Mañaria (both in

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

) is an elizate, town and

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' ...

located in the province of

Biscay Biscay ( ; ; ), is a province of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community, heir of the ancient Lordship of Biscay, lying on the south shore of the Bay of Biscay, eponymous bay. The capital and largest city is Bilb ...

, in the Basque Country, Spain. Mañaria is part of the ''

comarca A ''comarca'' (, , , ) is a traditional region or local administrative division found in Portugal, Spain, and some of their former colonies, like Brazil, Nicaragua, and Panama. The term is derived from the term ''marca'', meaning a "march, mark ...

'' of

Durangaldea Durangaldea ( Spanish: ''Duranguesado'') is a comarca of Biscay located in the Basque Country, Spain. It is one of the seven ''eskualdeak/comarcas'' or regions that compose the province of Biscay. The capital city of Durangaldea is Durango. ...

and has a population of 459 inhabitants as of 2006 according to the

Spanish National Statistics Institute The (INE; ) is the official government agency in Spain that collects statistics about demography, the economy, and Spanish society. It is an autonomous organization responsible for overall coordination of statistical services of the General St ...

History

As happens with most of the elizates, little is known about the early history of the town and its foundation. Prehistoric deposits of

Magdalenian Magdalenian cultures (also Madelenian; ) are later cultures of the Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic in western Europe. They date from around 17,000 to 12,000 years before present. It is named after the type site of Abri de la Madeleine, a ro ...

and

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

origin have been found in the caves of Silibranka, Kobazar and Atxuri, among others. A

Visigoth The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied barbarian military group united under the comman ...

liturgical vase of the 7th Century has also been found. Mañaria was part of the ''merindad'' of Durango, and it had voice and right to vote in the Juntas of Guerendiaga, where it occupied the seat number four. On the 18th Century the construction of the Royal Road connecting the city of

Vitoria Vitoria or Vitória may refer to: People * Francisco de Vitoria (c. 1483–1546), a Spanish Renaissance theologian * Alberto Vitoria (1956–2010), Spanish footballer * Rui Vitória (born 1970), Portuguese retired footballer * Sofia Vitória ( ...

with the coast of

going through

Urkiola Urkiola is a mountain range of the Basque mountains in Biscay near Durango, in the western Basque Country, Spain. The highest mountain in the range is Anboto (1331 m). The range runs from west to east and forms the water divide between the At ...

meant the realignment of the town's location, making it the central axis of the municipality. Since mid 18th Century and during the entire 19th Century, Mañaria lived a period of splendor because of the exploitation of its quarries. The church is extended, and the school, the

Basque pelota Basque pelota (Basque: '' pilota'', Spanish: '' pelota vasca'', French: '' pelote basque'') is the name for a variety of court sports played with a ball using one's hand, a racket, a wooden bat or a basket, against a wall (''frontis or fronto ...

fronton, the tower of the clock and the cemetery are built.

Geography

Location

Mañaria is located in the southeastern part of the province of

, which is located in northern

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 ...

. It limits at north with the municipalities of

Izurtza Izurtza (in Basque and officially, in Spanish ''Izurza'') is an elizate, town and municipality located in the province of Biscay, in the Basque Country, Spain. Izurtza is part of the ''comarca'' of Durangaldea and has a population of 270 inhabita ...

and

Durango Durango, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Durango, is one of the 31 states which make up the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated in the northwest portion of the country. With a population of 1,832,650 ...

, at west with Dima and at east and south with

Abadiño Abadiño (; ) is a town located in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country, in the north of Spain, about 35 km from the provincial capital of Bilbao. The area of the municipality is about and according to the ...

. Mañaria is situated on a valley within the course of the Mañaria River and surrounded by mountains; the

Mugarra {{Infobox mountain , name = Mugarra , native_name_lang = eus , photo = Mugarra 2.JPG , photo_caption = Mugarra from the east. The quarry is clearly seen. , elevation_m = 936 , elevation_ref = , prominence_m = 195 , prominence_ref = , map ...

and

Untxillaitz {{Infobox mountain , name = Untxillatx , photo = Untzillatx 2.jpg , photo_caption = Mount Untxillatx , elevation_m = 934 , elevation_ref = , prominence_m = 375 , prominence_ref = , map = Spain , map_caption = Location in Spain , map_size ...

the most significant ones. Other important mountains that surround the municipality are the Arrietabaso and Saibi. The road BI-623 that connects

with

Vitoria-Gasteiz Vitoria-Gasteiz (; ; also historically spelled Vittoria in English) is the seat of government and the capital city of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country and of the provinces of Spain, province of Álava in northern Spain. I ...

crosses the city from north to south before ascending to

. More than 70% of the territory of the municipality is part of the

Urkiola Natural Park Urkiola Natural Park is a protected area located in the southeastern corner of Biscay and in the North of Álava in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, Spain. It is a protected area of . It was declared a Natural Park on 29 December ...

Hydrography

The valley is formed by the Mañaria River that originates in the hillsides of the mountains that surround it. This river later joins the

Ibaizabal The Ibaizabal (''wide river'' in Basque) is a river that drains southeastern Biscay to the Estuary of Bilbao. It is long from its source at Elorrio to the Nervión, and it passes by the towns of Durango and Amorebieta and joins the Nervión r ...

river.

Economy

The economy of the municipality is based on

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

and industry.

Primary Sector

The primary sector is based on the exploitation of resources as

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

and

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

in quarries, being this the main economical activity of the municipality. Some small farming activities are also present.

Secondary Sector

The secondary sector is based on the metallurgical transformation. Most of the industries are located in the deeper area of the valley.

Tertiary Sector

It is almost non-existent due to the proximity of bigger cities, as

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

, where most of the services are located.

Transportation

The transportation is based on road transportation by the BI-623 road, which connects the town with

, the capital city of the ''comarca'' of

and 5 km away. The same road by south connects the town with

and from there to

Otxandio Otxandio (in Basque and officially, in Spanish ''Ochandiano'') is a town and municipality located in the province of Biscay, in the Basque autonomous community, Spain. Otxandio is part of the ''comarca'' of Durangaldea and has a population of 1,26 ...

, Dima and the province of

Álava Álava () or Araba (), officially Araba/Álava, is a Provinces of Spain, province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, heir of the ancient Basque señoríos#Lords of Álava, Lordship ...

. In Durango, the road is connected to the National Road N-634 and the highway AP-8 to

and Donostia-San Sebastián.

References

External links

MAÑARIA in the Bernardo Estornés Lasa - Auñamendi Encyclopedia (Euskomedia Fundazioa)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Manaria Municipalities in Biscay Durangaldea