies in the Corts Valencianes, the regional Parliament of the Valencian Community. The Christian Kingdom of Valencia, located in the Eastern shore of the Iberian Peninsula, was one of the component realms of the Crown of Aragon. The Spanish Congress of Deputies (Spanish Congreso de los Diputados) is the lower house of the Cortes Generales, Spain 's Legislative branch. The Valencian Community ( Valencian and official Comunitat Valenciana; Comunidad Valenciana is an Autonomous community located in central to
See also
External links and notes
- Excma. Diputación Provincial de Alicante
- Alicante Directo
- Alicante business directory and articles for Tourists
- Detailed Alicante City Guide with detailed videos and sightseeing tips. This is a list of the municipalities in the province of Alicante, in the autonomous community of Valencia, Spain. Alicante International Airport (Aeropuerto Internacional de Alicante, originally named El Altet, is the main airport for the regions of Alicante and Murcia Alicante is one of the 52 electoral districts (circunscripciones used for the Spanish Congress of Deputies - the lower chamber of the Spanish Parliament the From a local citizen.
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