Graciosa Island or commonly La Graciosa (;
Spanish for "the graceful") is a
volcanic
A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.
On Earth, volcanoes are most often fo ...
island
An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...
in the
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...
of
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 ...
, located north of
Lanzarote
Lanzarote (, , ) is a Spanish island, the easternmost of the Canary Islands, off the north coast of Africa and from the Iberian Peninsula.
Covering , Lanzarote is the fourth-largest of the islands in the archipelago. With 163,230 inhabi ...
across the
Strait of El RÃo. As the rest of the Canary Islands, it was formed by the
Canary hotspot. The island is part of the
Chinijo Archipelago and the Chinijo Archipelago Natural Park (). It is administered by the municipality of
Teguise in the neighboring island of Lanzarote. In 2018 La Graciosa was officially declared ''the eighth Canary Island'' by the
Spanish Senate
The Senate () is the upper house of the , which along with the Congress of Deputies – the Lower house, lower chamber – comprises the Parliament of the Kingdom of Spain. The Senate meets in the Palacio del Senado, Palace of the Senate in Madri ...
,
with few real effects.
Before then, the island had the status of an islet. It's administratively dependent on the island of Lanzarote.
The only two settlements on the island are
Caleta de Sebo in the southeastern part of the island and summer-residence
Casas de Pedro Barba; the rest of the island is owned by the
Government of Spain
The government of Spain () is the central government which leads the executive branch and the General State Administration of the Kingdom of Spain.
The Government consists of the Prime Minister and the Ministers; the prime minister has the ...
and is administered by the
National Parks Autonomous Agency.
The population is about 700. Tourism is the main industry along with fishing. Every year, tourists flock to the island for its tempered climate and its sandy volcanic coasts. The island has a school, lyceum, post office, supermarkets, medical center, pharmacy, a
Bankia bank branch,
port, beaches, bar-restaurants and a square.
Because of the transportation cost, everyday shopping is more expensive than in the other islands.
Streets and roads on La Graciosa are unpaved sand. Motor vehicles are strictly limited to a handful of licensed vehicles for special purposes. Access to the island is by a 25-minute ferry crossing from
Órzola on
Lanzarote
Lanzarote (, , ) is a Spanish island, the easternmost of the Canary Islands, off the north coast of Africa and from the Iberian Peninsula.
Covering , Lanzarote is the fourth-largest of the islands in the archipelago. With 163,230 inhabi ...
to the harbour in the village. There is a campsite on the island situated on Playa del Salado at the western edge of
Caleta del Sebo.
Geographical features
The island is extremely arid and entirely made up of bushes and dry soil. Its length is and the width is , with an area of . There are no natural water sources on the island; desalinated water has been piped directly from neighbouring Lanzarote since 2001.
Water supply is at risk when the pipe gets broken.
There are several isolated hills on the island, the tallest of which is
Agujas Grandes, rising to . The second-tallest is
Agujas Chicas at .
Playa de la Cocina is a well known beach in the southwestern part of the island.
The island has a hot desert climate (
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
: ''BWh'';
Trewartha: ''BWal'') with an annual precipitation of only .
See also
*
Geology of the Canary Islands
References
*R. Pott, J. Hüppe, W. Wildpret de la Torre, ''Die Kanarischen Inseln. Natur- und Kulturlandschaften'', Ulmer Eugen Verlag, 2003,
{{Authority control
Islands of the Canary Islands