Debabarrena (English: ''Lower
Deba
Deba may refer to:
Geography
* Deba (crater), a crater on Mars
* Deba (river), a river in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gipuzkoa, a town in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gombe, a town in the Yamaltu/Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State, Nigeria
...
'') is an ''
eskualdea / comarca'' located in
Gipuzkoa,
Basque Country
Basque Country may refer to:
* Basque Country (autonomous community), as used in Spain ( es, País Vasco, link=no), also called , an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain (shown in pink on the map)
* French Basque Country o ...
(Spain). It has an area of 180,3 km². It is north from the comarca of
Debagoiena, east from the province of
Biscay, and south from the
Gulf of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay (), known in Spain as the Gulf of Biscay ( es, Golfo de Vizcaya, eu, Bizkaiko Golkoa), and in France and some border regions as the Gulf of Gascony (french: Golfe de Gascogne, oc, Golf de Gasconha, br, Pleg-mor Gwaskogn), ...
.
The municipalities which compose Debabarrena are
Eibar,
Soraluze/Placencia de las Armas
Soraluze (Basque) or Placencia de las Armas (Spanish), officially Soraluze-Placencia de las Armas, is a town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country, Spain.
The town of Placencia de las Armas has been involved since its founda ...
,
Elgoibar
Elgoibar ( es, Elgóibar) is an industrial town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, northern Spain.
Located in a valley, it is traversed by the Deba river.
Elgoibar is nicknamed the "capital cit ...
,
Mendaro
Mendaro is a town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Autonomous Community of Basque Country, northern Spain.
The Mendaro Valley is the town's namesake. There is little agreement on the origin or meaning of the word itself.
Surrounded by ...
,
Deba
Deba may refer to:
Geography
* Deba (crater), a crater on Mars
* Deba (river), a river in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gipuzkoa, a town in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gombe, a town in the Yamaltu/Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State, Nigeria
...
and
Mutriku. Eibar is the biggest one with about 28,000 inhabitants. The second biggest one is Elgoibar, with about 11,000 inhabitants, and the other municipalities have less than 10,000 citizens.
Natural environment
Debabarrena is surrounded by many mountains, which are not very high. The higher ones have a height of around 800 metres. Urko (791 metres), Arno (612 metres) and Andutz (610 metres) are the highest ones. All the region is full of forests and prairies, and also has many streams, most of them tributaries of the
Deba river, which names the comarca. These streams are usually short and have a high level of contamination, despite the fact that the level of contamination has been reduced considerably since the 1980s.
Communication
Debabarrena is located in the centre of the Basque Country, which benefits the region's communications. The main highway is the
AP-8
The Autopista AP-8 is a highway (Highways in Spain, autopista) in the north of Spain and crosses the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country from east to west. It is known as the Autopista del Cantábrico (highway of the Cantabria ...
, which connects Debabarrena with
Bilbao and the French border, but also the
AP-1, which connects Eibar with Debagoiena and
Araba/Álava.
The
railway line that communicates Bilbao and Donostia-San Sebastian is also used in
Deba
Deba may refer to:
Geography
* Deba (crater), a crater on Mars
* Deba (river), a river in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gipuzkoa, a town in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gombe, a town in the Yamaltu/Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State, Nigeria
...
,
Mendaro
Mendaro is a town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Autonomous Community of Basque Country, northern Spain.
The Mendaro Valley is the town's namesake. There is little agreement on the origin or meaning of the word itself.
Surrounded by ...
,
Elgoibar
Elgoibar ( es, Elgóibar) is an industrial town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, northern Spain.
Located in a valley, it is traversed by the Deba river.
Elgoibar is nicknamed the "capital cit ...
and
Eibar mainly as a short-distance train. The harbours of
Deba
Deba may refer to:
Geography
* Deba (crater), a crater on Mars
* Deba (river), a river in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gipuzkoa, a town in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gombe, a town in the Yamaltu/Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State, Nigeria
...
and
Mutriku are not used for goods and passengers.
Population
The total population of Debabarrena is about 72,000 people. The city with most citizens is
Eibar, with nearly 28,000 inhabitants.
Elgoibar
Elgoibar ( es, Elgóibar) is an industrial town located in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, northern Spain.
Located in a valley, it is traversed by the Deba river.
Elgoibar is nicknamed the "capital cit ...
is the second biggest one with 10,000, and the other small towns with less than 5,000. There is also a notable rural population in the ''baserri'' (Basque) or ''caseríos'' (Spanish), the farmhouses that are typical of the
Basque Country
Basque Country may refer to:
* Basque Country (autonomous community), as used in Spain ( es, País Vasco, link=no), also called , an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain (shown in pink on the map)
* French Basque Country o ...
.
The region had around 100,000 inhabitants in the 1950s and 1960s because of the big industrial development and the resulting immigration. But, the industrial crisis of the 1970s and 1980s made the population decrease.
Economy
The economy of the region is highly industrial, but the primary sector is also notable. In the primary sector, there is a big number of small exploitation lands, around 1,000, most of them for
sheep and
bovinae livestock. Fishing is only significant in
Mutriku.
Industry is the primary activity in the region, and more than half of the population works in that area. The industrialization was very important until the mid-20th century, when sewing machines and bicycles were produced, but since then the metal industry has had a very big importance, together with the automotive industry.
The service sector also has a lot of activity, with the 40% of population working on it. It is very remarkable in
Eibar, and tourism in
Mutriku and
Deba
Deba may refer to:
Geography
* Deba (crater), a crater on Mars
* Deba (river), a river in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gipuzkoa, a town in the Basque Country
* Deba, Gombe, a town in the Yamaltu/Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State, Nigeria
...
.
External links
Official siteTourism site
{{Comarcas of Basque Country
Comarcas of Gipuzkoa