Province of Teruel
Teruel Province | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Province | |||
 The Sierra Carrascosa with the Guerrero Romano rock formation near Bordón | |||
| |||
 Map of Spain with Teruel Province highlighted | |||
| Coordinates: 40°40′N 0°40′W / 40.667°N 0.667°W / 40.667; -0.667Coordinates: 40°40′N 0°40′W / 40.667°N 0.667°W / 40.667; -0.667 | |||
| Country | Spain | ||
| Autonomous community |  Aragon | ||
| Capital | Teruel | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 14,809 km2 (5,718 sq mi) | ||
| Area rank | Ranked 10 | ||
| 2.93% of Spain | |||
| Population (2010) | |||
| • Total | 138,686 | ||
| • Rank | Ranked 49 | ||
| • Density | 9.4/km2 (24/sq mi) | ||
| Demonym(s) | Turolense | ||
| Official language(s) | Spanish | ||
| Parliament | Cortes Generales | ||
Teruel (Catalan Terol [təˈɾɔl]) is a province of Aragon, in the northeast of Spain. The capital is Teruel.
It is bordered by the provinces of Tarragona, Castellón, Valencia (including its exclave Rincón de Ademuz), Cuenca, Guadalajara, and Zaragoza. The area of the province is 14,809 km². Its population is 138,686 (2003), of whom about a quarter live in the capital, and its population density is 9.36/km². It contains 236 municipalities, of which more than half are villages of under 200 people.
The main language throughout the province is Spanish (with official status), although Catalan is spoken in the comarca of Matarranya.
Contents
1 Geography
2 Depopulation and neglect
3 Comarcas
4 Notable people
5 See also
6 Notes and references
7 External links
Geography
This province is located in the mountainous Sistema Ibérico area. The main ranges in the province of Teruel are Sierra de la Virgen, Sierra de Santa Cruz, Sierra de Cucalón, Sierra de San Just, Sierra Carrascosa, Sierra Menera, Sierra Palomera, Sierra de Javalambre, Sierra de Gúdar, Sierra de Albarracín and the Montes Universales, among others.
Depopulation and neglect
Most of the Teruel Province has undergone massive depopulation since the middle of the 20th century. This situation is shared with other areas in Spain, particularly with those near the Iberian mountain range (much of the provinces of Soria, Guadalajara and Cuenca) and with other areas in Aragón.
The exodus from the rural mountain areas in Teruel rose after General Franco's Plan de Estabilización in 1959. The population declined steeply as people migrated towards the industrial areas and the large cities in Spain, leaving behind their small villages where living conditions were often harsh, with cold winters and very basic facilities.
As a consequence there are many ghost towns in different parts of the province.[1]
A great number of surviving towns in Teruel province have only a residual population, reviving somewhat during the summer when a few city-dwellers spend their holidays there. Other causes of the strong emigration have been the low productivity of traditional agricultural practices, like sheep and goat farming, the closing of mines, like the large Sierra Menera mine near Ojos Negros,[2] as well as the lifestyle changes that swept over rural Spain during the second half of the 20th century.[3]
The "Teruel Exists" (Spanish: Teruel existe) movement began at the turn of the 21st century. It is a platform of provincial authorities, institutions and sympathizers seeking to reverse the long-standing neglect of this province.[4]
Comarcas
The following Comarcas of Aragon are located in Teruel Province:
- Bajo Martín
- Jiloca
- Cuencas Mineras
- Andorra-Sierra de Arcos
- Bajo Aragón
- Comunidad de Teruel
- Maestrazgo
- Sierra de Albarracín Comarca
- Gúdar-Javalambre
- Matarranya
Notable people
Luis Buñuel, film director from Calanda
Gaspar Sanz, music composer from Calanda
Antón García Abril, music composer
Pablo Serrano, sculptor from Crivillén
Luis Milla, retired footballer who played for CD Teruel, FC Barcelona and R. Madrid
David Civera, light music singer
Federico Jiménez Losantos, author, journalist and radio host
Manuel Pizarro Moreno, businessman, politician and jurist
See also
- La Vaquilla del Ángel
- List of Aragonese comarcas
- List of municipalities in Teruel
- Lower Aragon
- Sistema Ibérico
Notes and references
^ Pueblos deshabitados - Collado de la Grulla (Teruel)
^ La Compañía Minera de Sierra Menera. Breve historia Archived 2012-03-23 at the Wayback Machine.
^ Despoblación en Aragon Archived 2012-08-23 at the Wayback Machine.
^ Teruel existe
External links
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Province of Teruel. |
- Teruel.org
Teruel Info. - Caciquismo & desarrollismo – N.B. This text-only website is in Japanese. Content not clear.- Teruel Digital
- Directory in dmoz.org
- Fundación Amantes de Teruel
- Estado de los embalses de Teruel
- Teruel.com - Tourism
- Deteruel.com — Comunidad virtual de Teruel
- El número de ancianos españoles aumenta un 20% en 13 años
Provinces of Aragon | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
| | |
