Extremadura
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| Capital | Mérida | ||||
| Official language(s) | Spanish; | ||||
| Area – Total – % of Spain | Ranked 5th 41,634 km² 8.2% | ||||
| Population – Total (2005) – % of Spain – Density | Ranked 12th 1,083,879 2.5% 26.03/km² | ||||
| Demonym – English – Spanish | Extremaduran extremeño/a | ||||
| Statute of Autonomy | February 26, 1983 | ||||
| Parliamentary representation – Congress seats – Senate seats | 10 2 | ||||
| President | Juan Carlos Rodríguez Ibarra (PSOE) | ||||
| ISO 3166-2 | EX | ||||
| Junta de Extremadura | |||||
Extremadura is an autonomous community of western Spain. It includes the provinces of Cáceres and Badajoz. Extremadura borders Portugal to the west, and it is an important area for wildlife, particularly with the major reserve at Monfragüe, which has recently been recognised as National Park, or the project of International Tagus River Natural Park (Parque Natural Rio Tajo internacional).
Some important cities are Cáceres, Badajoz, Plasencia and Mérida, the capital of the autonomous community. For other municipalities, see lists by province:
Badajoz and Cáceres are, respectively, the largest and second-largest provinces of Spain.
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History
Lusitania, an ancient Roman province approximately including current day Portugal (except for the northern area today known as Norte Region), and a central western portion of the current day Spain, covered in those times today's Autonomous Community of Extremadura. Mérida (capital of Extremadura), became the capital of the Roman Lusitania province, and one of the most important cities in the Roman Empire.
Extremadura was the source of many of the most famous Spanish conquerors ("conquistadores") and settlers in America. Hernán Cortés, Francisco Pizarro, Pedro de Alvarado, Pedro de Valdivia were all born in Extremadura and many towns and cities in America carry a name from their homeland: Mérida is the name of the administrative capital of Extremadura, and also of important cities in Mexico and Venezuela; Medellín is now a little town in Extremadura, but also the name of the second largest city in Colombia; Albuquerque is the largest city in New Mexico and its name is due to a transcription mistake of Alburquerque, another town in Extremadura. The two (to date) Spanish astronauts, Miguel López-Alegría and Pedro Duque, also have family connections in Extremadura. King Ferdinand II of Aragon died in the village of Madrigalejo, Cáceres in 1516. Pedro de Valdivia founded numerous cities in Chile with names from small villages in Extremadura, such as Valdivia and La Serena. The capital Santiago de Chile was founded as "Santiago de Nueva Extremadura" (Santiago of New Extremadura).
Extremadura should not be confused with Estremadura, a historical province of Portugal. During the Reconquest, "Extremadura" was the word used to name the land bordering the Christian frontier opposed to Moorish resistance, so for a time Extremadura was the name for the present province of Salamanca. (The present Cáceres was called "Transierra Leonesa", and the present Badajoz was a Moorish kingdom with the same name.)
Economy
The Extremadura Regional Government has authored its own Linux distribution, gnuLinEx. Following the last board meeting of the Government held June 25, 2006, the councillor for Infrastructures and Technological Development, Luis Millán de Vázquez de Miguel, announced (spanish) that a version of gnuLinEx, adapted for the public administration, will be established as the obligatory operating system in workplaces of the civil servants of the Junta and that the operating system will be gradually introduced to all administrative organizations of the Junta de Extremadura.
Culture
See also
Autonomous communities: Autonomous cities: Ceuta · Melilla Plazas de soberanía: Islas Chafarinas · Peñón de Alhucemas · Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera |
Categories
NUTS 2 Statistical Regions of Europe | Autonomous communities of Spain | Extremadura