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Almería (, , ) is a city and municipality of Spain, located in Andalusia. It is the capital of the province of the same name. The city lies in southeastern Iberia, extending primarily in between the eastern fringes of the Sierra de Gádor and the Andarax riverbed along the coastline of the Gulf of Almería, a large inlet of the Mediterranean Sea. The municipality has a population of 201,946.
Caliph Abd al-Rahman III founded the city in 955. The city grew wealthy during the Islamic era, becoming a world city throughout the 11th and 12th centuries. It enjoyed an active port that traded silk, oil, and raisins. This period was brought to an end with the 1147 conquest of the city by a Christian coalition. Control over Almería switched hands over the rest of the middle ages. In the early modern period, with the onset of Barbary piracy, the ethnic cleansing of moriscos in the Kingdom of Granada, and several natural calamities, urban decay accrued. The 19th-century reactivation of mining activity (lead) in the hinterland fostered commercial activity and demographic growth.
Key road routes include the A-7 connecting Almería to the rest of the Spanish Mediterranean coast and the A-92 connecting the city to Granada and inner Andalusia. Almería is served by a medium-sized airport and a port with a growing specialization in passenger and ro-ro transport with the North of Africa (Algeria and Morocco).
Being adjacent to a small desert, Almería has an exceptionally dry climate by European standards.
In the wake of the collapse of the Caliphate of Córdoba in the early 11th century, Almería detached from Cordobese authority towards 1014 and became ruled as an independent taifa under Saqaliba. It submitted to the Taifa of Valencia in 1038, yet it soon became independent as a new taifa, ruled by the Arab Banu Sumadih until 1091, when it fell to Almoravid control. This allowed the city's economy to insert itself into the trade networks of the Almoravid empire. Building upon the previous development during the caliphal period, Almería reached a degree of historical relevance unmatched in the rest of its history throughout the 11th and 12th centuries, becoming the third-largest city of Al-Andalus. Almería imported indigo dye and wool from the Maghreb and linen from Egypt, while it exported copper to Fez and Tlemcen as well as its highly sought textiles.
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 counter the Muslim forces on a more familiar coast. On that occasion Alfonso VII, starting on 11 July 1147, at the head of mixed armies of Catalans, Genoese, Pisans and Franks, led a crusade against the rich city, and Almería was captured on 17 October 1147, marking the breakup of the city's period of splendor in the Middle Ages.
Within a decade, in 1157, Almería had passed to the control of Muslim Almohad dynasty rulers. Almería soon passed by the temporary overarching control of rebel Murcian emir Ibn Mardanish (1165–1169), hindering the early efforts of recovery in the city, (1990). 9788486862435, Instituto de Estudios Almerienses de la Diputación de Almería. ISBN 9788486862435 that under the decade of Christian occupation reportedly had been left depopulated and, by and large, quite destroyed. During Almohad rule, the city did not return to its previous splendor, although the port remained trading with the Crown of Aragon and the Italian republics.
Following the rebellion against Almohad rule heralded by the likes of the Banu Hud and the Banu Mardanis, Almería submitted to the authority of Ibn Hud, who had raised the Black Standard and pledged nominal allegiance to Abbasid authorities by 1228. After Ibn Hud's assassination in Almería in 1238, the bulk of the remaining Muslim-controlled territories in the Iberian Peninsula passed to the control of rival ruler Ibn al-Aḥmar (sultan since 1232), who had set the capital of his emirate in Granada by 1238, constituting the Emirate of Granada, to which Almería belonged from then on. While relatively languishing throughout the Nasrid period, Almería still remained a key strategic port of the emirate together with Málaga, as well as a haven for pirates and political dissidents. It sustained intense trading relations with Aragon and the African port of Honaine. Almería endured a brutal siege by Aragonese forces in 1309 that, while eventually unsuccessful, left the city battered.
The city submitted to the sovereignty of the Catholic Monarchs on 22 December 1489.; Relatively isolated and within the range of attacks from Barbary pirates, the hitherto mercantile city entered modernity by undergoing a process of heavy ruralization that imperiled its very same continued existence as a city.
Historically, there was a Jewish community in Almería dating to the 10th century, where members of the community mostly engaged in maritime trade. When the Jews were expelled in 1492, many living in Almería fled to North Africa.
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 Alpujarras in 1568 and scattered across the Crown of Castile. Landings and attacks by Barbary 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, with news reaching the London and Parisian press about the "criminal bombardment of Almería by German planes".Abella, Rafael(1975). La vida cotidiana durante la guerra civil: la España republicana, p. 254. Editorial Planeta. Almería surrendered in 1939, being the last Andalusian main city to fall to Francoist 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 Andalusia region in a referendum. The referendum were approved with 118,186 votes for and 11,092 votes against in Almería province, which represented 42% of all registered voters.
One of Almería's most famous natural spots is the 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. The Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park runs through the municipal areas of Níjar, Almerimar and Carboneras. Its villages, previously dedicated to fishing, have become tourism spots. The beaches of Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park are also an attraction.
Almería has one islet that it administers as a part of its territory in the Alboran Sea, Alboran Island. The island has a small cemetery, a harbor, and a lighthouse, built in the 19th century.
The BWh climate is present in the city of Almería, in nearby areas of Almería province (such as the Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park, the Andarax/Almanzora river valleys), the only region in Europe to have this climate. This arid climatic region spreads along the coastline around Almería to Torrevieja, in the northeast. The nearby Faro del Cabo in the Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park, has the lowest annual precipitation on the European continent () in the period 1961-1990 and around since 2010. Almería enjoys about 3,000 hours of sunshine with over 320 sunny days per year on average (6 hours of sunshine in January and 12 in July) so it is one of the sunniest cities in Europe.
Almería is the only city in Continental Europe that has never registered any temperature below freezing in its recorded weather history. The coldest temperature recorded was at the airport in January 2005. Before that, the previous record was on 9 February 1935. Settled snow is unknown since 1935, although during the 20th century, light flurries (without settling) occurred on few occasions. The most important settled snowfall event occurred in 1926 and the snow arrived even at the coastline of the city. The last event with settled snowfall happened on 9 February 1935.
During the winter, daily maximum temperatures tend to stay around . At night, the minimum temperature is usually around . This makes the city of Almería one of the warmest in winter in Spain. The city only receives yearly precipitation of just and 26 days of precipitation annually; so while no month could be described as truly wet, there are strong seasonal differences in terms of precipitation and temperature, with coastal parts of the city (such as the Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park) receiving a precipitation amount of , and an annual temperature of , while mountainous areas (such as the Tabernas Desert) receive a precipitation amount of per year, and an average temperature of , so it would be classified as a cold desert climate ( BWk) bordering a cold semi-arid climate ( BSk).
Inland areas of the Almería province are believed to have reached temperatures above in summer. Though temperatures above are very rare in the city of Almería.
During the summer, the skies are usually sunny and almost no rainfall occurs. The typical daily temperatures are around during the day while the minimum temperatures stay around during July and August. As is the case for most of coastal Iberia, heatwaves in Almería are much less common than in the interior because of its coastal location; The hottest temperature recorded was in August 2022. The highest minimum temperature ever recorded was on 31 July 2001, which is also the highest ever recorded in peninsular Spain and Iberian Peninsula.
The Irish folk-rock group The Pogues paid tribute to Almería in "Fiesta", a song on the band's third album, If I Should Fall from Grace with God.
In 1989, English electronic band Depeche Mode filmed the video for their song "Personal Jesus" in Almería.
Tourism increased and hotels were all occupied from January to February during the filming of the sixth season of the TV series Game of Thrones.
The Plaza de toros de Almería is the main bullring in Almería. It has a capacity of 10,000 and it opened in 1882.
This situation is the result of a great dynamic model, which can continually incorporate new technologies: using soil sanding, plastic covers, drip irrigation systems, hybrid seeds, soil-less cultivation, irrigation programs, new greenhouse structures, and so on. They all allowed to improve production and increase commercialisation calendars, assuring the profitability and quality of the crops and the competitiveness of the markets. Moreover, Almería's economy has an important exporting function:Aznar Sánchez, J. A.; Galdeano Gómez, E.; Godoy Durán, A.; Tapia León, J. J. (2013): "Caracterización y desafíos del sector de la comercialización"; en J. A. Aznar Sánchez (coord.) El sector de la comercialización hortícola en Almería (pp. 17-46). Ed. Caja Rural Intermediterránea, Cajamar. Almería. 75% of production was sold abroad in 2018, with a value of 2,400 million euros.Cajamar (2018): " Análisis de la campaña hortofrutícola de Almería. Campaña 2016-2017". Almería: Fundación Cajamar.
This development is explained by familiar investment, as subsidies have been limited or non-existent. In this sense, the horticultural sector receives the least European aid from the Common Agricultural Policy: 1.9% of total income. This figure is much lower than that received by other sectors such as olive groves (33%) or cereals (53%).European Union (2017): " Operating subsidies (both direct payments and rural development except investment support)"
The production of this area is based on fair competition with officially a just remuneration of employees, with similar salaries than the ones in the same sector in Europe: 8% higher than Italy and 11% than Belgium.Livre Blanc (2017): " Les Producteurs de Légumes de France" En red: http://www.legumesdefrance.fr/sites/fnplegweb/livre_blanc_2017.pdf This avoids the social dumping exerted by non-EU countries, like Morocco, with salaries up to 90% lower than those of Almería. However, there is well-documented widespread exploitation of workers from North Africa who work and live in terrible conditions, earning much lower than the minimum wage.Pablo, Ofelia de; and Javier Zurita in Almería, Annie Kelly and Clare Carlile (2020). "We pick your food: migrant workers speak out from Spain's 'Plastic Sea'". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
From a social point of view, Almería and Granada are an example of family-owned and smallholder agriculture, with small farms and little concentration of land. El sistema de producción hortícola protegido de la provincia de Almería, 2016. Instituto de Investigación y Formación Agraria y Pesquera de Andalucía (IFAPA). This social nature generates high equity in the level of income and welfare: social cohesion is produced, and inequality is reduced.Galdeano-Gómez, E.; Aznar-Sánchez, J. A.; Pérez-Mesa, J. C. (2016). Contribuciones económicas, sociales y medioambientales de la agricultura intensiva de Almería. Almería: Cajamar Caja Rural. Concretely, Almería is made up of 12,500 farms with an average of 2.5 hectares and 30% of familiar labour. The high education levels of the farmers are also significant, which demonstrates an innovative and receptive character towards continuing education: 81.2% of farmers have some type of formal academic training.
At the same time, a commercial system based on social economy enterprises has been developed, e.g. as cooperative societies. These companies represent 62% of production and sales.COEXPHAL, Asociación de Organizaciones de Productores de Frutas y Hortalizas de Almería (2016): " Memoria 2015/16". Online http://www.coexphal.es/descargas/ They assure the access to the market in optimal conditions, because they increase its position inside the agri-food supply chain, facilitate financing, technical advice, and incorporation of technology. Moreover, local ties increase environmental sustainability.Galdeano-Gómez, E.; Aznar-Sánchez, J. A.; Pérez-Mesa, J. C. (2016): Contribuciones económicas, sociales y medioambientales de la agricultura intensiva de Almería. Almería: Cajamar Caja Rural.
By sea, the port of Almería has connections to Melilla, Algeria, Morocco, and 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, the fourth largest in Andalusia. The winter timetable includes flights to Madrid, Barcelona, Melilla, London, and Seville, with international connections to Manchester, Birmingham, Brussels, Dublin and Swiss, German and other EU airports being added during the summer.
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Transport
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. Almería railway station is served by Renfe Operadora with direct rail services to Granada, and Madrid Atocha using a branch off the Alcázar de San Juan–Cádiz railway; the Linares Baeza–Almería railway. In the future, high-speed rail AVE services will link Almería to Madrid via Murcia. The central railway station has been closed for several months and it is not known exactly when it will re-open. Passengers currently start their journey by being bussed a few kilometres to Huercal de Almería station.
Notable people
Pedro Delgado (2016). 9788403515000, Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial España. . ISBN 9788403515000
See also
Notes
Bibliography
Christine Mazzoli-Guintard (2016). 9788489014763, Ayuntamiento de Alcalá la Real. ISBN 9788489014763
Eduardo Molina López (1990). 9788486862435, Instituto de Estudios Almerienses de la Diputación de Almería. ISBN 9788486862435
María Jesús Viguera Molins (2026). 9788498524291, Consejería de Educación y Cultura. Junta de Extremadura. ISBN 9788498524291
External links
Categories: 955 Establishments, Mediterranean Port Cities And Towns In Spain, Municipalities In The Province Of Almería, Province Of Almería, 10th-century Establishments In Al-andalus, Populated Places Established In The 10th Century, Populated Coastal Places In Spain, Historic Jewish Communities In Spain
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