Land of Valencia
| |||
| Missing image Locator_map_of_Valenciana.png Image:Locator map of Valenciana.png | |||
| Capital | Valencia | ||
| Official languages | Valencian (Catalan) and Castilian (Spanish) | ||
| Area – total – % of Spain | Ranked 8th 23 255 km² 4,6% | ||
| Population – Total (2003) – % of Spain – Density | Ranked 4th 4 326 708 10,3% 186,05/km² | ||
| Demonym – English – Valencian – Spanish | Valencian valencià/valenciana valenciano/valenciana | ||
| Statute of Autonomy | July 10, 1982 | ||
| ISO 3166-2 | VC | ||
| Parliamentary representation Congress seats Senate seats | 32 5 | ||
| President | Francisco Enrique Camps Ortiz (PP) | ||
| Generalitat Valenciana | |||
The Land of Valencia is the historical territory of the former Kingdom of Valencia which was created in the 13th century, as a result of Christian colonization by Catalonians and Aragonese of the Islamic taifas Valencia and Dénia, commanded by James I "the Conqueror". It is situated in the East of the Iberian Peninsula, between the Sènia and Segura rivers, and it has 840 km of land border and 518 km of coast along the Mediterranean Sea, where are situated the island of Nova Tabarca and the Columbretes islands, which are under Valencian administration.
Politically, today it has the status of an autonomous community of Spain. Comunitat Valenciana (Comunidad Valenciana in Spanish) has been its official name since 1982, when its Statute of Autonomy was approved. It is also known as País Valencià (Sp. País Valenciano), and this denomination is also included in the same Statute. It borders Castile-La_Mancha and Aragon to the West, the Region of Murcia to the South, and to the North, Catalonia. The official languages are Castillian (Spanish) and Valencian (Catalan), although the last one is considered legally as a language of its own, according the "Law of Use and Education of Valencian" approved in 1983.
Traditionally its territorial subdivisions are the comarcas that are, as well, grouped into Spanish provinces created in 1833. There are 32 comarcas, and the provinces of Castellón/Castelló, Valencia/València, and Alicante/Alacant.
Major Valencian cities and notable towns include:
- Valencia (Valencian València) 780.653, capital of the province of the same name, in the river Turia. Famous festival of the Fallas on March 19.
- Alicante (Valencian Alacant) 316.178, capital of the province of the same name, in the Mediterranean coast. Famous for its hard nougat or turrón duro (Valencian torró dur) and Postiguet, Albufereta and San Juan Beaches. The famous festival of the Bonfires of Saint John is in June. The city hall and the Santa Barbara Castle are historical monuments.
- Castellón de la Plana (Valencian Castelló de la Plana) 160.714, capital of the province of the same name.
- Elche (Valencian Elx) 207.163, famous for the wood of palm trees called Palmeral, and for the Mystery Play, which has been declared part of World Heritage by the UNESCO.
- Torrevieja (Valencian Torrevella) 77.943, in the south, very important tourist centre with a lot of hotels, apartments and tourist accommodation. With La Mata Beach.
- Orihuela (Valencian Oriola) 67.731, on the Segura river, historical city with palaces, churches and the Cathedral, in the "Vega Baja" (Valencian Vega Baixa), a very rich kitchen garden with oranges, lemon and other products.
- Benidorm 64.267, a major holiday resort, dubbed Beniyork because of its many skyscrapers — including Spain's tallest, the 52-storey Gran Hotel Bali.
- Elda,54.086 important producer of shoes and wine in the Vinalopo land.
- Jijona (Valencian Xixona), near Alicante, famous for its soft nougat or turrón de Jijona (Valencian torró de Xixona).
- Villarreal (Valencian Vila-real), important producer of ceramics and brick.
- Buñol (Valencian Bunyol) famous for the Tomatina, on the last Wednesday of August.
Major rivers:
- River Turia (Valencian: Túria)
- River Júcar (Valencian: Xúquer)
- River Segura
Missing image
Valencian_flag_atop_guard_tower.jpg
| | Missing image Spain_flag_large.png Flag of Spain |
|---|---|
| Andalusia | Aragon | Asturias | Balearic Islands | Basque Country | Canary Islands | Cantabria | Castile-La Mancha | Castile-Leon | Catalonia | Extremadura | Galicia | La Rioja | Madrid | Murcia | Navarre | Valencia | Ceuta | Melilla | Plaza de soberanía | |