Alegranza () is an uninhabited island in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

, located off the coast of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

and is in the province of

Las Palmas Las Palmas (, ; ), officially Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is a Spanish city and capital of Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands, on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital (jointly with Santa Cruz de Tenerife), the most populous city in the auto ...

in the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, :es:Canarias, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

. It is the northernmost point in the Canary Islands, and part of the

Chinijo Archipelago The Chinijo Archipelago () is a small archipelago located in the northeastern part of the Canary Islands, north of the island of Lanzarote. The archipelago includes the islets of Montaña Clara, Alegranza, La Graciosa, Roque del Este and Roque de ...

. The island is part of the municipality of Teguise on Lanzarote.

Geographical overview

The area is 10.2 km². The island features a volcano with a crater of about 1.1 km in diameter and an altitude of 289 m. The second highest is Montaña de Lobos at 256 m and following La Rapagura. The northern portion is mainly flat. File:Alegranza NWW.png,

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeedin ...

satellite image of Alegranza File:Alegranza 3D version 1.gif

Conservation

The island is part of the

Natural Park (''Parque Natural del Archipiélago Chinijo''). There are no inhabitants on the island. The Punta Delgada Lighthouse is located in the eastern part of Alegranza. The lighthouse was built between 1861 and 1865 and was designated a historic monument (''

Bien de Interés Cultural A Bien de Interés Cultural is a category of the heritage register in Spain. The term is also used in Venezuela and other Spanish-speaking countries. The term literally means a "good of cultural interest" (" goods" in the economic sense) and incl ...

'') in 2002.

History

Its name, derived from the Spanish word for "joy," was given, according to some scholars, by

Jean de Bethencourt Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jean ...

because he felt joy upon spotting land. The island has been owned by the Jordán-Martinón family since the 1940s.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Islands of the Canary Islands Uninhabited islands of Spain

Geographical overview

Conservation

History

See also

References

External links