Lumbier (''Irunberri'' in

Basque language Basque ( ; ) is a language spoken by Basques and other residents of the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country, a region that straddles the westernmost Pyrenees in adjacent parts of northern Spain and southwestern France. Basque ...

) is a village and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

and

autonomous community The autonomous communities () are the first-level administrative divisions of Spain, created in accordance with the Spanish Constitution of 1978, with the aim of guaranteeing limited autonomy to the nationalities and regions that make up Sp ...

Navarre Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...

, in the north of

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 ...

, 38 km from the capital of the community,

Pamplona Pamplona (; ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Navarre, Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. Lying at near above sea level, the city (and the wider Cuenca de Pamplona) is located on the flood pl ...

. It has a population of about 1400. It stands on the River Salazar in a region of natural interest. It also has interesting historical connections.

Place name

It is believed that the present village of Lumbier goes back to ancient times to the communities of the

Vascones The Vascones were a pre- Roman tribe who, on the arrival of the Romans in the 1st century, inhabited a territory that spanned between the upper course of the Ebro river and the southern basin of the western Pyrenees, a region that coincides w ...

mentioned by Roman geographers such as

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...

which included those known as the ''iluberritani'', which traditionally have been associated with the village of Lumbier. Some Roman remains have been found in Lumbier and the remains of a Roman and Celtic villa have been found in the nearby municipality of Liédena. Starting from its ancient name of ''Ilumberri'', linguists have reconstructed the development of its present forms. * In the

Romance Languages The Romance languages, also known as the Latin or Neo-Latin languages, are the languages that are Language family, directly descended from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-E ...

: Ilumberri -> Lumberri -> Lumbier. * In the

Basque Language Basque ( ; ) is a language spoken by Basques and other residents of the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country, a region that straddles the westernmost Pyrenees in adjacent parts of northern Spain and southwestern France. Basque ...

: Ilumberri -> Irunberri. Regarding the etymological significance of Ilumberri, it is believed that it comes from archaic Basque. The first part seems to be the same as in place names such as

Irún Irun (, ) is a town of the Bidasoaldea region in the province of Gipuzkoa in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. History It lies on the foundations of the ancient Oiasso, cited as a Ancient Rome, Roma ...

or Iruña (

), and it has been traditionally associated with the word ''hiri'' o ''(h)ili'' (town) in

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

. The second part ''berri'' means 'new'; thus its etymological meaning would be similar to 'new town'. At present, Lumbier is located in the non-basque-speaking area of Navarre, so its Castilian name is the only official one, though the place-name "Irunberri" is still used. The inhabitants of Lumbier are generally erroneously referred to as "gatos" ('cats'); the correct expression is "ahorcagatos" (cat-hangers'), which dates back to the

Spanish War of Independence The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...

, when a number of French sympathisers from

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 ...

("cats") were caught trying to flee to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and they were hanged here.

Symbols

Coat of arms

The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

of Lumbier has the following

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...

: The ancient seal of the village has, in addition to those items just mentioned, a crescent sinister and a star dexter to the central tower, and appears in the Charter of Union (Carta de Unión) which was signed by all the towns and villages of Navarre at

Puente la Reina Puente la Reina ( Spanish meaning "the Queen's bridge"; ) is a town and municipality located in the autonomous community of Navarre, in northern Spain. Puente la Reina lies between Pamplona and Estella on the Way of St. James pilgrimage route ...

in 1328.

Geography

Location

Lumbier is located in the western part of the autonomous region of Navarre at an altitude of 467 metres above sea level. Its municipal area has an area of 57.40 km² and has borders on the northern side with the municipalities of Urraúl Bajo and Romanzado, on the eastern side with the latter, on the southern side with those of Yesa, Liédena and Sangüesa and on the western side with that of Urraúl Alto.

Topology and hydrology

Two deep gorges(Foz) with rock faces of up to 300 metres high have been created by the Rivers Salazar and Irati in the foothills of the Sierra de Leire. The surrounding area consists of a wide valley with wheatfields, low Mediterranean countryside and Holm oak woods. There is deciduous and Common-pine woodland in the higher areas of Arangoiti (Sierra de Leire). This area falls in the Site of Community Importance (Natura 2000 Network) and ZEPA (Special Bird Protection Area) "Sierra de Leire-Foz de Arbayún" which includes the "Arbayún Gorge", the "Lumbier Gorge" and "Acantilados de la Piedra y San Adrián" Natural Reserves. It is located on the right bank of river Salazar and near the left bank of the river Irati where it joins the river Salazar, on a flat hill which is 467 metres high. between a loamy hollow and a north-west outcrop of the Sierra de Leire.

Economy

Nordex Nordex SE is a European company that designs, sells and manufactures wind turbines, founded in 1985 and headquartered in the German city of Rostock with production in Germany, Brazil, India, Mexico, Poland and Spain. According to the company, it ...

has a

rotor blade On a helicopter, the main rotor or rotor system is the combination of several rotary wings (rotor blades) with a control system, that generates the aerodynamic lift force that supports the weight of the helicopter, and the thrust that countera ...

production facility in Lumbier. In April 2025, the NYT published a picture of the inside of the plant where workers build

wind turbine A wind turbine is a device that wind power, converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. , hundreds of thousands of list of most powerful wind turbines, large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, were generating over ...

blades that are more than 200 feet long.Building the world’s biggest plane to help catch the wind
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References

External links

Ayuntamiento de Lumbier
- Official web page.

- Government of Navarre -Information and data on localities of Navarre.
LUMBIER in the Bernardo Estornés Lasa - Auñamendi Encyclopedia (Euskomedia Fundazioa)

Tourism website
{{Authority control Municipalities in Navarre