Guadalcanal, Seville

Guadalcanal
Municipality

Coat of arms
Country  Spain
Autonomous community  Andalusia
Province Sevilla
Comarca Sierra Norte de Sevilla

Guadalcanal (Spanish pronunciation: [ɡwaðalkaˈnal]) is a village in the province of Seville, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain.[1]

The name was given to the island of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands in 1568. The name was chosen by Pedro de Ortega Valencia who had been born in the village. He was a subordinate of Spanish explorer and navigator, Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira.

Location and population

In 2006 there were 2,970 inhabitants. It has an area of 275 square kilometres and a population density of 10,6 people per square-km. It is at an altitude of 662 metres, in a valley between the Sierra del Agua and the Sierra del Viento, in the region of the North Mountains of Seville. Guadalcanal is 80 kilometres north of Seville, it depends to the judicial party of Cazalla de la Sierra

Etymology

The name, etymologically, might come from the Arabic phrase Wadi al-Qanal (وادي القنال), meaning "river of the stalls" or "valley of stalls", referring to the refreshment stalls set up there during the Muslim rule in Andalusia. But it is more likely to be a mixture of Arabic "Wad" (river) and Spanish "del Canal" (of the canal). Other names were Tereses or Tereja or Canani with the Iberians.

History

Ermita de San Benito.
Guadalcanal. Iglesia de Santa Ana.
Guadalcanal. Iglesia de la Concepción.

It was reconquered by the Order of Santiago in 1241 from the Moors, then Guadalcanal belonged to the León's province as well as other parts of Extremadura. In the ecclesiastical matter, it belonged to the Santa María de Tendudia vicary.

Guadalcanal was fortified by means of a now-ruined wall which was demolished because the village took part in the Guerra de las Comunidades de Castilla.

In the mid-16th century, the area had some silver mines financed by the Fugger family.

The village suffered a crisis in the 19th century, which caused the four nunneries in the village to close. As other rural communities in Spain, it faced a massive exodus of its inhabitants to the cities in the 20th century.

References

  1. ↑ Williams, Jo (2016-04-17). "Guadalcanal, villages in the province of Seville Andalucía, Southern Spain". Andalucia.com. Retrieved 2016-04-22.

Coordinates: 38°05′N 5°49′W / 38.083°N 5.817°W / 38.083; -5.817

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