Almeria (province)
Almería is a
province of southern
Spain, in the eastern part of the
autonomous community of
Andalusia. 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 546,498 (2002) with a density of 62.32/km². It contains 102 municipalities.
Europe's only desert is found in Almería, as is part of the
Parque Nacional de Sierra Nevada (in the Sierra Nevada mountain range), which it shares with Granada province.
The desert landscape and climate that characterises 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 . Films such as The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and A Fistful of Dollars were shot here.
The most important economic activity is greenhouse farming. Millions of tons of vegetables are exported to Europe and other parts of the world each year. Tourism is also a key sector of the economy, due to the sunny weather and attractive areas such as Roquetas de Mar, Aguadulce, Almerimar, Vera or Cabo de Gata.
The German-Spanish is one of the most important observatories of Spain. France's Michelin tire operates a research center in and in Tabernas there is a solar energy research center ( ).
The principle river is Rio Andarax (Andarax River), which is located near Granada in the Alpujarras. The , which is located near to , gives part of the water needed in the production in greenhouses.
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.
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