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Province of Zamora

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Province of Zamora
Provincia de Zamora
Province
Coat of arms of Province of Zamora
Coat of arms
Location of the Province of Zamora in Spain
Location of the Province of Zamora in Spain
Coordinates: 41°45′N 6°00′W / 41.750°N 6.000°W / 41.750; -6.000
CountrySpain
Autonomous communityCastile and León
CapitalZamora
Municipalities248 (list)
Government
 • TypeDiputación
 • BodyProvincial Deputation of Zamora [es]
 • PresidentFernando Martínez Maillo
Area
[1]
 • Total
10,561.21 km2 (4,077.71 sq mi)
 • Rank22nd in Spain
 2.1% of Spain
Highest elevation
(Peña Trevinca)
2,127 m (6,978 ft)
Population
 (2025)[2]
 • Total
165,564
 • Rank45th in Spain
 • Density15.6766/km2 (40.6022/sq mi)
 0.34% of Spain
DemonymZamorano/a
WebsiteOfficial website

The Province of Zamora (Spanish: Provincia de Zamora, Spanish pronunciation: [θaˈmoɾa]) is a province of western Spain, in the western part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is bordered by the provinces of Ourense, León, Valladolid, and Salamanca, and by Portugal.

The province has a population of 165,564 in an area of 10,561.21 square kilometres (4,077.71 sq mi) across its 248 municipalities. Nearly a third live in the capital, Zamora.[2][1]

The present-day province of Zamora was one of three provinces formed from the former Kingdom of León in 1833, when Spain was reorganized into 49 provinces.[3]

History

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A megalithic culture developed in this region of Spain, particularly around Aliste, and there are many remaining signs of the presence of various cultures over the years. Salt mining took place at Villafáfila, stone forts were built on fertile plains and near rivers, and others were built in the vicinity of mines where variscite and iron ore were extracted. Rock paintings have been discovered and artefacts found include everyday pottery, tools, and gold and silver jewellery. In the Iron Age, Celtic tribes built forts surrounded by moats but they were pastoral people, living in small villages, and did not build cities. They left standing stones and dolmens.[4]

The Romans first came to Spain in 218 BC, and over the next three centuries there were various conflicts as the Romans advanced into Celtic lands. The Romans built roads across the territory and in 1978 the Roman town of Requejo in Santa Cristina de la Polvorosa was revealed after erosion occurred following flooding of the area by the River Órbigo. In 197 BC, Spain was divided into two provinces, Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior, controlled by two separate Roman military forces. Zamora was in the latter region. Peace reigned until 155 BC when the Lusitanians attacked Hispania Ulterior. Two Roman defeats followed, and many other rebellions were sparked in the peninsula.[5] The Romans eventually prevailed, and in 27 BC, subdivided the province of Hispania Ulterior into Hispania Baetica (modern-day Andalusia) and Lusitania, which included Zamora. When the Vandals invaded the province in the 5th century AD, the Roman Emperor Honorius sent his brother-in-law, the Visigoths' king, to defeat the Vandals. The Visigoths seized control of most of Hispania and made Toledo the capital, while the Suevi occupied the northwestern part of the Peninsula and made their capital city Bracara. By 585 the Suevi had been conquered by the Visigoths who then controlled the whole peninsula.[6]

Geography

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The Sanabria Lake
Toro old city
Puebla de Sanabria
River Duero and old city of Zamora

The Province of Zamora is in northwestern Spain where it borders on Portugal, which lies to the southwest. To the west lies the province of Ourense, to the north lies León, to the east lies Valladolid, and to the south lies Salamanca. The River Esla rises in the Cantabrian Mountains in the north and flows southwards through the province before joining the River Douro (Spanish: el Duero) which then forms part of the boundary with Portugal.[7] The Esla is the largest tributary of the Duero and where they join, discharges a greater quantity of water than that discharged by the Duero. The capital of the province is Zamora which is situated in the south of the province on the banks of the Duero.[8]

The province has a total area of 10,620 square kilometres (4,100 mi2). Its economy is largely agricultural and it has a tradition of sheep rearing, producing a large proportion of Spain's merino wool.[9]

Standing at 2,127 metres above see level, Peña Trevinca, coterminous with Galicia, is the province's highest peak.[10]

Municipalities

[edit]

The province has 248 municipalities: