High Aragon

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Tena Valley, one of the valleys in Alto Aragon

Alto Aragon (Upper Aragon or High Aragon in English - (c.f. Upper Navarre, Upper Rioja)) refers to the northern-most territories of Aragon, flanking the Pyrenees. The term is interchangeably used to refer to the Province of Huesca.

The Alto Aragon is, historically and geographically, the territory of the original independent counties of the Marca Hispanica, that would later expand to form the medieval Kingdom of Aragon and ultimately become the Crown of Aragon.

Usually used in a cultural context, the term Alto Aragon conveys more than anything a sense of an independent Pyrenean legacy: of myths and legends, templars and crusades. This is all reflected in its architecture, mountain top villages, its robust cuisine, distinctive traditional clothing (now worn only in festivals, such as in Ansó), folk music and dancing, and most especially, its language.

The Aragonese language was born in the Alto Aragon mountains and today this is where it continues to be spoken most actively, by over 10,000 people.