Tierra de Campos ("Land of Fields") is a large

historical History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

and

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 ...

or greater

comarca A ''comarca'' (, , , ) is a traditional region or local administrative division found in Portugal, Spain, and some of their former colonies, like Brazil, Nicaragua, and Panama. The term is derived from the term ''marca'', meaning a "march, mark ...

that straddles the provinces of León, Zamora,

Valladolid Valladolid ( ; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and ''de facto'' capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the pr ...

and

Palencia Palencia () is a city of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Palencia. Located in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, in the northern half of ...

, in

Castile and León Castile and León is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwestern Spain. Castile and León is the largest autonomous community in Spain by area, covering 94,222 km2. It is, however, sparsely populated, with a pop ...

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 ...

. It is a vast, desolate plain with practically no

relief Relief is a sculpture, sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''wikt:relief, relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give ...

, except for some wide undulations of the terrain. Originally it was known as "Gothic Plains" (''Campi Gothici'' or ''Campi Gothorum''), as the area had been settled by

Visigoths The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied Barbarian kingdoms, barbarian military group unite ...

who fled from Aquitaine Gaul after its conquest by the Franks. It was first mentioned under this name in '' Codex Vigilanus'' ''(Codex Albeldensis)'', and described as extending "''from the river

Douro The Douro (, , , ; ; ) is the largest river of the Iberian Peninsula by discharge. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in the Spanish Soria Province, province of Soria, meanders briefly south, then flows generally west through the northern par ...

, to the Christian Kingdom''"., page 3, ''Campos quos dicunt Goticos usque adflumen Dorium eremauit, et xpistianorum regnum extendit'' Despite the strong identity of its inhabitants, this

historical region History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

has not been able to achieve the necessary legal recognition for its administrative development. Therefore, its municipalities have resorted to organizing themselves in a

mancomunidad In present-day Spain, a ''mancomunidad'' ( * * * * * ) is an association of municipalities voluntarily established by some municipalities with the aim of carrying out joint projects or providing common services. A mancomunidad is one of ...

, the only legal formula that has allowed the region to manage its public municipal resources meaningfully.

is widely considered to be the capital of the Tierra de Campos.

Geography

"Tierra de Campos" is located on a fertile, elevated plateau with an average height of around , its geography is typical of the

Meseta Central The ''Meseta Central'' (, sometimes referred to in English as Inner Plateau) is one of the basic geographical units of the Iberian Peninsula. It consists of a plateau covering a large part of the latter's interior. Developed during the 19th cent ...

. The ground is mostly made up of quite compact

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...

. The climate is

continental Continental may refer to: Places * Continental, Arizona, a small community in Pima County, Arizona, US * Continental, Ohio, a small town in Putnam County, US Arts and entertainment * ''Continental'' (album), an album by Saint Etienne * Continen ...

with long, cold winters and short, hot summers. Rivers naturally irrigating the area are sparse and traditionally the land in Tierra de Campos has been used for

dryland farming Drylands are defined by a scarcity of water. Drylands are zones where precipitation is balanced by evaporation from surfaces and by transpiration by plants (evapotranspiration). The United Nations Environment Program defines drylands as tropical ...

. The Channel of Castile, which cuts across this ''comarca'', was developed for transport purposes but developed into an irrigation system. Some of the

wetlands A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

in Tierra de Campos, like the Laguna de la Nava de Fuentes and the Lagunas de Villafáfila, are important for the ecology of the region. There are few natural forested areas left. The Tierra de Campos is the place with the highest concentration of

bustard Bustards, including floricans and korhaans, are large, terrestrial birds living mainly in dry grassland areas and in steppe regions. They range in length from . They make up the family Otididae (, formerly known as Otidae). Bustards are ...

in the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

, and possibly in the world. There is no unanimous agreement regarding the precise boundaries of the Tierra de Campos. Since it is a natural and traditional region, no official limits have ever been assigned. One of the most widely accepted system of boundariesJusto González Garrido, ''Tierra de Campos. Región Natural'', 1941. has been the following: *In the north: The foothills of the

Cantabrian Mountains The Cantabrian Mountains or Cantabrian Range () are one of the main systems of mountain ranges in Spain. They stretch for over 300 km (180 miles) across northern Spain, from the western limit of the Pyrenees to the Galician Massif ...

between Sahagún and

Carrión de los Condes Carrión de los Condes () is a municipality in the province of Palencia, part of the Autonomous Community of Castile and León, Spain. Situated on the River Carrión, it is 40 kilometers upstream from the provincial capital of Palencia, on the F ...

. *In the east: The Carrión and

Pisuerga The Pisuerga is a river in northern Spain, the Duero's second largest tributary. It rises in the Cantabrian Mountains in the province of Palencia, autonomous region of Castile and León. Its traditional source is called Fuente Cobre, but it has ...

river basins. *In the south: The hills of Montes Torozos and the Sequillo river basin. *In the west: The Salinas de Villalpando and the Cea River further north.

Municipalities

León Province

* Almanza * Bercianos del Real Camino * Calzada del Coto * Campazas * Castilfalé * Castrotierra de Valmadrigal * Cea * Cebanico * Cimanes de la Vega * Corbillos de los Oteros * Escobar de Campos * Fuentes de Carbajal * Fresno de la Vega * Gordaliza del Pino * Gordoncillo * Grajal de Campos * Gusendos de los Oteros * Izagre *

Joara Joara was a large Native American settlement, a regional chiefdom of the Mississippian culture, located in what is now Burke County, North Carolina, about 300 miles from the Atlantic coast in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Joara is n ...

* Joarilla de las Matas * Matadeón de los Oteros * Matanza * Sahagún * Santa Cristina de Valmadrigal * Valdemora * Valderas * Vallecillo *

Valverde-Enrique Valverde-Enrique is a municipality located in the province of León, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2004 census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating ...

* Villamoratiel de las Matas * Villamartín de Don Sancho * Villabraz * Villamol * Villaselán * Villazanzo de Valderaduey

Zamora Province

* Belver de los Montes * Cañizo * Castroverde de Campos * Cerecinos de Campos * Cotanes del Monte * Granja de Moreruela * Manganeses de la Lampreana *

Prado The Museo del Prado ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It houses collections of European art, dating from the 12th century to the early 20th century, based on ...

* Quintanilla del Monte * Quintanilla del Olmo * Revellinos * San Agustín del Pozo * San Cebrián de Castro * San Esteban del Molar * San Martín de Valderaduey * Tapioles * Vega de Villalobos * Vidayanes * Villafáfila * Villalba de la Lampreana * Villalobos * Villalpando * Villamayor de Campos * Villanueva del Campo * Villar de Fallaves * Villárdiga * Villarrín de Campos

Valladolid Province

* Aguilar de Campos * Barcial de la Loma * Becilla de Valderaduey * Berrueces * Bolaños de Campos * Bustillo de Chaves * Cabezón de Valderaduey * Cabreros del Monte * Castrobol * Castroponce * Ceinos de Campos * Cuenca de Campos * Fontihoyuelo * Gatón de Campos * Herrín de Campos * La Unión de Campos * Mayorga * Medina de Rioseco * Melgar de Abajo * Melgar de Arriba * Monasterio de Vega * Montealegre de Campos * Moral de la Reina * Morales de Campos * Palazuelo de Vedija * Pozuelo de la Orden * Quintanilla del Molar * Roales de Campos * Saelices de Mayorga * San Pedro de Latarce * Santa Eufemia del Arroyo * Santervás de Campos * Tamariz de Campos * Tordehumos * Urones de Castroponce * Urueña * Valdenebro de los Valles * Valdunquillo * Valverde de Campos * Vega de Ruiponce * Villabaruz de Campos * Villabrágima * Villacarralón * Villacid de Campos * Villafrades de Campos * Villafrechós * Villagarcía de Campos * Villagómez la Nueva * Villalba de la Loma * Villalán de Campos * Villalón de Campos * Villamuriel de Campos * Villanueva de San Mancio *

Villanueva de la Condesa Villanueva de la Condesa is a municipality located in the province of Valladolid, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2004 census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, an ...

* Villanueva de los Caballeros * Villardefrades * Villavellid * Villavicencio de los Caballeros

Palencia Province

* Abarca de Campos * Abia de las Torres * Amayuelas de Arriba * Ampudia * Amusco * Arconada * Autilla del Pino * Autillo de Campos * Baquerín de Campos * Bárcena de Campos * Becerril de Campos * Belmonte de Campos * Boada de Campos * Boadilla de Rioseco * Boadilla del Camino * Calzada de los Molinos *

Capillas Capillas is a Spanish municipality located in the province of Palencia, Castile and León. In 2013, its population was 86. History The town was first mentioned in 916 as ''Fonte de Capela'', one of the first settlements of the region. Its name, ...

* Cardeñosa de Volpejera *

* Castil de Vela * Castrillo de Villavega * Castromocho * Cervatos de la Cueza * Cisneros, Palencia * Espinosa de Villagonzalo * Frechilla * Frómista * Fuentes de Nava * Fuentes de Valdepero * Grijota * Guaza de Campos * Husillos * Itero de la Vega * Lantadilla * Loma de Ucieza * Lomas de Campos * Manquillos * Marcilla de Campos * Mazariegos * Mazuecos de Valdeginate * Meneses de Campos * Monzón de Campos * Moratinos * Nogal de las Huertas * Osornillo * Osorno la Mayor *

* Paredes de Nava * Pedraza de Campos * Perales * Piña de Campos * Población de Arroyo * Población de Campos * Pozo de Urama * Requena de Campos * Revenga de Campos * Ribas de Campos * Riberos de la Cueza * San Cebrián de Campos * San Mamés de Campos * San Román de la Cuba * Santa Cecilia del Alcor * Santoyo * Támara de Campos * Torremormojón * Valde-Ucieza * Valle del Retortillo * Villacidaler * Villada * Villaherreros * Villalcázar de Sirga * Villalcón * Villalobón * Villanueva del Campo * Villamartín de Campos * Villamoronta * Villamuera de la Cueza * Villanueva del Rebollar * Villarmentero de Campos * Villarramiel * Villasarracino * Villaturde * Villaumbrales * Villerías de Campos * Villoldo * Villovieco

Maps of Tierra de Campos areas in different provinces

File:Comarca de Tierra de Campos (Provincia de Zamora, España).svg, Tierra de Campos Zamorana File:Comarca_Tierra_de_campos_(Palencia).svg, Tierra de Campos in Palencia File:Comarcas de Valladolid.svg, Tierra de Campos of Valladolid; in purple File:Mapa Comarcas de León.svg, Tierra de Campos Leonesa; in brown.

References

External links

Tierra de Campos Rural Development AssociationLa provincia de León y sus comarcas; Cea-CamposLa provincia de León y sus comarcas; Esla-CamposLaguna de Tamriz - EcologyLa Tierra de Campos y sus bases ecológicas en el siglo XVI
{{Coord, 42, 00, N, 4, 00, W, type:city, display=inline,title Comarcas of Castile and León Comarcas of the Province of León Mancomunidad Historical regions in Spain Natural regions of Spain