Baix Maestrat (; es, Bajo Maestrazgo ) is a coastal ''comarca'' located in the north of the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

of Castellón,

Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous comm ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

. The capital of the ''comarca'' is

Vinaròs Vinaròs () is a city located in eastern Spain and the capital of the Baix Maestrat in the province of Castelló. It is in the border between the Valencian Country and Catalonia. Vinaròs is a fishing harbour and tourist destination. History ...

Municipalities

The ''comarca'' is composed of 18 municipalities, listed below with their surface areas, their populations at the 2011 Census and according to the latest official estimates (for i January 2019) and their population density in 2019: Data from National Institute of Statistics 2019

Geography

The ''comarca'' borders to the north-west with the province of

Teruel Teruel () is a city in Aragon, located in eastern Spain, and is also the capital of Teruel Province. It has a population of 35,675 in 2014 making it the least populated provincial capital in the country. It is noted for its harsh climate, with ...

(

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to so ...

), to the north-east with the province of

Tarragona Tarragona (, ; Phoenician: ''Tarqon''; la, Tarraco) is a port city located in northeast Spain on the Costa Daurada by the Mediterranean Sea. Founded before the fifth century BC, it is the capital of the Province of Tarragona, and part of Tar ...

(

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the no ...

), to the east with 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 ...

, to the south with the ''comarca'' of

Plana Alta Plana Alta is a ''comarca'' in the province of Castelló in the Valencian Country (Spain). The largest town in the comarca is Castelló de la Plana, which is also the capital and largest town in the province. Municipalities The ''comarca' ...

( Castellón,

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...

) and to the west with the ''comarcas'' of

Alt Maestrat Alt Maestrat (; es, Alto Maestrazgo) is a comarca in the province of Castellón, Valencian Community, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto ...

( Castellón,

) and Els Ports ( Castellón,

). Within the ''comarca'' lies

Serra d'Irta Serra d'Irta (, es, Sierra de Irta) is an 18.8 km long mountain range in the Baix Maestrat comarca, Valencian Community, Spain. Its highest point is Pico Campanelles (573 m). Location The Serra d'Irta stretches in a northeast-southwes ...

, an 18.8 km long mountain range and the largest undeveloped coastal area within the Valencian Community. The range includes the

Natural Park of Serra d'Irta Serra d'Irta Natural Park ( ca-valencia, Parc Natural de la Serra d'Irta, es, Parque Natural de la Sierra de Irta) is a natural park in Valencian Community), Southern Spain. It contains 7,744 hectares of land, as well as a shoreline of marine ...

, which was declared a protected area by the

Valencian Regional Government The Generalitat Valenciana is the generic name covering the different self-government institutions under which the Spanish autonomous community of Valencia is politically organized. It consists of seven institutions including the ''Corts Valen ...

on July 16, 2002.

Economic activities

The area's traditional economic activities include

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peop ...

(

citrus fruits ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to S ...

olive trees 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'' ' ...

artichoke The globe artichoke ('' Cynara cardunculus'' var. ''scolymus'' ),Rottenberg, A., and D. Zohary, 1996: "The wild ancestry of the cultivated artichoke." Genet. Res. Crop Evol. 43, 53–58. also known by the names French artichoke and green artich ...

s) and

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques ...

. Artichokes from

Benicarló Benicarló () is a city and municipality in the north of the province of Castelló, part of the Valencian Community, in the Mediterranean Coast between the cities of Vinaròs and Peníscola, not too far south from the Ebre River. Tourism, agric ...

are covered by a geographic designation of origin.

Historical delimitations

The current ''comarca'' of Baix Maestrat also includes the historical ''subcomarcas'' of

Tinença de Benifassà Tinença de Benifassà () is a historical '' comarca'' of the Valencian Community, Spain. It is nowadays part of the Baix Maestrat, one of the present-day Comarques of the Valencian Community, even though commercial and human relationships hav ...

and Plana de Vinaròs. The localities of

Albocàsser Albocàsser () or Albocácer in Spanish is a municipality in Castellón, Valencia, Spain. It is located in the '' comarca'' of Alt Maestrat and has a population of 1439 inhabitants. The area is mountainous and very picturesque, especially ...

and

Tírig Tírig is a municipality in the '' comarca'' of Alt Maestrat, Castellón, Valencia, Spain. Municipalities in the Province of Castellón Alt Maestrat Maestrazgo {{Valencia-geo-stub ...

(today located in

), and

Les Coves de Vinromà Les Coves de Vinromà is a municipality located in the province of Castellón, Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomou ...

, Sarratella,

La Torre d'en Doménec La Torre d'en Doménec or La Torre dels Domenges ( es, Torre Endoménech) is a small municipality in the province of Castelló, Valencian Community, Spain. The town is located inland close to the mountain range known as Serra d'en Galceran tha ...

, and

Vilanova d'Alcolea Vilanova d'Alcolea ( es, Villanueva de Alcolea) is a municipality in the province of Castelló, Valencian Community, Spain. The town is located inland 36 km northeast of the town of Castelló de la Plana, on the north of the Valencian Commu ...

(in

), were also formerly part of the historic ''comarca''.

References

Comarques of the Valencian Community Geography of the Province of Castellón Maestrazgo {{Valencia-geo-stub

Municipalities

Geography

Economic activities

Historical delimitations

See also

References