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country ;led originally to the separation between the two kingdoms, inasmuch as it caused the reconquest of the comparatively populous maritime tracts from the See also:

Moors to be carried out independently of that of the eastern kingdoms, which were also well peopled . The See also:

ABSENCE (Lat. absentia)

absence of any such means of intercommunication as navigable See also:

rivers afford has favoured the continuance of this See also:

ISOLATION

isolation . The precise See also:

LINE

line of the western frontier is formed for a considerable length by portions of the See also:

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief rivers or by small tributaries, and on the See also:

north (between Portugal and See also:

Galicia) it is determined to a large extent by small See also:

mountain ranges . The See also:

BRITISH

British See also:

rock of Gibraltar, in the extreme south of the peninsula, is separated from Spain by a See also:

low See also:

ISTHMUS (Gr.io0pbs, neck)

isthmus known as the Neutral Ground . By the relinquishment of See also:

CUBA (the aboriginal name)

Cuba and the cession of See also:

PORTO

Porto Rico, the Philippine and Sulu Islands, and See also:

GUAM (Span. Guajan; Guahan, in the native Chamorro)

Guam, the largest of the colonial Ladrones, to the See also:

UNITED

United States, as a consequence Posses., of the See also:

war of 1898, and of the remaining Ladrone dons. or Marianne Islands, together with the See also:

Caroline and Pelew Islands, to See also:

Germany by a treaty of the 8th of See also:

FEBRUARY

February 1899, the colonial possessions of Spain were greatly reduced .

Apart from Ceuta, Spain possesses on the Moroccan seaboard See also:

MELILLA

Melilla, Alhucemas, See also:

PERSON, OFFENCES AGAINST THE

Person de la See also:

GOMERA

Gomera, Ifni, and the See also:

CHAFFARINAS, or ZAFFARINES

Chaffarinas islets . Besides these isolated posts Spain holds Rio de Oro, a stretch of the Saharan coast, and its See also:

HINTERLAND (German for " the land behind ")

hinterland lying between See also:

MOROCCO

Morocco and See also:

French West See also:

Africa; the Muni See also:

RIVER

River Settlements or See also:

SPANISH

Spanish See also:

GUINEA

Guinea, situated between French See also:

CONGO

Congo and the See also:

German See also:

COLONY (Lat. colonia, from colonus, a cultivator)

colony of Cameroon; Fernando Po, See also:

ANNOBON, or ANNO

Annobon, See also:

CORISCO

Corisco and other islands in the Gulf of Guinea . Spain has given to France the right of pre-emption over any of her West See also:

AFRICAN

African colonies . here occur the See also:

FINE

fine natural harbours of See also:

PONTEVEDRA

Pontevedra and See also:

VIGO

Vigo, See also:

Corunna and See also:

FERROL [El Ferrol]

Ferrol . Less varied in outline but more varied in See also:

CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

character are the Spanish coasts on the south and east . The seaboard is generally See also:

FLAT (a modification of O. Eng. flet, an obsolete word of Teutonic origin, meaning the ground beneath the feet)

flat from the frontier of Portugal to the Straits of Gibraltar . Between the mouth of the Rio Tinto and that of the See also:

GUADALQUIVIR (ancient Baetis, Moorish Wadi al Kebir, "the Great River ")

Guadalquivir the See also:

SHORE

shore is lined by a See also:

SERIES (a Latin word from serere, to join)

series of See also:

sand-See also:

DUNES

dunes, known as the Arenas Gordas . Next follows a marshy tract at the mouth of the Guadalquivir known as See also:

Las Marismas, after which the coast-line becomes more varied, and includes the fine See also:

Bay of Cadiz . From the Straits of Gibraltar a bold and rocky coast continues almost to Cape Palos, a little beyond the fine natural See also:

HARBOUR (from M.E. hereberge, here, an army; cf. Ger. Heer and -beorg, protection or shelter. Other early forms in English were herberwe and haiborow, as seen in various place names, such as Market Harborough.. The French auberge, an inn, derived through

harbour of See also:

CARTAGENA, or CARTHAGENA

Cartagena . North of Cape Palos a line of flat coast, beginning with the narrow See also:

STRIP

strip which cuts off the See also:

LAGOON (Fr. lagune, Lat. lacuna, a pool)

lagoon called the See also:

Mar Menor from the Mediterranean, See also:

BOUNDS, BEATING THE

bounds See also:

HALF

half of the province of See also:

ALICANTE

Alicante, but in its See also:

NORTHERN

northern half this province, becoming mountainous, runs out to the lofty headland of Cape de la Nao . The whole coast of the Bay of See also:

Valencia is low and See also:

ill provided with harbours; and along the I.—See also:

GENERAL SURVEY OF THE SPANISH KINGDOM See also:

PHYSICAL

Physical Features.—The coast-line on the north and north- west is everywhere steep and rocky . On the north there are numerous small indentations, many of which See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form convenient harbours, although the current flowing along the coast from the west often leaves in the stiller See also:

WATER

water at their mouths coast-lines. obstruction bars .

The best harbours are to be found on the rias or See also:

FJORD, or FIORD

fjord-like indentations in the W. and N . with others of an opposite character . The See also:

SURFACE

surface of Spain is remarkable at once for its striking contrasts and its vast expanses of dreary uniformity . There are mountains rising with alpine grandeur above the See also:

SNOW (in O. Eng. sndw; a common Indo-European word; cf. in Teutonic languages, Ger. Schnee, Du. sneeuw; in Slavonic snieg', Lith. snegas; Gr. vi4a, Lat. nix, nivis, whence the Romanic forms, Ital. neve, Fr. neige, &c.; Ir. and Gael. sneachd; the original

snow-line, but Surface. often sheltering See also:

rich and magnificent valleys at their See also:

BASE

base . Naked walls of See also:

white See also:

LIMESTONE

limestone See also:

TOWER (Lat. turris; Fr. tour, clocker; Ital. torre; Ger. Thurm)

tower above dark See also:

woods of See also:

cork-See also:

OAK (O. Eng., (lc)

oak and See also:

OLIVE (Olea europaea)

olive . In other parts, as in the Basque country, in Galicia, in the Serrania de See also:

CUENCA

Cuenca (between the headwaters of the See also:

TAGUS (Span. Tajo, Portug. Tejo)

Tagus and those of the See also:

JUCAR

Jucar), in the Sierra de Albarracin (between the headwaters of the Tagus and those of the Guadalaviar), there are extensive tracts of undulating See also:

FOREST

forest-clad See also:

hill country, and almost contiguous to these there are apparently boundless plains, or tracts of level table-See also:

LAND

land, some almost uninhabitable, and some streaked with See also:

IRRIGATION (Lat. in, and rigare, to water or wet)

irrigation canals and richly cultivated—like the See also:

REQUENA

Requena of Valencia . While, again, continuous mountain ranges and broad plains and table-lands give the prevailing character to the scenery, there are, on the one See also:

hand, lofty isolated peaks, such as Monseny, See also:

Montserrat (q.v.) and Mont Sant in Catalonia, the Pena Golosa in Valencia, Moncayo on the See also:

BORDERS, THE

borders of See also:

ARAGON, or ARRAGON (in Span. Aragon)

Aragon and Old See also:

CASTILE, or CASTILLE (Castilla)

Castile, and, on the other hand, small secluded valleys, such as those of See also:

VICH

Vich and Olot among the Catalonian Pyrenees . The greater See also:

PART

part of the interior of Spain is composed of a table-land bounded by the Cantabrian Mountains in the north and the Sierra Morena in the south, and divided into two by a series central of mountain ranges stretching on the whole from east Table-land. to west . The northern half of the table-land, made up of the provinces of See also:

Leon and Old Castile, has an See also:

AVERAGE

average See also:

ELEVATION

elevation estimated at about 2700 ft., while the See also:

SOUTHERN

southern half, made up of See also:

ESTREMADURA, or EXTREMADURA

Estremadura and New Castile, is slightly See also:

LOWER

lower—about 2600 ft . On all sides the table-land as a whole is remarkably isolated, and hence the passes on its boundary and the river valleys that See also:

lead down from it to the surrounding plains are See also:

GEOGRAPHICAL

geographical features of See also:

PECULIAR

peculiar importance . The isolation on the side of Portugal has already been mentioned . On the north-west the valley of the Sil and a series of valleys farther south, along both of which military roads have been carried from an See also:

early See also:

period, open up communication between Leon and the hill country of Galicia, which explains why this province was united to Leon even before the See also:

CONQUEST

conquest of Portugal from the Moors .

The passes across the Cantabrian Mountains in the north are tolerably numerous, and several of them are crossed by See also:

RAILWAYS

railways . The two most remarkable are the Pass of Pajares, across which winds the railway from Leon to See also:

OVIEDO

Oviedo and the seaport of Gijon, and that of Reinosa leading down to the deep valley of the Besaya, and crossed by the railway from See also:

VALLADOLID

Valladolid to See also:

Santander . In its eastern See also:

section the See also:

CHAIN (through the O. Fr. citable, chcene, &c., from Lat. catena)

chain is crossed by the railways from See also:

BURGOS

Burgos to See also:

BILBAO

Bilbao and See also:

San See also:

Sebastian; the last-named line winds through the See also:

WILD, JONATHAN (c. 1682-1725)

wild and romantic See also:

GORGE

gorge of Pancorbo (in the north-east of the province of Burgos) before it traverses the Cantabrian chain at Idiazabal . On the north-east and east, where the edge of the table-land sweeps See also:

ROUND (O. Fr. rond, Lat. rotundus, the Fr. is the source also of Du. rond; Ger., Swed., Dan. and Nor. rond)

round in a wide See also:

CURVE (Lat. curvus, bent)

curve, the surface sinks in broad terraces to the valley of the See also:

EBRO (anc. Iberus or Hiberus)

Ebro and the Bay of Valencia, and is crowned by more or less isolated mountains, some of which have been already mentioned . On the north-east, by far the most important communication with the Ebro valley is formed by the valley of the Jalon, which has thus always formed a military route of the highest consequence, and is now traversed by the railway from See also:

MADRID

Madrid to See also:

Saragossa . Farther south the mountains clustered on the east of the table-land (Sierra de Albarracin, Serrania de Cuenca) See also:

long rendered See also:

DIRECT

direct communication between Valencia and Madrid extremely difficult, and the See also:

PRINCIPAL

principal communications with the east and south-east are effected where the southern table-land of La See also:

MANCHA, LA (Arabic, Al Mancha, " the dry land " or "wilderness ")

Mancha (q.v.) merges in the hill country which connects the interior of Spain with the Sierra See also:

Nevada . In the south the descent from the table-land to the valley of the Guadalquivir is again comparatively See also:

GRADUAL (Med. Lat. gradualis, of or belonging to steps or degrees; gradus, step)

gradual, but even here in the of Galicia, where high tides keep the inlets well scoured; eastern half of the Sierra Morena the passes are few, the most 528 important being the Puerto de Despenaperros, where the Rio Magana, a sub-tributary of the Guadalimar, has cut for itself a deep gorge through which the railway ascends from See also:

ANDALUSIA, or ANDALUCIA

Andalusia to Madrid . Between Andalusia and Estremadura farther west the communication is freer, the Sierra Morena being broken up into series of small chains . Of the mountains belonging to the table-land the most continuous are those of the Cantabrian chain, which stretches for the most part Mountains. from east to west, parallel to the Bay of See also:

Biscay, but ultimately bends round towards the south between Leon and Galicia (see CANTABRIAN MOUNTAINS) . A peculiar feature of this chain, and of the neighbouring parts of the table-land, is the number of the parameras or isolated plateaus, surrounded by steep rocky mountains, or even by walls of sheer cliff . The See also:

BLEAK, or BLICK (Alburnus lucidus)

bleak districts of Siguenza and See also:

SORIA

Soria, round the headwaters of the See also:

DOURO (Span. Duero, Port. Douro, anc. Durius)

Douro, See also:

SEPARATE

separate the mountains of the so-called Iberian See also:

SYSTEM

system on the north-east of the table-land from the eastern portion of the central mountain chains of the peninsula . Of these chains, to which Spanish geographers give the name Carpetano-Vetonica, the most easterly is the Sierra de Guadarrama, the general trend of which is from south-west to north-east .

It is the Montes Carpetani of the ancients, and a portion of it (due north of Madrid) still bears the name of Carpetanos . Composed almost entirely of See also:

GRANITE (adapted from the Ital. granite, grained; Lat. granum, grain)

granite, it has an aspect when seen from a distance highly characteristic of the mountains of the Iberian Peninsula in general, presenting the See also:

APPEARANCE (from Lat. apparere, to appear)

appearance of a saw-like See also:

ridge (sierra) broken up into numerous sections . Its mean height is about 5250 ft., and near its centre it has three summits, the highest (named the See also:

PICO

Pico de Penalara) rising to a height of 6910 ft . The chief passes across the Sierra are those of Somosierra (4692 ft.) in the north-east, Navacerrada (5837 ft.), near Penalara, and Guadarrama (5010 ft.), a few See also:

MILES, NELSON APPLETON (1839— )

miles farther south and west; these are crossed by See also:

CARRIAGE

carriage roads . The railway from Madrid to See also:

SEGOVIA

Segovia passes through a See also:

TUNNEL (Fr. tonne!, later tonneau, a diminutive from Low Lat. tonna, tunna, a tun, cask)

tunnel See also:

close to the Guadarrama Pass; and the railway from Madrid to See also:

Avila traverses the south-western portion of the range through a remark-able series of tunnels and cuttings . A region with a highly irregular surface, filled with hills and parameras, separates the Sierra de Guadarrama from the Sierra de Gredos farther west . This is the loftiest and grandest sierra in the whole series . Its culminating point, the Plaza de Almanzor, attains the height of 8730 ft., not far See also:

SHORT, FRANCIS JOB (1857– )

short of that of the highest Cantabrian summits . Its general trend is east and west; towards the south it sinks precipitously, and on the north it descends with a somewhat more See also:

GENTLE (through the Fr. gentil, from Lat. gentilis, belonging to the same gens, or family)

gentle slope towards the See also:

LONGITUDINAL

longitudinal valleys of the Tormes and Alberche which separate it from another rugged mountain range, forming the southern boundary of the paramera of Avila . On the west another rough and hilly tract, similar to that which divides it from the Sierra de Guadarrama in the east, separates it from the Sierra de Gata, the westernmost and the lowest of the Spanish sierras belonging to the series . These hilly intervals between the more continuous sierras greatly facilitate the communication between the northern and southern halves of the Spanish table-land . The Sierra de Gredos has a road across it connecting Avila with Talavera de la Reina by the Puerto del Pico; but for the most part there are only bridle-paths across the Gredos and Gata ranges, and no railway crosses either of them, although the line from See also:

PLASENCIA

Plasencia to See also:

Salamanca skirts the Sierra de Gredos on the west .

The Serra da Estrella, in Portugal, is usually regarded as a See also:

FOURTH

fourth section in the Carpetano-Vetonica chain . On the southern half of the table-land a shorter series of sierras, consisting of the Montes de See also:

Toledo in the east (highest elevation Tejadillas, 4567 ft.) and the sierras of San Pedro, Montanchez and Guadalupe in the west (highest elevation Cabeza del See also:

MORO, ANTONIO (c. 1512-1575)

Moro, 5100 ft.), separates the basins of the Tagus and See also:

GUADIANA (anc. Anas, Moorish Wadi Ana)

Guadiana . The southern system of mountains bounding the Iberian table-land—the Sierra Morena (q.v.)—is even less of a continuous chain than the two systems last described . As already intimated, its least continuous portion is in the west . In the east and See also:

MIDDLE

middle portion it is composed of a countless number of irregularly-disposed undulating mountains all nearly equal in height . Even more important than the mountains bounding or See also:

CROSSING

crossing the table-land are those which are connected with it only at their extremities; viz. the Pyrenees (q.v.) in the north-east, the Sierra Nevada (q.v.) and the coast ranges in the south . The transverse valleys of the Sierra Nevada open southwards into the mountainous longitudinal valleys of the See also:

ALPUJARRAS, or ALPUXARRAS, THE (Moorish al Busherat, " the grass-land ")

Alpujarras (q.v.), into which open also on the other side the transverse valleys from the most easterly of the coast sierras, the Sierra Contraviesa and the Sierra de Almijara . These ranges are continued farther west by the Sierra de Alhama and Sierra de Abdalajiz . Immediately to the west of the last-named sierra is the gorge of the Guadalhorce, which affords a passage for the railway from See also:

MALAGA

Malaga to See also:

Cordova; and beyond that gorge, to the west and south-west, the Serrania de See also:

RONDA

Ronda, a mountain See also:

GROUP

group difficult of See also:

ACCESS (Lat. accessus)

access, stretches out its sierras in all directions . To Spanish geographers the coast ranges just mentioned are known collectively as the Sierra Penibetica . Although not comparable in See also:

ALTITUDE (Lat. altitudo, from altus, high)

altitude with the Pyrenees (highest See also:

SUMMIT

summit Aneto, 1',168 ft.) or the Sierra Nevada (highest summit Mulhacen, 11,42I ft.), the coast ranges frequently attain an elevation of over 5000 ft., and in some cases of over 600o ft . North-east of the Sierra Nevada two small[GENERAL SURVEY ranges, Alcaraz and La Sagra, rise with remarkable abruptness from the See also:

plateau of See also:

MURCIA

Murcia, where it merges in that of the interior .

The only two important See also:

LOWLAND

lowland valleys of Spain are those of the Ebro and the Guadalquivir . The Ebro valley occupies the See also:

ANGLE (from the Lat. angulus, a corner, a diminutive, of which the primitive form, angus, does not occur in Latin; cognate are the Lat. angere, to compress into a bend or to strangle, and the Gr. ayKOS, a bend; both connected with the Aryan root ank-, to

angle in the north-east between the Pyrenees and the central Lowland table-land, and is divided by ranges of heights proceeding Valleys. on the one side from the Pyrenees, on the other from the base of the Moncayo, into two portions . The uppermost of these, a plateau of between See also:

I000

I000 and 1300 ft. above sea-level, is only about one-fourth of the size of the remaining portion, which is chiefly low-land, but is cut off from the coast by a highland tract connecting the interior table-land with spurs from the Pyrenees . The Guadalquivir See also:

basin is likewise divided by the configuration of the ground into a small upper portion of considerable elevation and a much larger lower portion mainly lowland, the latter composed from See also:

Seville downwards of a perfectly level and to a large extent unhealthy See also:

ALLUVIUM

alluvium (Las Marismas) . The See also:

DIVISION (from Lat. dividere, to break up into parts, separate)

division between these two sections is indicated by the See also:

CHANGE (derived through the Fr. from the Late Lat. cambium, cambiare, to barter; the ultimate derivation is probably from the root which appears in the Gr. «a urmu', to bend)

change in the course of the See also:

main stream from a due See also:

WESTERLY

westerly to a more south-westerly direction . The main water-parting of the Peninsula is everywhere near the edge of the table-land on the north, east and south, and hence de-See also:

SCRIBES

scribes a semicircle with the convexity to the east . Rivers and There are five great rivers in the Peninsula, the Tagus Lakes . (Spanish Tajo, Portuguese Tejo), Douro (Spanish Duero), Ebro, Guadiana and Guadalquivir, all of which rise in Spain . The Ebro alone flows into the Mediterranean, and the Ebro and Guadalquivir alone belong wholly to Spain; the lower courses of the Tagus and Douro are bounded by Portuguese territory; and the lower Guadiana flows partly through Portugal, partly along the frontier . The Tagus rises in the Montes Universales on the borders of See also:

TERUEL

Teruel, and flows in a westerly direction until it enters the See also:

ATLANTIC

Atlantic below See also:

LISBON (Lisboa)

Lisbon, after a total course of 565 m . The Douro (485 m.) and the Ebro (466 m.) flow respectively south-west to the Atlantic at See also:

OPORTO (i.e. o Porto, " the port ")

Oporto, and south-east to the Mediterranean at Cape See also:

TORTOSA

Tortosa, from. their See also:

SOURCES

sources in the great northern See also:

WATERSHED

watershed . The Guadiana (510 m.) passes west and south through La Mancha and Andalusia to fall into Cadiz Bay at Ayamonte; and the Guadalquivir (36o m.) takes a similar direction from its headwaters in See also:

JAEN

Jaen to Sanlucar de Barrameda, where it also enters Cadiz Bay farther south .

These five rivers, as also the smaller Jiicar and See also:

SEGURA (anc. Tader)

Segura, which enter the Mediterranean, are fully described in separate articles . With the exception of the Guadalquivir, none of them is of great service for inland See also:

NAVIGATION (from Lat. navis, ship, and agere, to move)

navigation, so far as they See also:

lie within the Spanish frontier . On the other hand, those of the east and south are of great value for irrigation, and the Jiicar and Segura are employed in floating See also:

TIMBER

timber from the Serrania de Cuenca . The only considerable lakes in Spain are three coast lagoons—the Albufera (q.v.) de Valencia, the Mar Menor in Murcia and the See also:

LAGUNA, or LA LAGUNA

Laguna de la Janda in Cadiz behind Cape See also:

TRAFALGAR, BATTLE OF

Trafalgar (see MURCIA and CADIZ) . Small alpine and other lakes are numerous, and small See also:

salt lakes are to be found in every See also:

STEPPE (from the Russ. stepi, a waste)

steppe region . See also:

GEOLOGY (from Gr. yp7, the earth, and Abyor, science)

Geology.—Geologically the Spanish Peninsula consists of a great See also:

MASSIF

massif of See also:

ancient rock, bordered upon the north, east and south by zones of folding in which the Mesozoic and early See also:

TERTIARY

Tertiary beds are involved . The massif is composed of Archean, Palaeozoic and eruptive rocks, partly concealed by a covering of Tertiary strata, but characterized by the absence, excepting on its margins, of any marine deposits of Mesozoic See also:

AGE (Fr. age, through late Lat. aetaticum, from aetas)

age . It stretches from Galicia and See also:

ASTURIAS

Asturias on the north to the valley of the Guadalquivir on the south, and includes the mountains of Castile, the Sierra de Toledo and the Sierra Morena . The rocks which form it are often strongly folded, but the folding is of ancient date and strikes obliquely across the massif and has had no See also:

INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence in determining its outline . The massif is in fact merely a fragment of the great Hercynian mountain system which was formed across Europe at the close of the Carboniferous period . During the Mesozoic era this mountain chain was shattered and large portions of it sank beneath the sea and were covered by Mesozoic and Tertiary strata . But other fragments still See also:

rose above the waves, and of these the great massif of Portugal and western Spain was one .

Around it the deposits of the See also:

JURASSIC

Jurassic and Cretaceous seas were laid down: and during the Tertiary era they were crushed, together with the earlier Tertiary beds, against the ancient rocks, and thus formed the folded zones of the See also:

CORDILLERA

Cordillera Betica on the south, the hills of southern Aragon on the east and the Pyrenees on the north . The intervening plains and plateaus are now for the most part covered by Tertiary deposits, which also spread over much of the ancient massif . Archean rocks are exposed in the north of the Peninsula, particularly along the great Pyrenean See also:

AXIS (Lat. for " axle ")

axis, in Galicia, Estremadura, the Sierra Morena, the Sierra Nevada and Serrania de Ronda . They consist of granites, gneisses and See also:

MICA

mica-See also:

SCHISTS (Gr. vxq'ecv, to split)

schists, with See also:

TALC

talc-schists, amphibolites and crystalline limestones . The See also:

OLDEST

oldest Palaeozoic strata are referred, from their included fossils, to the See also:

CAMBRIAN

Cambrian, Ordovician and See also:

SILURIAN

Silurian systems . They range through a vast region of Andalusia, Estremadura, Castile, Salamanca, Leon and Asturias, and along the flanks of the Pyrenean and Cantabrian chain . They consist of slates, greywackes, quartzites and diabases . Grits, quartzites, shales and limestones referable to the Devonian system are found in a few scattered areas, the largest and most fossiliferous of these occurring in Asturias . The Lower Carboniferous rocks of Spain consist partly of limestones, and partly of shales, sandstones and conglomerates like the See also:

CULM

culm of See also:

Devonshire . It is in the culnn of the province of See also:

Huelva that the celebrated See also:

COPPER (symbol Cu, atomic weight 63.1, H=1, or 63.6, O = 16)

copper mines of Rio Tinto are worked . The Upper Carboniferous is formed to a large extent of sandstones and shales, with seams of See also:

COAL

coal ; but beds of massive limestones are often intercalated, and some of these contain Fusulina and other fossils like those of the See also:

RUSSIAN

Russian Fusulina limestone . The system is most extensively See also:

DEVELOPED

developed in the north, covering a considerable space in Asturias, whence it stretches more or less continuously through the provinces of Leon, See also:

PALENCIA

Palencia and Santander .

Another tract, about 500 sq. kilometres in extent, runs Siluro-Cambrian Archaean and Metamorphic V• •'' Plutonic Rocks = Volcanic Rocks from the province of Cordova into that of See also:

Badajoz . It is in this area that the important coal deposits of Penarroja are found . There are other smaller areas containing little or no coal, but showing by the included plant-remains that the strata undoubtedly belong to the Carboniferous system . The See also:

PERMIAN

Permian is probably represented by some of the red sand-stones, conglomerates and shales in the Pyrenees, in the Serrania de Cuenca, and in Andalusia . The Triassic system is well developed in the north of the peninsula along the Cantabrian chain and east-wards to the Mediterranean . It is composed of red and variegated sandstones, See also:

DOLOMITES, THE

dolomites and marls, traversed in some places by ophitic rocks, and containing deposits of See also:

GYPSUM

gypsum, See also:

ARAGONITE

aragonite and rock-salt . It thus resembles the Trias of See also:

England and Germany . In the south-east, however, and at the mouth of the Ebro, limestones are found containing a See also:

FAUNA

fauna similar to that of the alpine Trias . These strata are overlain by members of the Jurassic series, which are especially conspicuous in the eastern part of the peninsula between Castile and Aragon, along the Mediterranean border, in Andalusia, and likewise along the flanks of the Pyrenees . The Jurassic of Andalusia belongs to the Mediterranean facies of the system; the Jurassic of the See also:

REST (O. Eng. rest, reste, bed, cognate with other Teutonic forms, e.g. Ger. Rast, Riiste, rest, and probably Gothic Rasta, league, i.e. resting or stopping place)

rest of Spain is more nearly allied to that of north-western Europe . The Cretaceous system is distributed in four great districts: the largest of these extends through the kingdoms of Murcia and Valencia; a second stretches between the two Castiles; a third is found in the Basque Provinces and in Asturias; and a fourth spreads out along the southern slopes of the Pyrenees from See also:

NAVARRE (Span. Navarra)

Navarre to the Mediterranean . The lower members of the Cretaceous series include an important fresh-water formation (sandstones and See also:

CLAYS, PAUL JEAN (1819-1900)

clays), which extends from the Cantabrian coast through the provinces of Santander, Burgos, Soria and Logrono, and is supposed to represent the See also:

ENGLISH

English See also:

WEALDEN

Wealden series .

The higher members comprise massive hippurite limestones, and in the Pyrenean See also:

DISTRICT

district representatives of the upper subdivisions of the system, including the Danian . Deposits of Tertiary age See also:

COVER (from the Fr. convert, from couvrir, to cover, Lat. cooperire)

cover rather more than a third of Spain . They are divisible into two great series, according to their mode of origin in the sea or in fresh-water . The marine Tertiary accumulations commence with those that are referable to the See also:

EOCENE (Gr. *In, dawn, icauvos, recent)

Eocene series, consisting of nummulitic limestones, marls and siliceous sand-stones . These strata are developed in the basin of the Ebro, and in a See also:

belt which extends from Valencia through Murcia and Andalusia to Cadiz . Marine See also:

MIOCENE

Miocene deposits occupy some small tracts, especially on the coast of Valencia . But most of the sandy Tertiary rocks of that district are See also:

PLIOCENE (from the Gr. sr?eiov, mere, and xatvbs, recent)

Pliocene . The Tertiary strata of Andalusia are specially noteworthy for containing the native See also:

SILVER

silver of Herrerias, which is found in a Pliocene See also:

bed in the form of flukes, needles andcrystals . But the most extensive and interesting Tertiary accumulations are those of the great lakes which in Oligocene and Miocene See also:

time spread over so large an expanse of the table-land . These sheets of fresh-water covered the centre of the country, including the basins of the Ebro, Jucar, Guadalaviar, Guadalquivir and Tagus . They have See also:

LEFT

left behind them thick deposits of clays, marls, gypsum and limestone, in which numerous remains of the land-animals of the time have been preserved . See also:

QUATERNARY

Quaternary deposits spread over about a tenth of the area of the country .

The largest tract of them is to be seen to the south of the Cantabrian chain; but another, of hardly inferior extent, flanks the Sierra de Guadarrama, and spreads out over the great See also:

PLAIN (O. Fr. plain, from Lat. plenum)

plain from Madrid to See also:

CACERES

Caceres . Some of these alluvial accumulations indicate a former greater See also:

EXTENSION (Lat. ex, out ; tendere, to stretch)

extension of the snowfields that are now so restricted in the Spanish sierras . Remains of the See also:

REINDEER

reindeer are found in caves in the Pyrenees . Eruptive rocks of many different ages occur in different parts of Spain . The most important tract covered by them is that which stretches from Cape Ortegal to Coria in Estremadura and spreads over a large area of Portugal . They likewise appear in Castile, forming the sierras of Credos and Guadarrama; farther south they rise in the mountains of Toledo, in the Sierra Morena, and across the provinces of Cordova, Seville, Huelva and Badajoz as far as See also:

EVORA

Evora in Portugal . Among the See also:

minor areas occupied by them may be especially mentioned those which occur in the Trinssic districts . Of rocks included in the eruptive series the most abundant is granite . There occur also See also:

QUARTZ

quartz-See also:

PORPHYRY (IlopcPisptos) (A.D. 233-c. 304)

porphyry (Sierra Morena, Pyrenees, &c.), See also:

DIORITE (from the Gr. S&oi4eiv to distinguish, from hA through, Epos, a boundary)

diorite, porphyrite, See also:

DIABASE

diabase (well developed in the north of Andalusia, where it plays a great part in the structure of the Sierra Morena), ophite (Pyrenees, Cadiz), See also:

SERPENTINE

serpentine (forming an enormous See also:

mass in the Serrania de Ronda), See also:

TRACHYTE (Gr. rpaxus, rough)

trachyte, liparite, See also:

ANDESITE

andesite, See also:

BASALT

basalt . The last four rocks occur as a volcanic series distributed in three chief districts—that of Cape Gata, including the south-east of Andalusia and the south of Murcia, that of Catalonia, and that of La Mancha . See also:

CLIMATE

Climate.--In accordance with its southerly position and the variety in its superficial configuration, Spain presents within its borders examples of every See also:

KIND (O. E. ge-cynde, from the same root as is seen in " kin," supra)

kind of climate to be found on the northern hemisphere, with the See also:

SOLE (Solea)

sole exception of that of the torrid See also:

ZONE (Gr. 'WV77, a girdle, from 'wvvLvay to gird)

zone . As regards temperature, the See also:

heart of the table-land is characterized by extremes as great as are to be met in almost any part of central Europe .

The northern and north-western maritime provinces, on the other hand, have a climate as equable, and as moist, as that of the west of England or See also:

Scotland . Four zones of climate are distinguished . The first zone is that of the table-land, with the greater part of the Ebro basin . This is the zone of the greatest extremes of temperature . Even in summer the nights are often decidedly See also:

COLD (in O. Eng. cald and ceald, a word coming ultimately from a root cognate with the Lat. gelu, gelidus, and common in the Teutonic languages, which usually have two distinct forms for the substantive and the adjective, cf. Ger. Kolte, kalt, Dutch koude

cold, and on the high parameras it is not a rare thing to see See also:

HOAR, SAMUEL (1778-1856)

hoar-See also:

frost in the See also:

MORNING

morning . In See also:

SPRING (from " to spring," " to leap or jump up," " burst out," O. Eng., springau, a common Teut. word, cf. Ger. springer, possibly allied to Gr. QnrFpxecOac, to move rapidly)

spring cold, wetting mists occasionally envelop the land for entire days, while in summer the See also:

SKY (M. Eng. skie, cloud; O. Eng. skua, shade; connected with an Indo-European root sku, cover, whence " scum," Lat. obscurus, dark, &c.)

sky is often perfectly clear for See also:

WEEKS, EDWIN LORD (1849-1903)

weeks together . At all seasons of the See also:

YEAR

year sudden changes of temperature, to the extent of from 30° to 50° F., are not infrequent . The See also:

air is extremely dry, which is all the more keenly See also:

FELT (cognate with Ger. Filz, Du. vilt, Swed. and Dan. fill; the root is unknown; the word has given Med. Lat. filtrum, " filter ")

felt from the fact that it is almost constantly in See also:

motion . At Madrid (2150 ft. above sea-level) it freezes so hard in See also:

DECEMBER (Lat. decent, ten)

December and See also:

JANUARY

January that See also:

SKATING (Dutch schaats, a skate)

skating is carried on on the See also:

SHEET

sheet of water in the Buen Retiro; and, as See also:

winter throughout Spain, except in the maritime provinces of the north and north-west, is the See also:

SEASON (0. Fr. seson, seison, mod. saison, Lat. satio, sowing time, the spring, from serere, to sow; in Late Lat. the word is found with its present meaning, the spring being considered as particularly the season of the year)

season of greatest atmospheric precipitation, snowfalls are frequent, though the snow seldom lies long except at high elevations . The summers, on the other hand, are not only extremely warm but almost rainless, the sea-winds being deprived of their moisture on the edge of the plateau . In See also:

JULY

July and,See also:

AUGUST (originally Sextilis)

August the plains of New Castile and Estremadura are sunburnt wastes; the roads are several inches deep with dust; the leaves of the few trees are withered and discoloured; the See also:

ATMOSPHERE (Gr. fir µ6r, vapour; orkaipa, a sphere)

atmosphere is filled with a fine dust, producing a haze known as calina, which converts the See also:

BLUE (common in different forms to most European languages)

blue of the sky into a dull See also:

grey . In the greater part of the Ebro basin the See also:

HEAT (0. E. haktu, which like " hot," Old Eng. hat, is from the Teutonic type haita, hit, to be hot; cf. Ger. hitze, heiss; Dutch, hitte, heet, &c.)

heat of summer is even more intense .

The treeless mostly steppe-like valley with a See also:

bright-coloured See also:

SOIL

soil acts like a See also:

CONCAVE

concave See also:

MIRROR (through O. Fr. mirour, mod. miroir, from a sup-posed Late Lat. miratorium, from mirari, to admire)

mirror in reflecting the See also:

sun's rays and, moreover, the mountains and See also:

HIGHLANDS, THE

highlands by which the valley is enclosed prevent to a large extent the access of winds . The second zone is that of the Mediterranean provinces, exclusive of those of the extreme south . In this zone the extremes of temperature are less, though the summers here also are warm, and the winters decidedly cool, especially in the north-east . The southern zone, to which the name of African has been given, embraces the whole of Andalusia as far as the Sierra Morena, the southern half of Murcia and the province of Alicante . In this zone there prevails a genuine sub-tropical climate, with extremely warm and almost rainless summers and mild winters, the temperature hardly ever sinking below freezing-point . The hottest part of the region is not the most southerly district but the bright-coloured See also:

STEPPES

steppes of the coast of See also:

Granada, and the plains and hill terraces of the south-east coast from See also:

ALMERIA

Almeria to Alicante . Snow and frost are here hardly known . It is said that at Malaga snow falls only about once in twenty-five years . The winter, in fact, is the season of the brightest vegetation: after the long drought of summer the surface gets covered once more in See also:

LATE