Adra, the classical Abdera, is a

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

of Almería province,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

History

Abdera was founded by the

Phoenicians Phoenicians were an ancient Semitic group of people who lived in the Phoenician city-states along a coastal strip in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily modern Lebanon and the Syrian coast. They developed a maritime civi ...

as a trading colony. It later grew to prominence under the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

. Adra was the last stronghold of the

Moors The term Moor is an Endonym and exonym, exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslims, Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a s ...

in Spain. In January 1492 it was here that the forces of Boabdil were defeated ending the power of the Moors in Spain.Canby, Courtlandt. ''The Encyclopedia of Historic Places''. (New York: Facts of File Publications, 1984) vol. 1 p. 8 In the 16th century defensive walls were built to protect the settlement. These partially survive.

Demographics

Adra had a population of 25,412 inhabitants in 2020 (according to the municipal census published by the National Institute of Statistics). The percentage of foreign born residents was 5.2% in 2005. The majority of these residents originated from Morocco, making up 49% of the total. The percentage of people living in the urban centre of Adra has been slowly increasing. In 2017 it represented 80% of the total municipal population.

Culture in Adra

Adra Museum: Visitors can spend their free time in the three exhibition halls of the museum, which show the cultural legacy of the

Phoenicia Phoenicians were an Ancient Semitic-speaking peoples, ancient Semitic group of people who lived in the Phoenician city-states along a coastal strip in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily modern Lebanon and the Syria, Syrian ...

Punic The Punic people, usually known as the Carthaginians (and sometimes as Western Phoenicians), were a Semitic people who migrated from Phoenicia to the Western Mediterranean during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' ...

and Roman civilizations, and which educate and entertain at the same time. Important exhibitions of national prestige are periodically held here with success. The museum has a shop where archaeological reproductions can be bought. A nearby mill, El Molino del Lugar, built around 1814 and recently renovated, is the site of the ethnographic section of the museum. The Fair: Adra's fair is considered to be the second most important in the province of

Almería Almería (, , ) is a city and municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, located in Andalusia. It is the capital of the province of Almería, province of the same name. It lies in southeastern Iberian Peninsula, Iberia on the Mediterranean S ...

and the population of Adra and countless visitors gather between September 5 and 10. The patron saint is la Virgen del Mar, who is taken out in a procession on September 8, while San Nicolás de Tolentino is celebrated on the 10th with a procession through el Barrio, the old town. April 25 is the day of San Marcos and is important to the farmers of Adra. It is an official festival of tourist interest in

Andalucía Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

. July 16 is the day of

Our Lady of Mount Carmel Our Lady of Mount Carmel, or Virgin of Carmel, is a Roman Catholic Titles of Mary, title of the Blessed Virgin Mary venerated as patron saint, patroness of the Carmelites, Carmelite Order. The first Carmelites were Christian hermits living on M ...

, the patron saint of fishermen. A procession takes place by boat. Bazaars take place two Saturdays a month in a carpark which is beside the Sports Center and I.E.S Abdera School. Adra had a successful regional level

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club, C.F. Adra, which is now defunct.

People

C

* Virtudes Castro, socialist politician * Carmen Crespo, Spanish politician from Popular Party * Francisco Cuenca Benet, Spanish writer, biographer, essayist, journalist, musicographer and diplomat * Victoria Cuenca Gnecco, Spanish historian, poet and documentary filmmaker

F

* José Fernández Campos, Spanish musician, composer and guitarist

G

* Rafael Gómez Nieto, spanish soldier * Francisco Gutiérrez Latorre, Spanish writer and journalist

L

* Nicolás Linares Navarro, deputy in the I legislature of the Parliament of Andalusia * Juan Lirola, Spanish politician and mayor of Almeria * Juan José López Martos, Spanish politician belonging to the PSOE * Federico Luque Velázquez, banker, agricultural businessman and Spanish politician of the Restoration

O

* Ángel Ortiz de Villajos, Spanish composer

R

* Juan Luis Riado, footballer * Manolo de la Rivera, * Pepita Rodríguez, Spanish-Brazilian actress and television presenter

S

* Álvaro Santiago (footballer) * Enrique Sierra Valenzuela, Spanish writer

T

* Ismael Torres, Argentine cyclist

V

La Veneno Cristina Ortiz Rodríguez (19 March 1964 – 9 November 2016), better known as ('The Poison'), was a Spanish singer, actress, sex worker, and media personality. Considered one of the more important and beloved LGBT icons in Spain since her dea ...

, Spanish singer, actress,

sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is ...

, vedette and media personality. Considered one of the more important

LGBT LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The gro ...

icons in Spain

Albufera de Adra

The Albufera de Adra is a

wetland A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

site. It is on the

Ramsar list of Wetlands of International Importance Ramsar sites are protected under by the Ramsar Convention, an international treaty for the conservation movement, conservation and sustainable use of wetlands, recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands and their economic, cultura ...

. Although it is protected as a nature reserve, the surrounding land is used for intensive agriculture.

References

External links

*
Official Website
*
Official Website
Municipalities in the Province of Almería {{Almería-geo-stub