Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK
For members

ANDALUSIA

Ten things you probably didn’t know about Andalusia

In order to celebrate Andalusia Day on February 28th, we've unearthed 10 surprising and fascinating facts about perhaps Spain's most beloved region.

Published: 28 February 2024 10:16 CET
Ten things you probably didn’t know about Andalusia
The breath-taking city of Ronda, in Málaga province in Andalusia. Photo: David Vives/Pexels

It’s home to the only desert in Europe

When you picture the landscape of Andalusia, you’re likely picturing a sea of scorched dry hillsides, perhaps dotted with olive trees. You’re not wrong, parts of Andalusia are so hot and dry in fact that they’re actually considered to be a desert. Europe’s only desert is the Desierto de Tabernas, located in the province of Almería. It covers 11,625 hectares, has an average year-round temperature of over 17C and the amount of rainfall is only around 250 mm per year. It has such an iconic desert look in fact that many Westerns were filmed here.

Tabernas’ desert landscape and climate that characterize part of the province made it an ideal setting for Western films. (Photo by JOSE LUIS ROCA / AFP)
 

It’s also where you’ll find the rainiest place in Spain

It may surprise you, but not only is Andalusia home to the driest place in Spain, but it’s also home to the rainiest. Very rainy places may be more associated with the Basque Country, Galicia or Asturias, but it is in fact the Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park that’s the wettest. The park sits east of the town of Arcos de la Frontera and around 80km north of Estepona on the Costa del Sol. It sees around 2,200 litres per metre squared each year. 

Dark clouds form over the Sierra de Grazalema. Photo: José Luis Rodríguez Martínez/Unsplash
 

Only 14km separate Andalusia from Africa

You may have heard that on a clear day, it’s possible to see the shores of the African continent from some parts of Andalusia, but did you know that the shortest distance between the two land masses is only 14km? This is the part known as the Strait of Gibraltar. The distance is so short in fact that many swimmers have even managed to swim between the two continents. 

And aerial view of the Strait of Gibraltar and Morocco. Photo: Daniel Camejo/Unsplash

It’s home to Europe’s biggest geode

In the province of Almería lies one of the world’s most astonishing treasures. The Geoda de Pulpí is Europe’s largest and the world’s second-largest geode, measuring an astounding 8m long by 2m tall. The geode is lined from floor to ceiling in dazzling crystals. It’s possible to visit the geode on a guided tour, which leads you 60m underground. 

The Geode of Pulpí was discovered in 1999. Photo: Andalusia regional government

Andalusia is where the highest mountain on the Spanish peninsula is found

The highest mountain in all of Spain is Tenerife’s Mount Teide at 3,715m, but the highest peak on mainland Spain can be found not in the mountainous north in the Pyrenees or the Picos de Europa, but in Andalusia. This is Mulhacén, found in Granada’s Sierra Nevada National Park with an elevation of 3,482m. 

The name Mulhacén is of Arabic origin, deriving from Mulay Hasan, one of the final Moorish kings of Andalusia. Miguel Alonso/Unsplash

The oldest city in Spain is here

The coastal city of Cádiz is not only Spain’s oldest city, but it is one of Europe’s too. It was founded by the Phoenicians in 1100 BC and began life as a port and a temple, where supposedly the ashes of Hercules were kept. This makes the city over 3,000 years old and it has been continuously inhabited ever since. 

Cádiz is also the most southern city in Europe. Photo: Vidar Nordli-Mathisen/Unsplash

It has more inhabitants than any other region in Spain

Castilla y León may be Spain’s largest region, but it’s Andalusia that has the most inhabitants. According to the latest stats available from 2023, Andalusia had a total of 8,576,703 residents. 

Crowds gather to see the Christmas lights in Málaga. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)
 

It used to be home to the richest city in the world 

The capital of Andalusia, Seville was once the richest city in the world. This was because the city’s Casa de la Contratación, established by the Crown of Castile in 1503 in the city’s port, managed an enormous fortune that flowed in from the explorers conquering the Americas. The company directed trade from the Americas for almost 220 years and during that time, transported a great number of riches and treasures across the Atlantic. 

Anonymous painting of Seville circa 1660 reflecting its wealth when dominating commerce with the New World.
 

García is the most common surname

According to the latest data from the Institute of Statistics and Cartography of Andalusia, García is the most common surname in the region, while María del Carmen and Antonio are the most common first names. A total of 3.3 percent of Andalusians are named María del Carmen and 4.6 are Antonio. These names mainly belong to the older population with an average of over 50 years old. Not only is María del Carmen the most popular name for women, but María is the second-most common, followed by the name Carmen. 

Andalusian poet Federico García Lorca, one of the generations of García in the region, is one of Spain’s most celebrated sons. (Photo by Jorge Guerrero / AFP)
 

One of its provinces has the largest concentration of castles in Europe

Andalusia is dotted with countless castles and fortresses, but it may be surprising to learn that one of its provinces has more than any other place in Europe. This is the province of Jaén. Some of the most spectacular are the Castle of Santa Catalina, the Castle of La Guardia, the Castle of La Mota, the Castle of Segura de la Sierra and the Castle of la Yedra. 

View of the ancient Yedra Castle in Cazorla, Jaén. Photo: Cristopher Eden
 

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

DISCOVER SPAIN

A history of Madrid’s Barrio de las Letras in seven places

To mark World Book Day, Madrid-based Felicity Hughes takes us on a fascinating journey through the Spanish capital's Literary District, retracing the steps of Hemingway, Cervantes, Dumas and other iconic writers who stayed in this barrio.

Published: 23 April 2024 10:13 CEST
A history of Madrid's Barrio de las Letras in seven places

World Book Day on April 23rd marks the date of Cervantes’ death. The author of Don Quijote lived in the Huertas neighbourhood of Madrid when he published his classic, starting a literary tradition in the area that continues to this day. Also known as Barrio de las Letras, Huertas is Madrid’s equivalent to Bloomsbury.

In my new book, A Guide to Madrid’s Literary District, I explore this heritage in-depth. To celebrate the launch of this guide and to get you prepped for World Book Day, here’s a quick history of the neighbourhood told through seven places.

Teatro Español

While the current neo-classical building was constructed in 1849, Teatro Español traces its history back to 1583. Madrid’s first theatre, Corral del Príncipe was built here 16 years before London’s Globe. As in Shakespeare’s London, the theatre was extremely popular but up until this point, Madrid did not have a dedicated venue. Instead, plays were performed in the courtyards of buildings. In the Corral del Príncipe, lower-class spectators stood in a square courtyard to watch actors perform on stage, while wealthier citizens were up in balconies overlooking the action.

Comic farces involving scandalous plots in which lovers switched partners several times were particularly popular. A writer who excelled at this style of drama was Félix Lope de Vega, Shakespeare’s contemporary and one of the Siglo de Oro’s most famous figures. To this day, you can see his name etched into the facade of Teatro Español, alongside other great writers of the time.

Madrid's Teatro Español

Madrid’s Teatro Español. Photo: Felicity Hugues

Casa Museo Lope de Vega

Lope de Vega didn’t have far to walk to see his words come to life on stage. His house is just a few minutes walk away at number 11 Calle de Cervantes. Now open to the public, you can still wander into the museum’s pretty garden whenever you fancy. Better yet, book yourself in for a free guided tour and you can see the house and hear all about his exciting and slightly disreputable life. A hit with the ladies, the playwright was a prodigious talent and penned around 500 plays during his lifetime. This prompted Cervantes to call him a “monstruo de la naturaleza” (a freak of nature) in his Eight Comedies and Interludes.

Casa de Lope de Vega by Felicity Hughes

Lope de Vega’s house in Madrid. Photo: Felicity Hugues

Convento de las Trinitarias Descalzas

Miguel de Cervantes’ bones lie just one street away in the Convento de las Trinitarias Descalzas at number 18 Calle Lope de Vega. Someone in town planning must have been having a laugh at the expense of both writers when these streets were named! Cervantes’ freak-of-nature taunt came after Lope de Vega had trashed an advance copy of Don Quijote in a letter announcing: “Of poets I do not say: this is a good century! Many are in the making for the coming year. But there is none so bad as Cervantes; nor so foolish as to praise Don Quijote.”

Lope de Vega, of course, was very wrong. Don Quijote was a smash hit when it came out in 1605 and even though Cervantes was pushing 60 when he published his masterpiece, he did get to enjoy his final years in the spotlight. However, this fame didn’t prevent the destruction of his former house at number 2 Calle de Cervantes nor the misplacement of his bones, which are muddled up with other miscellaneous skeletons in a box inside the convent with the initials MC on it!

Madrid's Convento de las Trinitarias

Madrid’s Convento de las Trinitarias. Photo: John Dapolito

Lhardy

As Madrid’s theatre district, Huertas was a thoroughly disreputable place back in Cervantes’ time and a popular saying went: “Calle de Huertas, más putas que puertas” (Calle de Huertas, more whores than doors). However, in the 19th century, this didn’t deter French chef Emilio Huguenin from opening an upmarket restaurant in the area closer to Sol in 1839. A fan of fine dining, Alexandre Dumas famously dined here when he rolled into town.

However, the restaurant wasn’t affordable for many. In fact, Lhardy was considered so posh that Spain’s answer to Dickens, Benito Pérez Galdós declared that they even “put white ties on their Tahona buns.” It’s still going strong and is a great place to soak up the atmosphere of 19th-century Madrid where heated literary salons or tertulias (social gatherings) were often held in coffee shops and restaurants.

Lhardy madrid

Lhardy in Madrid’s Barrio de Las Letras. Photo: John Dapolito

Ateneo de Madrid

The best tertulias were hosted in Ateneo de Madrid, a deceptively slender building tucked away on Calle del Prado. This cultural institution had a rocky beginning during the tyrannical reign of Ferdinand VII when many of its liberal members had to flee to London. However, it was re-established in 1835 after the king died and has been going strong ever since.

The organisation aimed to promote enlightened values that would modernise Spain by fostering scholarship and lively debate and it continues to stick to this philosophy to this day. While it’s still a private member’s club, the spectacular interior of this tardis-like building can be seen by either booking a visit to the library or attending a talk in the gorgeous Salón de Actos.

Madrid’s Ateneo. Photo: John Dapolito

La Venencia

The rumour exchange during the Civil War, this bar has changed little since it was first opened in 1927. The décor, with its wooden tables and gleaming rows of bottles, is simplicity itself. To this day, music is never played, nothing but sherry is served and photos are strictly forbidden, a policy that goes back to the Civil War when Madrid was full of Nationalist spies. Ernest Hemingway would drop in to pick up information during his time as a correspondent in the city. Of course, this wasn’t enough to slake his thirst: Chicote’s on Gran Via was a firm favourite as was Villa Rosa and Cevecería Alemana, both on Plaza Santa Ana.

La Venencia. Photo: Felicity Hughes

Las Cuevas de Sésamo

Another Hemingway haunt in Barrio de las Letras was Las Cuevas de Sésamo. This underground cave was opened up after the war as a clandestine literary salon by former Republican aviator Tomás Cruz Díaz. One of the main attractions of this bar was its literary prize. Tomás launched the Sésamo Prize for theatrical works in 1952 and the scheme was such a success that a short story and painting prize was added, followed in 1956 by an award for novelists. Though the prize money was negligible, the cultural cachet for winners was huge, with many authors going on to forge illustrious careers. These included Soledad Puértolas, Juan Marsé, and Juan José Millás.

Las Cuevas de Sésamo in Madrid. Photo: Sergio de Isidro

Of course, there’s much more to discover about the history of Barrio de las Letras. If you’re interested in the subject, my book A Guide to Madrid’s Literary District from The Secret Kingdoms Press is out now. 

Felicity Hughes is the author of The Making of Madrid, a blog about the history of Madrid.

SHOW COMMENTS