Bardenas (founded in 1959, until 2008 its name was ''Bardena del Caudillo''), is a settlement in the municipality of Ejea de los Caballeros, in the

province of Zaragoza Zaragoza (), also called Saragossa in English,''Encyclopædia Britannica''Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)/ref> is a province of northern Spain, in the central part of the autonomous community of Aragon. Its capital is Zaragoza, which is also th ...

History

It was founded on April 8, 1959, as ''Bardena del Caudillo'', due to its foundation during

Franco's dictatorship Francoist Spain ( es, España franquista), or the Francoist dictatorship (), was the period of Spanish history between 1939 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death in 1975, Spani ...

and as a plan of the ''

Instituto Nacional de Colonización The Instituto Nacional de Colonización y Desarrollo Rural, en, National Institute of Rural Development and Colonization, was the administrative entity that was established by the Spanish State in October 1939, shortly after the end of the Spani ...

'' (INC); at first it was intended to be baptized as ''El Saso'' in homage to the land near the area. At the same time, other colonization villages such as

El Bayo El Bayo is a settlement in the municipality of Ejea de los Caballeros, in the province of Zaragoza. History Along with other settler villages of Ejea de los Caballeros, this locality was inaugurated on April 8, 1959, and quickly the first sett ...

or Santa Anastasia were also inaugurated, and the

Bardenas Canal The Bardenas Canal is an aqueduct that carries water from the Navarre town of Yesa, in northern Spain, to the southern part of Navarre and Zaragoza. It originates at the dam of the Yesa reservoir, where the Pyrenean waters of the Aragón river ...

and the

Yesa Reservoir The Yesa Reservoir is located in the Pyrenees, and is formed with the damming of the Aragon River, in the Navarre town of Yesa (Spain), although the largest area of the reservoir is located in the province of Zaragoza, extending from east to west. ...

were built. During the first months, several families settled in the town, reaching 15 by mid-August. In 1967 the number of settlers increased to 154, mostly from Ejea de los Caballeros,

Alcalá de Moncayo Alcalá de Moncayo is a municipality located in the province of Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain. According to the 2004 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research center * Inst ...

, Tranquera, Rivas and

Biota Biota may refer to: * Biota (ecology), the plant and animal life of a region * Biota (plant), common name for a coniferous tree, ''Platycladus orientalis'' * Biota, Cinco Villas, a municipality in Aragon, Spain * Biota (band), a band from Color ...

. Over the years, Bardenas became a village where to develop a life with a total of 220 houses built. It also has a nursery school, social center, church and parish house, as well as a public swimming pool and a grass soccer field.

Change of name

On May 5, 2008, as was previously done in other Spanish towns, the town was renamed ''Bardenas'' by decision of the Ejea de los Caballeros Town Council and in order to sever its relationship with the Franco dictatorship. Its name derives from the Aragonese word ''pardina'' > ''bardina'' > ''bardena'', construction or fenced farmland.

Associations

* ''Cinco Villas'' Jota Group * CDE Bardenas * CDE BTT Bardenas * ''Las Bardenas'' Pensioners' Home * ''El Pinar'' Neighborhood Association

Demographics

Population of Bardenas from 2000 to 2014.

Festivities

On May 15, the festivities in honor of Isidore the Laborer are celebrated, although the main festivities are held from the first Wednesday of August until Sunday of that week. These festivities are in honor of St. Francis of Assisi.

References