La Mancha is a region in central Spain that is part of Castile-La Mancha to the south of Madrid. La Mancha includes the provinces of Toledo, Albacete, Cuenca, Guadalajara and Ciudad Real. La Mancha is on an elevated plateau of agricultural land. The barren plane is roughly 2,000 ft. above sea level, extending from the mountains of Toledo at its east, the hills of Cuenca to the west, the Sierra Morena in its southern-most area and the Alcarria region to the north. Toledo, once the capital of Spain, is the capital of Castile-La Mancha. The area of Castile-La Mancha is 79,462sq.km., which ranks third among all Spanish communities, and has a population of 1,894,667, which ranks ninth. The landscape can mostly be characterized by large plain fields. La Mancha has a continental climate with strong fluctuations in both temperature and weather patterns. The Arabs knew the land as “al-Manshah,” meaning dry land or wilderness, for there was a great lack of water present. The primary water sources are, however, the Cigüela, Guadiana, Javalón, Júcar, and Záncara rivers.
The economy of this region is primarily fueled by dry farming and animal husbandry. Chief products include wheat, grapes, sunflowers, saffron and cotton. La Mancha is also home to Spain's best cheese, Manchego, along with the world's largest vineyard. For the most part, La Mancha has very little industry outside of Ciudad Real and manufacturing occurs on a small scale. This region also lacks energy sources and is strained for electricity in many places. In recent years a trend has developed among young men migrating to Madrid looking for work and better pay.
Miguel de Cervantes brought global fame to La Mancha through his novel, Don Quijote. In the novel Cervantes’ protagonist would brag about being from La Mancha, despite its unimpressive traits. La Mancha has become famous for its windmills as mentioned in Cervantes' novel. Along with the latter, tourists come to the region for the plateau's renowned hunting and fishing reserves in northern areas.
The economy of this region is primarily fueled by dry farming and animal husbandry. Chief products include wheat, grapes, sunflowers, saffron and cotton. La Mancha is also home to Spain's best cheese, Manchego, along with the world's largest vineyard. For the most part, La Mancha has very little industry outside of Ciudad Real and manufacturing occurs on a small scale. This region also lacks energy sources and is strained for electricity in many places. In recent years a trend has developed among young men migrating to Madrid looking for work and better pay.
Miguel de Cervantes brought global fame to La Mancha through his novel, Don Quijote. In the novel Cervantes’ protagonist would brag about being from La Mancha, despite its unimpressive traits. La Mancha has become famous for its windmills as mentioned in Cervantes' novel. Along with the latter, tourists come to the region for the plateau's renowned hunting and fishing reserves in northern areas.
Works Consulted:
"Castile La Mancha." Yahoo! 1 Feb. 2007 <http://education.yahoo.com/reference/encyclopedia/entry/CastileLa>.
"Castile La Mancha." Spanish Living. 1 Feb. 2007
<http://www.spanish-living.com/regional/indexR_Castilla_La_Mancha.htm>.
"Castile-La Mancha." Wikipedia. 1 Feb. 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castile-La_Mancha>.
"La Mancha." Wikipedia. 1 Feb. 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Mancha>.