La Mancha () is a

natural Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are ...

and

historical region Historical regions (or historical areas) are geographical regions which at some point in time had a cultural, ethnic An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that ...

located in the

Spanish provinces A province in Spain * es, provincias, ; sing. ''provincia'') * Basque (, sing. ''probintzia''. * Catalan (), sing. ''província''. * Galician (), sing. ''provincia''. is a territorial division defined as a collection of municipalities, ...

Albacete Albacete (, also , ; ar, ﭐَلبَسِيط, Al-Basīṭ) is a city and municipality in the Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castilla–La Mancha, and capital of the province of Albacete. Lying in the south-ea ...

, Cuenca,

Ciudad Real Ciudad Real (, ; en, "Royal City") is a municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha, capital of the province of Ciudad Real. It is the 5th most populated municipality in the region. History It was founde ...

, and Toledo. La Mancha is an arid but fertile

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...

(610 m or 2000 ft) that stretches from the mountains of Toledo to the western spurs of the hills of Cuenca, and bordered to the south by the

Sierra Morena The Sierra Morena is one of the main systems of mountain ranges in Spain. It stretches for 450 kilometres from east to west across the south of the Iberian Peninsula, forming the southern border of the ''Meseta Central'' plateau and providi ...

and to the north by the

Alcarria The Alcarria ( es, La Alcarria) is a natural region in Castile (Spain). It is located mainly in Guadalajara Province but also overlaps those of Cuenca and Madrid. Its principal attractions are its fauna and flora and it is noted for its honey ...

region. La Mancha historical

comarca A ''comarca'' (, or , or ) 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, ...

constitutes the southern portion of Castilla-La Mancha

autonomous community eu, autonomia erkidegoa ca, comunitat autònoma gl, comunidade autónoma oc, comunautat autonòma an, comunidat autonoma ast, comunidá autónoma , alt_name = , map = , category = Autonomous administra ...

and makes up most of the present-day administrative region.

Name

The name "La Mancha" is probably derived from the Arabic word المنشأ ''al-mansha'', meaning "birthplace" or "fountainhead". The name of the city of

Almansa Almansa () is a Spanish town and municipality in the province of Albacete, part of the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. The name "Almansa" stems from the Arabic (al-manṣaf), "half way of the road". The municipality borders with Al ...

shares that origin. The word ''mancha'' in Spanish literally means ''spot'', ''stain'', or ''patch'', but no apparent link exists between this word and the name of the region.

Geography

The largest plain in Spain, La Mancha is made up of a

averaging 500 to 600 metres in altitude (although it reaches 900 metres in Campo de Montiel and other parts), centering on the province of Ciudad Real. The region is watered by the

Guadiana The Guadiana River (, also , , ), or Odiana, is an international river defining a long stretch of the Portugal-Spain border, separating Extremadura and Andalusia (Spain) from Alentejo and Algarve (Portugal). The river's basin extends from the ...

, Jabalón,

Záncara The Záncara is a 168 km long river in Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It is a tributary to the Guadiana. Its source is near the village Abia de la Obispalía, west of Cuenca, in the Iberian System. The Záncara flows southwest, along the town ...

, Cigüela, and

Júcar left The Júcar () or Xúquer () is a river on the Iberian Peninsula of Spain. The river runs for approximately 509 km from its source at Ojuelos de Valdeminguete, on the eastern flank of the Montes Universales, Sistema Ibérico. Its most i ...

rivers.

Climate

The climate is cold semi-arid (Köppen ''BSk''), with strong fluctuations. Farming (

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley pr ...

oats The oat (''Avena sativa''), sometimes called the common oat, is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name (usually in the plural, unlike other cereals and pseudocereals). While oats are suitable for human con ...

, sugar beets, wine

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, ...

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

s) and cattle raising are the primary economic activities, but they are severely restricted by the harsh environmental conditions.

Culture

Culturally, La Mancha includes the Sierra de Alcaraz, northern

, Montes de Toledo and Serranía de Cuenca, parts of

Tajo The Tagus ( ; es, Tajo ; pt, Tejo ; see below) is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. The river rises in the Montes Universales near Teruel, in mid-eastern Spain, flows , generally west with two main south-westward sections, to e ...

river valley, and it is administratively divided among the comarcas of Campo de Montiel and Campo de ras de Ocaña y

Manchuela Manchuela or La Manchuela ("lesser La Mancha") is a ''comarca'' located in Castile-La Mancha and Valencian Community, Spain. Historical comarca The historical Manchuela comarca included the municipalities of Tarazona de la Mancha and Villal ...

to the north. The inhabitants are called ''Manchegos''.

Agriculture

La Mancha has always been an important agricultural zone.

Viticulture Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...

is important in

Tomelloso Tomelloso () is a municipality in the province of Ciudad Real, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It has a population of 33,548 (2005). Main sights *Posada de los Portales (late 17th century) *Town Hall, rebuilt in 1904 *Church of the ''Asunción de Nues ...

Alcázar de San Juan Alcázar de San Juan is a city and municipality of Spain located in the province of Ciudad Real, autonomous community of Castilla–La Mancha. It lies on the plain of La Mancha. From the 13th to the 19th century the history of Alcázar is strongly ...

Socuéllamos Socuéllamos is a town and municipality of Spain located in the province of Ciudad Real, Castilla–La Mancha. It is famous for its wines. The abandoned town of Torre de Vejezate is located within Socuéllamos municipal term. History Juan Osó ...

Valdepeñas Valdepeñas is a municipality in the province of Ciudad Real, in the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It is also the seat of the judicial district that covers the localities of Moral de Calatrava, Santa Cruz de Mudela, Viso d ...

La Solana La Solana is a municipality in Ciudad Real, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It has a population of 15,340. It has a very arid climate. It is located in a zone of Spain that produces large quantities of wine and olive oil. La Solana was settled, a ...

and Manzanares, in

and

Villarrobledo Villarrobledo () is a Spanish city and municipality in the province of Albacete, part of the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. It's better known for having the world's largest area covered by vineyards (more than 30,000 has., approxima ...

. Other crops include cereals (hence the famous

windmill A windmill is a structure that converts wind power into rotational energy using vanes called windmill sail, sails or blades, specifically to mill (grinding), mill grain (gristmills), but the term is also extended to windpumps, wind turbines, and ...

s) and

saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent i ...

. Sheep are raised and bred, providing the famous

Manchego cheese Manchego (officially es, queso manchego, ) is a cheese made in the La Mancha region of Spain from the milk of sheep of the Manchega breed. It is aged between 60 days and 2 years. Manchego has a firm and compact consistency and a buttery tex ...

, as are goats, including the La Mancha goat, one of the assumed progenitors of the American La Mancha goat. La Mancha includes two National Parks, Las Tablas de Daimiel and Cabañeros, and one Natural Park, Las Lagunas de Ruidera.

People

Famous Spaniards like the cinema directors

Pedro Almodóvar Pedro Almodóvar Caballero (; (often known simply as Almodóvar) born 25 September 1949) is a Spanish filmmaker. His films are marked by melodrama, irreverent humour, bold colour, glossy décor, quotations from popular culture, and complex narr ...

and

José Luis Cuerda José Luis Cuerda Martínez (18 February 19474 February 2020) was a Spanish film director, screenwriter and Film producer, producer. He was born in Albacete and died on 4 February 2020 at the age of 72 in Madrid from an embolism. He won four Goy ...

, painters Antonio López and his uncle Antonio López Torres, footballer

Andrés Iniesta Andrés Iniesta Luján (; born 11 May 1984) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder and is the captain of J1 League club Vissel Kobe. Considered one of the greatest midfielders of all time, Iniesta has spent most of hi ...

, music band

Angelus Apatrida Angelus Apatrida is a Spanish thrash metal band formed in Albacete in 2000. History Early years (2000–2003) Angelus Apatrida was formed as a heavy/power metal band. Two demos were recorded in this period: ''Lost in the Realms of Orchinodae ...

and actress

Sara Montiel María Antonia Abad Fernández MML (10 March 1928 – 8 April 2013), known professionally as Sara Montiel, also Sarita Montiel, was a Spanish actress and singer, who also held Mexican citizenship since 1951. She began her career in the 1940s an ...

were born in La Mancha.

La Mancha and Cervantes

Miguel de Cervantes Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (; 29 September 1547 (assumed) – 22 April 1616 Old Style and New Style dates, NS) was an Early Modern Spanish writer widely regarded as the greatest writer in the Spanish language and one of the world's pre-emin ...

described La Mancha and its

s in his two-part 1605/1615 novel ''

Don Quixote de La Mancha is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of Western ...

''. Cervantes was making fun of the region, using a pun; a "mancha" was also a stain, as on one's honor, and thus an inappropriately named homeland for a dignified knight-errant.A Noise Within
/ref> Translator John Ormsby believed that Cervantes chose it because it was the most ordinary, prosaic, anti-romantic, and therefore unlikely place from which a chivalrous,

romantic hero The Romantic hero is a literary archetype referring to a character that rejects established norms and conventions, has been rejected by society, and has themselves at the center of their own existence. The Romantic hero is often the protagonist in ...

could originate, making Quixote seem even more absurd. However, ironically, due to the fame of Cervantes' character, the name of La Mancha came to be associated worldwide with romantic chivalry. Several film versions of ''Don Quixote'' have been filmed largely in La Mancha. However, some, including the 1957 Russian film version, and the screen version of ''Man of La Mancha'', were not. The 1957 film was shot in

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

, while '' Man of La Mancha'' was filmed in Italy.

G. W. Pabst Georg Wilhelm Pabst (25 August 1885 – 29 May 1967) was an Austrian film director and screenwriter. He started as an actor and theater director, before becoming one of the most influential German-language filmmakers during the Weimar Republic. ...

's 1933 version of Cervantes's novel was shot in

Alpes-de-Haute-Provence Alpes-de-Haute-Provence or sometimes abbreviated as AHP (; oc, Aups d'Auta Provença; ) is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of France, bordering Alpes-Maritimes and Italy to the east, Var to the south, Vaucluse to the west ...

. The 2000 made-for-TV ''

Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of Wester ...

'', starring John Lithgow as Don Quixote and

Bob Hoskins Robert William Hoskins (26 October 1942 – 29 April 2014) was an English actor. His work included lead roles in films and television series such as '' Pennies from Heaven'' (1978), ''The Long Good Friday'' (1980), ''Mona Lisa'' (1986), ''Who ...

as Sancho Panza, was shot on several locations in Spain, but not in La Mancha.

References

External links

*
Folk music from La Mancha
{{Authority control Castilla–La Mancha Comarcas of Castilla–La Mancha Geography of Castilla–La Mancha Historical regions in Spain Natural regions