La Alcarria, also referred to as the Alcarria in English, is a
natural region
A natural region (landscape unit) is a basic geographic unit. Usually, it is a region which is distinguished by its common natural features of geography, geology, and climate.
From the ecological point of view, the naturally occurring flora and ...
in
Castile, central
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, located mainly in
Guadalajara Province but also overlapping those of
Cuenca and
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
. Its principal attractions are its fauna and flora and it is noted for its
honey
Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...
,
olives
The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of Subtropics, subtropical evergreen tree in the Family (biology), family Oleaceae. Originating in Anatolia, Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean ...
, and a special breed of
lamb.
The most notable towns in the region are:
Almonacid de Zorita,
Brihuega,
Cifuentes,
Nuevo Baztán,
Huete,
Guadalajara
Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...
,
Chinchón
Chinchón () is a town and municipality in the Community of Madrid, Spain. Located 50 km south-east of the city of Madrid, the municipality covers an area of 115.91 km2. , it has a population of 5,239. Its historic centre, with a notab ...
,
Arganda del Rey,
Illana,
Priego,
Jadraque,
Cañaveras,
Loeches,
Campo Real,
Mondéjar
Mondéjar is a municipality located in the Guadalajara (province), province of Guadalajara, Spain. According to the 2008 census (Instituto Nacional de Estadística (Spain), INE), the municipality has a population of 2,637 inhabitants.
Refe ...
,
Pastrana,
Sacedón,
Trillo and
Villalba del Rey.
The region figures prominently in the travel book (''Journey to the Alcarria'') by
Camilo José Cela.
Old Spain and New Spain: The Travel Narratives of Camilo José Cela (Book Review)
Farleigh Dickinson University
Geography
La Alcarria is a kind of plateau brought out by the rising of the Sistema Ibérico
The Iberian System is one of the major systems of mountain ranges in Spain.
It consists of a vast and complex area of mostly relatively high and rugged mountain chains and massifs located in the central region of the Iberian Peninsula, but ...
. The strata that form this plateau are smoothly undulating. Limestones and gypsum are common because of its origins below the sea surface (from the Mesozoic Era
The Mesozoic Era is the era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods. It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian reptiles such as the dinosaurs, and of gymnosperms s ...
); the red sandstone and the earth-originated conglomerated stones were more recently formed. Over this strata of sedimentary stones, the rivers have originated deep and quite often, broad valleys, gorges and many other karst
Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...
phenomena, as those that can be seen in the north of the Province of Cuenca
Cuenca () is one of the five provinces of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castilla-La Mancha. It is located in the eastern part of this autonomous community and covers 17,141 square km. It has a population of 203,841 ...
(Las Majadas, El Hosquillo, La Ciudad Encantada
The Ciudad Encantada (English: Enchanted City) is a geological site near the city of Cuenca, in the autonomous community of Castilla–La Mancha, Spain, in which the erosive forces of weather and the waters of the nearby Júcar river have for ...
, Ravines of the rivers Beteta and Júcar
The Júcar () or Xúquer () is a river in Spain, on the Iberian Peninsula. The river runs for approximately 509 km.
Its source is located at Ojuelos de Valdeminguete, in the municipality of Tragacete, province of Cuenca, on the eastern fla ...
and in almost the whole Province of Guadalajara
Guadalajara ( , ) is a province of Spain, belonging to the autonomous community of Castilla–La Mancha. As of 2019 it had a population of 258,890 people. The population of the province has grown in the last 10 years. It is located in the centre ...
(Canyon of River Dulce, high course of River Tagus, Ravine of River Corduentes and below the waters of the reservoir of Entrepeñas, also in the River Tagus). Is precisely, the name of Entrepeñas (among rocks) the one that represents the character of all the area, since River Tagus forms there a beautiful canyon close to Sacedón, where that dam is.
The upper level of the plateau of La Alcarria is quite uniform as can be seen in the photo, although it descends softly from north to south. In this image you can also see the sudden valley to the right (to the South of Escamilla) made by the valley of the River Guadiela.
See also
*Comarcas of Spain
In Spain, a ''comarca'' ()
is either a traditional territorial division without any formal basis, or a group of municipalities of Spain, municipalities, legally defined by an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community for the purp ...
References
External links
Descriptive article by the Spanish newspaper El Mundo
(Spanish)
(Spanish)
(Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alcarria, La
Alcarria, La
Community of Madrid
Guadalajara, Spain
Natural regions of Spain