Albacete (, also , ; ar, ﭐَلبَسِيط, Al-Basīṭ) is a city and municipality in the Spanish

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 administr ...

Castilla–La Mancha Castilla–La Mancha (, , ), or Castile La Mancha, is an autonomous community of Spain. Comprising the provinces of Albacete, Ciudad Real, Cuenca, Guadalajara and Toledo, it was created in 1982. The government headquarters are in Toledo, and ...

, and capital of the

province of Albacete Albacete ( es, Provincia de Albacete, ) is a province of central Spain, in the southern part of the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha. As of 2012, Albacete had a population of 402,837 people. Its capital city, also called Albacete, is ...

. Lying in the south-east of the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...

, the area around the city is known as Los Llanos. Halfway between

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), an ...

and the

Mediterranean coast 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 e ...

, it enjoys connections by motorway, railway (including

AVE ''Alta Velocidad Española'' (''AVE'') is a service of high-speed rail in Spain operated by Renfe, the Spanish national railway company, at speeds of up to . As of December 2021, the Spanish high-speed rail network, on part of which the AVE s ...

), and air (

Albacete Airport Albacete Airport is an airport operated by Aena located about south of the city of Albacete, the capital of the province of Albacete in Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It shares the runway and some facilities with Los Llanos Air Base, operated by t ...

). With a population of 174,336 (2020), it is the largest municipality of

. The municipality of Albacete is also the seventh-largest in Spain by total area, being . Albacete is the seat to the regional

High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (Englan ...

. The origins of the city are uncertain, with the earliest proof of settlement dating to the time of

Al-Andalus Al-Andalus translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label= Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, al-Ándalus () was the Mus ...

, when the settlement was originally named (), meaning "The Flat" in

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...

, referring to the flat land around. Albacete was the main headquarters of the

International Brigades The International Brigades ( es, Brigadas Internacionales) were military units set up by the Communist International to assist the Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. The organization existed ...

during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...

Part of the historic region of

La Mancha La Mancha () is a natural and historical region located in the Spanish provinces of Albacete, Cuenca, Ciudad Real, and Toledo. La Mancha is an arid but fertile plateau (610 m or 2000 ft) that stretches from the mountains of Toledo to the ...

, Albacete has a reputation as producer of clasp knives. Its flat area and the removal of architectural barriers have reportedly made it one of the most accessible cities across the country. Among the several festivities celebrated in the city, the September Feria de Albacete stands out, declared as festivity of "International Tourist Interest". Albacete is home to multinationals and has five large industrial zones, including Campollano, the largest industrial area of Castilla–La Mancha. Albacete houses one of the campus of the

University of Castilla–La Mancha The University of Castilla–La Mancha (UCLM) is a Spanish university. It offers courses in the cities of Albacete, Ciudad Real, Cuenca, Toledo, Almadén and Talavera de la Reina. This university was recognised by law on 30 June 1982, and bega ...

, the Biomedical Campus of Albacete and the Technology Park of Albacete. The aviation industry is one of the main economic engines of the city. Albacete hosts the School of TLP NATO pilots,

Los Llanos Air Base Albacete Airport is an airport operated by Aena located about south of the city of Albacete, the capital of the province of Albacete in Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It shares the runway and some facilities with Los Llanos Air Base, operated by t ...

, Ala 14 and the Air Maestranza Albacete. In addition, the city houses the Air and Logistic Park of Albacete, home to major companies.

Name

The name ''Albacete'' is derived from the Andalusian name for the area, the city having been originally called () in Arabic, which translates to "the plain" in reference to the plateau that characterizes the geography of the area.

Pascual Madoz Pascual Madoz Ibáñez (May 17, 1806 – December 13, 1870), Spanish politician, statistician, was born at Pamplona. Biography In early life Madoz was settled in Barcelona, as a writer and journalist. He envisioned the construction of the ...

in his famous ''

Diccionario geográfico-estadístico-histórico de España y sus posesiones de Ultramar The ''Diccionario geográfico-estadístico-histórico de España y sus posesiones de Ultramar'' is a geographic handbook of Spain. Originally published in 16 volumes between 1845 and 1850, it was edited and directed by Pascual Madoz. A widely kno ...

'' (Geographical-historical-statistical Dictionary of Spain and its overseas territories) indicates that two hypotheses about the toponym of Albacete are probable. In the first place he highlights the proposal suggested by Bernardo Espinalt y Garcia, who believes that the city was founded by the

Cilicia Cilicia (); el, Κιλικία, ''Kilikía''; Middle Persian: ''klkyʾy'' (''Klikiyā''); Parthian language, Parthian: ''kylkyʾ'' (''Kilikiyā''); tr, Kilikya). is a geographical region in southern Anatolia in Turkey, extending inland from th ...

ns, who called it ''Celtide'' relying on

Liutprand of Cremona Liutprand, also Liudprand, Liuprand, Lioutio, Liucius, Liuzo, and Lioutsios (c. 920 – 972),"LIUTPRAND OF CREMONA" in '' The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium'', Oxford University Press, New York & Oxford, 1991, p. 1241. was a historian, diplomat, ...

, " (in Spain this place is called Celtide, which the Moors called Albacene incorrectly)". The second hypothesis states that its origin may be the ''Alaba'' of the

Celtiberians The Celtiberians were a group of Celts and Celticized peoples inhabiting an area in the central-northeastern Iberian Peninsula during the final centuries BCE. They were explicitly mentioned as being Celts by several classic authors (e.g. Strab ...

, mentioned by

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic ...

and by

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of import ...

, which could result in ("White city"), which later became ''Albacete''. The most common adjective used to refer to the inhabitants of Albacete is , or , without prejudice to the demonyms used for the inhabitants of the various population centers that make up the area such as the (inhabitants of Agua Nuevo) or for the neighboring Aguas Nuevas (among others).

History

The origins of the city are uncertain, although the first few confirmations of its existence are found during the Moorish domination of the area, when it was a small Moorish village. Its name is derived from the

, "El Llano" ("the plain") referring to the planiform nature of the geography of the area. In 1240, Albacete capitulated to Ferdinand III, who had support from the

Order of Santiago The Order of Santiago (; es, Orden de Santiago ), is a religious and military order founded in the 12th century. It owes its name to the Patron Saint of Spain, "Santiago" (St. James the Greater). Its initial objective was to protect the pilgri ...

and knights from the land of

Alarcón Alarcón is a municipality in the province of Cuenca, in the autonomous community of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. Geography Located 87 kilometers (54 miles) south of the city of Cuenca, Alarcón spans an area of 120 km² (50 sq mi) at an el ...

. Soon after, in 1241, in return for help provided, the monarch donated the place to Alarcón. The hamlet of Albacete was transferred from Alarcón to

Chinchilla Chinchillas are either of two species ('' Chinchilla chinchilla'' and '' Chinchilla lanigera'') of crepuscular rodents of the parvorder Caviomorpha. They are slightly larger and more robust than ground squirrels, and are native to the Andes m ...

Alfonso X Alfonso X (also known as the Wise, es, el Sabio; 23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) was King of Castile, León and Galicia from 30 May 1252 until his death in 1284. During the election of 1257, a dissident faction chose him to be king of Ger ...

in 1269. Albacete was granted the privilege of town (''villa'') in 1375 by Don

Juan Manuel Don (honorific), Don Juan Manuel (5 May 128213 June 1348) was a Spanish medieval writer, nephew of Alfonso X of Castile, son of Manuel of Castile and Beatrice of Savoy (died 1292), Beatrice of Savoy. He inherited from his father the great Lordshi ...

, prince of

Villena Villena () is a city in Spain, in the Valencian Community. It is located at the northwest part of Alicante, and borders to the west with Castilla-La Mancha and Murcia, to the north with the province of Valencia and to the east and south with th ...

, becoming independent from Chinchilla. also being granted a ''

fuero (), (), () or () is a Spanish legal term and concept. The word comes from Latin , an open space used as a market, tribunal and meeting place. The same Latin root is the origin of the French terms and , and the Portuguese terms and ; all ...

'' in that time. A century later, in 1476, the

Catholic Monarchs The Catholic Monarchs were Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon, whose marriage and joint rule marked the ''de facto'' unification of Spain. They were both from the House of Trastámara and were second cousins, being bo ...

rewarded Albacete for supporting the Crown by granting it a licence to hold a market once a week. During the

Revolt of the Comuneros The Revolt of the Comuneros ( es, Guerra de las Comunidades de Castilla, "War of the Communities of Castile") was an uprising by citizens of Castile against the rule of Charles I and his administration between 1520 and 1521. At its height, th ...

(1520–22), after initial protests, Albacete supported the new emperor

Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) *