Navarra

I

Introduction

Navarra, autonomous region north-western Spain, bordered on the north by France, on the east and south by Aragón, and on the west by La Rioja and the Basque Country Autonomous Region. Navarra is coterminous with Navarra Province, and has an area of 10,391 sq km (4,012 sq mi). Navarra forms part of the Basque Country linguistic region, together with the Pyrenées-Atlantiques department of south-western France and the Spanish provinces of Vizcaya, Guipúzcoa, and Álava.

II

Physical Geography

The northern part of Navarra is dominated by the mountainous landscape of the Pyrenees. The highest point in the region is the Mesa de los Tres Reyes, which rises to a height of 2,444 m (8,018 ft); Orhy Peak, on the border with France, is the most westerly peak in the Pyrenees to exceed an altitude of 2,000 m (6,562 ft) above sea level. The spectacular valleys of Batzan, Belagua, Roncal, and Salazar offer deeply cut gorges and dense woodland. The foothills of the range gently rise to around 1,500 m (4,921 ft) and are covered by large areas of beech forest. In contrast, the south of the region is a fertile plain, with wide rivers and several lakes. The Ebro River forms a stretch of the region’s border with La Rioja, and its tributaries—the Ega, Aragón, and Arba—are important waterways that flow across the region.

III

Population

In 2007, an estimated 605,876 people lived in Navarra. The region has a low density of population—an average of 56 people per sq km (145 per sq mi). The region’s capital and largest city is Pamplona (population, 2007, 194,894). Other significant settlements include Tudela (2007, 32,760) and Barañáin (2007, 21,844).

Castilian Spanish is the official language of Navarra, although the Basque language also holds official status in the region. Most people in the north of the province are Basques, descendants of Central Asian nomads who settled in the region about 4,000 years ago. The traditional sports of jai alai and pelota are played throughout the region. The Fiesta de San Fermín is one of Spain’s best known bullfighting festivals and is held in Pamplona each July. Higher education opportunities in the region are offered mainly in the regional capital; the Public University of Navarre, founded by the regional government in 1987, and the University of Navarra, founded in 1952 by St Josémaría Escrivá as an initiative of the Roman Catholic Opus Dei prelature, are both located in Pamplona. An important Roman Catholic pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, passes through the region. Begun in ad 813 with the discovery of the tomb of St James the Great in Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, the Way of St James (which also passes through Aragón, La Rioja, and Castilla-León) was heavily travelled in the 11th and 12th centuries and several inns and monasteries along the route have been inscribed on the World Heritage List.

IV

Economy

Southern Navarra is predominantly an agricultural area, producing wool, milk, cereals, vegetables, pimento peppers, and grapes. Apart from the fertile soils of the Ebro Valley, the rugged topography of the north of the region means that the land there is generally unsuitable for large-scale cultivation. There is a substantial timber crop from the Pyrenees. The north and east are rich in mineral deposits; natural resources mined there include potash, copper, mercury, iron, silver, zinc, and lead. Pamplona is an industrial city, where sugar milling, winemaking, canning, meat packing, brewing, and tanning are carried out. Other products manufactured in the region include car parts, firearms, flour, fertilizer, shoes, chemicals, textiles, and confectionery.