Iturrieta (, ) is an

experimental farm A demonstration farm, or model farm, is a farm which is used primarily to research or demonstrate various agricultural techniques, with any economic gains being an added bonus. Demonstration farms are often owned and operated by educational instit ...

Álava Álava ( in Spanish) or Araba (), officially Araba/Álava, is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lordship of Álava, former medieval Catholic bishopric and now Latin titular see. Its ca ...

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 , 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 ...

. It is located within the Parzonería de Iturrieta ( eu, Iturrietako partzuergoa), a

common land Common land is land owned by a person or collectively by a number of persons, over which other persons have certain common rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect Wood fuel, wood, or to cut turf for fuel. A person ...

managed by neighboring villages.

Etymology

The name is composed of '' iturri'', the Basque word for "spring" or "source"; plus the common toponymic suffix '' -eta''. Thus, the placename literally means "place with fountains" or "the fountains".

History

The area has a large number of prehistoric megalithic monuments, but their dating is uncertain. The first mention of Iturrieta was in 1563. By that time, the village was already

abandoned Abandon, abandoned, or abandonment may refer to: Common uses * Abandonment (emotional), a subjective emotional state in which people feel undesired, left behind, insecure, or discarded * Abandonment (legal), a legal term regarding property ** Chi ...

, with its lands and St. Mary's chapel (the former parish church) managed jointly by the neighboring villages of

Salvatierra Salvatierra may refer to: Places ;Mexico * Salvatierra, Guanajuato, a municipality in the state of Guanajuato ;Spain * Salvatierra (comarca), a subcomarca of Guijuelo in the province of Salamanca, Castile and León * Berrocal de Salvatierra, a mun ...

, San Vicente de Arana, Kontrasta, Ullíbarri-Arana, Alda, Onraita and

Róitegui The people of Roitegui (in Basque and officially Erretegi Roitegui / Erroitegi) belong to the municipality of Arraya-Maestu, in Álava (Spain). The extensive municipality of Arraya-Maestu belongs to the gang mountains of Alava. Formed by several va ...

. On 27 May 1803, the authorities ordered the demolition of the chapel. The image it housed was first moved to the nearby Santa Teodosia chapel. Only two years later, in 1805, the neighboring villages decided to draw the image among themselves in order to avoid potential disputes. The hamlet of Onraita was selected, where the image still remains. In 1933, during the

Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of Alfonso XIII, King Alfonso XIII, and was di ...

, the government tasked José María Díaz de Mendívil with devising a plan to improve the agricultural output of the province. A plot of land in the ''Parzonería de Iturrieta'' was selected as the location of the , commonly known as the . The location was chosen due to its high altitude, which makes the risk of viruses infecting the cultivars less likely. The project was resumed after the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, with the currently existing chapel starting construction in 1946 and the farm starting operations in 1948. The ''Monumento al Patatero'' was built next to the chapel in 1984. As of 2022, the farm is operated by NEIKER, an organism of the Basque Government dedicated to research in

agronomy Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants by agriculture for food, fuel, fiber, chemicals, recreation, or land conservation. Agronomy has come to include research of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and ...

. Iturrieta is also the site of small observatory operated by the ''Sociedad Astronómica de Álava'' with MPC code J44.

Administration

The ''Parzonería de Iturrieta'' is a

, conterminous with the ' 608. It is shared by the municipality of

and the '' concejos'' of Alda, Kontrasta, San Vicente de Arana, Ullíbarri-Arana,

and Onraita. Its territory is unincorporated, not being part of any municipality. Despite often being shown in maps as part of the neighboring '' Parzonería de Entzia'' (another common land), it is a different entity.

Notable people

* Pilar Unzalu (1957–2021), member of the

Congress of Deputies The Congress of Deputies ( es, link=no, Congreso de los Diputados, italic=unset) is the lower house of the Cortes Generales, Spain's legislative branch. The Congress meets in the Palacio de las Cortes, Madrid, Palace of the Parliament () in Ma ...

References

{{Reflist Geography of Álava Farms in Spain Experimental farms 1948 establishments in the Basque Country (autonomous community) Potato organizations