ALMERIA, ANDALUSIA

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Almería is a province of southern Spain. It is bordered by the provinces of Granada, Murcia, and the Mediterranean Sea. Its capital is Almería.

Its area is 8,769 km². Its population is 546,499 (2002) with a density of 62.32/km². It contains 101 municipalities. Almeria belongs to the Autonomus Community of Andalucia, in Southern Spain.

Europe's only desert is found in Almería, and is part of the National Park of Sierra Nevada (in the Sierra Nevada mountain range), which it shares with Granada province.

The desert landscape and climate that characterizes part of the province have made it an ideal setting for Western films, especially during the 1960s. Because of the demand for these locations, quite a number of Western towns were built near the Desert of Tabernas. Films such as The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and A Fistful of Dollars were shot here. Years later the film of 800 Bullets was filmed in the same place. Large sections of Lawrence of Arabia and Patton were shot there as well.

The principal river is Rio Andarax (Andarax River), which is located near Granada in the Alpujarras. The Beninar pressure, which is located near Darrical, gives part of the water needed in the production in greenhouses.

The rich customs and Fiestas of the denizens retain links deep into the past, unto the Moors, the Romans, the Greeks, and the Phoenicians.

During the taifa era, it was ruled by the Slavic Banu al-Amiri from 1012 to 1038, briefly annexed by Valencia (1038-1041), then given by Zaragoza to the Banu Sumadih dynasty until its conquest by the Almoravids in 1091. Some centuries later, it became part of the kingdom of Granada.


Map of Almeria: