Faial Island (), also known in English as Fayal, is a
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
of the Central Group (Portuguese: ''Grupo Central'') of the
Azores
)
, motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace")
, anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores")
, image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg
, map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union
, map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...
. The
Capelinhos
The Capelinhos (from Capelo + ''-inhos'' diminutive, which literally means "little cape") is a monogenetic volcano located on the western coast of Faial Island in the Azores. It is part of the larger volcanic complex of Capelo, which includes 20 sc ...
Volcano, the westernmost point of the island, may be considered the westernmost point of
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
, if the
Monchique Islet
Monchique Islet ( pt, Ilhéu do Monchique) is a small uninhabited islet off the coast of the island of Flores, west of the village of Fajã Grande, in the western part of the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. It is the westernmost point of P ...
, near
Flores Island, is considered part of
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
, for it sits on the
North American Plate
The North American Plate is a tectonic plate covering most of North America, Cuba, the Bahamas, extreme northeastern Asia, and parts of Iceland and the Azores. With an area of , it is the Earth's second largest tectonic plate, behind the Pacific ...
. Its largest town is
Horta.
With its nearest neighbours,
Pico
Pico may refer to:
Places The Moon
* Mons Pico, a lunar mountain in the northern part of the Mare Imbrium basin
Portugal
* Pico, a civil parish in the municipality of Vila Verde
* Pico da Pedra, a civil parish in the municipality of Ribeir ...
(east across the channel) and
São Jorge (northeast across the channel), it forms an area commonly known as the ''Triângulo'' (English: ''Triangle''). The island has also been referred to as the Ilha Azul (English: ''Blue Island''), derived from the writings of Portuguese
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...
Raul Brandão
Raul Germano Brandão (12 March 1867, in Foz do Douro, Porto – 5 December 1930, in Lisbon) was a Portugal, Portuguese writer, journalist and military officer, notable for the realism of his literary descriptions and by the lyricism of his l ...
, due to the large quantity of
hydrangea
''Hydrangea'', () commonly named the hortensia, is a genus of over 75 species of flowering plants native to Asia and the Americas. By far the greatest species diversity is in eastern Asia, notably China, Korea, and Japan. Most are shrubs tall, ...
s that bloom during the summer months:
History
During a period of medieval legends and unsubstantiated stories of mystical lands, the island of Faial first appeared on the 1375
Catalan Atlas, as Ilha da Ventura or Insula de La Ventura (English: ''Venture Island''). By 1427 they had ''discovered'' what most had suspected: islands in the middle of the Atlantic (specifically the islands of Santa Maria and São Miguel). New discoveries would be made in subsequent years until, during his first voyage of exploration (in 1451), the navigator
Diogo de Teive
Diogo de Teive () was a maritime captain and squire to the House of Infante D. Henrique (1394-1460) during the Portuguese period of discovery. Following his exploration into the western Atlantic in the area of Newfoundland, in 1452 he discovere ...
explored the coast of Faial.
It was the humanist friar
Gaspar Frutuoso
Gaspar Frutuoso (c.1522 in Ponta Delgada – 1591 in Ribeira Grande) was a Portuguese priest, historian and humanist from the island of São Miguel, in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. His major contribution to Portuguese history was hi ...
who recounted that the first explorers did not find an uninhabited island: a hermit, who had a small flock and lived in a cave in the interior, had occupied the land.
By 1460, the nautical charts would refer to this island as Ilha de São Luis. It was at about this time that
Valentim Fernandes da Morávia, a German intellectual and translator residing in Lisbon, recounted the first story related to the settlement of the island. As he wrote, Frair Pedro, the queen's confessor, traveled with the
Infanta
''Infante'' (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as Infant or translated as Prince, is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to th ...
Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy
Isabella of Portugal (21 February 1397 – 17 December 1471) was Duchess of Burgundy and the third wife of Duke Philip the Good. Their son was Charles the Bold, the last Valois Duke of Burgundy.
Born a Portuguese ''infanta'' of the House of ...
, to
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...
, where he met and developed a friendship with the nobleman
Josse van Huerter
Joost De Hurtere (1430 in Torhout – 1495 in Horta), also known by several transliterations (such as ''Josse van Huerter, Josse van Hurtere'', ''Josse De Hurtere'' or ''Joss van Hürter'', and later in Portuguese, ''Joss de Utra'' or just ''D ...
. During their conversations D. Pedro talked to van Huerter of the islands and of their deposits of silver and tin (which he assumed were the Ilhas Cassitérides, or in English, the ''Islands of Tin''). Van Huerter convinced 15 other men of the profitability of a venture in the archipelago.
Around 1465, Huerter disembarked for the first time on Faial along the beach of Praia de Almofariz (now
Praia do Almoxarife
Praia do Almoxarife is a ''freguesia'' ("civil parish") in the municipality (''concelho'') of Horta, of the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. The population in 2011 was 834, in an area of 9.20 km². Although it was the beachhead of early ...
). The expedition remained in the area of Lomba dos Frades for about a year, until their supplies ran out. His compatriots were angered by the lack of the promised precious metals, and van Huerter quickly escaped to Flanders and the court of the Duchess of Burgundy.
In 1467, Huerter returned to Faial on a new expedition, supported by the Duchess, who "ordered men and women of all conditions, as well as priests to convey their religious orders, in addition to ships loaded with furniture and utensils necessary for the land and construction of houses, and she sent them for two years, with everything they needed for subsistence" (according to a caption made by the German geographer
Martin Behaim
Martin Behaim (6 October 1459 – 29 July 1507), also known as and by various forms of , was a German textile merchant and cartographer. He served John II of Portugal as an adviser in matters of navigation and participated in a voyage to W ...
on the
Nuremberg Globe).
Valentim Fernandes
Valentim Fernandes (died 1518 or 1519) was a printer who lived in Portugal. An ethnic German originally from Moravia, he moved to Lisbon, Portugal in 1495 where he lived and worked for 23 years, he was a writer and a translator of various classica ...
also noted that Isabella had ordered civil criminals to be
deported
Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. The term ''expulsion'' is often used as a synonym for deportation, though expulsion is more often used in the context of international law, while deportation ...
to the island. Infante D. Fernando (Duke of Viseu and Master of the Order of Christ) gave Van Heutere the title of Captain-Major of the island. Immediately, the new colonists had problems in their new colony, due to a lack of potable water. They moved their settlement to the adjacent valley (which continues to bear the name of ''Flamengos'', the Portuguese term for ''Flemish'' or literally, ''Flemish people''). Van Huerter constructed a small chapel, consecrated in the name of Santa Cruz (Holy Cross). He eventually returned temporarily to Lisbon, where he married D. Beatriz de Macedo, governess of the Duke of Viseu. Still an apt negotiator, he returned to Faial promoting the settlement of the colony and his holdings. He convinced a second group of settlers, under the Flemish nobleman
Willem van der Haegen
D. Willem van der Haegen (1430; Flanders – 21 December 1507/9; São Jorge, Azores), or Willem De Kersemakere, known in Portuguese as Guilherme da Silveira, or Guilherme Casmaca, was a Flemish-born Azorean entrepreneur, explorer, and colonizer. ...
(later known as Guilherme da Silveira) to bring his compatriots, their families and support staff to the island in 1467.
The settlers concentrated in the area of Conceição and Porto Pim, creating the nuclei of the Vila de Orta (later the Vila de Horta), a name transliterated from the surname of
Josse van Huerter
Joost De Hurtere (1430 in Torhout – 1495 in Horta), also known by several transliterations (such as ''Josse van Huerter, Josse van Hurtere'', ''Josse De Hurtere'' or ''Joss van Hürter'', and later in Portuguese, ''Joss de Utra'' or just ''D ...
. By 1490, this Flemish community numbered approximately 1500 people, and were joined by several families from the Alentejo, Moinho and other islands in the archipelago. The rapid growth of the island, in this phase, was the result of the cultivation of wheat, and the growth in the woad industry. It was some time later, when the island's name changed to "Fayal", due to the large number of Faya trees (''
Myrica faya
''Myrica faya'' (firetree, faya or haya; syn. ''Morella faya'' (Ait.) Wilbur) is a species of '' Myrica'', native to Macaronesia (the Azores, Madeira, and the Canary Islands), and possibly also western coastal mainland Portugal.
Description
It ...
''). With the island's improving economy more Portuguese settled and rapidly the Flemish influence diminished.
In 1583, as part of the
Spanish occupation of the Azores (which began with a landing party on Terceira), a Spanish fleet was sent to Faial. During the expeditionary assault, a body of armed men landed at Pasteleiro and engaged the defenders. Although reinforced by French troops, the garrison was unable to fend off the invaders. During the Iberian Union of Portugal and
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, the island was frequently attacked by
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
and
French pirate
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
s. Raiding parties from the Earl of Cumberland (
George Clifford) and Earl of Essex (
Robert Devereaux) attacked the defenseless populations between 1589 and 1597. This was partly due to the influx of Spaniards to the islands, as opportunities for Iberian businessmen improved. The privateers robbed the inhabitants and burned what they left behind, not differentiating between Portuguese and Spanish people or properties. To protect themselves, the Faialense built a large number of fortresses; in the 18th century there were more than 20. Meanwhile, offshore from Faial, on 22/23 June 1594, in what became known as the ''Battle of Faial Island'' or the
action of Faial
The action of Faial or the Battle of Faial Island was a naval engagement that took place on 22–23 June 1594 during the Anglo-Spanish War in which the large and rich 2,000 ton Portuguese carrack ''Cinco Chagas'' was destroyed by an English fle ...
, three ships of the Earl of Cumberland attacked the 2,000-ton Portuguese carrack
Cinco Chagas
''Cinco Chagas'' (English: '' Five Wounds'') was a Portuguese ''nau'' ( carrack) that was sunk during the action of Faial on 22–23 June 1594 during the Anglo-Spanish War. When it was sunk, the carrack was reportedly holding 2,000 tons of trea ...
, which historians believe to be the richest treasure ship ever to sail from the
East Indies
The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around t ...
, firing and sinking the ship immediately off the island with all hands and all cargo lost.
The Cabeço do Fogo Volcano erupted in 1672, leading to substantial emigration to
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
,
In intervening years Horta became a stopover for Jesuit missionaries traveling to and from Brasil and Asia. The Jesuits constructed a college in Horta, as did the
Carmelites
, image =
, caption = Coat of arms of the Carmelites
, abbreviation = OCarm
, formation = Late 12th century
, founder = Early hermits of Mount Carmel
, founding_location = Mount Car ...
and
Franciscan
The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...
Orders. In the 18th century, the explorer
James Cook
James Cook (7 November 1728 Old Style date: 27 October – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the British Royal Navy, famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean an ...
also reached the islands before initiating his Pacific voyages of discovery.
The people of Faial were active participants in the struggles between the
Liberals and Absolutionists, finally deciding to favor the Liberals, welcoming the visit of King
Pedro IV in 1832. For its loyalty, Horta was elevated to status of town.
In 1876 work started on the construction of a dock in the protected harbor of Horta. As time progressed, Faial's importance expanded through this dock, as a way-point to trans-Atlantic traffic. Charles William Dabney, the American entrepreneur (1794-1871), was responsible for the growth of the industry of the islands with whaling, wine and orange exports predominating. A philanthropic figure, Dabney was responsible for cultivating the economy of the island and supporting its population, aid to agriculture and generating markets abroad for their goods. As well as owning the Fayal shipping line, he was US consul for the Azores 1826–1871; one of the three Dabneys who for many years held the post of American consul for the Azores. The growth of industry and trans-Atlantic sail traffic also expanded Horta's importance, as a safe harbor and coal storage base. In 1919, the first airplane to cross the Atlantic stopped at Horta. Horta's exceptional situation also led to Pan American establishing a Clipper base there. Similarly, British, American, French, German and Italian intercontinental submarine cable stations were based in Horta. During World War Two, Horta was also an important naval base, giving shelter to some of the Allied ships that took part in the Normandy invasion.
The island, dependent on whaling and agriculture, remained prosperous until the eruption of
Capelinhos
The Capelinhos (from Capelo + ''-inhos'' diminutive, which literally means "little cape") is a monogenetic volcano located on the western coast of Faial Island in the Azores. It is part of the larger volcanic complex of Capelo, which includes 20 sc ...
volcano in 1957. Communities of the northern and western coast were harshly affected by the eruption, as agricultural lands were untillable and covered with sand and ash. This led to the immigration of 4000 people to the United States, spearheaded by members of the Portuguese diaspora in New England and
Senator (
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...
). In addition, whaling, as a viable commercial enterprise was slowly curtailed with innovations in the chemical sector and the influence of animal-rights groups.
Economic and political changes since the 1980s have helped to revitalize the island's economy and development. After the Azores gained the status of an Autonomous Region within Portugal,
Horta, the island's only city, hosted the Regional Parliament (''Parlamento Regional'') of the Azores.
Geography
Physical geography
Along with other islands in the Azores archipelago, Faial is of
volcanic
A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.
On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates a ...
origin and is close to the tectonic divide between the
European
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
and
North American Plate
The North American Plate is a tectonic plate covering most of North America, Cuba, the Bahamas, extreme northeastern Asia, and parts of Iceland and the Azores. With an area of , it is the Earth's second largest tectonic plate, behind the Pacific ...
s.The island can be considered (from a geophysical perspective) the westernmost point of Europe (the two islands west of Faial,
Flores
Flores is one of the Lesser Sunda Islands, a group of islands in the eastern half of Indonesia. Including the Komodo Islands off its west coast (but excluding the Solor Archipelago to the east of Flores), the land area is 15,530.58 km2, and th ...
and
Corvo, are already on the American plate).
Visually, the island is characterized as an irregular pentagon, that occupies an area of approximately , and formed along a ''leaky'' transform fault extending from the mid-Atlantic Ridge to the Hirondella faults. This is the same fault that bisects the remainder of the Central Group of islands along a west-northwest to east-southeast orientation. Although formed by complex volcanological events, the current landmass is dominated by the crater of its central stratovolcano with relatively gently sloping flanks, showing little sign of major erosion.
The island was formed from several geomorphological structures resulting from volcanism and other tectonic forces:
* The nature of the stratovolcano structure results in an island that converges at the central Caldera Volcanic Complex, although the highest point occurs along the southern rim, at the peak of
Cabeço Gordo
Cabeço Gordo (Portuguese for "fat mound") is the highest point in the island of Faial, measuring above sea level. Located on the southern rim of the Caldeira Volcano, on a clear day, most of the islands of the central group of the Azores are v ...
(1,043 m above sea level). The ''Caldeira'' (
Caldera
A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcano eruption. When large volumes of magma are erupted over a short time, structural support for the rock above the magma chamber is ...
) is almost circular, 2000 m perimeter, with a 400 m depth below the summit of Cabeço Gordo (almost 570 m above sea level). Its center is broken by water marshes, thickets, and minor cinder cones, and surrounded by almost vertical cliffs with a diverse vegetation, both endemic or invasive to Macaronesia. It is constituted by pyroclastic material, pumitic projectiles, phreatic and phreatomagmatic deposits and examples of pyroclastic flows and lahars.
* The Pedro Miguel Graben, located in the island's northeast, is characterized by an extensive fault system, showing the remnants of the original Ribeirinha Central Volcano that formed the island.
* In the southeast, the Horta Platform is characterized by low altitude projectiles and extensive lava flows. Several strombolian and the surtseyan cones, such as Monte da Guia, cover the area occupied by the island's main urban center.
* The Capelo Volcanic Complex is the most recent geomorphological feature, composed of a linear series of scoria cones, resulting from basaltic volcanism of low explosivity. The last eruption occurred along Costa da Nau and Ponta dos Caplinhos, near the small parish of Capelo on September 27, 1957. At first, a small "Ilha Nova" (new island) formed off the coast, quickly disappearing. During a subsequent eruption a cone and a small
isthmus
An isthmus (; ; ) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea counterpart of an isthmu ...
formed off the coast and then volcanic activity dissipated. The volcano became active again on December 16, 1957; this lasted until May 12, 1958 and connected the islet with Faial, effectively enlarging the island by 2.4 km
2 and extending the Ponta dos Capelinhos into the western ocean.
The mineral
fayalite
Fayalite (, commonly abbreviated to Fa) is the iron-rich end-member of the olivine solid-solution series. In common with all minerals in the olivine group, fayalite crystallizes in the orthorhombic system (space group ''Pbnm'') with cell para ...
is named for this island, having been first identified and described here in 1840. It is an iron-rich expression within the
olivine
The mineral olivine () is a magnesium iron silicate with the chemical formula . It is a type of nesosilicate or orthosilicate. The primary component of the Earth's upper mantle, it is a common mineral in Earth's subsurface, but weathers quickl ...
family.
Climate
Faial has a
humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
with some
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...
influences,
oceanic
Oceanic may refer to:
*Of or relating to the ocean
*Of or relating to Oceania
**Oceanic climate
**Oceanic languages
**Oceanic person or people, also called "Pacific Islander(s)"
Places
* Oceanic, British Columbia, a settlement on Smith Island, ...
at higher altitudes. Average temperature is around , at daytime and at nighttime. It has very mild winters for its latitude, in part due to its location in the mid-Atlantic Ocean and infuence from the
Gulf Stream
The Gulf Stream, together with its northern extension the North Atlantic Current, North Atlantic Drift, is a warm and swift Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and flows through the Straits of Florida a ...
, averaging in its coldest month, February, and frosts never occur other than at high altitude. For comparison,
Ocean City, Maryland
Ocean City, officially the Town of Ocean City, is an Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic resort town in Worcester County, Maryland, Worcester County, Maryland along the East Coast of the United States. The population was 6,844 at the 2020 United States cens ...
, at a similar latitude, is colder in its coldest month, averaging only . Summers are warm and relatively dry. Temperatures are moderated year-round, never too hot or too cold,
daily temperatures are also moderated, with only difference between highs and lows. Average relative humidity remains high at around 80% and
insolation
Solar irradiance is the power per unit area (surface power density) received from the Sun in the form of electromagnetic radiation in the wavelength range of the measuring instrument.
Solar irradiance is measured in watts per square metre (W/m ...
is relatively low with around 1800–1900 hours of annual sunshine, similar to locations in coastal northwestern Europe such as
Nantes, France
Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabitan ...
, although the sun is stronger in Faial because of its lower latitude. Precipitation is plentiful especially in the winter months, averaging annually. At higher altitudes (e.g.
Caldeira Volcano
The Caldeira Volcano (Portuguese: ) is the highest mountain, massive stratovolcano and the largest geomorphological structure that forms the island of Faial. The mountain's highest point, Cabeço Gordo, reaches above sea level. One of the most ...
) temperatures are cooler, precipitation and humidity are increasingly higher and fog is very common.
Ecoregions/Protected areas
![Morro do Castelo Branco, Faial - Açores](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Morro_do_Castelo_Branco%2C_Faial_-_A%C3%A7ores.jpg)
In 2008, the Regional Government of the Azores established a comprehensive administrative framework to administer and promote the various environmental ecosystems of the island. These areas were reorganized under Regional Legislative Decree 46/2008/A, into the
Faial Nature Park, that includes 13 protected areas:
;Nature Reserves
*
AI01
AI is artificial intelligence, intellectual ability in machines and robots.
Ai, AI or A.I. may also refer to:
Animals
* Ai (chimpanzee), an individual experimental subject in Japan
* Ai (sloth) or the pale-throated sloth, northern Amazonian ma ...
Nature Reserve of the Caldeirinhas ( pt, Reserva Natural das Caldeirinhas)
*
AI02
AI is artificial intelligence, intellectual ability in machines and robots.
Ai, AI or A.I. may also refer to:
Animals
* Ai (chimpanzee), an individual experimental subject in Japan
* Ai (sloth) or the pale-throated sloth, northern Amazonian ma ...
Nature Reserve of the Caldeira ( pt, Reserva Natural da Caldeira do Faial)
*
AI03Nature Reserve of the Morro do Castelo Branco ( pt, Reserva Natural do Morro do Castelo Branco)
;Protected Areas for the Management of Habitats and Coast Species
*
AI04Protected Area of Cabeço do Fogo ( pt, Área Protegida para a Gestão de Habitats ou Espécies do Cabeço do Fogo)
*
AI05
AI is artificial intelligence, intellectual ability in machines and robots.
Ai, AI or A.I. may also refer to:
Animals
* Ai (chimpanzee), an individual experimental subject in Japan
* Ai (sloth) or the pale-throated sloth, northern Amazonian mamm ...
Protected Area of Capelinhos, Northwest Coast and Varadouro ( pt, Área Protegida para a Gestão de Habitats ou Espécies dos Capelinhos, Costa Noroeste e Varadouro)
*
AI06Protected Area of Varadouro-Castelo Branco ( pt, Área Protegida para a Gestão de Habitats ou Espécies Varadouro-Castelo Branco)
*
AI07
AI is artificial intelligence, intellectual ability in machines and robots.
Ai, AI or A.I. may also refer to:
Animals
* Ai (chimpanzee), an individual experimental subject in Japan
* Ai (sloth) or the pale-throated sloth, northern Amazonian mamm ...
Protected Area of Lomba Grande ( pt, Área Protegida para a Gestão de Habitats ou Espécies Lomba Grande)
;Protected Landscapes
*
AI08
AI is artificial intelligence, intellectual ability in machines and robots.
Ai, AI or A.I. may also refer to:
Animals
* Ai (chimpanzee), an individual experimental subject in Japan
* Ai (sloth) or the pale-throated sloth, northern Amazonian mamm ...
Protected Landscape of Monte da Guia ( pt, Área de Paisagem Protegida do Monte da Guia)
*
AI09
AI is artificial intelligence, intellectual ability in machines and robots.
Ai, AI or A.I. may also refer to:
Animals
* Ai (chimpanzee), an individual experimental subject in Japan
* Ai (sloth) or the pale-throated sloth, northern Amazonian mamm ...
Protected Landscape of the Central Zone ( pt, Área de Paisagem Protegida da Zona Central)
;Protected Areas for the Management of Resources
*
AI10
The tenth season of ''American Idol'' premiered on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox television network on January 19, 2011, and concluded on May 25, 2011. The show underwent a number of changes from the American Idol (season 9), ninth season, in ...
Protected Resource Area of the (Faial Sector) Faial-Pico Channel ( pt, Área Protegida de Gestão de Recursos do Canal Faial-Pico/Sector Faial)
*
AI11
The eleventh season of ''American Idol'' premiered on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox on January 18, 2012. The show aired on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8/7c. Ryan Seacrest returned as host, while Randy Jackson, Steven Tyler, and Jennifer Lopez all ...
Protected Resource Area of Castelo Branco ( pt, Área Protegida de Gestão de Recursos do Castelo Branco)
*
AI12
The twelfth season of ''American Idol'' premiered on January 16, 2013, as part of the mid-season of the 2012–13 network television season. Ryan Seacrest returned as host. Randy Jackson returned for his twelfth season as judge and was joined ...
Protected Resource Area of Capelinhos ( pt, Área Protegida de Gestão de Recursos dos Capelinhos)
*
AI13Protected Resource Area of Cedros ( pt, Área Protegida de Gestão de Recursos dos Cedros)
In addition, there are a few instituted forest reserves on the island of Faial, under the authority of the ''Direcção Regional de Recursos Florestais'' (''Regional Directorate for Forest Services''):
* Forest Reserve of Capelo ( pt, Reserva Florestal do Capelo)
* Forest Reserve of Cabouco Velho ( pt, Reserva Florestal do Cabouco Velho)
* Recreational Forest Reserve of Falca ( pt, Reserva Florestal de Recreio da Falca)
Other areas of geological or environmental interest:
* Anelares
Grotto
A grotto is a natural or artificial cave used by humans in both modern times and antiquity, and historically or prehistorically. Naturally occurring grottoes are often small caves near water that are usually flooded or often flooded at high ti ...
( pt, Gruta dos Anelares), located along the southern road of the ''Ribeira da Lombega'', in
Castelo Branco, this is a geological formation produced from a lava tube near the mountainous coast: it extends 35.5 meters from Ribeira da Lombega, is 2.5 meters wide and is 3.7 meters at its highest point.
In 2013, the submarine Lula1000, while diving in the Faial-Pico canal discovered a coral reef situated in depth and covering an area of .
In a communiqué to the Rebikoff–Niggeler Foundation, the group suggested that the reef formation was an important first discovery for the submarine team, which was located in the waters of the Azores since 1994, in order to document sea depth.
[ Until this time, there were no documented records of coral reefs at such a depth in the waters of the Azores, nor at such a distance from Faial.][
]
Human geography
Administratively, the island is governed as one municipality, with its government seat in the city of Horta. Operationally, there are thirteen civil parishes with their own assemblies, three of which (Angústias, Matriz and Conceição) constitute the principal urbanized core:
* Angústias
Angústias is one of the three ''freguesia'' ("civil parish") that comprise the urban area of the city of Horta, on the island of Faial in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. This is an economically active, densely populated area. The popul ...
; urban parish that includes the escoria cones of Monte da Guia, Monte Escuro and Monte Carneiro, as well as the island's hospital, the major hotels, commercial and container port, and many historical buildings (such as the Fort of Santa Cruz, The Cedars, and the Church of Nossa Senhora das Angústias): 3,025 inhabitants (2003).
* Conceição; urbanized and rural parish connected to the city of Horta, with 1,157 inhabitants in 2001. It was one of the nuclei of the modern city of Horta, location of the historic forts of Alagoa and Bom Jesus, and location of the Courts building and Fayal Sport Club (and football field).
* Matriz; the urban heart of the city of Horta, with 2,523 inhabitants (2001); landmarks include the Horta Museum, Sociedade Recreativa Amor da Pátria, Império dos Nobres, the historic Clock Tower, the former Walter Bensaúde Hospital and the Horta Archive and the Public Library, as well as the location of the Municipal Government (Câmara Municipal da Horta).
The remainder of the parishes (except Flamengos) circle the island, all linked by the regional road network and its ancillary roads:
* Flamengos
Flamengos is a Portuguese civil parish ( pt, freguesia) on the island of Faial in the archipelago of the Azores. Its name was derived from the grouping of Flemish settlers who made their homes in this landlocked valley, in the municipality of H ...
; one of the first nuclei of settlement and colonization, and the only interior/landlocked parish in the municipality of Horta founded by Flemish colonists and Portuguese settlers from the archipelago.
* Praia do Almoxarife
Praia do Almoxarife is a ''freguesia'' ("civil parish") in the municipality (''concelho'') of Horta, of the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. The population in 2011 was 834, in an area of 9.20 km². Although it was the beachhead of early ...
; the beachhead of the early colonists to Faial, Almoxarife is a coastal parish on the east coast, located between Ponta da Espalamaca and Lomba dos Frades, and is known for its black sand beach.
* Pedro Miguel; located on the eastern coast between Lomba dos Frades and Lomba Grande, its 723 inhabitants lost its primary place of worship (the Church of Nossa Senhora da Ajuda)during the 1998 earthquake.
* Ribeirinha; nestled in the river valley of the Pedro Miguel Graben and existing along the fracture zone of the Ribeirinha Volcanic complex alon the north-northeast coast, Riberinha has experienced many seismic events historically.
* Salão
Salão is a ''freguesia'' ("civil parish") in the municipality of Horta on the island of Faial, the Portuguese Azores. The population in 2011 was 401, in an area of 10.40 km².
History
The settlement of Salão can be traced back to 1620, t ...
; the smallest parish by population situated on the northern coast of Faial, a community built by Spanish settlers, that were later expelled following the end of the Iberian Union.
* Cedros Cedros, Portuguese and Spanish for ''cedars'', may refer to the following places:
Honduras
* Cedros, Francisco Morazán, a municipality in the Department of Francisco Morazán
Mexico
*Cedros Island, an island in the State of Baja California
Portu ...
; built on the coastal cliffs of the Cedros Plateau along the northern coast, it is the oldest parish on Faial, involved in agriculture and dairy industry (and the location of the milk cooperative C.A.L.F).
* Praia do Norte; a zone of recent historical volcanism, built on layers of ash and pyroclastic deposits, the parish became "extinct" between 1672 and 1845, following the eruption of Cabeço do Fogo, which depopulated the parish. Emigration also occurred following the eruption of Capelinhos in 1957/58.
* Capelo; a parish built along a linear series of volcanic cones, culminating in the 1957/58 eruption of Capelinhos off the western coast. The crisis caused the implementation of an immigration program spearheaded by Senator John F. Kennedy, that reduced the population of Faial and Capelo.
* Castelo Branco; location of the international airport, its 1115 inhabitants are involved in a mix of agricultural and enterprises associated with primary and secondary industries along the southern coast that includes the micro-climate of Varadouro.
* Feteira; a parish dominated by agriculture, the inhabitants are equally tied to the commercial activities in Horta, developing into a suburb of the larger city.
Faial has been affected by various earthquake
An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...
s and seismic events during its populated history. The most important was the 1759–1760 earthquakes and aftershocks that occurred around Christmas and New Year. Similar in nature, the 1926 earthquake which rumbled the city of Horta, in early-April, where damages were reported in Flamengos, Ribeirinha and Conceição. Then, on August 31 at 8:42, a new earthquake caused eight deaths and ruined buildings in Horta, as well as the parishes of Conceição, Praia do Almoxarife (ruining 220 homes), Flamengos, Feteira and Castelo Branco, Salao and most of the Lomba do Pilar. Approximately 4,138 homes and buildings were partially or totally damaged. Similar tremors and events were felt in 1957–1958 (Capelinhos eruption), then in 1963, and again in 1973. The 1998 Azores earthquake on July 9, which shook the islands of Faial, Pico and São Jorge at 07:19 (its epicentre north-northeast of Faial) measured 5.6 on the Richter scale and caused damages to the parishes of Riberinha, Pedro Miguel, Salão and Cedros and stronger damages in Castelo Branco (mainly Lombega), Flamengos and Praia do Almoxarife. Eight people lost their lives in the earthquake and 1,700 were left homeless.
Economy
Faial's early economic growth was propelled by cultivation and processing of woad, a blue-coloured dye produced from a plant of the same name (in Latin, ''Isatis tinctoria
''Isatis tinctoria'', also called woad (), dyer's woad, or glastum, is a flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae (the mustard family) with a documented history of use as a blue dye and medicinal plant. Its genus name, Isatis, derives from ...
''). It was the only source for blue dye until the end of the 16th century when Portuguese trade routes started bringing indigo from the far east. Economic and population growth was also spearheaded by many legends of tin and silver, perpetuated by members of the Portuguese court.
The economy of the island generated some prosperity until 1957, when the Capelinhos Volcano erupted in the western part of the island, reactivating emigration to North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
, supported by promises of aid made by Massachusetts senator John F. Kennedy to the affected populations.
The main agricultural resources of the island are potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...
es, cereal
A cereal is any Poaceae, grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, Cereal germ, germ, and bran. Cereal Grain, grain crops are grown in greater quantit ...
s, fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...
s, and wine
Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...
s, along with cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...
(which makes up its dairy
A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting or processing (or both) of animal milk – mostly from cows or buffaloes, but also from goats, sheep, horses, or camels – for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on ...
and meat
Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chic ...
industry). The city of Horta is the centre of commerce and services of the island.
In the 1970s, after the “Revolution of the Carnations,” Portugal experienced economic growth, and an airport was opened; with it, tourists came. After Portugal's entry into the EEC, the standard of living rapidly grew and today the population generally prospers.
Architecture
Faial is a tourist destination with a rich collection of historical, natural and modern attractions that attract yachts, cruise ships, tourist groups and the naturalists to the hills and streets of the island. Apart from several hotels and bed & breakfasts scattered throughout the parishes, the visitor seeking sun will likely travel to the black sand beaches of Praia de Almoxarife, Conceição and Porto Pim, as well as the rock pools scattered along the coast. Varadouro is one such place, known for its warmer waters, micro-climate, summer cottages and complicated salt-water pools open to the ocean.
Civic
* Termas do Varadouro (Thermal Spa of Varadouro)
* Geological Museum of the Volcano
* Interpretative Center of the Capelinhos Volcano (including the Capelinhos lighthouse)
* Escola de Artesanto do Capelo (School of Handicrafts)
Military
* Fort of Santa Cruz
* World War Two Artillery Batteries
Religious
* Chapel of Nossa Senhora de Esperança – ruined chapel on the grounds of the parochial church, Capelo
* Chapel of Nossa Senhora do Carmo – located in Varadouro, Capelo
* Chapel of São Pedro – abandoned chapel to St. Peter, located in Feteira
* Church of Santa Catarina de Alexandria – situated in Castelo Branco
* Church of Santissima Trinidade (Holy Trinity) – located in Capelo
* Church of the Divino Espírito Santo – one of the oldest churches on the island, located in Feteira
* Church of Nossa Senhora das Dores - Praia do Norte
Culture
Festivities
Faial has a calendar of several secular and religious festivals. The most important ones occur in the summer. From Ascension Day
The Solemnity of the Ascension of Jesus Christ, also called Ascension Day, Ascension Thursday, or sometimes Holy Thursday, commemorates the Christian belief of the bodily Ascension of Jesus into heaven. It is one of the ecumenical (i.e., shared b ...
until August, the feasts of the Holy Spirit are major events in each parish and neighborhood. During these events, a procession goes to the local church, a mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
is celebrated there in conformity with a tradition/legend of Saint Elizabeth of Portugal
Elizabeth of Aragon, more commonly known as Saint Elizabeth of Portugal, T.O.S.F. (1271 – 4 July 1336; ''Elisabet'' in Catalan, ''Isabel'' in Aragonese, Portuguese and Spanish), was queen consort of Portugal, a tertiary of the Franciscan Or ...
, and then the procession returns to the local ''império'', where a feast of meat broth and soup is served to the invited guests, and the same soup and ''massa sovada'' (sweet bread) is handed out, as a traditional sign of penitence. On Faial, generally, these feasts are by invitation, whereas on other islands public events occur.
The patron saint of Faial is Saint John, celebrated as São João da Caldeira, on June 24. This is a day celebrated with a mass at the Chapel of São João, followed by family picnics along the roadways and fields of the Caldera. Similarly, in Largo Jaime Melo in Horta, people gather from around the island to enjoy picnics, and other diversions (such as band music and/or singers).
On August 1, people celebrate the annual feast of Nossa Senhora da Guia, a celebration originally started by local fisherman in the name of the Virgin Mary. A flotilla of small boats with one carrying the statue of the Virgin arrives in the harbor at Port Pim. From there, following benedictions, the statue is taken in procession to the top of Monte da Guia, where mass is celebrated in the chapel of Monte da Guia.
The most important festival of the Faialense calendar is the secular ''Semana do Mar'' (Sea Week). It is a week-long celebration in Horta of Faial's link to the sea, celebrated in song, dance, exhibitions and kiosks selling different foods (of local and continental Portugal) and goods. During the day there are several sailing competitions and exhibits, while in the evening while many sample foods along the Avenida Marginal, others listen and/or dance to popular and/or traditional musical acts on one of several platforms devoted to bands, traditional and modern/contemporary musical artists. The events culminate with a traditional closing ceremony and fireworks display.
Tradition
The island, like some other Azorean islands, produces cheeses and other milk products, along with cow meat, and by-products notable in Portugal, and it has a rich cuisine that also includes local seafood.
Scrimshaw
Scrimshaw is scrollwork, engravings, and carvings done in bone or ivory. Typically it refers to the artwork created by whalers, engraved on the byproducts of whales, such as bones or cartilage. It is most commonly made out of the bones and teeth ...
, handiwork made of whale
Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and ...
teeth, is a traditional craft of the Azores.
Notable people
* António José de Ávila
Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular male ...
(1807 in Matriz – 1881) Mayor of Horta and 27th, 32nd and 34th Prime Minister of Portugal
The prime minister of Portugal ( pt, primeiro-ministro; ) is the head of government of Portugal. As head of government, the prime minister coordinates the actions of ministers, represents the Government of Portugal to the other bodies of state, ...
1868-1878
* Manuel de Arriaga
Manuel José de Arriaga Brum da Silveira e Peyrelongue (; 8 July 1840 – 5 March 1917) was a Portuguese lawyer, the first attorney-general and the first elected president of the First Portuguese Republic, following the deposition of King Ma ...
(1840 in Horta – 1917) a lawyer, the first elected President of the First Portuguese Republic
The First Portuguese Republic ( pt, Primeira República Portuguesa; officially: ''República Portuguesa'', Portuguese Republic) spans a complex 16-year period in the history of Portugal, between the end of the period of constitutional monarchy ...
* António José de Ávila, 2nd Marquis of Ávila and Bolama
António José de Ávila (7 November 1842, Horta – 18 March 1917, Lisbon) was a military officer, politician, member of the Portuguese nobility (made Marquis of Ávila, following the death of his illustrious uncle) and benemerit.
Biography
...
(1842 in Horta – 1917) a military officer, politician, member of the nobility
* José de Almeida de Ávila (1844 in Horta — 1902) Portuguese Marine and Civil Governor of the district of Horta 1894/5
* Teresa Madruga
Teresa Madruga (born 18 March 1953) is a Portuguese actress. She has appeared in 71 films and television shows since 1977. She starred in the 1983 film ''In the White City'', which was entered into the 33rd Berlin International Film Festival.
S ...
(born 1953 in Horta) a Portuguese actress. Teresa Madruga, IMDb Database
retrieved 07 August 2021.
* Ana Luís
Ana Luís is a former economist and current President of the Legislative Assembly of the Azores.
Career
An economist, the 36-year-old Luís replaced Francisco Coelho, within the Socialist Party
Socialist Party is the name of many different pol ...
(born 1976 in Horta) a former economist and 11th President of the Legislative Assembly of the Azores.
See also
*List of volcanoes in Azores
Although there are no active volcanoes in the continental territory of Portugal, apart from geological remnants of ancient volcanism, the Portuguese Atlantic island possessions have a long history of active volcanism. The following is a list of a ...
*Condor seamount
The Condor seamount is a submarine mountain located at west-southwest of Faial Island in the Azores. It is approximately high, long and wide, stretching from a depth of up to . It is an elongated shaped volcano, oriented east-west, with the to ...
, a submarine mountain located at 17 km west-southwest of Faial Island
References
;Notes
;Sources
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
*
The Azores Islands, Site about Portuguese Azores Islands
{{Authority control
Mountains of Portugal
Stratovolcanoes of Portugal
Calderas of Portugal
Islands of the Azores