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Menorca
Menorca or Minorca (from la, Insula Minor, , smaller island, later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Majorca. Its capital is Mahón ( ca, Maó), situated on the island's eastern end, although Menorca is not a province and forms a political union with the other islands in the archipelago. Ciutadella and Mahon are the main ports and largest towns. The port of Mahon is the second biggest natural port in the world. Menorca has a population of approximately 93,397 (at 1 January 2019). It is located 39°47' to 40°00'N, 3°52' to 4°24'E. Its highest point, called El Toro (from Catalan "''turó''" meaning ''hill''), is above sea level. History The island is known for its collection of megalithic stone monuments: ''navetes'', ''taules'' and ''talaiots'', which indicate very early prehistoric human activity. Some of the earliest culture on Menorca w ...
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Balearic Islands
The Balearic Islands ( es, Islas Baleares ; or ca, Illes Balears ) are an archipelago in the Balearic Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago is an autonomous community and a province of Spain; its capital is Palma. The 2007 Statute of Autonomy designates the Balearic Islands as one of the '' nationalities'' of Spain. The official languages of the Balearic Islands are Catalan and Spanish. Its four largest islands are Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, and Formentera. Many of its minor islands and islets are close to the larger islands, including Cabrera, Dragonera, and S'Espalmador. The islands have a Mediterranean climate, and the four major islands are all popular tourist destinations. Ibiza, in particular, is known as an international party destination, attracting many of the world's most popular DJs to its nightclubs. The islands' culture and cuisine are similar to those of the rest of Spain but have their own distinctive features. Etymolo ...
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Mahón
Mahón (), officially Maó (), and also written as Mahon or Port Mahon in English, is the capital and second largest city of Menorca. The city is located on the eastern coast of the island, which is part of the archipelago and autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. Mahón has one of the longest natural harbours in the world: long and up to wide. The water is deep but remains mostly clear due to the port's enclosed nature. Mayonnaise is considered to have originated in Mahón. Its population in 2021 was estimated to be 29,125. History The name's origin is attributed to the Carthaginian general Mago Barca, brother to Hannibal, who is thought to have taken refuge there in 205 BC. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, it became part of the Eastern Roman Empire; it suffered raids from Vikings and Arabs until the Islamic Caliphate of Córdoba conquered it in 903. Mahón was captured in 1287 from the Moors by Alfonso III of Aragon and incorporated into the Kin ...
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Ciutadella De Menorca
Ciutadella de Menorca () or simply Ciutadella is a town and a municipalities of Spain, municipality in the western end of Menorca, one of the Balearic Islands (Spain). It is one of the two primary cities in the island, along with Maó. History It was founded by the Carthaginians, and became the seat of a bishop in the 4th century. After being governed by the Moors under the names of ''Medīna el Jezīra'' ( ar, مدينة الجزيرة) and ''Medīna Menūrqa'' (مدينة منورقة) for several centuries, Ciutadella was recaptured during the reconquista by men serving Alfonso III of Aragon, Alfonso III and became part of the Crown of Aragon. During the Middle Ages, it became an important trading center. On 9 July 1558, the Turks under Piyale Pasha and Turgut Reis with a powerful Turkish Armada of 140 ships and 15,000 soldiers, put the town under siege for eight days entered and decimated the town. The town was defended by only a few hundred men. All of Ciutadella's 3,099 in ...
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Talaiot
A talaiot, or talayot (), is a Bronze Age megalith found on the islands of Menorca and Majorca forming part of the Talaiotic Culture or Talaiotic Period. Talaiots date back to the late second millennium and early first millennium BC. There are at least 274 of them, in, near, or related to Talaiotic settlements and the Talaiotic chamber tombs known as navetas. Talaiots pre-date the megalithic structures known as taulas, which are usually found nearby. While some Talaiots are thought to have had a defensive purpose, the use of others is not clearly understood. Some believe them to have served the purpose of lookout or signalling towers, as on Menorca, where they form a network. Talaiots generally take the form of circular or square buildings, and they may have been used as dwellings or meeting places. The talayots on Menorca have been much less prone to weathering than the ones found on Majorca. Despite this, very few grave goods have been found in Menorcan talayots, leading his ...
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Invasion Of Minorca
The island of Menorca in the Mediterranean Sea has been invaded on numerous occasions. The first recorded invasion occurred in 252 BC, when the Carthaginians arrived. The name of the island's chief city, Mahón (now Maó), appears to derive from the name of the Punic leader Mago Barca. The name of the island is of Latin origin, and dates from after the Roman conquest, led by Quintus Caecilius Metellus in 123 BC, during a campaign which earned him the agnomen ''Balearicus''. The island was briefly subsumed under the Vandal kingdom of Africa around 427, but it was eventually reconquered by the Romans and incorporated in the Byzantine Empire. It was an obscure province increasingly outside the sphere of Byzantine influence for the next four centuries. Around 859 a Viking incursion destroyed or damaged many Byzantine churches. In 903 the island was invaded by the Emirate of Córdoba, resulting in the introduction of Islam and renewed contacts with the Iberian peninsula. The '' ...
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Flag Of Menorca
The flag of Menorca was adopted on 14 November 1983. The flag depicts nine alternating horizontal bands of yellow and red emblazoned with the coat of arms of the ''Universitat General'' offset towards the hoist in the centre. History On 8 August 1983 the regional council of Menorca established a commission to research symbols related to the island for usage on a flag. The commission concluded that there had never been an official flag of Menorca but that that island heavily relied on symbols of the Kingdom of Aragon for identification. The earliest use of the Aragonese flag, the Senyera, was dated back to 1232. The colours were officially adopted by the island following the defeat of the Moors by Alfonso III in 1287. The Coat of Arms was chosen to reference the ''Universitat General,'' the municipal administrative body of Minorca between the 15th and 19th centuries. The coat of arms depicts a tower topped by a staff surmounted by a cross potent and a vane pointing to the ri ...
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Taula
A taula (meaning 'table' in Catalan) is a Stonehenge-esque stone monument found on the Balearic island of Menorca. Taulas can be up to 5 metres high and consist of a vertical pillar (a monolith or several smaller stones on top of each other) with a horizontal stone lying on it. A U-shaped wall often encloses the structure. They were built by the Talaiotic culture between 500 BC and 300 BC. Their exact cultural meaning remains unknown, but they probably had religious and/or astronomical purposes. Most of the taulas face south, which seems to suggest some astronomical meaning. Archeologist Michael Hoskin has suggested the taulas may have been part of an ancient healing cult. They are frequently found near talaiots. The first author who wrote about these structures was Juan Ramis in his book '' Antigüedades célticas de la isla de Menorca'' ("Celtic Antiquities of the Island of Menorca"), which was published 1818, being the first book in the Spanish language entirely devoted t ...
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Naveta
{{No footnotes, date=April 2022 A naveta is a form of megalithic chamber tomb unique to the Balearic island of Menorca. They date to the early Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin .... They have two vertical and two corbelled walls giving them the form of an upturned boat, from which the navetas take their name. The largest example is the Naveta d'Es Tudons which is around 4m high, 14m long and 6.4m wide. The first author who wrote about these structures was Juan Ramis in his book '' Celtic antiquities on the island of Menorca'', which was edited in 1818, it being the first book in the Spanish language entirely devoted to prehistory. External links *José Simón Gornés HacheroContinuidad y cambio en las prácticas funerarias del bronce final y primera ...
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Monte Toro
El Toro in Catalan, sometimes known by its Spanish name of Monte Toro, is the tallest hill of the island of Menorca, rising to an elevation of above mean sea level. The mountain is home to the Sanctuary of the ''Verge del Toro''. The mountain's summit can be reached by automobile or on foot, from which there is a fantastic view of the nearby areas of the island. El Toro is designated as an ANEI (protected natural area). Etymology The name "Toro" is an evolution, in part for the different languages and cultures that have passed in the island, of the Catalan (Menorquí) word "Turó", which means Hill A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct summit. Terminology The distinction between a hill and a mountain is unclear and largely subjective, but a hill is universally considered to be not as .... The name could also be derived from Arabic, coming from ''tor'' or ''al-tor'' which means 'height'. Location Monte Toro rises ab ...
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El Toro (Minorca)
El Toro in Catalan, sometimes known by its Spanish name of Monte Toro, is the tallest hill of the island of Menorca, rising to an elevation of above mean sea level. The mountain is home to the Sanctuary of the ''Verge del Toro''. The mountain's summit can be reached by automobile or on foot, from which there is a fantastic view of the nearby areas of the island. El Toro is designated as an ANEI (protected natural area). Etymology The name "Toro" is an evolution, in part for the different languages and cultures that have passed in the island, of the Catalan (Menorquí) word "Turó", which means Hill A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct summit. Terminology The distinction between a hill and a mountain is unclear and largely subjective, but a hill is universally considered to be not as .... The name could also be derived from Arabic, coming from ''tor'' or ''al-tor'' which means 'height'. Location Monte Toro rises ab ...
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Majorca
Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Balearic Islands have been an autonomous region of Spain since 1983. There are two small islands off the coast of Mallorca: Cabrera (southeast of Palma) and Dragonera (west of Palma). The anthem of Mallorca is "La Balanguera". Like the other Balearic Islands of Menorca, Ibiza, and Formentera, the island is an extremely popular holiday destination, particularly for tourists from the Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom. The international airport, Palma de Mallorca Airport, is one of the busiest in Spain; it was used by 28 million passengers in 2017, with use increasing every year since 2012. Etymology The name derives from Classical Latin ''insula maior'', "larger island". Later, in Medieval Latin, this became ''Maiorca'', "the large ...
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Gymnesian Islands
The Gymnesians ( ca, Illes Gimnèsies , es, Gimnesias ), or Gymnesic Islands ( ca, Illes Gimnèsiques), is a collective name given to the two largest (and easternmost) Balearic Islands, Mallorca and Menorca, distinguishing them from the Pityuses ( ca, Illes Pitiüses; es, Pitiusas), or Pine Islands, Ibiza and Formentera. Etymology The word ''Gymnesian'' (from the gr, γυμνήτες ') means "naked". The Greeks called the islands Gymnesiae ( grc, Γυμνήσιαι). According to Diodorus Siculus the Greeks called the islands like this because the inhabitants were naked during the summer time. The Ancient Greeks recruited the local inhabitants of these islands, the Talaiotics, as slingers. According to some researchers, this does not mean that they fought naked, but that they used much lighter armament than the hoplites. Name usage Later the Phoenicians referred to both Mallorca and Menorca as the ''Baliarides''. After the whole archipelago (the ''Pityuses'' and '' ...
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