Mediterranean Sea in Oliva, Valencia Region of the Spain 02

Oliva () is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in the ''comarca'' of La

Safor Safor () is a ''comarca'' within the province of Valencia, Spain. The capital is the city of Gandia, but also includes the towns of Oliva, Piles and Daimús, among others. The beach area of Gandia, La Platja, is well known for its wild nightlif ...

in the

Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wi ...

, Spain. To its east lie of coastline and beaches fronting the

Mediterranean Sea 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 ...

, and eight kilometres to the north is

Gandia Gandia ( es, Gandía) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, eastern Spain on the Mediterranean. Gandia is located on the Costa del Azahar (or ''Costa dels Tarongers''), south of Valencia and north of Alicante. Vehicles can acc ...

. The ''Passeig'' (promenade) runs through the centre of the town, and features a market each Friday. On the left side of the Marina beach is Kiko beach. The blue flagged beaches of Oliva stretch for ; many contain sand dunes. Oliva has one of the province's biggest and most colourful Moors and Christians Festivals (''Festes de Moros i Cristians'', in

Valencian Valencian () or Valencian language () is the official, historical and traditional name used in the Valencian Community (Spain), and unofficially in the El Carche comarca in Murcia (Spain), to refer to the Romance language also known as Catal ...

language) in the area. In the old town there are two churches, Sant Roc and Santa Maria la Major. Sant Roc dates from the 18th–19th centuries, and Santa Maria from the 17th–18th centuries. At the top of the hill in the old town is Santa Anna Castle, built in the 16th century. In the centre of the village is a Roman kiln situated below one of the blocks of apartments on Santíssim street. Oliva's Old Town has historical streets which see various "fiestas" celebrated throughout the year: the

falles The Falles ( ca-valencia, Falles; es, Fallas) is a traditional celebration held annually in commemoration of Saint Joseph in the city of Valencia, Spain. The five main days celebrated are from 15 to 19 March, while the Mascletà, a pyrotechnic ...

"Fiesta" in March, the Moors and Christians in July and Setmana Santa (Holy Week).

Economy

About 80% of the economy of Oliva is based on the tertiary sector, especially in commerce, shops, banks and tourism, currently there are more than 30 banks in Oliva. The secondary sector makes up about 15% of the economy, with an extended industrial area, located outside of the city, in the south-east of Oliva. The primary sector, makes up less than 5% of economy, with extended plantations of

orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

s and

tangerines The tangerine is a type of citrus fruit that is orange in color. Its scientific name varies. It has been treated as a separate species under the name ''Citrus tangerina'' or ''Citrus'' × ''tangerina'', or treated as a variety of ''Citrus retic ...

, and minor plantations of

avocado The avocado (''Persea americana'') is a medium-sized, evergreen tree in the laurel family ( Lauraceae). It is native to the Americas and was first domesticated by Mesoamerican tribes more than 5,000 years ago. Then as now it was prized for ...

loquat The loquat (''Eriobotrya japonica'') is a large evergreen shrub or tree, grown commercially for its orange fruit and for its leaves, which are used to make herbal tea. It is also cultivated as an ornamental plant. The loquat is in the family R ...

fig The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...

, banana, prickly pear, etc.

Demography

In 2011, Oliva had a population of 28,400 inhabitants, of which, 7466 (26.29%) of the population were immigrants, with the majority coming from Bolivia,

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

. In Oliva there are citizens of more than 50 countries, especially from

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

, Europe,

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

In 2011 the unemployment rate in the city was 9.7% The median income of a person in Oliva in 2011 was €22,400 ($27,637.)

Climate

Oliva has a Mediterranean-Subtropical climate (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

: CSa), with more than 230 days above . The winters are mild and temperate whilst summers are hot and dry. The average annual temperature is about . In winter, during the

cold waves A cold wave (known in some regions as a cold snap, cold spell or Arctic Snap) is a weather phenomenon that is distinguished by a cooling of the air. Specifically, as used by the U.S. National Weather Service, a cold wave is a rapid fall in tem ...

, the minimum temperature can fall slightly under . Temperatures below the freezing mark and snow are almost unknown in Oliva. Whilst in summer the average day-time temperature ranges from . Temperatures may vary, however during heat waves which occur every year, the temperatures always exceed and also can exceed . The wettest season is the autumn, while the driest season is the summer. Typically city has more than 300 days in a year with clear skies. Temperature and precipitation:

Notable people

* Francisco Brines, poet, National Prize for Spanish Literature * David Fuster, footballer * Enric Morera, (3 April 1964) is a Spanish politician, leader of the Valencian Nationalist Bloc and the Compromís coalition.

References

External links

Tourist website

Oliva Tourist Guide website
{{authority control Municipalities in the Province of Valencia Safor