View source for Andalusia

{{Short description|Autonomous community of Spain}}
{{About|the autonomous community of modern Spain|the medieval Islamic state which covered most of Iberia|al-Andalus|other uses}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{Infobox autonomous community of Spain
| name                    = Andalusia
| native_name             = {{native name|es|'''Andalucía'''}}
| settlement_type         = [[Autonomous communities of Spain|Autonomous community]]
| image_flag              = Flag of Andalucía.svg
| flag_type               = [[Flag of Andalusia|Flag]]
| image_shield            = Emblem of Andalusia.svg
| shield_type             = [[Emblem of Andalusia|Coat of arms]]
| label_map               = 
| image_map               = [[File:Andalucia in Spain (including Canarias) (special marker).svg|275px|Map of Andalusia]]
| map_alt                 = 
| motto                   = {{lang|es|Andalucía por sí, para España y la Humanidad}}<ref name="himno y escudo" /><br />("Andalusia by itself, for Spain and humanity")
| anthem                  = "{{lang|es|[[La bandera blanca y verde]]}}"<br />({{langx|en|"The White and Green flag"}})<br /> <div style="display:inline-block;margin-top:0.4em;">
[[File:Himno_de_Andalucía.ogg|center]]</div>
| mapsize                 = 
| map_caption             = Location of Andalusia in Spain
| coordinates             = {{coord|37.3|N|4.6|W|region:ES-AN_type:adm1st|display=inline,title}}
| coor_pinpoint           = 
| subdivision_type        = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name        = [[Spain]]
| formation               = 1833 ([[1833 territorial division of Spain|Creation of Andalusia historic region]])
| statute                 = <!-- 28 February -->1981 ([[Statute of Autonomy of Andalusia of 1981|First Statute]]) <br /> <!-- 18 February -->2007 ([[Statute of Autonomy of Andalusia of 2007|Second Statute]] – ''in force'')
| congress_seats          = 61
| senate_seats            = 41
| official_lang           = [[Spanish language|Spanish]]
| capital                 = [[Seville]]
| largest_city            = [[Seville]]
| provinces               = {{hlist|[[Province of Almería|Almería]]|[[Province of Cádiz|Cádiz]]|[[Province of Córdoba (Spain)|Córdoba]]|[[Province of Granada|Granada]]|[[Province of Huelva|Huelva]]|[[Province of Jaén (Spain)|Jaén]]|[[Province of Málaga|Málaga]]|[[Province of Seville|Seville]]}}
| government_type         = [[Devolution|Devolved government]] in a [[constitutional monarchy]]
| governing_body          = [[Regional Government of Andalusia|Junta of Andalusia]]
| government_footnotes    = 
| legislature             = Parliament of Andalusia
| president               = [[Juan Manuel Moreno Bonilla|Juan Manuel Moreno]] ([[People's Party of Andalusia|PP]])
| area_total_km2          = 87599
| area_footnotes          = 
| area_rank               = [[List of Spanish autonomous communities by area|2nd]]
| currency                = [[Euro]] ([[Euro sign|€]])
| holiday                 = [[Andalusia Day|28 February]]
| population_as_of        = 1 January 2024
| population_total        = 8631862
| population_footnotes = <ref name=population2024>{{cite web |url=https://www.ine.es/jaxiT3/Datos.htm?t=67988 |title=Annual population census 2021-2024 |language=en |website=[[National Statistics Institute (Spain)]] |date=2024-12-19 |access-date=2025-01-29 }}</ref>
| population_rank         = [[List of Spanish autonomous communities by population|1st in Spain]] <br /> 17.84% of Spain
| population_density_km2  = auto
| population_demonym      = [[Andalusian people|Andalusian]]<br />{{lang|es|andaluz}}, {{lang|es|-za}}<ref>See, {{lang|es|2=[http://dle.rae.es/?id=2YzoCI1 andaluz, -za]}} {{Cite web |url=https://dle.rae.es/?id=2YzoCI1 |title=Diccionario de la lengua española - Edición del Tricentenario |access-date=14 January 2024 |archive-date=3 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503221750/https://dle.rae.es/?id=2YzoCI1 |url-status=bot: unknown }}. [[Diccionario de la Real Academia Española|DRAE]].</ref>
| GDP_footnotes           = <ref>{{cite web |url=https://ine.es/prensa/cre_2022.pdf |title=Contabilidad Regional de España |website=www.ine.es}}</ref>
| GDP_rank                = [[List of Spanish autonomous communities by GDP|3rd]]
| GDP_year                = 2023
| GDP_total               = €199.951 billion
| GDP_per_capita          = €23,218
| GDP_per_capita_rank     = [[List of Spanish autonomous communities by GDP per capita|17th]]
| HDI_year                = 2022
| HDI                     = 0.881<ref name="GlobalDataLab">{{Cite web|url=https://globaldatalab.org/shdi/table/shdi/ESP/?levels=1+4&years=2022&interpolation=0&extrapolation=0|title=Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab|website=hdi.globaldatalab.org|language=en|access-date=2025-01-28}}</ref>
| HDI_rank                = {{color|darkgreen|very high}} · [[List of Spanish autonomous communities by Human Development Index|13th]]
| postal_code_type        = [[ISO 3166 code]]
| iso_code                = ES-AN
| timezone1               = [[Central European Time|CET]] ([[Coordinated Universal Time|UTC]]+1)
| utc_offset1             = 
| timezone1_DST           = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]] ([[Coordinated Universal Time|UTC]]+2)
| postal_code_prefix      = {{hlist|04XXX ([[Province of Almería|AL]])|11XXX ([[Province of Cádiz|CA]])|14XXX ([[Province of Córdoba (Spain)|CO]])|18XXX ([[Province of Granada|GR]])|21XXX ([[Province of Huelva|H]])|23XXX ([[Province of Jaén (Spain)|J]])|29XXX ([[Province of Málaga|MA]])|41XXX ([[Province of Sevilla|SE]])}}
| telephone_code          = [[Telephone numbers in Spain|+34 95]]
| module                  = {{Infobox mapframe|wikidata=yes|zoom=5|height=300|width=|stroke-width=1|coord={{WikidataCoord|display=i}}}}
| website                 = www.juntadeandalucia.es/
}}

'''Andalusia''' ({{IPAc-en|UK|ˌ|æ|n|d|ə|ˈ|l|uː|s|i|ə|,_|-|z|i|ə}} {{respell|AN|də|LOO|see|ə|,_-|zee|ə}}, {{IPAc-en|US|-|ʒ|(|i|)|ə|,_|-|ʃ|(|i|)|ə}} {{respell|-|zh(ee|)ə|,_-|sh(ee|)ə}};<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/amp/english/andalusia |title=Andalusia |work=[[Collins English Dictionary]] |publisher=[[HarperCollins]] |access-date=8 March 2019}}</ref><ref>[https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/us/andalusia "Andalusia"]{{dead link|date=September 2022|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} (US) and {{Cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.lexico.com/definition/Andalusia |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200322182035/https://www.lexico.com/definition/andalusia |url-status=dead |archive-date=22 March 2020 |title=Andalusia |dictionary=[[Lexico]] UK English Dictionary |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|Andalusia|access-date=8 March 2019}}</ref> {{langx|es|Andalucía}} {{IPA|es|andaluˈθi.a||Pronunciation_of_Andalusia_in_Spanish.ogg}}, {{IPA|es|-ˈsi.a|label=[[Andalusian Spanish|locally]] also}}) is the southernmost [[autonomous communities of Spain|autonomous community]] in [[Peninsular Spain]], located in the south of the [[Iberian Peninsula]], in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognized as a [[nationalities and regions of Spain|historical nationality and a national reality]].<ref>[http://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2007/03/20/pdfs/A11871-11909.pdf ''Boletín Oficial del Estado'' of Spain, n. 68 of 2007/03/20, p. 11872.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609194157/http://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2007/03/20/pdfs/A11871-11909.pdf |date=9 June 2011 }} Estatuto de Autonomía de Andalucía. Artículo 1: "Andalucía, como nacionalidad histórica y en el ejercicio del derecho de autogobierno que reconoce la Constitución, se constituye en Comunidad Autónoma en el marco de la unidad de la nación española y conforme al artículo 2 de la Constitución."</ref> The territory is divided into eight [[provinces of Spain|provinces]]: [[Province of Almería|Almería]], [[Province of Cádiz|Cádiz]], [[Province of Córdoba (Spain)|Córdoba]], [[Province of Granada|Granada]], [[Province of Huelva|Huelva]], [[Province of Jaén (Spain)|Jaén]], [[Province of Málaga|Málaga]], and [[Province of Seville|Seville]]. Its capital city is [[Seville]], while the seat of [[High Court of Justice of Andalusia|its High Court of Justice]] is the city of [[Granada]].

Andalusia is immediately south of the autonomous communities of [[Extremadura]] and [[Castilla-La Mancha]]; west of the autonomous community of [[Region of Murcia|Murcia]] and the [[Mediterranean Sea]]; east of [[Portugal]] and the [[Atlantic Ocean]]; and north of the [[Mediterranean Sea]] and the [[Strait of Gibraltar]]. The [[British Overseas Territory]] and city of [[Gibraltar]], located at the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar, shares a {{convert|3/4|mi|order=flip}} land border with the Andalusian province of Cádiz.

The main mountain ranges of Andalusia are the [[Sierra Morena]] and the [[Baetic System]], consisting of the [[Subbaetic System|Subbaetic]] and [[Penibaetic System|Penibaetic]] Mountains, separated by the [[Intrabaetic Basin]] and with the latter system containing the Iberian Peninsula's highest point ([[Mulhacén]], in the subrange of [[Sierra Nevada]]). In the north, the Sierra Morena separates Andalusia from the plains of Extremadura and Castile–La Mancha on Spain's [[Meseta Central]]. To the south, the geographic subregion of {{ill|Upper Andalusia|es|Alta Andalucía}} lies mostly within the [[Baetic System]], while {{ill|Lower Andalusia|es|Baja Andalucía}} is in the [[Baetic Depression]] of the valley of the [[Guadalquivir]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://aguas.igme.es/igme/publica/libro20/pdf/lib20/c_guadal_1.pdf |title=Cuenca del Guadalquivir |access-date=11 April 2013 |archive-date=3 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170103104639/http://aguas.igme.es/igme/publica/libro20/pdf/lib20/c_guadal_1.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

The name ''Andalusia'' is derived from the [[Arabic]] word {{lang|ar-Latn|[[Al-Andalus]]}} ({{lang|ar|الأندلس}}), which in turn may be derived from the [[Vandals]], the [[Goths]] or pre-Roman Iberian tribes.<ref name="Dozy2009">{{cite book |author=Reinhart Anne Pieter Dozy |title=Recherches Sur L'Histoire Et la Littérature de L'Espagne Pendant Le Moyen Age |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-_dnewAACAAJ |year=2009 |publisher=BiblioBazaar |isbn=978-1-117-03148-4 |page=303}}</ref> The toponym {{lang|ar-Latn|al-Andalus}} is first attested by inscriptions on coins minted in 716 by the new [[Emirate of Córdoba|Muslim government of Iberia]]. These coins, called ''[[dinars]]'', were inscribed in both [[Latin]] and [[Arabic]].<ref name="MMOA">{{cite book |author=Michael L. Bates |title=Al-Andalus: The Art of Islamic Spain |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |year=1992 |isbn=978-0-87099-636-8 |editor=[[Jerrilynn D. Dodds]] |page=384 |chapter=The Islamic Coinage of Spain |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lLAryx8bC8UC&pg=PA384 |access-date=25 September 2017 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114125709/https://books.google.com/books?id=lLAryx8bC8UC&pg=PA384#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Glick2005">{{cite book |author=Thomas F. Glick |title=Islamic And Christian Spain in the Early Middle Ages |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cWqmebvcjj0C&pg=PR21 |year=2005 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=90-04-14771-3 |page=21 |access-date=25 September 2017 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114125726/https://books.google.com/books?id=cWqmebvcjj0C&pg=PR21#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> The region's history and culture have been influenced by the [[Tartessos|Tartessians]], [[Iberians]], [[Phoenicia]]ns, [[Ancient Carthage|Carthaginians]], [[Ancient Greece|Greeks]], [[Ancient Rome|Romans]], [[Vandals]], [[Visigoths]], [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantines]], [[Berbers]], [[Umayyad Caliphate|Arabs]], [[Jews in Spain|Jews]], [[Gitanos|Romanis]] and [[Castilians]]. During the [[Islamic Golden Age]], [[Córdoba, Spain|Córdoba]] surpassed [[Constantinople]]<ref>{{cite book |author1=Idris El Hareir |author2=Ravane Mbaye |title=The Spread of Islam Throughout the World |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qVYT4Kraym0C&pg=PA448 |year=2011 |publisher=UNESCO |isbn=978-92-3-104153-2 |page=448 |access-date=7 April 2020 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114125819/https://books.google.com/books?id=qVYT4Kraym0C&pg=PA448#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Population>{{citation |title=Princes and Merchants: European City Growth before the Industrial Revolution |author=J. Bradford De Long and Andrei Shleifer |journal=[[The Journal of Law and Economics]] |volume=36 |issue=2 |date=October 1993 |pages=671–702 [678] |doi=10.1086/467294 |url=http://www.j-bradford-delong.net/pdf_files/Princes.pdf |citeseerx=10.1.1.164.4092 |s2cid=13961320 |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180729053941/http://www.j-bradford-delong.net/pdf_files/Princes.pdf |archive-date=29 July 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref> to be [[Europe]]'s biggest city, and became the capital of [[Al-Andalus]] and a prominent center of education and learning in the world, producing numerous philosophers and scientists.<ref name="Barton2009">{{cite book |author=Simon Barton |title=A History of Spain |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AeAcBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA44 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191225060109/https://books.google.com/books?id=AeAcBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA44 |url-status=dead |archive-date=25 December 2019 |date=30 June 2009 |publisher=Macmillan International Higher Education |isbn=978-1-137-01347-7 |pages=44–5}}</ref><ref name="Venable1894">{{cite book |author=Francis Preston Venable |title=A Short History of Chemistry |url=https://archive.org/details/ashorthistorych00venagoog |year=1894 |publisher=Heath |page=[https://archive.org/details/ashorthistorych00venagoog/page/n33 21]}}</ref> The [[Crown of Castile]] conquered and settled the [[Guadalquivir|Guadalquivir Valley]] in the 13th century. The mountainous eastern part of the region (the [[Emirate of Granada]]) was subdued in the late 15th century. Atlantic-facing harbors prospered upon trade with the New World. Chronic inequalities in the social structure caused by uneven distribution of land property in large estates induced recurring episodes of upheaval and social unrest in the agrarian sector in the 19th and 20th centuries.<ref>{{Cite journal |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41166930 |title=Social Change, Inequalities and Conflicts in Andalusia |first=Francisco |last=Entrena |journal=Mediterranean Studies |volume=10 |year=2001 |pages=181–207 |publisher=[[Penn State University Press]] |jstor=41166930 |access-date=14 October 2023 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114125712/https://www.jstor.org/stable/41166930 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Andalusia has historically been an agricultural region, compared to the rest of Spain and the rest of Europe. Still, the growth of the community in the sectors of industry and services was above average in Spain and higher than many communities in the [[Eurozone]]. The region has a rich culture and a strong identity. Many cultural phenomena that are seen internationally as distinctively Spanish are largely or entirely Andalusian in origin. These include [[flamenco]] and, to a lesser extent, [[Spanish-style bullfighting|bullfighting]] and [[Moorish architecture|Hispano-Moorish]] [[Mudéjar|architectural styles]], both of which are also prevalent in some other regions of Spain.

Andalusia's hinterland is the hottest area of Europe, with [[Córdoba, Andalusia|Córdoba]] and [[Seville]] averaging above {{convert|36|C|F}} in summer high temperatures.<ref>{{Cite web |last=aemetblog |date=9 August 2018 |title=¿Por qué el valle del Guadalquivir es la "sartén" de España? |url=https://aemetblog.es/2018/08/09/por-que-el-valle-del-guadalquivir-es-la-sarten-de-espana/ |access-date=13 March 2024 |website=Aemetblog |language=es}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Why is the Guadalquivir valley one of the hottest inhabited places on the planet? (In spanish) |url=https://www.eldiario.es/andalucia/el_tiempo/valle-guadalquivir-lugares-habitados-calurosos-planeta_1_8269175.html |access-date=13 March 2024 |website=elDiario.es|date=4 September 2021 }}</ref> These high temperatures, typical of the Guadalquivir valley are usually reached between 16:00 (4 p.m.) and 21:00 (9 p.m.) (local time),<ref>{{cite web |url=https://weatherspark.com/y/35285/Average-Weather-in-C%C3%B3rdoba-Spain-Year-Round |title=Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Córdoba (Spain) |access-date=14 March 2023 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114125711/https://weatherspark.com/y/35285/Average-Weather-in-C%C3%B3rdoba-Spain-Year-Round |url-status=live }}</ref> tempered by sea and mountain breezes afterwards.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://aemetblog.es/2018/08/09/por-que-el-valle-del-guadalquivir-es-la-sarten-de-espana/ |title=Why the Guadalquivir valley is the pan of Spain (in Spanish) |date=9 August 2018 |access-date=14 March 2023 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114125820/https://aemetblog.es/2018/08/09/por-que-el-valle-del-guadalquivir-es-la-sarten-de-espana/ |url-status=live }}</ref> However, during [[heat wave]]s late evening temperatures can locally stay around {{convert|35|C|F}} until close to midnight, and daytime highs of over {{convert|40|C|F}} are common.

==Etymology==
{{main|Etymology of Andalusia}}
[[File:España y Portugal (1770).jpg|thumb|Map of the [[Iberian Peninsula]] dated 1770. The Kingdoms of [[Kingdom of Jaén|Jaén]], [[Kingdom of Córdoba|Córdoba]] and [[Kingdom of Seville|Seville]] are collectively referred to under the name ''Andalucía'', while the [[Kingdom of Granada (Crown of Castile)|Kingdom of Granada]] appears under its individual name.]]

Its present form is derived from the Arabic name for Muslim Iberia, "Al-Andalus".<ref>{{citation |last=Mokhtar |first=G |title=Ancient Civilizations of Africa |publisher=University of California Press |year=1981 |isbn=978-0-520-06697-7 |volume=2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aDxMF-6UdCQC&q=andalusia |page=281 |access-date=16 October 2020 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114125714/https://books.google.com/books?id=aDxMF-6UdCQC&q=andalusia#v=snippet&q=andalusia&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{citation |last=Burke |first=Ulick Ralph |title=A History of Spain from the Earliest Times to the Death of Ferdinand the Catholic |year=1900 |publisher=Year Books |isbn=978-1-4437-4054-8 |url=http://www.mocavo.com/A-History-of-Spain-From-the-Earliest-Times-to-the-Death-of-Ferdinand-the-Catholic/137368/12?browse=true#449 |volume=1 |page=410 |access-date=21 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140821190214/http://www.mocavo.com/A-History-of-Spain-From-the-Earliest-Times-to-the-Death-of-Ferdinand-the-Catholic/137368/12?browse=true#449 |archive-date=21 August 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=González Jiménez |first=Manuel |title=Sobre los orígenes históricos de Andalucía |journal=Boletín de la Real academia Sevillana de Buenas Letras: Minervae baeticae |year=2012 |issue=40 |page=258 |url=http://institucional.us.es/revistas/rasbl/40/art_17.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://institucional.us.es/revistas/rasbl/40/art_17.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |issn=0214-4395}}</ref> The [[etymology]] of the name "Al-Andalus" is disputed,<ref name=Bossong2002/> and the extent of Iberian territory encompassed by the name has changed over the centuries.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Stearns |first=Justin |title=Representing and Remembering al-Andalus: Some Historical Considerations Regarding the End of Time and the Making of Nostalgia |journal=Medieval Encounters |date=1 December 2009 |volume=15 |series=Medieval Jewish, Christian and Muslim Culture Encounters in Confluence and Dialogue |issue=2 |page=358 |url=https://www.academia.edu/274992 |doi=10.1163/157006709X458891 |publisher=Brill NV |location=Department of Religion, Middlebury College, Middlebury, VT |access-date=1 November 2017 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114130217/https://www.academia.edu/274992 |url-status=live }}</ref> Traditionally it has been assumed to be derived from the name of the ''[[Vandals]]''. Since the 1980s, a number of proposals have challenged this contention. Halm, in 1989, derived the name from a Gothic term, ''*{{lang|got|landahlauts}}'',<ref name="Halm1989">{{cite journal |last=Halm |first=Heinz |title=Al-Andalus und Gothica Sors |journal=Der Islam |year=1989 |volume=66 |issue=2 |pages=252–263 |doi=10.1515/islm.1989.66.2.252 |s2cid=161971416}}</ref>
and in 2002, Bossong suggested its derivation from a pre-Roman substrate.<ref name=Bossong2002>{{cite journal |last=Bossong |first=Georg |title=Der Name al-Andalus: neue Überlegungen zu einem alten Problem |journal=Trends in Linguistics. Studies and Monographs |year=2002 |volume=141 |series=Sounds and systems: studies in structure and change. |page=149 |url=http://www.rose.uzh.ch/seminar/personen/bossong/boss_bask_120.pdf |access-date=8 September 2013 |editor1-first=David |editor1-last=Restle |editor2-first=Dietmar |editor2-last=Zaefferer |trans-title=The Name al-Andalus: Revisiting an Old Problem |publisher=De Gruyter Mouton |location=Berlin |language=de |issn=1861-4302 |quote=Only a few years after the Islamic conquest of Spain, ''Al-Andalus'' appears in coin inscriptions as the Arabic equivalent of ''Hispania''. The traditionally held view that the etymology of this name has to do with the Vandals is shown to have no serious foundation. The phonetic, morphosyntactic, and also historical problems connected with this etymology are too numerous. Moreover, the existence of this name in various parts of central and northern Spain proves that ''Al-Andalus'' cannot be derived from this [[Germanic peoples|Germanic tribe]]. It was the original name of the Punta Marroquí cape near Tarifa; very soon, it became generalized to designate the whole Peninsula. Undoubtedly, the name is of Pre-Indo-European origin. The parts of this compound (''anda'' and ''luz'') are frequent in the indigenous toponymy of the Iberian Peninsula. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080627064440/http://www.rose.unizh.ch/seminar/personen/bossong/boss_bask_120.pdf |archive-date=27 June 2008}}</ref>

The Spanish place name ''Andalucía'' (immediate source of the English ''Andalusia'') was introduced into the [[Spanish language]]s in the 13th century under the form ''el Andalucía''.<ref name="Jiménez1998">{{cite book |author=Manuel González Jiménez |title=ANDALUCIA A DEBATE. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4GvX_CQAMCIC&pg=PA16 |date=1 January 1998 |publisher=Universidad de Sevilla |isbn=978-84-472-0485-4 |pages=16–17 |access-date=14 November 2015 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114130311/https://books.google.com/books?id=4GvX_CQAMCIC&pg=PA16#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> The name was adopted to refer to those territories still under Moorish rule, and generally south of [[New Castile (Spain)|Castilla Nueva]] and [[Kingdom of Valencia|Valencia]], and corresponding with the former Roman province hitherto called [[Baetica]] in Latin sources. This was a Castilianization of ''Al-Andalusiya'', the [[adjective|adjectival]] form of the Arabic language ''al-Andalus'', the name given by the Arabs to all of the Iberian territories under Muslim rule from 711 to 1492. The etymology of ''al-Andalus'' is itself somewhat debated (see [[al-Andalus]]), but in fact it entered the Arabic language before this area came under Moorish rule.

Like the Arabic term ''al-Andalus'', in historical contexts the Spanish term ''Andalucía'' or the English term ''Andalusia'' do not necessarily refer to the exact territory designated by these terms today. Initially, the term referred exclusively to territories under Muslim control. Later, it was applied to some of the last Iberian territories to be regained from the Muslims, though not always to exactly the same ones.<ref name="Jiménez1998"/> In the ''[[Estoria de España]]'' (also known as the ''[[Primera Crónica General]]'') of [[Alfonso X of Castile]], written in the second half of the 13th century, the term ''Andalucía'' is used with three different meanings:

# As a literal translation of the Arabic ''al-Ándalus'' when Arabic texts are quoted.
# To designate the territories the Christians had regained by that time in the [[Guadalquivir]] valley and in the Kingdoms of [[Kingdom of Granada (Crown of Castile)|Granada]] and [[Kingdom of Murcia|Murcia]]. In a document from 1253, Alfonso X styled himself ''Rey de Castilla, León y de toda Andalucía'' ("King of Castile, León and all of Andalusia").
# To designate the territories the Christians had regained by that time in the Guadalquivir valley until that date (the Kingdoms of [[Kingdom of Jaén|Jaén]], [[Kingdom of Córdoba|Córdoba]] and [[Kingdom of Seville|Seville]] – the Kingdom of Granada was incorporated in 1492). This was the most common significance in the [[Late Middle Ages]] and [[Early modern period]].<ref name="laidentidadandaluza">{{cite book |last=Domínguez Ortiz |first=Antonio |title=La identidad andaluza |year=1976 |language=es |publisher=Universidad de Granada |location=Granada Puzada}}</ref>

From an administrative point of view, Granada remained separate for many years even after the completion of the ''Reconquista''<ref name="laidentidadandaluza" /> due, above all, to its emblematic character as the last territory regained, and as the seat of the important [[Audiencia Real|Real Chancillería de Granada]], a [[court of last resort]]. Still, the reconquest and repopulation of Granada was accomplished largely by people from the three preexisting Christian kingdoms of Andalusia, and Granada came to be considered a fourth kingdom of Andalusia.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ladero Quesada |first=Miguel Ángel |title=Sobre la génesis de la identidad andaluza. Andalucía entre Oriente y Occidente (1236–1492) |language=es |year=1867 |publisher=Córdoba (Diputación Provincial) Actas del V Coloquio de Historia Medieval de Andalucía}}</ref> The often-used expression "[[Four Kingdoms of Andalusia]]" dates back in Spanish at least to the mid-18th century.<ref>For example, [[Pablo de Olavide]] was ''Intendente del Ejército de los cuatro reinos de Andalucía'', "[[Intendant]] of the Army of the four kingdoms of Andalusia". [http://www.fundaciones.upo.es/municipios/biografia.htm Biografía] {{webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100101234600/http://www.fundaciones.upo.es/municipios/biografia.htm |date=1 January 2010 }}, Fundación Pablo de Olavide. Retrieved 7 December 2009.</ref><ref>In Gelo del Cabildo's 1751 ''Respuestas generales'', part of the write-up of the census [[Catastro of Ensenada]], José María de Mendoza y Guzmán is described as ''visitador general'' of the ''Rentas Provinciales de los cuatro Reinos de Andalucía''. See [http://pares.mcu.es/Catastro/ the digitization of the relevant document] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070513032901/http://pares.mcu.es/Catastro/ |date=13 May 2007 }} on the site of the Spanish Ministry of Culture. Enter "Gelo" in the search box "Buscador Localidades" and look at image number 3. <!-- Access date unspecified; inaccessible 2009-12-06 --></ref>

==Symbols==
{{Main|Emblem of Andalusia|Flag of Andalusia}}
[[File:Blas Infante Tiles.jpg|thumb|upright|Portrait of [[Blas Infante]], executed in [[azulejo]]s, located on the avenue in [[Jerez de la Frontera]] named in his honour.]]

The Andalusian emblem shows the figure of [[Hercules]] and two [[lion]]s between the two [[pillars of Hercules]] that tradition situates on either side of the Strait of Gibraltar. An inscription below, superimposed on an image of the [[flag of Andalusia]] reads ''Andalucía por sí, para España y la Humanidad'' ("Andalusia for herself, Spain and Humanity"). Over the two columns is a semicircular arch in the colours of the flag of Andalusia, with the [[Latin language|Latin]] words ''Dominator Hercules Fundator'' (Lord Hercules is the Founder) superimposed.<ref name="himno y escudo">{{cite web |title=Himno y escudo |publisher=Junta de Andalucia |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/28f2009/himno.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121015185710/http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/28f2009/himno.html |archive-date=15 October 2012}}</ref>

The official flag of Andalusia consists of three equal horizontal stripes, coloured green, white, and green respectively; the Andalusian coat of arms is superimposed on the central stripe.<ref name=Junta2019>{{cite web |title=Símbolos de Andalucía |url=https://www.juntadeandalucia.es/organismos/sobre-junta/simbolos.html |publisher=Junta de Andalucía |access-date=9 August 2019}}</ref> Its design was overseen by [[Blas Infante]]<ref name="Gill">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gGY2fSXko5kC&pg=PT216 |title=Andalucia, a cultural history |last=Gill |first=James |publisher=Oxford University Press US |page=251 |isbn=978-0-19-537610-4 |access-date=11 December 2009 |date=9 December 2008 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114130217/https://books.google.com/books?id=gGY2fSXko5kC&pg=PT216#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> and approved in the [[Assembly of Ronda]] (a 1918 gathering of [[Andalusian nationalism|Andalusian nationalists]] at [[Ronda]]). Blas Infante considered these to have been the colours most used in regional symbols throughout the region's history. According to him, the green came in particular from the [[banner|standard]] of the [[Umayyad Caliphate]] and represented the call for a gathering of the populace. The white symbolised pardon in the [[Almohad dynasty]], interpreted in European heraldry as parliament or peace. Other writers have justified the colours differently, with some Andalusian nationalists referring to them as the ''Arbonaida'', meaning white-and-green in [[Mozarabic language|Mozarabic]], a [[Romance language]] that was spoken in the region in Muslim times. Nowadays, the Andalusian government states that the colours of the flag evoke the Andalusian landscape as well as values of purity and hope for the future.<ref name=Junta2019/>

The [[national anthem|anthem]] of Andalusia was composed by José del Castillo Díaz (director of the Municipal Band of Seville, commonly known as Maestro Castillo) with lyrics by Blas Infante.<ref name="Gill"/> The music was inspired by ''Santo Dios'', a popular religious song sung at harvest time by peasants and day labourers in the provinces of Málaga, Seville, and Huelva. Blas Infante brought the song to Maestro Castillo's attention; Maestro Castillo adapted and harmonized the traditional melody. The lyrics appeal to the Andalusians to mobilise and demand ''tierra y libertad'' ("land and liberty") by way of [[agrarian reform]] and a statute of autonomy within Spain.

The [[Parliament of Andalusia]] voted unanimously in 1983 that the preamble to the [[Statute of Autonomy of Andalusia|Statute of Autonomy]] recognise Blas Infante as the Father of the Andalusian Nation (''Padre de la Patria Andaluza''),<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gCIcK3DIsIYC&q=Padre+del+Patria+Blas+Infante&pg=PA28 |title=La casa de Blas Infante en Coria del Río |publisher=Centro de Estudios Andaluces |last=Fernandez-Montesinas |first=Alberto Egea |isbn=978-84-609-2545-3 |year=2004 |access-date=4 October 2020 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114130220/https://books.google.com/books?id=gCIcK3DIsIYC&q=Padre+del+Patria+Blas+Infante&pg=PA28#v=snippet&q=Padre%20del%20Patria%20Blas%20Infante&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> which was reaffirmed in the reformed Statute of Autonomy submitted to popular [[referendum]] 18 February 2007. The preamble of the present 2007 Statute of Autonomy says that Article 2 of the present [[Spanish Constitution of 1978]] recognises Andalusia as a [[Nationalities and regions of Spain|nationality]]. Later, in its articulation, it speaks of Andalusia as a "historic nationality" (Spanish: ''nacionalidad histórica''). It also cites the 1919 Andalusianist Manifesto of Córdoba describing Andalusia as a "national reality" (''realidad nacional''), but does not endorse that formulation. Article 1 of the earlier 1981 Statute of Autonomy defined it simply as a "nationality" (''nacionalidad'').<ref name="citing 1919">''El Manifiesto andalucista de Córdoba describió a Andalucía como realidad nacional en 1919, cuyo espíritu los andaluces encauzaron plenamente a través del proceso de autogobierno recogido en nuestra Carta Magna. En 1978 los andaluces dieron un amplio respaldo al consenso constitucional. Hoy, la Constitución, en su artículo 2, reconoce a Andalucía como una nacionalidad en el marco de la unidad indisoluble de la nación española.'' [[:s:Estatuto de Autonomía de Andalucía 2007|Andalusian Statute of Autonomy on Wikisource]], in Spanish.</ref>

The national holiday, [[Andalusia Day]], is celebrated on 28 February,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PuEo8-2KOf0C&q=D%C3%ADa+de+Andaluc%C3%ADa&pg=PA77 |title=Andalucia |publisher=Lonely Planet |year=2007 |last1=Noble |first1=John |last2=Forsyth |first2=Susan |last3=Maric |first3=Vesna |page=77 |isbn=978-1-74059-973-3 |access-date=11 December 2009 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114130233/https://books.google.com/books?id=PuEo8-2KOf0C&q=D%C3%ADa+de+Andaluc%C3%ADa&pg=PA77 |url-status=live }}</ref> commemorating the 1980 autonomy referendum.

The honorific title of ''[[Hijo Predilecto de Andalucía]]'' ("Favourite Son of Andalusia") is granted by the Autonomous Government of Andalusia to those whose exceptional merits benefited Andalusia, for work or achievements in natural, social, or political science. It is the highest distinction given by the Autonomous Community of Andalusia.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Junta de Andalucía - Hija Predilecta o Hijo Predilecto de Andalucía |url=https://www.juntadeandalucia.es/organismos/presidenciaadministracionpublicaeinterior/areas/honores-distinciones/hijos-predilectos.html |access-date=8 November 2020 |website=Junta de Andalucía |language=es}}</ref>

==Geography==
The Sevillian historian [[Antonio Domínguez Ortiz]] wrote that:

{{Blockquote|one must seek the essence of Andalusia in its geographic reality on the one hand, and on the other in the awareness of its inhabitants. From the geographic point of view, the whole of the southern lands is too vast and varied to be embraced as a single unit. In reality there are not two, but three Andalusias: the [[Sierra Morena]], the Valley [of the [[Guadalquivir]]] and the [Cordillera] [[Cordillera Penibética|Penibética]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Domínguez Ortiz |first=Antonio |title=La identidad andaluza |year=1976 |language=es |publisher=Universidad de Granada |location=Granada |quote=hay que buscar la esencia de Andalucía en su realidad geográfica, de una parte, y de otra, en la conciencia de sus habitantes. Desde el punto de vista geográfico, el conjunto de las tierras meridionales es demasiado amplio y variado para englobarlas a todas en una unidad. En realidad hay no dos, sino tres Andalucías: la Sierra Morena, el Valle y la Penibética}}</ref>}}

===Location===
Andalusia has a surface area of {{convert|87597|km2|sqmi}}, 17.3% of the territory of Spain. Andalusia alone is comparable in extent and in the variety of its terrain to any of several of the smaller European countries. To the east is the [[Mediterranean Sea]]; to the west [[Portugal]] and the [[Gulf of Cádiz]] ([[Atlantic Ocean]]); to the north the [[Sierra Morena]] constitutes the border with the [[Meseta Central]]; to the south, the [[self-governance|self-governing]]<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Gibraltar |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/233245/Gibraltar |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |access-date=18 August 2009 |quote=Gibraltar is an overseas territory of the United Kingdom and is self-governing in all matters but defence. |first=Vicente |last=Rodriguez |date=22 July 1998 |publisher=[[Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.]] |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114130730/https://www.britannica.com/place/Gibraltar |url-status=live }}</ref> [[British overseas territory]] of [[Gibraltar]] and the [[Strait of Gibraltar]] separate it from [[Morocco]].

===Climate===
[[File:Clima andalucía.png|thumb|325px|Locations of the principal Andalusian climate types.<ref name="CMA de la Junta de Andalucía">{{cite web |url=http://www.iberianature.com/regions/andalucia/climate-of-andalusia-andalucia/ |title=Climate of Andalusia |author=CMA de la Junta de Andalucía |publisher=Iberia Nature |access-date=10 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091028172826/http://www.iberianature.com/regions/andalucia/climate-of-andalusia-andalucia/ |archive-date=28 October 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref>]]
[[File:Sierra de las Nieves.jpg|thumb|175px|left|Andalusian firs, [[Sierra de las Nieves]]]]

Andalusia is home to the hottest and driest climates in Spain, with yearly average rainfall around {{convert|150|mm|in}} in [[Cabo de Gata National Park|Cabo de Gata]], as well as some of the wettest ones, with yearly average rainfall above {{convert|2000|mm|in}} in inland [[Cádiz (province)|Cádiz]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Valores climatológicos normales - Agencia Estatal de Meteorología - AEMET. Gobierno de España |url=http://www.aemet.es/es/serviciosclimaticos/datosclimatologicos/valoresclimatologicos |publisher=[[AEMET]] |access-date=24 March 2022 |language=es |archive-date=1 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210101180444/http://www.aemet.es/es/serviciosclimaticos/datosclimatologicos/valoresclimatologicos |url-status=live }}</ref> In the west, weather systems sweeping in from the Atlantic ensure that it is relatively wet and humid in the winter, with some areas receiving copious amounts. Contrary to what many people think, as a whole, the region enjoys above-average yearly rainfall in the context of Spain.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.iberianature.com/regions/andalucia/climate-of-andalusia-andalucia/ |title=Climate of Andalusia |website=www.iberianature.com |access-date=13 February 2017 |archive-date=28 October 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091028172826/http://www.iberianature.com/regions/andalucia/climate-of-andalusia-andalucia/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Andalusia sits at a latitude between 36° and 38° 44' N, in the warm-temperate region. In general, it experiences a [[hot-summer Mediterranean climate]], with dry summers influenced by the [[Azores High]], but subject to occasional torrential rains and extremely hot temperatures.<ref name="CMA de la Junta de Andalucía" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/site/web/menuitem.a5664a214f73c3df81d8899661525ea0/?vgnextoid=ad53b44325234010VgnVCM1000000624e50aRCRD&vgnextchannel=3259b19c7acf2010VgnVCM1000001625e50aRCRD&lr=lang_es |title=Los tipos climáticos en Andalucía |author=Junta de Andalucía |publisher=Consejería del Medio Ambiente |access-date=10 December 2009}}</ref> In the winter, the tropical anticyclones move south, allowing cold polar fronts to penetrate the region. Still, within Andalusia there is considerable climatic variety. From the extensive coastal plains one may pass to the valley of the Guadalquivir, barely above sea level, then to the highest altitudes in the Iberian peninsula in the peaks of the [[Sierra Nevada (Spain)|Sierra Nevada]]. In a mere {{cvt|50|km|mi}} one can pass from the subtropical coast of the province of Granada to the snowy peaks of [[Mulhacén]]. Andalusia also includes both the dry [[Tabernas Desert]] in the province of Almería and the [[Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park]] in the province of Cádiz, which experiences one of highest rainfall in Spain.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/averroes/html/adjuntos/2008/02/11/0004/altamontana.html |title=Ecosistemas naturales de Andalucía - Alta montaña |website=Junta de Andalucía |language=es |year=2008 |access-date=2 February 2009 |archive-date=25 June 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090625024646/http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/averroes/html/adjuntos/2008/02/11/0004/altamontana.html}}
</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://abodeinternational.com/weather-climate-andalusia/ |title=The type of climate in Andalusia |access-date=4 October 2008 |publisher=Consejería de Medio Ambiente (Junta de Andalucía) |language=en |archive-date=22 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180322204819/http://abodeinternational.com/weather-climate-andalusia/ |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Meteorología">{{Cite web |last=Meteorología |first=Agencia Estatal de |title=Valores climatológicos normales - Agencia Estatal de Meteorología - AEMET. Gobierno de España |url=https://www.aemet.es/es/serviciosclimaticos/datosclimatologicos/valoresclimatologicos |access-date=1 May 2024 |website=www.aemet.es |language=es}}</ref>

Annual rainfall in the Sierra de Grazalema has been measured as high as {{convert|4346|mm|in}} in 1963, the highest ever recorded for any location in Iberia.<ref name=rain>{{cite web |url=http://www.aemet.es/es/elclima/datosclimatologicos/efemerides_extremos |title=Valores extremos |access-date=4 October 2008 |author=AEMET (Agencia Estatal de Meteorología) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006000904/http://www.aemet.es/es/elclima/datosclimatologicos/efemerides_extremos |archive-date=6 October 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Andalusia is also home to the driest place in [[Europe]], the [[Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park|Cabo de Gata]], with only {{convert|156|mm|in}} of rain per year.<ref name="DOC015">Capel Molina, J.J. (1995) ''Mapa pluviométrico de España Peninsular y Baleares (en el periodo internacional 1961-1990) Investigaciones Geográficas nº 13: 29-466ISSN 0213-4691'' [http://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/fichero_articulo?codigo=111619&orden=68481 pdf] Idioma: español. Acceso: 3 July 2009.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=21 May 2022 |title=Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park |url=https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/149857/cabo-de-gata-nijar-natural-park |access-date=10 February 2024 |website=earthobservatory.nasa.gov |language=en}}</ref>

In general, as one goes from west to east, away from the Atlantic, there is less precipitation.<ref name=rain/> "Wet Andalusia" includes most of the highest points in the region, above all the Sierra de Grazalema but also the [[Serranía de Ronda]] in western Málaga. The valley of the Guadalquivir has moderate rainfall. The [[Tabernas Desert]] in Almería has less than {{convert|300|mm|in}} annually.<ref name="Meteorología"/> Much of "dry Andalusia" has more than 300 sunny days a year.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bargainandalucia.dk/tvangssalg |title=300+ sunny days a year |access-date=12 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150728094728/http://www.bargainandalucia.dk/ |archive-date=28 July 2015}}</ref>

The average temperature in Andalusia throughout the year is over {{convert|16|°C|°F}}. Averages in the cities range from {{convert|15.1|°C|°F}} in [[Baeza, Spain|Baeza]] to {{convert|19.2|°C|°F}} in [[Seville]]. However, a small region on the Mediterranean coast of [[Province of Almería|Almeria]] and [[Province of Granada|Granada]] provinces have average annual temperature over {{Convert|20|C|F}}.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Meteorología |first=Agencia Estatal de |title=Valores climatológicos normales - Agencia Estatal de Meteorología - AEMET. Gobierno de España |url=https://www.aemet.es/es/serviciosclimaticos/datosclimatologicos/valoresclimatologicos |access-date=19 March 2024 |website=www.aemet.es |language=es}}</ref> Much of the Guadalquivir valley and the Mediterranean coast has an average of about {{convert|18|°C|°F}}. The coldest month is January when [[Granada]] at the foot of the Sierra Nevada experiences an average temperature of {{convert|6.4|°C|°F}}. The hottest are July and August, with an average temperature of {{convert|28.5|°C|°F}} for Andalusia as a whole. [[Córdoba, Andalusia|Córdoba]] is the hottest provincial capital, followed by [[Seville]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.andalucia.org/datos-practicos/clima/?set_language=en/ |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160517102632/http://www.andalucia.org/datos-practicos/clima/?set_language=en/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 May 2016 |title=Average temperature&nbsp;– Average water temperature – Hours of sunlight per year |author=Junta de Andalucía |publisher=Official Tourism Website of Andalucía |access-date=10 December 2009}}</ref>

The Guadalquivir valley has experienced some of the highest temperatures recorded in Europe, with a maximum of {{convert|47.6|°C|°F}} recorded at [[La Rambla, Córdoba|La Rambla]], Córdoba (14 August 2021).<ref>{{Cite web |last=aemetblog |date=2 August 2022 |title=14 de agosto de 2021,se batió el récord de temperatura más alta registrada en España. |url=https://aemetblog.es/2022/08/02/14-de-agosto-de-2021se-batio-el-record-de-temperatura-mas-alta-registrada-en-espana/ |access-date=19 March 2024 |website=Aemetblog |language=es}}</ref> The mountains of Granada and Jaén have the coldest temperatures in southern Iberia, but do not reach continental extremes (and, indeed are surpassed by some mountains in northern Spain). In the cold snap of January 2005, [[Santiago de la Espada]] (Jaén) experienced a temperature of {{convert|-21|°C|°F}} and the [[ski]] resort at [[Sierra Nevada National Park (Spain)|Sierra Nevada National Park]]—the southernmost ski resort in Europe—dropped to {{convert|-18|°C|°F}}. Sierra Nevada Natural Park has Iberia's lowest average annual temperature, ({{convert|3.9|°C|°F|disp=or}} at Pradollano) and its peaks remain snowy practically year-round.

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:60%; font-size:95%;"
|+Average daily maximum and minimum temperatures for selected cities in Andalusia<ref name="Spanish Climate Normals or Averages">{{cite web |url=http://www.aemet.es/en/serviciosclimaticos/datosclimatologicos/valoresclimatologicos?k=and |title=Standard Climate Values, Andalucía |publisher=Aemet.es |access-date=2 March 2015}}</ref>
|-
!Location
!Coldest month
!April
!Warmest month
!October
|-
| [[Almería]]
|| {{convert|16.9|C|1}}/ {{convert|8.3|C|1}}
|| {{convert|24.1|C|1}}/ {{convert|15.3|C|1}}
|| {{convert|31.0|C|1}}/ {{convert|22.4|C|1}}
|| {{convert|24.5|C|1}}/ {{convert|16.3|C|1}}
|-
| [[Cádiz]]
|| {{convert|16.0|C|1}}/ {{convert|9.4|C|1}}
|| {{convert|19.9|C|1}}/ {{convert|13.7|C|1}}
|| {{convert|27.9|C|1}}/ {{convert|22.0|C|1}}
|| {{convert|23.4|C|1}}/ {{convert|17.3|C|1}}
|-
| [[Córdoba, Andalusia|Córdoba]]
|| {{convert|14.9|C|1}}/ {{convert|3.6|C|1}}
|| {{convert|22.8|C|1}}/ {{convert|9.3|C|1}}
|| {{convert|36.9|C|1}}/ {{convert|19.0|C|1}}
|| {{convert|25.1|C|1}}/ {{convert|13.0|C|1}}
|-
| [[Granada]]
|| {{convert|12.6|C|1}}/ {{convert|1.1|C|1}}
|| {{convert|19.5|C|1}}/ {{convert|6.8|C|1}}
|| {{convert|34.2|C|1}}/ {{convert|17.7|C|1}}
|| {{convert|22.6|C|1}}/ {{convert|10.1|C|1}}
|-
| [[Huelva]]
|| {{convert|16.2|C|1}}/ {{convert|5.9|C|1}}
|| {{convert|22.0|C|1}}/ {{convert|10.3|C|1}}
|| {{convert|32.7|C|1}}/ {{convert|18.9|C|1}}
|| {{convert|24.9|C|1}}/ {{convert|14.1|C|1}}
|-
| [[Jaén, Spain|Jaén]]
|| {{convert|12.1|C|1}}/ {{convert|5.1|C|1}}
|| {{convert|19.0|C|1}}/ {{convert|10.0|C|1}}
|| {{convert|33.7|C|1}}/ {{convert|21.4|C|1}}
|| {{convert|21.9|C|1}}/ {{convert|13.8|C|1}}
|-
| [[Jerez de la Frontera|Jerez]]
|| {{convert|16.2|C|1}}/ {{convert|5.2|C|1}}
|| {{convert|22.2|C|1}}/ {{convert|9.8|C|1}}
|| {{convert|33.5|C|1}}/ {{convert|18.7|C|1}}
|| {{convert|25.5|C|1}}/ {{convert|13.7|C|1}}
|-
| [[Málaga]]
|| {{convert|16.8|C|1}}/ {{convert|7.4|C|1}}
|| {{convert|21.4|C|1}}/ {{convert|11.1|C|1}}
|| {{convert|30.8|C|1}}/ {{convert|21.1|C|1}}
|| {{convert|24.1|C|1}}/ {{convert|15.0|C|1}}
|-
| [[Seville]]
|| {{convert|16.0|C|1}}/ {{convert|5.7|C|1}}
|| {{convert|23.4|C|1}}/ {{convert|11.1|C|1}}
|| {{convert|36.0|C|1}}/ {{convert|20.3|C|1}}
|| {{convert|26.0|C|1}}/ {{convert|14.4|C|1}}
|-
| [[Tarifa]]
|| {{convert|15.1|C|1}}/ {{convert|10.9|C|1}}
|| {{convert|17.3|C|1}}/ {{convert|13.0|C|1}}
|| {{convert|24.5|C|1}}/ {{convert|20.0|C|1}}
|| {{convert|20.6|C|1}}/ {{convert|16.7|C|1}}
|}

===Terrain===
[[File:Relieve andalucia.png|thumb|350px|Locations of the principal features of the Andalusian terrain.]]
[[File:Mulhacen north face.JPG|175px|left|thumb|[[Mulhacén]] peak is the highest point of continental Europe outside the Caucasus Mountains and the Alps. It is part of the [[Sierra Nevada (Spain)|Sierra Nevada]] range.]]

Mountain ranges affect climate, the network of rivers, soils and their erosion, bioregions, and even human economies insofar as they rely on natural resources.<ref>{{cite book |last=Moreira |first=J.M. |chapter=Las grandes unidades del relieve andaluz |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |language=es |isbn=84-344-3476-8}}</ref> The Andalusian terrain offers a range of altitudes and slopes. Andalusia has the Iberian peninsula's highest mountains and nearly 15 percent of its terrain over {{convert|1000|m|ft}}. The picture is similar for areas under {{convert|100|m|ft}} (with the Baetic Depression), and for the variety of slopes.

The Atlantic coast is overwhelmingly beach and gradually sloping coasts; the Mediterranean coast has many cliffs, above all in the Malagan [[Axarquía]] and in Granada and Almería.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ojeda |first=J. |chapter=espn |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |language=es |isbn=84-344-3476-8}}</ref> This asymmetry divides the region naturally into {{ill|Upper Andalusia|es|Alta Andalucía}} (two mountainous areas) and {{ill|Lower Andalusia|es|Baja Andalucía}} (the broad basin of the Guadalquivir).<ref name="fisicoambiental">{{cite journal |last=López |first=Antonio |title=Los grandes temas del sistema físico-ambiental de Andalucía y sus implicaciones humanas |year=2002 |journal=Revista de estudios regionales: XII Jornadas de Estudios Andaluces. |number=63 |issn=0213-7585 |pages=17–63 |url=http://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=268326 |language=es}}</ref>

The [[Sierra Morena]] separates Andalusia from the plains of Extremadura and Castile–La Mancha on Spain's [[Meseta Central]]. Although sparsely populated, this is not a particularly high range, and its highest point, the {{convert|1323|m|ft|adj=on}} peak of La [[Bañuela]] in the [[Sierra Madrona]], lies outside of Andalusia. Within the Sierra Morena, the [[canyon|gorge]] of [[Despeñaperros]] forms a natural frontier between Castile and Andalusia.

The [[Baetic Cordillera]] consists of the parallel mountain ranges of the [[Cordillera Penibética]] near the Mediterranean coast and the [[Cordillera Subbética]] inland, separated by the [[Surco Intrabético]]. The Cordillera Subbética is quite discontinuous, offering many passes that facilitate transportation, but the Penibético forms a strong barrier between the Mediterranean coast and the interior.<ref>"Bases para la Ordenación del Territorio de Andalucía", 1990, p. 126, in Spanish.</ref> The Sierra Nevada, part of the Cordillera Penibética in the province of Granada, has the highest peaks in Iberia: El [[Mulhacén]] at {{convert|3478|m|ft}} and El [[Veleta (Sierra Nevada)|Veleta]] at {{convert|3392|m|ft}}.

Lower Andalusia, the [[Baetic Depression]], the basin of the Guadalquivir, lies between these two mountainous areas. It is a nearly flat territory, open to the [[Gulf of Cádiz]] in the southwest. Throughout history, this has been the most populous part of Andalusia.

===Hydrography===
[[File:Ríos de Andalucía.png|thumb|325px|Rivers and basins of Andalusia.]]
Andalusia has rivers that flow into both the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Flowing to the Atlantic are the [[Guadiana]], [[Odiel]]-[[Río Tinto|Tinto]], [[Guadalquivir]], [[Guadalete]], and [[Barbate (river)|Barbate]]. Flowing to the Mediterranean are the [[Guadiaro (river)|Guadiaro]], [[Guadalhorce]], [[Guadalmedina]], [[Guadalfeo]], [[Andarax]] (also known as the Almería) and [[Almanzora (river)|Almanzora]]. Of these, the [[Guadalquivir]] is the longest in Andalusia and fifth longest on the Iberian peninsula, at {{convert|657|km|mi}}.<ref>{{cite book |last=Del Moral |first=L. |chapter=El agua en Andalucía |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |language=es |isbn=84-344-3476-8}}</ref>

[[File:Córdoba aerial 9.jpg|thumb|The Guadalquivir as it passes through Córdoba.]]
The rivers of the Atlantic basin are characteristically long, run through mostly flat terrain, and have broad river valleys. As a result, at their mouths are [[estuary|estuaries]] and [[wetland]]s, such as the marshes of [[Doñana National Park|Doñana]] in the delta of the Guadalquivir, and [[wetland]]s of the Odiel. In contrast, the rivers of the Mediterranean Basin are shorter, more seasonal, and make a precipitous descent from the mountains of the Baetic Cordillera. Their estuaries are small, and their valleys are less suitable for agriculture. Also, being in the [[rain shadow]] of the Baetic Cordillera means that they receive a lesser volume of water.<ref name="fisicoambiental" />

The following hydrographic basins can be distinguished in Andalusia. On the Atlantic side are the Guadalquivir basin; the Andalusian Atlantic Basin with the sub-basins Guadalete-Barbate and Tinto-Odiel; and the Guadiana basin. On the Mediterranean side is the Andalusian Mediterranean Basin and the upper portion of the [[Segura basin|basin of the Segura]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/agenciadelagua/portalweb/sites/aaa/portal/index.jsp?lang=es&perfil=org&opcion=listadoTematico&tema=/Agencia_Andaluza_Del_Agua/&apartado=organizacion&desplegar=/Agencia_Andaluza_Del_Agua/ |title=La nueva administración del agua en Andalucía |access-date=4 October 2008 |publisher=Agencia Andaluza del Agua (Consejería de Medio Ambiente) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081212204748/http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/agenciadelagua/portalweb/sites/aaa/portal/index.jsp?lang=es |archive-date=12 December 2008}}</ref>

===Soils===
The soils of Andalusia can be divided into three large areas: the [[Sierra Morena]], [[Cordillera Subbética]], and the [[Baetic Depression]] and the [[Surco Intrabético]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Moreira |first=J.M. |title=Suelos y degradación edáfica |journal=Carel: Carmona: Revista de estudios locales |number=3 |issn=1696-4284 |pages=971–986 |language=es |url=http://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/fichero_articulo?codigo=2328574&orden=84885}}</ref>

The Sierra Morena, due to its morphology and the acidic content of its rocks, developed principally relatively poor, shallow soils, suitable only for forests. In the valleys and in some areas where [[limestone]] is present, deeper soils allowed farming of cereals suitable for livestock. The more complicated morphology of the Baetic Cordillera makes it more heterogeneous, with the most heterogeneous soils in Andalusia. Very roughly, in contrast to the Sierra Morena, a predominance of [[base (chemistry)|basic]] (alkaline) materials in the Cordillera Subbética, combined with a hilly landscape, generates deeper soils with greater agricultural capacity, suitable to the cultivation of olives.<ref>{{cite book |author=Consejería de Agricultura y Pesca |chapter=Suelos |title=Atlas Agrario y Pesquero de Andalucía |year=1992 |publisher=Junta de Andalucía |language=es}}</ref>

Finally, the Baetic Depression and the Surco Intrabético have deep, rich soils, with great agricultural capacity. In particular, the [[alluvium|alluvial]] soils of the [[Guadalquivir]] valley and plain of [[Granada]] have a [[loam]]y texture and are particularly suitable for intensive irrigated crops.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/web/Bloques_Tematicos/Estado_Y_Calidad_De_Los_Recursos_Naturales/Suelo/Criterios_pdf/Tipologia.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/web/Bloques_Tematicos/Estado_Y_Calidad_De_Los_Recursos_Naturales/Suelo/Criterios_pdf/Tipologia.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |title=Tipología de los suelos en la comunidad andaluza |access-date=21 July 2008 |author=Consejería de Medio Ambiente de Andalucía |language=es}}</ref> In the hilly areas of the countryside, there is a double dynamic: the depressions have filled with older lime-rich material, developing the deep, rich, dark [[clay]] soils the Spanish call ''[[bujeo]]'', or ''tierras negras andaluzas'', excellent for dryland farming. In other zones, the whiter ''albariza'' provides an excellent soil for [[vineyard]]s.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Perea |author2=González, P. |title=Origen, clasificación y caracterización de los suelos de la Campiña de Carmona |year=2005 |journal=Carel: Carmona: Revista de estudios locales |number=3 |issn=1696-4284 |pages=971–986 |language=es |url=http://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/fichero_articulo?codigo=2328574&orden=84885}}</ref>

Despite their marginal quality, the poorly consolidated soils of the sandy coastline of Huelva and Almería have been successfully used in recent decades for hothouse cultivation under clear plastic of strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and other fruits.

===Flora===
[[File:Vegetacion en andalucia.png|thumb|325px|[[Phytochorion|Floristic provinces]] of Andalusia]]
Biogeographically, Andalusia forms part of the Western Mediterranean subregion of the [[Mediterranean Basin]], which falls within the [[Boreal Kingdom]]. Five [[Phytochorion|floristic provinces]] lie, in whole or in part, within Andalusia: along much of the Atlantic coast, the Lusitanian-Andalusian littoral or Andalusian Atlantic littoral; in the north, the southern portion of the Luso-Extremaduran floristic province; covering roughly half of the region, the Baetic floristic province; and in the extreme east, the Almerian portion of the Almerian-Murcian floristic province and (coinciding roughly with the upper Segura basin) a small portion of the Castilian-Maestrazgan-Manchegan floristic province. These names derive primarily from past or present political geography: "Luso" and "Lusitanian" from [[Lusitania]], one of three [[Roman province]]s in Iberia, most of the others from present-day Spanish provinces, and [[Maestrazgo]] being a historical region of northern [[Valencian Community|Valencia]].

[[File:Rododendron.jpg|thumb|left|Oaks, rhododendrons and ferns in the [[Los Alcornocales Natural Park]].]]
In broad terms, the typical vegetation of Andalusia is [[Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub|Mediterranean woodland]], characterized by [[leaf]]y [[Xerophile|xerophilic]] [[perennial plant|perennials]], adapted to the long, dry summers. The dominant species of the [[climax community]] is the holly oak (''[[Quercus ilex]]''). Also abundant are cork oak (''[[Quercus suber]]''), various [[pine]]s, and Spanish fir (''[[Abies pinsapo]]''). Due to cultivation, [[olive]] (''Olea europaea'') and [[almond]] (''Prunus dulcis'') trees also abound. The dominant [[understory]] is composed of thorny and aromatic woody species, such as [[rosemary]] (''Rosmarinus officinalis''), [[thyme]] (''Thymus''), and ''[[Cistus]]''. In the wettest areas with [[Soil pH|acidic soils]], the most abundant species are the oak and cork oak, and the cultivated ''[[Eucalyptus]]''. In the woodlands, leafy [[hardwood]]s of genus ''[[Populus]]'' (poplars, aspens, cottonwoods) and ''[[Ulmus]]'' (elms) are also abundant; poplars are cultivated in the plains of Granada.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ibarra |first=P. |chapter=Las formaciones vegetales de Andalucía |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |language=es |isbn=84-344-3476-8}}</ref>

The Andalusian woodlands have been much altered by human settlement, the use of nearly all of the best land for farming, and frequent [[wildfire]]s. The degraded forests become shrubby and combustible [[garrigue]]. Extensive areas have been planted with non-[[Climax species|climax]] trees such as pines. There is now a clear conservation policy for the remaining forests, which survive almost exclusively in the mountains.

===Fauna===
[[File:Linces12.jpg|thumb|The [[Iberian lynx]] (''Lynx pardinus'')]]

The [[biodiversity]] of Andalusia extends to its fauna as well. More than 400 of the 630 vertebrate species extant in Spain can be found in Andalusia. Spanning the Mediterranean and Atlantic basins, and adjacent to the Strait of Gibraltar, Andalusia is on the migratory route of many of the numerous flocks of birds that travel annually from Europe to Africa and back.<ref>
{{cite book |last=Rubio |first=J.M. |chapter=La fauna andaluza |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |language=es |isbn=84-344-3476-8}}</ref>

The Andalusian wetlands host a rich variety of birds. Some are of African origin, such as the [[red-knobbed coot]] (''Fulica cristata''), the [[purple swamphen]] (''Porphyrio porphyrio''), and the [[greater flamingo]] (''Phoenicopterus roseus''). Others originate in Northern Europe, such as the [[greylag goose]] (''Anser anser''). [[Bird of prey|Birds of prey]] (raptors) include the [[Spanish imperial eagle]] (''Aquila adalberti''), the [[griffon vulture]] (''Gyps fulvus''), and both the [[Black kite|black]] and [[red kite]] (''Milvus migrans'' and ''Milvus milvus'').

[[File:Andalusierhengst 93c.jpg|upright|left|thumb|[[Andalusian horse]]]]
Among the [[herbivore]]s, are several [[deer]] (Cervidae) species, notably the [[fallow deer]] (''Dama dama'') and [[roe deer]] (''Capreolus capreolus''); the [[European mouflon]] (''Ovis aries musimon''), a feral sheep; and the [[Spanish ibex]] (''Capra pyrenaica'', which despite its scientific name is no longer found in the [[Pyrenees]]). The Spanish ibex has recently been losing ground to the [[Barbary sheep]] (''Ammotragus lervia''), an [[invasive species]] from Africa, introduced for hunting in the 1970s. Among the small herbivores are rabbits—especially the [[European rabbit]] (''Oryctolagus cuniculus'')—which form the most important part of the diet of the carnivorous species of the Mediterranean woodlands.

The large [[carnivore]]s such as the [[Iberian wolf]] (''Canis lupus signatus'') and the [[Iberian lynx]] (''Lynx pardinus'') are quite threatened, and are limited to the Sierra de Andújar, inside of Sierra Morena, Doñana and Despeñaperros. Stocks of the [[wild boar]] (''Sus scrofa''), on the other hand, have been well preserved because they are popular with hunters. More abundant and in varied situations of conservation are such smaller carnivores as [[European otter|otter]]s, dogs, foxes, the [[European badger]] (''Meles meles''), the [[European polecat]] (''Mustela putorius''), the [[least weasel]] (''Mustela nivalis''), the [[European wildcat]] (''Felis silvestris''), the [[common genet]] (''Genetta genetta''), and the [[Egyptian mongoose]] (''Herpestes ichneumon'').<ref>
{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/contenidoExterno/Pub_aula_verde/aulaverde31/patrimv.html |title=Patrimonio vivo: la fauna andaluza |access-date=4 October 2008 |publisher=Consejería de Medio Ambiente (Junta de Andalucía) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090606125530/http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/contenidoExterno/Pub_aula_verde/aulaverde31/patrimv.html |archive-date=6 June 2009}}</ref>

Other notable species are ''[[Acherontia atropos]]'' (a variety of [[death's-head hawkmoth]]), ''[[Vipera latasti]]'' (a [[venomous snake]]), and the endemic (and endangered) fish ''[[Aphanius baeticus]]''.

===Protected areas===
[[File:Andalucía parques.png|thumb|325px|[[National park]]s and [[Natural park (Spain)|natural parks]] in Andalusia.]]
Andalusia has many unique ecosystems. In order to preserve these areas in a manner compatible with both conservation and economic exploitation, many of the most representative ecosystems have been given protected status.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cma.junta-andalucia.es/medioambiente/site/web/menuitem.48ed6f0384107256b935619561525ea0/?vgnextoid=ab39185968f04010VgnVCM1000001625e50aRCRD&vgnextchannel=3259b19c7acf2010VgnVCM1000001625e50aRCRD&lr=lang_es |title=Espacios Protegidos |access-date=8 September 2008 |author=Consejería de Medio Ambiente (Junta de Andalucía)}}{{dead link|date=July 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Mulero |first=A. |chapter=Los espacios protegidos en Andalucía |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |language=es |isbn=84-344-3476-8}}</ref>

The various levels of protection are encompassed within the Network of Protected Natural Spaces of Andalusia (Red de Espacios Naturales Protegidos de Andalucía, RENPA) which integrates all protected natural spaces located in Andalusia, whether they are protected at the level of the local community, the autonomous community of Andalusia, the Spanish state, or by international conventions. RENPA consists of 150 protected spaces, consisting of two [[List of national parks of Spain|national parks]], 24 [[natural park (Spain)|natural parks]], 21 periurban parks (on the fringes of cities or towns), 32 natural sites, two protected countrysides, 37 natural monuments, 28 nature reserves, and four concerted nature reserves (in which a government agency coordinates with the owner of the property for its management), all part of the [[European Union]]'s [[Natura 2000]] network. Under the international ambit are the nine [[Man and Biosphere Reserve Programme|Biosphere Reserves]], 20 [[Ramsar Convention|Ramsar]] wetland sites, four [[Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Importance]] and two [[UNESCO]] [[Geopark]]s.<ref name="renpa">{{cite web |url=http://www.cma.junta-andalucia.es/medioambiente/site/web/menuitem.a5664a214f73c3df81d8899661525ea0/?vgnextoid=0cbb7abc83414010VgnVCM1000000624e50aRCRD&vgnextchannel=3259b19c7acf2010VgnVCM1000001625e50aRCRD&lr=lang_es |title=La RENPA – Red de Espacios Naturales Protegidos de Andalucía |access-date=8 September 2008 |author=Consejería de Medio Ambiente (Junta de Andalucía)}}{{dead link|date=July 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

In total, nearly 20 percent of the territory of Andalusia lies in one of these protected areas, which constitute roughly 30 percent of the protected territory of Spain.<ref name="renpa" /> Among these many spaces, some of the most notable are the [[Sierras de Cazorla, Segura y Las Villas Natural Park]], Spain's largest natural park and the second largest in Europe, the [[Sierra Nevada National Park (Spain)|Sierra Nevada National Park]], [[Doñana National Park|Doñana National Park and Natural Park]], the [[Tabernas Desert]], and the [[Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park]], the largest terrestrial-maritime reserve in the European Western Mediterranean Sea.

==History==
{{Main|History of Andalusia}}
[[File:Alhambra-p3-closeup.jpg|thumb|Tiling of the [[Alhambra]]]]
The geostrategic position of Andalusia, at the southernmost tip of [[Europe]], between Europe and [[Africa]] and between the [[Atlantic Ocean]] and the [[Mediterranean Sea]], has made it a hub for various civilizations since the [[Metal Ages]]. Its wealth of minerals and fertile land, combined with its large surface area, attracted settlers from the [[Phoenicia]]ns to the [[Greeks]], who influenced the development of early cultures like [[Los Millares]], [[El Argar]], and [[Tartessos]]. These early Andalusian societies played a vital role in the region's transition from prehistory to [[protohistory]].

With the [[Conquest of Hispania|Roman conquest]], Andalusia became fully integrated into the Roman world as the prosperous province of [[Baetica]], which contributed emperors like [[Trajan]] and [[Hadrian]] to the Roman Empire. During this time, Andalusia was a key economic center, providing resources and cultural contributions to Rome. Even after the Germanic invasions of Iberia by the [[Vandals]] and [[Visigoths]], the region retained much of its Roman cultural and political significance, with figures such as [[Saint Isidore of Seville]] maintaining Andalusia's intellectual heritage.

In 711, the [[Umayyad conquest of Hispania]] marked a major cultural and political shift, as Andalusia became a focal point of [[al-Andalus]], the Muslim-controlled Iberian Peninsula. The city of [[Córdoba (Spain)|Córdoba]] emerged as the capital of al-Andalus and one of the most important cultural and economic centers of the medieval world. The height of Andalusian prosperity came during the [[Caliphate of Córdoba]], under rulers like [[Abd al-Rahman III]] and [[Al-Hakam II]], when the region became known for its advancements in science, philosophy, and architecture. However, the 11th century brought internal divisions with the fragmentation of al-Andalus into [[taifas]]—small, independent kingdoms—which allowed the [[Reconquista]] to push southwards. By the late 13th century, much of Andalusia had been reconquered by the [[Crown of Castile]], led by monarchs like [[Ferdinand III of Castile]], who captured the fertile [[Guadalquivir]] valley. The last Muslim kingdom, the [[Nasrid Kingdom of Granada]], held out until its defeat in 1492, marking the completion of the Reconquista.
[[File:Women pleading with Rebels for Lives of Prisioners, Constantina, Seville - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|right|Province of Seville, [[Spanish Civil War]]]]
In the centuries following the Reconquista, Andalusia played a central role in Spain's exploration and colonization of the [[New World]]. Cities like [[Seville]] and [[Cádiz]] became major hubs for transatlantic trade. However, despite its global influence during the [[Spanish Empire]], Andalusia experienced economic decline due to a combination of military expenditures and failed industrialization efforts in the 17th and 18th centuries. In the modern era, Andalusia became part of Spain's movement towards autonomy, culminating in its designation as an [[autonomous community]] in 1981. Despite its rich history, the region faces challenges in overcoming economic disparities and aligning with the wealthier parts of the [[European Union]].

==Government and politics==
[[File:Palacio San Telmo facade Seville Spain.jpg|thumb|The [[Palacio de San Telmo]] is the seat of the [[President of Andalusia|Presidency of Andalusia]]]]
[[File:Parlamento de Andalucía (3508393367).jpg|thumb|[[Hospital de las Cinco Llagas]] is the seat of the [[Parliament of Andalusia]]]]
Andalusia is one of the 17 [[autonomous communities of Spain]]. The [[Regional Government of Andalusia]] (Spanish: ''Junta de Andalucía'') includes the [[Parliament of Andalusia]], [[List of Presidents of the Parliament of Andalusia|its chosen president]], a Consultative Council, and other bodies.

The Autonomous Community of Andalusia was formed in accord with a referendum of 28 February 1980<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.andaluciajunta.es/especiales/aj-fototeca-estatuto.html?cimg=5&idSeccion=3&idApartado=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070209042444/http://www.andaluciajunta.es/especiales/aj-fototeca-estatuto.html?cimg=5&idSeccion=3&idApartado=1 |url-status=dead |archive-date=9 February 2007 |title=Celebración del Referéndum de Autonomía del 28-F |access-date=12 August 2008 |author=Junta de Andalucía |language=es}}</ref> and became an autonomous community under the 1981 Statute of Autonomy known as the ''Estatuto de Carmona''. The process followed the [[Spanish Constitution of 1978]], still current as of 2009, which recognizes and guarantees the right of autonomy for the various regions and nationalities of Spain. The process to establish Andalusia as an autonomous region followed Article 151 of the Constitution, making Andalusia the only autonomous community to take that particular course. That article was set out for regions like Andalusia that had been prevented by the outbreak of the [[Spanish Civil War]] from adopting a statute of autonomy during the period of the [[Second Spanish Republic]].

Article 1 of the 1981 Statute of Autonomy justifies autonomy based on the region's "historical identity, on the self-government that the Constitution permits every nationality, on outright equality to the rest of the nationalities and regions that compose Spain, and with a power that emanates from the Andalusian Constitution and people, reflected in its Statute of Autonomy".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.andaluciajunta.es/especiales/aj-fototeca-estatuto.html?cimg=6&idSeccion=3&idApartado=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070209042100/http://www.andaluciajunta.es/especiales/aj-fototeca-estatuto.html?cimg=6&idSeccion=3&idApartado=1 |url-status=dead |archive-date=9 February 2007 |title=Asamblea de Parlamentarios para debatir el Estatuto de Autonomía |access-date=12 August 2008 |author=Junta de Andalucía |quote=...identidad histórica, en el autogobierno que la Constitución permite a toda nacionalidad, en plena igualdad al resto de nacionalidades y regiones que compongan España, y con un poder que emana de la Constitución y el pueblo andaluz, reflejado en su Estatuto de Autonomía}}</ref>

In October 2006 the constitutional commission of the [[Cortes Generales]] (the national legislature of Spain), with favorable votes from the left-of-center [[Spanish Socialist Workers' Party]] (PSOE), the leftist [[United Left (Spain)|United Left]] (IU) and the right-of-center [[People's Party (Spain)|People's Party]] (PP), approved a new Statute of Autonomy for Andalusia, whose preamble refers to the community as a "[[Nationalities and regions of Spain|national reality]]" (''realidad nacional''):

{{Blockquote|The Andalusianist Manifesto of Córdoba described Andalusia as a national reality in 1919, whose spirit the Andalusians took up outright through the process of self-government recognized in our Magna Carta. In 1978 the Andalusians broadly backed the constitutional consensus. Today, the Constitution, in its Article 2, recognizes Andalusia as a nationality as part of the indissoluble unity of the Spanish nation.<ref name="citing 1919" />|[[:s:Estatuto de Autonomía de Andalucía 2007|Andalusian Statute of Autonomy on Wikisource]], in Spanish}}

On 2 November 2006 the Spanish Chamber Deputies ratified the text of the Constitutional Commission with 306 votes in favor, none opposed, and 2 abstentions. This was the first time a Spanish [[Organic Law (Spain)|Organic Law]] adopting a Statute of Autonomy was approved with no opposing votes. The Senate, in a plenary session of 20 December 2006, ratified the referendum to be voted upon by the Andalusian public 18 February 2007.

The Statute of Autonomy spells out Andalusia's distinct institutions of government and administration. Chief among these is the [[Andalusian Autonomous Government]] (''Junta de Andalucía''). Other institutions specified in the Statute are the Defensor del Pueblo Andaluz (literally "Defender of the Andalusian People", basically an [[ombudsperson]]), the Consultative Council, the Chamber of Accounts, the Audiovisual Council of Andalusia, and the Economic and Social Council.

The Andalusian Statute of Autonomy recognizes Seville as the autonomy's capital. The Andalusian Autonomous Government is located there. The region's highest court, the [[High Court of Andalusia]] (''[[Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Andalucía]]'') is not part of the Autonomous Government, and has its seat in [[Granada]].

===Autonomous Government===
{{Main|Andalusian Autonomous Government}}
[[File:Partidos Judiciales de Andalucía.svg|thumb|325px|[[Judicial districts of Spain|Judicial district]]s of Andalusia.]]
[[File:Constitución del Parlamento de Andalucía (17021724860).jpg|thumb|325px|The Andalusian Parliament in Seville.]]

The Andalusian Autonomous Government (''Junta de Andalucía'') is the institution of self-government of the Autonomous Community of Andalusia. Within the government, the [[President of Andalusia]] is the supreme representative of the autonomous community, and the ordinary representative of the Spanish state in the autonomous community. The president is formally named to the position by the [[Monarchy of Spain|Monarch of Spain]] and then confirmed by a majority vote of the [[Parliament of Andalusia]]. In practice, the monarch always names a person acceptable to the ruling party or coalition of parties in the autonomous region. In theory, were the candidate to fail to gain the needed majority, the monarch could propose a succession of candidates. After two months, if no proposed candidate could gain the parliament's approval, the parliament would automatically be dissolved and the acting president would call new elections.<ref>''Estatuto de Autonomía Art. 118 Cap. III Tít. IV''</ref> On 18 January 2019 [[Juan Manuel Moreno]] was elected as the sixth president of Andalusia.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://elcorreoweb.es/andalucia/el-candidato-a-la-alcaldia-de-sevilla-sera-quien-mas-garantias-nos-de-XC3466671 |title=El candidato a la alcaldía de Sevilla será quien más garantías nos dé |last=Cabello |first=Alberto |date=23 October 2017 |work=[[El Correo]] |language=Spanish |access-date=7 November 2017 |archive-date=22 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190822125813/http://elcorreoweb.es/andalucia/el-candidato-a-la-alcaldia-de-sevilla-sera-quien-mas-garantias-nos-de-XC3466671 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Council of Government, the highest political and administrative organ of the Community, exercises [[rulemaking|regulatory]] and [[executive power]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/organismos/consejo/funciones.html |title=Consejo de Gobierno. Funciones |access-date=8 October 2008 |work=[[Junta de Andalucía]] |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081217051004/http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/organismos/consejo/funciones.html |archive-date=17 December 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> The President presides over the council, which also includes the heads of various departments (''Consejerías''). In the current legislature (2008–2012), there are 15 of these departments. In order of precedence, they are Presidency, Governance, Economy and Treasury, Education, Justice and Public Administration, Innovation, Science and Business, Public Works and Transportation, Employment, Health, Agriculture and Fishing, Housing and Territorial Planning, Tourism, Commerce and Sports, Equality and Social Welfare, Culture, and Environment.

The Parliament of Andalusia, its Autonomic Legislative Assembly, develops and approves laws and elects and removes the President.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.parlamentodeandalucia.es/opencms/export/portal-web-parlamento/elparlamento/funciones.htm |title=Parlamento de Andalucía. Funciones |access-date=8 October 2008 |work=[[Parliament of Andalusia]] |language=es |archive-date=14 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091214090247/http://www.parlamentodeandalucia.es/opencms/export/portal-web-parlamento/elparlamento/funciones.htm |url-status=dead}}</ref> Elections to the Andalusian Parliament follow a democratic formula through which the citizens elect 109 representatives. After the approval of the Statute of Autonomy through Organic Law 6/1981 on 20 December 1981, the first elections to the autonomic parliament took place 23 May 1982. Further elections have occurred in 1986, 1990, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2004, and 2008.

The current (2008–2012) legislature includes representatives of the PSOE-A (Andalusian branch of the left-of-center PSOE), PP-A (Andalusian branch of the right-of-center PP) and IULV-CA (Andalusian branch of the leftist IU).<ref>{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408123317/http://www.eleccionesandalucia2008.es/cifras.html |title=Elecciones Andalucía 2008 |work=[[Junta de Andalucía]] |language=es |archive-date=8 April 2008 |access-date=4 April 2019 |url=http://www.eleccionesandalucia2008.es/cifras.html |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Judicial power===
The [[High Court of Andalusia]] (''[[Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Andalucía]]'') in Granada is subject only to the higher jurisdiction of the [[Supreme Court of Spain]]. The High Court is not an organ of the Autonomous Community, but rather of the [[Judiciary of Spain]], which is unitary throughout the kingdom and whose powers are not transferred to the autonomous communities. The Andalusian territory is divided into 88 [[legal district|legal/judicial districts]] (''partidos judiciales'').<ref>{{cite web |url=http://andaluciajunta.es/justicia/adriano/cd/a/views/channel/adri_mostrar_contenidos_canal_subcanales/0,20961,12351694_12352530,00.html |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160517102624/http://andaluciajunta.es/justicia/adriano/cd/a/views/channel/adri_mostrar_contenidos_canal_subcanales/0,20961,12351694_12352530,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 May 2016 |title=Constitución del TSJA |access-date=8 October 2008 |author=Junta de Andalucía |language=es}}</ref>

==Administrative divisions==
===Provinces===
[[File:East provinces of Andalusia.svg|200px|thumb|''[[:es: Alta Andalucía|Upper Andalusia]] '' or ''[[:es: Andalucía Oriental|Eastern Andalusia]] ''.]]
[[File:West provinces of Andalusia.svg|200px|thumb|''[[:es: Baja Andalucía|Lower Andalusia]] '' or ''[[:es: Andalucía Occidental|Western Andalusia]] ''.]]
Andalusia consists of eight [[Provinces of Spain|provinces]]. The latter were established by [[Javier de Burgos]] in the [[1833 territorial division of Spain]]. Each of the Andalusian provinces bears the same name as its capital:<ref name="del">{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/gobernacion/opencms/portal/AdministracionLocal/ContenidosEspecificos/BancoDatos/directoriodeentidadeslocales?entrada=destinatarios&destinatarios=19 |title=Directorio de Entidades Locales |access-date=8 October 2008 |author=Junta de Andalucía. Consejería de Gobernación |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091223084007/http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/gobernacion/opencms/portal/AdministracionLocal/ContenidosEspecificos/BancoDatos/directoriodeentidadeslocales?entrada=destinatarios&destinatarios=19 |archive-date=23 December 2009}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Province !! Capital !! Population !! Density !! Municipalities !! Legal districts
|-
! [[File:Flag Almería Province.svg|left|25px]] [[Province of Almería|Almería]]
| [[Almería]] || 753,920 || {{cvt|85.9|PD/km2}} || [[List of municipalities in Almería|102 municipalities]] || 8
|-
! [[File:Flag Cádiz Province.svg|left|25px]] [[Province of Cádiz|Cádiz]]
| [[Cádiz]] || 1,250,539 || {{cvt|168.1|PD/km2}} || [[List of municipalities in Cádiz|44 municipalities]] || 14
|-
! [[File:Provincia de Córdoba - Bandera.svg|left|25px]] [[Province of Córdoba (Spain)|Córdoba]]
| [[Córdoba, Andalusia|Córdoba]] || 773,997 || {{cvt|56.2|PD/km2}} || [[List of municipalities in Córdoba|75 municipalities]] || 12
|-
! [[File:Bandera de la provincia de Granada (España).svg|left|25px]] [[Province of Granada|Granada]]
| [[Granada]] || 930,181 || {{cvt|73.5|PD/km2}} || [[List of municipalities in Granada|170 municipalities]] || 9
|-
! [[File:Bandera de la Provincia De Huelva.svg|left|25px]] [[Province of Huelva|Huelva]]
| [[Huelva]] || 530,824 || {{cvt|52.4|PD/km2}} || [[List of municipalities in Huelva|79 municipalities]] || 6
|-
! [[File:Bandera de la provincia de Jaén.svg|left|25px]] [[Province of Jaén (Spain)|Jaén]]
| [[Jaén, Spain|Jaén]] || 620,242 || {{cvt|45.9|PD/km2}} || [[List of municipalities in Jaén|97 municipalities]] || 10
|-
! [[File:Flag Málaga Province.svg|left|25px]] [[Province of Málaga|Málaga]]
| [[Málaga]] || 1,751,600 || {{cvt|239.7|PD/km2}} || [[List of municipalities in Málaga|102 municipalities]] || 11
|-
! [[File:Bandera-diputacion-sevilla.jpg|left|25px]] [[Province of Seville|Seville]]
| [[Seville]] || 1,957,210 || {{cvt|139.4|PD/km2}} || [[List of municipalities in Seville|105 municipalities]] || 15
|}

Andalusia is traditionally divided into two historical subregions: '''''[[:es: Alta Andalucía|Upper Andalusia]] '' or ''[[:es: Andalucía Oriental|Eastern Andalusia]] ''''' (''Andalucía Oriental''), consisting of the provinces of Almería, Granada, Jaén, and Málaga, and '''''[[:es: Baja Andalucía|Lower Andalusia]] '' or ''[[:es: Andalucía Occidental|Western Andalusia]] ''''' (''Andalucía Occidental''), consisting of the provinces of Cádiz, Córdoba, Huelva and Seville.

===Comarcas and mancomunidades===
[[File:Regions of Andalusia.svg|thumb|325px|[[Comarcas of Andalusia]]]]
Within the various autonomous communities of Spain, ''[[Comarcas of Spain|comarcas]]'' are comparable to [[shire]]s (or, in some countries, [[county|counties]]) in the English-speaking world. Unlike in some of Spain's other autonomous communities, under the original 1981 Statute of Autonomy, the [[comarcas of Andalusia|''comarcas'' of Andalusia]] had no formal recognition, but, in practice, they still had informal recognition as geographic, cultural, historical, or in some cases administrative entities. The 2007 Statute of Autonomy echoes this practice, and mentions ''comarcas'' in Article 97 of Title III, which defines the significance of ''comarcas'' and establishes a basis for formal recognition in future legislation.<ref>Tít. III. Art. 97. Comarcas – Estatuto de Autonomía de Andalucía 2007: :''"1. La comarca se configura como la agrupación voluntaria de municipios limítrofes con características geográficas, económicas, sociales e históricas afines. 2. Por ley del Parlamento de Andalucía podrá regularse la creación de comarcas, que establecerá, también, sus competencias. Se requerirá en todo caso el acuerdo de los Ayuntamientos afectados y la aprobación del Consejo de Gobierno."''</ref>

The current statutory entity that most closely resembles a ''comarca'' is the {{Lang|es|[[mancomunidad]]}}, a freely chosen, bottom-up association of municipalities intended as an instrument of socioeconomic development and coordination between municipal governments in specific areas.<ref name="del" /><ref>[http://www.dgal.map.es/cgi-bin/webapb/webdriver?MIval=mancprov Mancomunidades] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100701012558/http://www.dgal.map.es/cgi-bin/webapb/webdriver?MIval=mancprov |date=1 July 2010 }} (map), dgal.map.es. You can click the map to see the ''mancomunidades'' of each individual province.</ref>

===Municipalities and local entities===
[[File:Andalucia municipalities.png|thumb|325px|Municipalities of Andalusia]]
Beyond the level of provinces, Andalusia is further divided into 774 [[List of municipalities of Spain|municipalities]] (''municipios'').<ref name="del" /> The municipalities of Andalusia are regulated by Title III of the Statute of Autonomy, Articles 91–95, which establishes the municipality as the basic territorial entity of Andalusia, each of which has legal personhood and autonomy in many aspects of its internal affairs. At the municipal level, representation, government and administration is performed by the ''ayuntamiento'' (municipal government), which has competency for [[urban planning]], community social services, supply and treatment of water, collection and treatment of waste, and promotion of tourism, culture, and sports, among other matters established by law.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://noticias.juridicas.com/base_datos/CCAA/an-l7-1993.html |title=Ley 7/1993, de 27 de julio, reguladora de la demarcación municipal de Andalucía. |work=Noticias Jurídicas |access-date=1 November 2014}}</ref>

In conformity with the intent to devolve control as locally as possible, in many cases, separate nuclei of population within municipal borders each administer their own interests. These are variously known as ''pedanías'' ("hamlets"), ''villas'' ("villages"), ''aldeas'' (also usually rendered as "villages"), or other similar names.<ref name="del" />

==Demographics==
Andalusia ranks first by population among the 17 autonomous communities of Spain. The estimated population as of 1 January 2025 was 8,663,175. The population is concentrated mainly in the provincial capitals and along the coasts. The level of urbanization is quite high; half the population is concentrated in the 28 cities of more than 50,000 inhabitants. While the population is aging, the process of immigration is countering the inversion of the [[population pyramid]].<ref>Inversion of the [[population pyramid]] is a process by which the number of older people exceeds the number of younger people. This often occurs in developed countries as birth rates decline.</ref>
{{Clear}}

=== Main cities ===
{{See also|List of cities in Andalusia by population}}{{clear left}}
{{Largest cities
| country = Andalusia
| stat_ref = [[Instituto Nacional de Estadística (Spain)|INE]] (1 January 2024)<ref>{{cite web |publisher=[[Ministry of Economy (Spain)|Ministerio de Asuntos Económicos y Transformación Digital]] |url=https://ine.es/jaxiT3/Datos.htm?t=59589 |title=Datos del Registro de Entidades Locales |access-date=11 March 2025}}</ref>
| list_by_pop =
| kind        = municipalities
| div_name =
| div_link = Provinces of Spain{{!}}Province
| city_1 = Seville
| div_1 = Province of Seville{{!}}Seville
| pop_1 = 687,488
| img_1 = Sevilla Luft 120308.JPG
| city_2 = Málaga
| div_2 = Province of Málaga{{!}}Málaga
| pop_2 = 591,637
| img_2 = Malaga Luftaufnahme.jpg
| city_3 = Córdoba, Spain{{!}}Córdoba
| div_3 = Province of Córdoba (Spain){{!}}Córdoba
| pop_3 = 322,811
| img_3 = Córdoba aerial 6.jpg
| city_4 = Granada
| div_4 = Province of Granada{{!}}Granada
| pop_4 = 232,717
| img_4 = La alhambra desde el tambor - panoramio.jpg
| city_5 = Jerez de la Frontera
| div_5 = Province of Cádiz{{!}}Cádiz
| pop_5 = 213,688
| city_6 = Almería
| div_6 = Province of Almería{{!}}Almería
| pop_6 = 202,675
| city_7 = Marbella
| div_7 = Province of Málaga{{!}}Málaga
| pop_7 = 159,000
| city_8 = Huelva
| div_8 = Province of Huelva{{!}}Huelva
| pop_8 = 143,290
| city_9 = Dos Hermanas
| div_9 = Province of Seville{{!}}Seville
| pop_9 = 140,430
| city_10 = Algeciras
| div_10 = Province of Cádiz{{!}}Cádiz
| pop_10 = 124,978
| city_11 = Jaén, Spain{{!}}Jaén
| div_11 = Province of Jaén (Spain){{!}}Jaén
| pop_11 = 112,074
| city_12 = Cádiz
| div_12 = Province of Cádiz{{!}}Cádiz
| pop_12 = 110,914
| city_13 = Roquetas de Mar
| div_13 = Province of Almería{{!}}Almería
| pop_13 = 109,204
| city_14 = San Fernando, Cádiz{{!}}San Fernando
| div_14 = Cádiz{{!}}Cádiz
| pop_14 = 93,645
| city_15 = Mijas
| div_15 = Province of Málaga{{!}}Málaga
| pop_15 = 93,302
| city_16 = El Ejido
| div_16 = Province of Almería{{!}}Almería
| pop_16 = 90,135
| city_17 = El Puerto de Santa María
| div_17 = Province of Cádiz{{!}}Cádiz
| pop_17 = 89,960
| city_18 = Chiclana de la Frontera
| div_18 = Province of Cádiz{{!}}Cádiz
| pop_18 = 89,794
| city_19 = Vélez-Málaga
| div_19 = Province of Málaga{{!}}Málaga
| pop_19 = 85,990
| city_20 = Fuengirola
| div_20 = Province of Málaga{{!}}Málaga
| pop_20 = 85,859
}}

===Population change===

{{Historical populations
|footnote = Source: [[Instituto Nacional de Estadística (Spain)|INE]]
|1900| 3544769
|1910| 3800299
|1920| 4221686
|1930| 4627148
|1940| 5255120
|1950| 5647244
|1960| 5940067
|1970| 5991076
|1981| 6441149
|1991| 6940542
|2001| 7357558
|2011| 8371270
|2021| 8484804
|2025| 8663175
}}

At the end of the 20th century, Andalusia was in the last phase of [[demographic transition]]. The [[death rate]] stagnated at around 8–9 per thousand, and the population came to be influenced mainly by birth and migration.<ref name="pob2">{{cite book |author=Pozuelo, I. |chapter=Características del desarrollo urbano reciente en Andalucía. El siglo XX |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8}}</ref>
In 1950, Andalusia had 20.04 percent of the national population of Spain. By 1981, this had declined to 17.09 percent. Although the Andalusian population was not declining in absolute terms, these relative losses were due to emigration great enough to nearly counterbalance having the highest [[birth rate]] in Spain. Since the 1980s, this process has reversed on all counts,<ref name=Llanes>{{cite journal |author=Llanes, G. |title=La dinámica de la población en Andalucía: transición y cambios en el siglo XX |year=1999 |journal=Boletín económico de Andalucía |number=25 |issn=0212-6621 |pages=129–152 |language=es}}</ref> and as of 2009, Andalusia has 17.82 percent of the Spanish population.<ref name="pob">{{cite book |author=Fernández, V.M. |chapter=Geografía de la población |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref>
The birth rate is sharply down, as is typical in developed economies, although it has lagged behind much of the rest of the world in this respect. Furthermore, prior emigrants have been returning to Andalusia. Beginning in the 1990s, others have been immigrating in large numbers as well, as Spain has become a country of net immigration.<ref name=Llanes />

At the beginning of the 21st century, statistics show a slight increase in the birth rate, due in large part to the higher birth rate among immigrants.<ref name="Indicadores sociales">{{cite journal |author=AA.VV |title=Indicadores sociales e inserción laboral de la población extranjera en España y Andalucía |year=2004 |journal=Portularia: Revista de Trabajo Social |volume=4 |issn=1578-0236 |pages=51–60 |language=es |hdl=10272/211}}</ref><ref name="Pob Extranjera">{{cite journal |author=Urdiales, M.E. |author2=Menéndez, M. |title=La Población Extranjera en Andalucía |year=2005 |journal=Cuadernos geográficos de la Universidad de Granada |number=36 |issn=0210-5462 |pages=169–184 |language=es}}</ref> The result is that as of 2009, the trend toward rejuvenation of the population is among the strongest of any autonomous community of Spain, or of any comparable region in Europe.<ref name="pob" />

===Structure===
[[File:Nat mor anda.png|thumb|Evolution of the birth and death rates of Andalusia 1975–2007]]
At the beginning of the 21st century, the population structure of Andalusia shows a clear inversion of the population pyramid, with the largest cohorts falling between ages 25 and 50.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Del Valle, C. |title=El envejecimiento demográfico en Andalucía y las características sociodemográficas de la población mayor de 64 años |year=2005 |journal=Papers de Demografia |number=255 |language=es}}</ref> Comparison of the population pyramid in 2008 to that in 1986 shows:
# A clear decrease in the population under the age of 25, due to a declining birth rate.
# An increase in the adult population, as the earlier, larger cohort born in the "baby boom" of the 1960s and 1970s reach adulthood. This effect has been exacerbated by immigration: the largest contingent of immigrants are young adults.
# A further increase in the adult population, and especially the older adult population, due to increased [[life expectancy]].

As far as composition by sex, two aspects stand out: the higher percentage of women in the elderly population, owing to women's longer life expectancy, and, on the other hand, the higher percentage of men of working age, due in large part to a predominantly male immigrant population.<ref name="pob" />

===Immigration===
In 2024, over 850,000 people (9.88%) in Andalusia were born outside of Spain. The figure is up from 2.76% in 2002 when nationalities began to be registered.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ine.es/jaxiT3/Datos.htm?t=5234|title=Proporción de población extranjera por comunidad autónoma, según sexo y edad (desde 2002)|author=INE}}</ref> This is a relatively low number for a Spanish region, the national average being over three percentage points higher. 

The immigrants are not evenly distributed among the Andalusian provinces. In 2022, more than 21.8% of the Almería's population was immigrant, ranking third among all provinces in Spain. From the other end, Jaén and Córdoba had barely 2.8% immigrant population each, being the Spanish provinces with the lowest foreign population in relative numbers. The predominant foreign nationalities are [[Morocco|Moroccan]] (163,585, constituting 22.06 percent of the foreigners living in Andalusia) and [[United Kingdom|British]] (12.43 percent across the region). When comparing world regions rather than individual countries, the single largest immigrant block is [[Europe]], followed by [[Africa]] and [[Latin America]].<ref>[[Instituto Nacional de Estadística (Spain)|Instituto Nacional de Estadística de España]], 2005 census</ref> Demographically, this group has provided an important addition to the Andalusian labor force.<ref name="Indicadores sociales" /><ref name="Pob Extranjera" />

{{columns-start}}
{| class="wikitable"
|'''Foreign Population by Region'''<ref name="Immigrants2022">{{Cite web |title=Población extranjera por Nacionalidad, comunidades, Sexo y Año. |url=https://www.ine.es/jaxi/Datos.htm?path=/t20/e245/p08/l0/&file=02005.px |access-date=14 July 2023 |website=INE |language=es-ES |archive-date=21 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220221082714/https://www.ine.es/jaxi/Datos.htm?path=%2Ft20%2Fe245%2Fp08%2Fl0%2F&file=02005.px |url-status=live }}</ref>
|Number
|%
|-
|{{flag|European Union}}
|206,934
|27.91%
|-
|Rest of Europe
|135,529
|18.28%
|-
|TOTAL EUROPE
|342,463
|46.19%
|-
|TOTAL AFRICA
|211,443
|28.52%
|-
|[[South America]]
|102,938
|13.89%
|-
|[[Central America]]
|30,160
|4.06%
|-
|[[North America]]
|11,446
|1.54%
|-
|TOTAL AMERICAS
|144,544
|19.49%
|-
|TOTAL ASIA
|41,811
|5.64%
|-
|TOTAL OCEANIA
|573
|0.07%
|-
|'''TOTAL FOREIGNERS'''
|741,378
|100%
|-
|'''TOTAL ANDALUSIA'''
|colspan=2|8,511,167
|}
{{column}}
{| class="wikitable"
|'''Foreign Population by Nationality'''<ref name="Immigrants2022"></ref>
|Number
|%
|-
|{{flag|Morocco}}
|163,585
|22.06%
|-
|{{flag|United Kingdom}}
|92,180
|12.43%
|-
|{{flag|Romania}}
|73,010
|9.84%
|-
|{{flag|Italy}}
|26,328
|3.55%
|-
|{{flag|Colombia}}
|25,795
|3.48%
|-
|{{flag|China}}
|21,975
|2.96%
|-
|{{flag|Ukraine}}
|17,434
|2.35%
|-
|{{flag|Germany}}
|16,829
|2.26%
|-
|{{flag|Venezuela}}
|16,038
|2.16%
|-
|{{flag|Senegal}}
|15,942
|2.15%
|-
|{{flag|Argentina}}
|15,232
|2.05%
|-
|{{flag|Russia}}
|14,905
|2.01%
|}
{{columns-end}}

==Economy==
Andalusia is traditionally an agricultural area, but the [[service sector]] (particularly tourism, retail sales, and transportation) now predominates. The once booming construction sector, hit hard by the [[Great Recession|2009 recession]], was also important to the region's economy. The industrial sector is less developed than most other regions in Spain.

Between 2000 and 2006 economic growth per annum was 3.72%, one of the highest in the country. Still, according to the Spanish {{Lang|es|[[Instituto Nacional de Estadística (Spain)|Instituto Nacional de Estadística]]|italic=no}} (INE), the GDP per capita of Andalusia (€17,401; 2006) remains the second lowest in Spain, with only [[Extremadura]] lagging behind.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.diariodesevilla.es/article/economia/19254/la/renta/capita/andaluza/alcanza/los/euros/la/segunda/mas/baja/espana.html |title=La renta per cápita andaluza alcanza los 17.401 euros, la segunda más baja de España |newspaper=Diario de Sevilla |date=28 December 2007 |page=40 |access-date=4 April 2019 |language=es |publisher=[[Joly Digital]]}}</ref> The [[Gross domestic product]] (GDP) of the autonomous community was 160.6 billion euros in 2018, accounting for 13.4% of Spanish economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 20,500 euros or 68% of the EU27 average in the same year.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/10474907/1-05032020-AP-EN.pdf/81807e19-e4c8-2e53-c98a-933f5bf30f58 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/10474907/1-05032020-AP-EN.pdf/81807e19-e4c8-2e53-c98a-933f5bf30f58 |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |title=Regional GDP per capita ranged from 30% to 263% of the EU average in 2018 |website=Eurostat}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; text-align:center;"
|-
|+ GDP, GDP per capita, number of people in the work force, percentage of the Andalusian work force by province<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/institutodeestadisticaycartografia/iea/visualizar.jsp?CodOper=832&codConsulta=-428978 |title=Explotación obtenida a partir de la tabla Contabilidad Provincial Anual de Andalucía |access-date=4 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180223050923/http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/institutodeestadisticaycartografia/iea/visualizar.jsp?CodOper=832&codConsulta=-428978 |archive-date=23 February 2018 |publisher=[[Junta de Andalucía]] |language=es |work=[[Instituto de Estadística y Cartografía de Andalucía]] |url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
! !! Andalusia !! [[Province of Almería|Almería]] !! [[Province of Cádiz|Cádiz]] !! [[Province of Córdoba (Spain)|Córdoba]] !! [[Province of Granada|Granada]] !! [[Province of Huelva|Huelva]] !! [[Province of Jaén (Spain)|Jaén]] !! [[Province of Málaga|Málaga]] !! [[Province of Seville|Seville]]
|-
|style="text-align:left;"| GDP (thousands of €) || 154,011,654|| 14,124,024|| 21,430,772|| 13,000,521|| 16,403,614|| 9,716,037|| 10,036,091|| 31,331,122|| 37,969,433
|-
|style="text-align:left;"| GDP per capita (€) || 18,360|| 20,054 || 17,284 || 16,422 || 17,919 || 18,699 || 15,481|| 19,229 || 19,574
|-
|style="text-align:left;"| Workers || 2,990,143|| 286,714|| 387,174 || 264,072|| 309,309|| 196,527 || 220,877|| 607,255|| 718,215
|-
|style="text-align:left;"| GDP (%) || 100 || 9.17 || 13.92 || 8.44 || 10.65 || 6.31 || 6.52 || 20.34 || 24.65
|}

===Primary sector===
The [[primary sector]], despite adding the least of the three sectors to the regional [[GDP]], remains important, especially when compared to typical developed economies. The primary sector produces 8.26 percent of regional GDP, 6.4 percent of its GVA and employs 8.19 percent of the workforce.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/regional-innovation-monitor/base-profile/andalusia-0 |title=Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs: Andalusia |last=European Commission |date=2018 |access-date=10 July 2019}}</ref><ref>IEA data for 2007</ref>{{better source needed|date=March 2018}}<!-- existing citation is very vague--> In monetary terms it could be considered a rather uncompetitive sector, given its level of productivity compared to other Spanish regions.{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}} In addition to its numeric importance relative to other regions, agriculture and other primary sector activities have strong roots in local culture and identity.

The primary sector is divided into a number of subsectors: [[agriculture]], [[commercial fishing]], [[animal husbandry]], [[hunting]], [[forestry]], [[mining]], and [[energy]].

====Agriculture, husbandry, hunting, and forestry====
[[File:Aceites DOP Andalucía.svg|thumb|325px|[[Protected Geographical Status|Denominations of origin]] of [[olive oil]] in Andalusia]]

For many centuries, agriculture dominated Andalusian society, and, with 44.3 percent of its territory cultivated and 8.4 percent of its workforce in agriculture as of 2016 it remains an integral part of Andalusia's economy.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.bioeconomiaandalucia.es/documents/1056091/1056684/IRA+Andalusia/d55a2a1a-98f3-419e-845a-d2ce5c88ea75?version=1.0#%5B%7B%22num%22%3A18%2C%22gen%22%3A0%7D%2C%7B%22name%22%3A%22XYZ%22%7D%2C70.9%2C740%2C0%5D |title=Andalusia as a model demonstrator region |last=CIRCE and CEFIC Consultants and Bioeconomía en Andalucía |date=September 2016 |access-date=10 July 2019 |archive-date=26 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726015054/http://www.bioeconomiaandalucia.es/documents/1056091/1056684/IRA+Andalusia/d55a2a1a-98f3-419e-845a-d2ce5c88ea75?version=1.0#%5B%7B%22num%22%3A18%2C%22gen%22%3A0%7D%2C%7B%22name%22%3A%22XYZ%22%7D%2C70.9%2C740%2C0%5D |url-status=dead}}</ref><!-- citation is vague --> However, its importance is declining, like the primary and secondary sectors generally, as the service sector is increasingly taking over.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |url=https://www.juntadeandalucia.es/export/drupaljda/Macromagnitudes_maestra_abril_2015_INGLES_V02.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.juntadeandalucia.es/export/drupaljda/Macromagnitudes_maestra_abril_2015_INGLES_V02.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |title=The Agricultural and Fisheries sector in Andalusia |last=Consejería de Agricultura, Pesca y Desarrollo RuralSecretaría General de Agricultura y Alimentación |date=April 2015 |access-date=10 July 2019}}</ref> The primary cultivation is dryland farming of [[cereal]]s and [[sunflower]]s without artificial [[irrigation]], especially in the vast countryside of the Guadalquivir valley and the high plains of Granada and Almería-with a considerably lesser and more geographically focused cultivation of [[barley]] and [[avena|oats]]. Using irrigation, [[maize]], [[cotton]] and [[rice]] are also grown on the banks of the Guadalquivir and [[Genil]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/web/Bloques_Tematicos/Publicaciones_Divulgacion_Y_Noticias/Documentos_Tecnicos/Recursos_naturales/PDFs/144_197.pdf |title=Recursos de la agricultura: Recursos naturales de Andalucía. |access-date=7 October 2008 |author=Consejería de Medio Ambiente |language=es}}</ref>
[[File:Olive orchards Córdoba.jpg|thumb|Olive orchards in province of Córdoba.]]
The most important tree crops are [[Olea europaea|olives]], especially in the Subbetic regions of the provinces of Córdoba and Jáen, where irrigated olive orchards constitute a large component of agricultural output.<ref>Junta de Andalucía, ''[http://www.portalbesana.es/documentos/documentacion/olivarandaluz/cap5.pdf Impacto de la ayuda a la producción sobre el olivar andaluz] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090419045620/http://www.portalbesana.es/documentos/documentacion/olivarandaluz/cap5.pdf |date=19 April 2009 }}'', in ''[http://www.portalbesana.es/estaticas/servicios/documentacion/elolivarandaluz.html El Olivar Andaluz] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091212044331/http://www.portalbesana.es/estaticas/servicios/documentacion/elolivarandaluz.html |date=12 December 2009 }}'', Besana. Retrieved 9 October 2008.</ref> There are extensive [[vineyard]]s in various zones such as [[Jerez de la Frontera]] ([[sherry]]), [[Condado de Huelva]], [[Montilla-Moriles]] and [[Malaga (wine)|Málaga]]. Fruits—mainly [[citrus]] fruits—are grown near the banks of the Guadalquivir; [[almond]]s, which require far less water, are grown on the high plains of Granada and Almería.<ref>{{cite book |author=Naranjo, J. |chapter=Cultivos y aprovechamientos en Andalucía |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref>

In monetary terms, by far the most productive and competitive agriculture in Andalusia is the intensive forced cultivation of strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and other fruits grown under hothouse conditions under clear plastic, often in sandy zones, on the coasts, in Almería and Huelva.<ref>{{cite book |author=García, A. |chapter=La agricultura litorial |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref>

[[File:Dehesa Boyal. Bollullos Par del Condado (Huelva).jpg|thumb|''Dehesa Boyal'' (meadow for grazing animals), [[Bollullos Par del Condado]], [[Huelva]].]]
[[File:Adra 1.jpg|thumb|The town of Adra is surrounded by [[greenhouses]].]]

[[Organic farming]] has recently undergone rapid expansion in Andalusia, mainly for export to European markets but with increasing demand developing in Spain.<ref>{{cite book |publisher=Empresa Pública Desarrollo Agrario y Pesquero, Consejería de Agricultura y Pesca, Junta de Andalucía. |title=II PLAN ANDALUZ DE AGRICULTURA ECOLÓGICA (2007–2013) |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/agriculturaypesca/portal/www/portal/PDF_Directos/libro_plan_ae.pdf |access-date=18 October 2008 |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090824001100/http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/agriculturaypesca/portal/www/portal/PDF_Directos/libro_plan_ae.pdf |archive-date=24 August 2009}}</ref>

Andalusia has a long tradition of [[animal husbandry]] and [[livestock]] farming, but it is now restricted mainly to mountain meadows, where there is less pressure from other potential uses. Andalusians have a long and colourful history of [[dog breeding]] that can be observed throughout the region today. The raising of livestock now plays a semi-marginal role in the Andalusian economy, constituting only 15 percent of the primary sector, half the number for Spain taken as a whole.<ref>{{cite book |author=Silva, R. |chapter=Ganadería y sistemas ganaderos |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref>

"Extensive" raising of livestock grazes the animals on natural or cultivated [[pasture]]s, whereas "intensive" raising of livestock is based in [[fodder]] rather than pasture. Although the productivity is higher than with extensive techniques, the economics are quite different. While intensive techniques now dominate in Europe and even in other regions of Spain, most of Andalusia's [[cattle]], virtually all of its [[sheep]] and [[goat]]s, and a good portion of its [[pig]]s are raised by extensive farming in mountain pastures. This includes the [[Black Iberian pig]]s that are the source of ''[[Jamón ibérico]]''. Andalusia's native sheep and goats present a great economic opportunity in a Europe where animal products are generally in strong supply, but the sheep and goat meat, milk, and leather (and the products derived from these) are relatively scarce. [[Dog]]s are bred not just as companion animals, but also as herding animals used by goat and sheep herders.

Hunting remains relatively important in Andalusia, but has largely lost its character as a means of obtaining food.
It is now more of a leisure activity linked to the mountain areas and complementary to forestry and the raising of livestock.<ref name="gancaz">{{cite book |author=López, A. |chapter=La caza en Andalucía |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref> Dogs are frequently used as hunting companions to retrieve killed game.

The Andalusian [[forest]]s are important for their extent—50 percent of the territory of Andalusia—and for other less quantifiable environmental reasons, such as their value in preventing erosion, regulating the flow of water necessary for other flora and fauna. For these reasons, there is legislation in place to protect the Andalusian forests.<ref>{{cite book |author=Araque, E. |chapter=Los espacios forestales andaluces. |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref> The value of forest products as such constitutes only 2 percent of agricultural production. This comes mostly from cultivated species—[[eucalyptus]] in Huelva and [[Populus|poplar]] in Granada—as well as naturally occurring [[cork oak]] in the Sierra Morena.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/web/Bloques_Tematicos/Publicaciones_Divulgacion_Y_Noticias/Documentos_Tecnicos/Recursos_naturales/PDFs/249_276.pdf |title=Recursos forestales: Recursos naturales de Andalucía. |access-date=7 October 2008 |author=Consejería de Medio Ambiente |language=es}}</ref>

====Fishing====
[[File:Muelle pesquero de Algeciras 1.JPG|thumb|Fishing port of [[Algeciras]].]]

[[Commercial fishing|Fishing]] is a longstanding tradition on the Andalusian coasts. Fish and other seafood have long figured prominently in the local diet and in the local [[gastronomy|gastronomic]] culture: [[fried fish]] (''pescaito frito'' in local dialect), white [[prawn]]s, ''[[almadraba]]'' tuna, among others. The Andalusian fishing fleet is Spain's second largest, after [[Galicia (Spain)|Galicia]], and Andalusia's 38 fishing ports are the most of any Spanish autonomous community.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/fi/oldsite/FCP/es/ESP/profile.htm |title=El Reino de España. Datos económicos generales – Abril 2007 |access-date=5 October 2008 |publisher=FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081010042450/http://www.fao.org/fi/oldsite/FCP/es/ESP/profile.htm |archive-date=10 October 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> Commercial fishing produces only 0.5 percent of the product of the regional primary sector by value, but there are areas where it has far greater importance. In the province of Huelva it constitutes 20 percent of the primary sector, and locally in [[Punta Umbría]] 70 percent of the work force is involved in commercial fishing.<ref>{{cite book |author=Suárez, J.L. |author2=Rodríguez, J.A. |chapter=La pesca en Andalucía |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref>

Failure to comply with fisheries laws regarding the use of trawling, urban [[pollution]] of the seacoast, destruction of habitats by coastal construction (for example, alteration of the mouths of rivers, construction of ports), and diminution of fisheries by [[overexploitation]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.consumer.es/web/es/medio_ambiente/2002/05/15/45840.php |title=Peligra la supervivencia de algunas plantas marinas en el litoral malagueño |access-date=18 October 2008 |date=15 May 2002 |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081203165558/http://www.consumer.es/web/es/medio_ambiente/2002/05/15/45840.php |archive-date=3 December 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
have created a permanent crisis in the Andalusian fisheries, justifying attempts to convert the fishing fleet. The decrease in fish stocks has led to the rise of [[aquaculture]], including [[fish farming]] both on the coasts and in the interior.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/web/Bloques_Tematicos/Publicaciones_Divulgacion_Y_Noticias/Documentos_Tecnicos/Recursos_naturales/PDFs/125_143.pdf |title=Recursos del mar: Recursos naturales de Andalucía. |access-date=7 October 2008 |author=Consejería de Medio Ambiente |language=es}}</ref>

====Mining====
[[File:Aznalcollar 1.jpg|thumb|Aznalcóllar mine.]]
Despite the general poor returns in recent years, [[mining]] retains a certain importance in Andalusia. Andalusia produces half of Spain's mining product by value. Of Andalusia's production, roughly half comes from the province of Huelva. Mining for precious metals at [[Minas de Riotinto]] in Huelva (''see [[Rio Tinto Group]]'') dates back to pre-Roman times; the mines were abandoned in the Middle Ages and rediscovered in 1556. Other mining activity is [[coal]] mining in the Guadiato valley in the province of Córdoba; various metals at [[Aznalcóllar]] in the province of Seville, and iron at [[Alquife]] in the province of Granada. In addition, limestone, clay, and other materials used in construction are well distributed throughout Andalusia.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/web/Bloques_Tematicos/Publicaciones_Divulgacion_Y_Noticias/Documentos_Tecnicos/Recursos_naturales/PDFs/100_124.pdf |title=Energía y minerales: Recursos naturales de Andalucía. |access-date=7 October 2008 |author=Consejería de Medio Ambiente |language=es}}</ref>

===Secondary sector: industry===
The Andalusian industrial sector has always been relatively small. Nevertheless, in 2007, Andalusian industry earned 11.979 million euros and employed more than 290,000 workers. This represented 9.15 percent of regional GDP, far below the 15.08 the secondary sector represents in the economy of Spain as a whole.<ref>IEA: Contabilidad Regional de Andalucía{{full citation needed|date=September 2020}}</ref> By analyzing the different subsectors of the food industry Andalusian industry accounts for more than 16% of total production. In a comparison with the Spanish economy, this subsector is virtually the only food that has some weight in the national economy with 16.16%. Lies far behind the manufacturing sector of shipping materials just over 10% of the Spanish economy. Companies like Cruzcampo (Heineken Group), Puleva, Domecq, Santana Motors or Renault-Andalusia, are exponents of these two subsectors. Of note is the Andalusian aeronautical sector, which is second nationally only behind Madrid and represents approximately 21% of total turnover in terms of employment, highlighting companies like [[Airbus]], [[Airbus Military]], or the newly formed Aerospace Alestis. On the contrary it is symptomatic of how little weight the regional economy in such important sectors such as textiles or electronics at the national level.{{Citation needed|date=January 2010}}

Andalusian industry is also characterized by a specialization in industrial activities of transforming raw agricultural and mineral materials. This is largely done by small enterprises without the public or foreign investment more typical of a high level of industrialization.

===Tertiary sector: services===
[[File:Castillo de Sancti Petri.JPG|thumb|Castle of Sancti Petri, located in [[San Fernando, Cádiz]]. One of the largest components of the service sector is "sun and sand" tourism.]]

In recent decades the Andalusian tertiary (service) sector has grown greatly, and has come to constitute the majority of the regional economy, as is typical of contemporary economies in developed nations.<ref>{{cite book |author=Carabaca, I. |chapter=La terciarización de la economía andaluza |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> In 1975 the service sector produced 51.1 percent of local GDP and employed 40.8 percent of the work force. In 2007, this had risen to 67.9 percent of GDP and 66.42 percent of jobs. This process of "tertiarization" of the economy has followed a somewhat unusual course in Andalusia.<ref name=tertiarization>{{cite journal |author=Genaro, M.D. |author2=González, F.J. |title=La terciarización en Andalucía: evolución de la producción y el empleo |year=1997 |journal=Actas del I Congreso de Ciencia Regional de Andalucía: Andalucía en el umbral del siglo XX |url=http://www2.uca.es/escuela/emp_je/investigacion/congreso/mcc034.pdf |language=es |access-date=12 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100331090936/http://www2.uca.es/escuela/emp_je/investigacion/congreso/mcc034.pdf |archive-date=31 March 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref> This growth occurred somewhat earlier than in most developed economies and occurred independently of the local industrial sector. There were two principal reasons that "[[tertiarization]]" followed a different course in Andalusia than elsewhere:

1. Andalusian capital found it impossible to compete in the industrial sector against more developed regions, and was obligated to invest in sectors that were easier to enter.

2. The absence of an industrial sector that could absorb displaced agricultural workers and artisans led to the proliferation of services with rather low productivity. This unequal development compared to other regions led to a hypertrophied and unproductive service sector, which has tended to reinforce underdevelopment, because it has not led to large accumulations of capital.<ref name=tertiarization /><ref>{{cite book |last=Delgado Cabeza |first=Manuel |title=Dependencia y marginación de la economía andaluza |year=1981 |publisher=Publicaciones del Monte de Piedad, Caja de Ahorros |location=Córdoba |isbn=84-7231-613-0 |language=es}}</ref>

====Tourism in Andalusia====
[[File:Arcos de la Frontera, desde el balcón de la Peña Nueva.jpg|thumb|[[Arcos de la Frontera]], province of Cádiz]]
[[File:Ronda La Ciudad2004.jpg|thumb|View of [[Ronda]]]]
[[File:Puerto Banús 3.jpg|thumb|350px|[[Puerto Banús]], [[Marbella]], Costa del Sol.]]
[[File:Sierra Nevada Laguna skilift 6.jpg|thumb|Sierra Nevada Ski Station]]
[[File:Fuente de los Leones di Baeza.jpg|thumb|Fuente de los Leones in [[Baeza, Spain|Baeza]], province of Jaén.]]
Due in part to the relatively mild winter and spring climate, the south of Spain is attractive to overseas visitors–especially tourists from Northern Europe. While inland areas such as [[Province of Jaén (Spain)|Jaén]], [[Córdoba (Spanish province)|Córdoba]] and the hill villages and towns remain relatively untouched by tourism, the coastal areas of Andalusia have heavy visitor traffic for much of the year.

Among the autonomous communities, Andalusia is second only to [[Catalonia]] in tourism, with nearly 30 million visitors every year. The principal tourist destinations in Andalusia are the [[Costa del Sol]] and (secondarily) the [[Sierra Nevada (Spain)|Sierra Nevada]]. As discussed [[#Climate|above]], Andalusia is one of the sunniest and warmest places in Europe, making it a center of "sun and sand" tourism,<ref>{{cite book |author=Fernández, A. |chapter=Actividades y espacios turísticos |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref> but not only it. Around 70 percent of the lodging capacity and 75 percent of the nights booked in Andalusian hotels are in coastal municipalities. The largest number of tourists come in August—13.26 percent of the nights booked throughout the year—and the smallest number in December—5.36 percent.

On the west (Atlantic) coast are the [[Costa de la Luz]] (provinces of Huelva and Cádiz), and on the east (Mediterranean) coast, the [[Costa del Sol]] (provinces of Cádiz y Málaga), [[Costa Tropical]] (Granada and part of Almería) and the [[Costa de Almería]]. In 2004, the [[Blue Flag beach]] program of the non-profit [[Foundation for Environmental Education]] recognized 66 Andalusian beaches and 18 pleasure craft ports as being in a good state of conservation in terms of sustainability, accessibility, and quality.{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}} Nonetheless, the level of tourism on the Andalusian coasts has been high enough to have a significant environmental impact, and other organizations—such as the Spanish [[Ecologists in Action]] (''Ecologistas en Acción'') with their description of "Black Flag beaches"<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ecologistasenaccion.org/spip.php?article11444 |title=Banderas negras 2008 en Andalucía |access-date=18 October 2008 |language=es |archive-date=26 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726013504/http://www.ecologistasenaccion.org/spip.php?article11444 |url-status=dead}}</ref> or [[Greenpeace]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.20minutos.es/data/adj/2007/06/26/702.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.20minutos.es/data/adj/2007/06/26/702.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |title=Destrucción a toda costa |date=2 February 2007 |access-date=19 October 2008 |language=es}}</ref>—have expressed the opposite sentiment. Still, [[Hotel chains]] such as Fuerte Hotels have ensured that sustainability within the tourism industry is one of their highest priorities.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.accessibletourism.org/?i=enat.en.news.1097 |title=Responsible Tourism in FITUR, Spain – European Network for Accessible Tourism}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.andalucia.com/travel/environmentally-sustainable-tourism.htm |title=Environmentally Sustainable Tourism in Andalucia |first=Brenda |last=Padilla |website=Andalucia.com |date=18 October 2013}}</ref><ref>[http://sustainabletourismworld.org/fuerte-hoteles-devotedly-focused-on-responsible-tourism/ Fuerte Hoteles, Devotedly Focused on Responsible Tourism – Sustainable Tourism World] {{webarchive| url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151028163648/http://sustainabletourismworld.org/fuerte-hoteles-devotedly-focused-on-responsible-tourism/ |date=28 October 2015 }}</ref>

Together with "sand and sun" tourism, there has also been a strong increase in nature tourism in the interior, as well as [[cultural tourism]], sport tourism, and conventions.{{Citation needed|date=November 2014}} One example of sport and nature tourism is the ski resort at [[Sierra Nevada National Park (Spain)|Sierra Nevada National Park]].

As for cultural tourism, there are hundreds of cultural tourist destinations: cathedrals, castles, forts, monasteries, and historic city centers and a wide variety of museums.

It can be highlighted that Spain has seven of its 42 cultural UNESCO [[World Heritage Site]]s in Andalucia:
* [[Alhambra]], Generalife and Albayzín, [[Granada]] (1984,1994)
* [[Antequera Dolmens Site]] (2016)
* 10th Century Caliphate City of [[Medina Azahara]] (2018)
* [[Seville Cathedral|Cathedral]], [[Alcázar of Seville|Alcázar]] and [[General Archive of the Indies|Archivo de Indias]] in [[Seville]] (1987)
* [[Historic centre of Córdoba]]  (1984,1994)
* Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of [[Úbeda]] and [[Baeza, Spain|Baeza]] (2003)
* [[Rock art of the Iberian Mediterranean Basin|Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula]] (1998)

Further, there are the ''[[Lugares colombinos]]'', significant places in the life of [[Christopher Columbus]]:<ref>Decreto 553/1967, de 2 de marzo, por el que se declara conjunto histórico artístico el sector denominado "Lugares Colombinos" en la provincia de Huelva. He was laid to rest in Seville Cathedral.  [http://www.boe.es/g/es/bases_datos/search.php?coleccion=gazeta&frases=no&sort_field%5B0%5D=fpu&sort_order%5B0%5D=desc&sort_field%5B1%5D=ref&sort_order%5B1%5D=asc&OK=Buscar&operador%5B0%5D=and&campo%5B0%5D=TIT&dato%5B0%5D=lugares+colombinos&operador%5B1%5D=and&campo%5B1%5D=ID_RNG&dato%5B1%5D=&operador%5B2%5D=and&campo%5B2%5D=DEM&dato%5B2%5D=&operador%5B3%5D=and&campo%5B3%5D=ID_GAZ&dato%5B3%5D=&operador%5B4%5D=and&campo%5B4%5D=TIT&dato%5B4%5D=&operador%5B5%5D=and&campo%5B5%5D=NBO&dato%5B5%5D=&operador%5B6%5D=and&campo%5B6%5D=FPU&dato%5B6%5D%5B0%5D=&dato%5B6%5D%5B1%5D=&operador%5B7%5D=and&campo%5B7%5D=FAP&dato%5B7%5D%5B0%5D=&dato%5B7%5D%5B1%5D=&page_hits=40&sort_field%5B0%5D=FPU&sort_order%5B0%5D=desc&sort_field%5B1%5D=ref&sort_order%5B1%5D=asc BOE nº 69 de 22 March 1967.] {{Webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927225104/http://www.boe.es/g/es/bases_datos/search.php?coleccion=gazeta&frases=no&sort_field%5B0%5D=fpu&sort_order%5B0%5D=desc&sort_field%5B1%5D=ref&sort_order%5B1%5D=asc&OK=Buscar&operador%5B0%5D=and&campo%5B0%5D=TIT&dato%5B0%5D=lugares+colombinos&operador%5B1%5D=and&campo%5B1%5D=ID_RNG&dato%5B1%5D=&operador%5B2%5D=and&campo%5B2%5D=DEM&dato%5B2%5D=&operador%5B3%5D=and&campo%5B3%5D=ID_GAZ&dato%5B3%5D=&operador%5B4%5D=and&campo%5B4%5D=TIT&dato%5B4%5D=&operador%5B5%5D=and&campo%5B5%5D=NBO&dato%5B5%5D=&operador%5B6%5D=and&campo%5B6%5D=FPU&dato%5B6%5D%5B0%5D=&dato%5B6%5D%5B1%5D=&operador%5B7%5D=and&campo%5B7%5D=FAP&dato%5B7%5D%5B0%5D=&dato%5B7%5D%5B1%5D=&page_hits=40&sort_field%5B0%5D=FPU&sort_order%5B0%5D=desc&sort_field%5B1%5D=ref&sort_order%5B1%5D=asc |date=27 September 2007 }}</ref> [[Palos de la Frontera]], [[La Rábida Monastery]], and [[Moguer]]) in the province of Huelva. There are also archeological sites of great interest: the Roman city of [[Italica]], birthplace of [[Roman emperor|Emperor]] [[Trajan]] and (most likely) [[Hadrian]] or [[Baelo Claudia]] near Tarifa.

Andalusia was the birthplace of such great painters as [[Diego Velázquez|Velázquez]] and [[Bartolomé Esteban Murillo|Murillo]] (Seville) and, more recently, [[Pablo Picasso|Picasso]] (Málaga); Picasso is memorialized by his native city at the [[Museo Picasso Málaga]] and [[Fundación Picasso|Natal House Foundation]]; the [[Casa de Murillo]] was a [[house museum]] 1982–1998, but is now mostly offices for the Andalusian Council of Culture. The CAC Málaga (Museum of Modern Art) is the most visited museum of Andalusia<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.andalucia.com/history/people/pablo-picasso.htm |title=Pablo Picasso, Andalucia {{!}} Southern Spain |website=www.andalucia.com |date=12 February 2014 |language=en-GB |access-date=4 December 2017}}</ref> and has offered exhibitions of artists such as [[Louise Bourgeois]], [[Jake and Dinos Chapman]], [[Gerhard Richter]], [[Anish Kapoor]], [[Ron Mueck]] or [[Rodney Graham]]. Malaga is also located part of the private [[Carmen Cervera|Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection]] at [[Carmen Thyssen Museum]].

There are numerous other significant museums around the region, both of paintings and of archeological artifacts such as gold jewelry, pottery and other ceramics, and other works that demonstrate the region's artisanal traditions.

The Council of Government has designated the following "Municipios Turísticos": in Almería, [[Roquetas de Mar]]; in Cádiz, [[Chiclana de la Frontera]], [[Chipiona]], [[Conil de la Frontera]], [[Grazalema]], [[Rota, Andalusia|Rota]], and [[Tarifa]]; in Granada, [[Almuñécar]]; in Huelva, [[Aracena]]; in Jaén, [[Cazorla, Andalusia|Cazorla]]; in Málaga, [[Benalmádena]], [[Fuengirola]], [[Nerja]], [[Rincón de la Victoria]], [[Ronda]], and [[Torremolinos]]; in Seville, [[Santiponce]].

=====Monuments and features=====
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Alcazaba of Almería|Alcazaba]], [[Almería]]
* [[Cueva de Menga]], [[Antequera|Antequera (Málaga)]]
* [[El Torcal]], [[Antequera|Antequera (Málaga)]]
* [[Medina Azahara]], [[Córdoba, Andalusia|Córdoba]]
* [[Cathedral–Mosque of Córdoba|Mosque–Cathedral]], [[Córdoba, Andalusia|Córdoba]]
* [[Frigiliana|Mudejar Quarter, Frigiliana (Málaga)]]
* [[Alhambra]], [[Granada]]
* [[Palace of Charles V]], [[Granada]]
* [[Granada Charterhouse|Charterhouse]], [[Granada]]
* [[Albayzín]], [[Granada]]
* [[La Rabida Monastery]], [[Palos de la Frontera]] ([[Province of Huelva|Huelva]])
* [[Castle of Santa Catalina (Jaén)|Castle of Santa Catalina]], [[Jaén, Spain|Jaén]]
* [[Jaén Cathedral]], [[Jaén, Spain|Jaén]]
* [[Úbeda]] and [[Baeza, Spain|Baeza]], [[Jaén, Spain|Jaén]]
* [[Alcazaba (Málaga)|Alcazaba]], [[Málaga]]
* [[Buenavista Palace (Málaga)|Buenavista Palace]], [[Málaga]]
* [[Málaga Cathedral]], [[Málaga]]
* [[Puente Nuevo]], [[Ronda|Ronda (Málaga)]]
* [[Caves of Nerja]], [[Nerja|Nerja (Málaga)]]
* [[Plaza de Toros de Ronda|Ronda Bullring]], [[Ronda|Ronda (Málaga)]]
* [[Giralda]], [[Seville]]
* [[Torre del Oro]], [[Seville]]
* [[Plaza de España (Seville)|Plaza de España]], [[Seville]]
* [[Seville Cathedral]], [[Seville]]
* [[Alcázar of Seville]], [[Seville]]
* [[Almonaster la Real Mosque]], [[Almonaster la Real]] ([[Province of Huelva|Huelva]])
{{div col end}}

=== Unemployment ===
The unemployment rate was 16.1% in the first quarter of 2025, the lowest in 17 years.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.juntadeandalucia.es/organismos/empleoempresaytrabajoautonomo/servicios/actualidad/noticias/detalle/583048.html#:~:text=Con%20respecto%20al%20último%20trimestre,similares%20a%20los%20de%202008.|title=Andalucía cerró 2024 con 74.800 parados menos y récord histórico de ocupados, más de 3,48 millones|website=juntadeandalucia.es |access-date=19 May 2025|date=28 January 2025|language=es}}</ref> Although it has been declining sharply, Andalusian unemployment rate remains as one of the highest among the Spanish autonomous communities.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ine.es/infografias/tasasepa/desktop/tasas.html?t=0&lang=es|title=Tasa de paro por CCAA|website=ine.es|accessdate=19 May 2025|language=es}}</ref>

==Infrastructure==

===Transport===
[[File:Carreteras en Andalucía.PNG|thumb|325px|First order roads of Andalusia]]
As in any modern society, transport systems are an essential structural element of the functioning of Andalusia. The transportation network facilitates territorial coordination, economic development and distribution, and intercity transportation.<ref name="infra">{{cite book |author=Pozuelo, I. |chapter=Los sistemas de trasporte, las infraestructuras y el territorio |title=Geografía de Andalucía (Coor. López Antonio) |year=2003 |publisher=Ariel Geografía |location=Barcelona |isbn=84-344-3476-8 |language=es}}</ref>

In urban transport, underdeveloped public transport systems put pedestrian traffic and other non-motorized traffic are at a disadvantage compared to the use of private vehicles. Several Andalusian capitals—Córdoba, Granada and Seville—have recently been trying to remedy this by strengthening their public transport systems and providing a better infrastructure for the use of [[bicycle]]s.<ref>{{cite book |last=Cañavate |first=Jose Luis |author2=Corral, Carlos |publisher=Consejería de Medio Ambiente de la Junta de Andalucía |title=La bicicleta como medio de transporte en Andalucía |year=2004 |language=es}}</ref> There are now three [[rapid transit]] systems operating in Andalucia – the [[Seville Metro]], [[Málaga Metro]] and [[Granada Metro]]. [[Cercanías]] [[commuter rail]] networks operate in Seville, Málaga and Cádiz.

[[File:Sevilla2005Julio 050.jpg|thumb|left|Sevilla-Santa Justa railway station]]

For over a century, the conventional rail network has been centralized on the regional capital, Seville, and the national capital, Madrid; in general, there are no direct connections between provincial capitals. High-speed [[AVE]] trains run from Madrid via Córdoba to [[Madrid–Seville high-speed rail line|Seville]] and [[Madrid–Málaga high-speed rail line|Málaga]], from which a branch from [[Antequera–Granada high-speed rail line|Antequera to Granada]] opened in 2019. Further AVE routes are under construction.<ref>[http://www.renfe.es/ave/index.html Productos Alta Velocidad] {{Webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091208012050/http://www.renfe.es/ave/index.html |date=8 December 2009 }}, RENFE/AVE. Retrieved 11 December 2009.</ref> The Madrid-Córdoba-Seville route was the first high-velocity route in Spain (operating since 1992). Other principal routes are the one from Algeciras to Seville and from [[Almería]] via Granada to Madrid.

Most of the principal roads have been converted into [[limited access highway]]s known as ''[[autovía]]s''. The Autovía del Este ([[Autovía A-4]]) runs from Madrid through the Despeñaperros Natural Park, then via Bailén, Córdoba, and Seville to Cádiz, and is part of [[European route E05]] in the [[International E-road network]]. The other main road in the region is the portion of [[European route E15]], which runs as the Autovia del Mediterráneo along the Spanish Mediterranean coast. Parts of this constitute the [[Highway|superhighway]] [[Autopista AP-7]], while in other areas it is [[Autovía A-7]]. Both of these roads run generally east–west, although the Autovía A-4 turns to the south in western Andalusia.

Other first-order roads include the [[Autovía A-48]] roughly along the Atlantic coast from Cádiz to Algeciras, continuing European route E05 to meet up with [[European route E15]]; the Autovía del Quinto Centenario ([[Autovía A-49]]), which continues west from Seville (where the Autovía A-4 turns toward the south) and goes on to Huelva and into Portugal as [[European route E01]]; the Autovía Ruta de la Plata ([[Autovía A-66]]), [[European route E803]], which roughly corresponds to the ancient Roman '[[Vía de la Plata|Silver Route]]' from the mines of northern Spain, and runs north from Seville; the Autovía de Málaga ([[Autovía A-45]]), which runs south from Córdoba to Málaga; and the Autovía de Sierra Nevada ([[Autovía A-44]]), part of [[European route E902]], which runs south from Jaén to the Mediterranean coast at Motril.
[[File:Aeropuerto de Malaga.jpg|thumb|[[Málaga Airport]].]]
As of 2008 Andalusia has six public airports, all of which can legally handle international flights. The [[Málaga Airport]] is dominant, handling 60.67 percent of passengers<ref name="Datos Aena">{{cite web |publisher=AENA |url=http://estadisticas.aena.es/csee/ContentServer?pagename=Estadisticas/Home |title=Informes sobre la utilización de los aeropuertos de España en los últimos años |access-date=17 January 2008 |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080108081527/http://estadisticas.aena.es/csee/ContentServer?pagename=Estadisticas%2FHome |archive-date=8 January 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and 85 percent of its international traffic.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.myhomeinandalucia.com/infrastructure |title=My Home in Andalucia {{!}} Home |website=My Home in Andalucia {{!}} Home |access-date=31 October 2017}}</ref> The [[Seville Airport]] handles another 20.12 percent of traffic, and the [[Jerez Airport]] 7.17 percent, so that these three airports account for 87.96 percent of traffic.<ref name="Datos Aena" />

Málaga Airport is the international airport that offers a wide variety of international destinations. It has a daily link with twenty cities in Spain and over a hundred cities in Europe (mainly in Great Britain, Central Europe and the Nordic countries but also the main cities of Eastern Europe: [[Moscow]], [[Saint Petersburg]], [[Sofia]], [[Riga]] or [[Bucharest]]), North Africa, Middle East ([[Riyadh]], [[Jeddah]] and [[Kuwait]]) and North America ([[New York City|New York]], [[Toronto]] and [[Montreal]]).
[[File:Port of Algeciras.jpg|thumb|left|[[Port of Algeciras]].]]
The main ports are Algeciras (for freight and container traffic) and Málaga for cruise ships. Algeciras is Spain's leading commercial port, with {{convert|60000000|tonne|ST}} of cargo in 2004.<ref>{{cite book |last=Barragán Muñoz |first=Juan Manuel |author2=Chica Ruiz, Adolfo |author3=Pérez Cayeiro, Maria Luisa |publisher=Consejería de Medio Ambiente de la Junta de Andalucía |title=Propuesta de Estrategia Andaluza de Gestión Integrada de Zonas Costeras |isbn=978-84-96776-06-7 |page=255 |chapter=3 |year=2008 |language=es}}</ref> Seville has Spain's only commercial river port. Other significant commercial ports in Andalusia are the ports of the [[Bay of Cádiz]], Almería and Huelva.

The Council of Government has approved a Plan of Infrastructures for the Sustainability of Transport in Andalusia (PISTA) 2007–2013, which plans an investment of 30 billion euros during that period.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ecoticias.com/20080916-andalucia-el-plan-de-infraestructuras-para-el-transporte-sostenible-preve-una-inversion-de-30000-millones.html |title=Andalucía. El Plan de Infraestructuras para el transporte sostenible prevé una inversión de 30.000 millones |access-date=11 December 2009 |date=16 September 2008 |work=Ecoticias.com |language=es |archive-date=19 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080919194831/http://www.ecoticias.com/20080916-andalucia-el-plan-de-infraestructuras-para-el-transporte-sostenible-preve-una-inversion-de-30000-millones.html |url-status=dead}}</ref><!-- this is not a strong citation, a better one would be welcome -->

===Energy infrastructure===
[[File:Andasol Guadix 2.jpg|thumb|Andasol solar power facility north of Sierra Nevada]]
The lack of high-quality [[fossil fuel]]s in Andalusia has led to a strong dependency on [[petroleum]] imports. Still, Andalusia has a strong potential for the development of [[renewable energy]], above all [[wind energy]]. The Andalusian Energy Agency established in 2005 by the autonomous government, is a new governmental organ charged with the development of energy policy and provision of a sufficient supply of energy for the community.<ref name="infra" />

The infrastructure for production of [[electricity]] consists of eight large [[thermal power station]]s, more than 70 [[hydroelectricity|hydroelectric]] power plants, two [[wind farm]]s, and 14 major [[cogeneration]] facilities. Historically, the largest Andalusian business in this sector was the [[Compañía Sevillana de Electricidad]], founded in 1894, absorbed into [[Endesa (Spain)|Endesa]] in 1996.
The [[Solar power tower]] [[PS10 solar power tower|PS10]] was built by the Andalusian firm [[Abengoa]] in [[Sanlúcar la Mayor]] in the province of Seville, and began operating in March 2007. It is the largest existing solar power facility in Europe.<ref>[http://www.renewableenergymagazine.com/paginas/Contenidosecciones.asp?ID=660&Tipo=&Nombre=Renewable%20energy%20news Abengoa opens the first EU commercial concentrating Solar Power Tower] {{webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090609193111/http://www.renewableenergymagazine.com/paginas/Contenidosecciones.asp?ID=660&Tipo=&Nombre=Renewable%20energy%20news |date=9 June 2009 }}, RenewableEnergyMagazine.com, 2 April 2007.</ref> Smaller solar power stations, also recent, exist at [[Cúllar]] and [[Galera, Granada]], inaugurated by [[Geosol]] and [[Caja Granada]]. Two more large thermosolar facilities, [[Andasol|Andasol I y II]], planned at Hoya de [[Guadix]] in the province of Granada are expected to supply electricity to half a million households.<ref name="Andasol2">[http://www.energias-renovables.com/paginas/Contenidosecciones.asp?ID=10880&Tipo=&Nombre=Noticias La central solar de alta temperatura de Andasol 2 ya ha puesto la primera piedra] {{webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928001704/http://www.energias-renovables.com/paginas/Contenidosecciones.asp?ID=10880&Tipo=&Nombre=Noticias |date=28 September 2007 }}, Energías Renovables, 12 July 2007.</ref> The [[Plataforma Solar de Almería]] (PSA) in the Tabernas Desert is an important center for the exploration of the solar energy.<ref>[http://www.dlr.de/tt/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-2881/4512_read-6631/ Plataforma Solar de Almeria] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110926212118/http://www.dlr.de/tt/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-2881/4512_read-6631/ |date=26 September 2011 }}, Institute of Technical Thermodynamics, German Aerospace Center. Retrieved 11 December 2009.</ref>

The largest wind power firm in the region is the [[Sociedad Eólica de Andalucía]], formed by the merger of [[Planta Eólica del Sur S.A.]] and [[Energía Eólica del Estrecho S.A.]]

The [[Medgaz]] gas pipeline directly connects the Algerian town of [[Béni Saf]] to Almería.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.diariodealmeria.es/finanzasyagricultura/Medgaz-une-continentes-Garcia-Lorca_0_1369963357.html |website=[[Diario de Almería]] |title=Medgaz une dos continentes con la obra firmada por García Lorca |date=4 July 2019 |first=Elio |last=Sancho}}</ref>

===Education===
[[File:Facultad de Derecho de Granada.JPG|thumb|left|Law School of the [[University of Granada]].]]

As throughout Spain, basic education in Andalusia is free and compulsory. Students are required to complete ten years of schooling, and may not leave school before the age of 16, after which students may continue on to a [[bachelor's degree|baccalaureate]], to intermediate [[vocational education]], to intermediate-level schooling in arts and design, to intermediate sports studies, or to the working world.

Andalusia has a tradition of higher education dating back to the [[Modern Age]] and the [[University of Granada]], [[University of Baeza]], and [[University of Osuna]].

{{As of|2009|post=,}} there were ten private or public universities in Andalusia. University studies are structured in cycles, awarding degrees based on [[European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System|ECTS credits]] in accord with the [[Bologna process]], which the Andalusian universities are adopting in accord with the other universities of the [[European Higher Education Area]].

===Healthcare===
[[File:Mapa sanitario de Andalucía.png|thumb|325px|Healthcare districts of Andalusia]]
Responsibility for healthcare jurisdictions devolved from the Spanish government to Andalusia with the enactment of the Statute of Autonomy. Thus, the [[Andalusian Health Service]] (''Servicio Andaluz de Salud'') currently manages almost all public health resources of the Community, with such exceptions as health resources for prisoners and members of the military, which remain under central administration.

===Science and technology===
According to the Outreach Program for Science in Andalusia, Andalusia contributes 14 percent of Spain's scientific production behind only Madrid and Catalonia among the autonomous communities,<ref>[http://www.andaluciainvestiga.com/espanol/investigacionAnd/investigacionAnd.asp www.andaluciainvestiga.com] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130224071749/http://www.andaluciainvestiga.com/espanol/investigacionAnd/investigacionAnd.asp |date=24 February 2013 }}</ref> even though regional investment in [[research and development]] (R&D) as a proportion of [[GDP]] is below the national average.<ref>Plan Andaluz de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación. PAIDI. 1 May 2005.</ref> The lack of research capacity in business and the low participation of the private sector in research has resulted in R&D taking place largely in the public sector.

The Council of Innovation, Science and Business is the organ of the autonomous government responsible for universities, research, technological development, industry, and energy. The council coordinates and initiates scientific and technical innovation through specialized centers an initiatives such as the [[Andalusian Center for Marine Science and Technology]] (''Centro Andaluz de Ciencia y Tecnología Marina'') and [[Technological Corporation of Andalusia]] (''Corporación Tecnológica de Andalucía'').

Within the private sphere, although also promoted by public administration, technology parks have been established throughout the Community, such as the [[Technological Park of Andalucia]] (''Parque Tecnológico de Andalucía'') in [[Campanillas]] on the outskirts of Málaga, and [[Cartuja 93]] in Seville. Some of these parks specialize in specific sector, such as {{ill|Aerópolis|es}} in [[aerospace]] or {{ill|Geolit|es}} in [[food technology]]. The Andalusian government deployed 600,000 [[Ubuntu (operating system)|Ubuntu]] desktop computers in their schools.

==Media==
Andalusia has international, national, regional, and local media organizations, which are active gathering and disseminating information (as well as creating and disseminating entertainment).

The most notable is the public [[Radio y Televisión de Andalucía]] (RTVA), broadcasting on two regional television channels, [[Canal Sur]] and [[Canal Sur 2]], four regional radio stations, Canal Sur Radio, Canal Fiesta Radio, Radio Andalucía Información and Canal Flamenco Radio, as well as various digital signals, most notably [[Canal Sur Andalucía]] available on [[cable television|cable TV]] throughout Spain.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.andalucia.cc/viva/dimedi.html#Radio |title=Medios de comunicación en Red Andaluza |access-date=8 October 2008 |author=Andalucía Comunidad Cultural |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081015041431/http://www.andalucia.cc/viva/dimedi.html#Radio |archive-date=15 October 2008 |url-status=dead}} That web page gives a rather complete listing of Andalusian media organizations.</ref>

===Newspapers===
Different newspapers are published for each Andalusian provincial capital, [[Comarcas of Andalusia|comarca]], or important city. Often, the same newspaper organization publishes different local editions with much shared content, with different [[Nameplate (publishing)|mastheads]] and different local coverage. There are also popular papers distributed without charge, again typically with local editions that share much of their content.

No single Andalusian newspaper is distributed throughout the region, not even with local editions. In eastern Andalusia the ''{{ill|Diario Ideal|es|Ideal (periódico)}}'' has editions tailored for the provinces of Almería, Granada, and Jaén. [[Grupo Joly]] is based in Andalucia, backed by Andalusian capital, and publishes eight daily newspapers there. Efforts to create a newspaper for the entire autonomous region have not succeeded (the most recent as of 2009 was the ''[[Diario de Andalucía]]''). The national press ({{Lang|es|[[El País]]}}, ''[[El Mundo (Spain)|El Mundo]]'', ''[[ABC (newspaper)|ABC]]'', etc.) include sections or editions specific to Andalusia.

===Public television===
[[File:Antigua Estación de Tren y Sede de RTVA en Córdoba, España.jpg|thumb|[[Radio y Televisión de Andalucía|RTVA]]'s headquarters, a former train station in Córdoba.]]

Andalusia has two public television stations, both operated by [[Radio y Televisión de Andalucía]] (RTVA):
* [[Canal Sur]] first broadcast on 28 February 1989 ([[Andalusia Day]]).
* [[Canal Sur 2]] first broadcast 5 June 1998. Programming focuses on culture, sports, and programs for children and youth.

In addition, RTVA also operates the national and international cable channel Canal Sur Andalucía, which first broadcast in 1996 as Andalucía Televisión.

===Radio===
There are four public radio stations in the region, all operated by RTVA:
* {{ill|Canal Sur Radio|es}}, first broadcast October 1988.
* {{ill|Radio Andalucía Información|es|Radio Andalucía}}, first broadcast September 1998.
* {{ill|Canal Fiesta Radio|es|Canal Fiesta}}, first broadcast January 2001.
* {{ill|Canal Flamenco Radio|es|Flamenco Radio}}, first broadcast 29 September 2008.

==Art and culture==
[[File:FlamencoSevilla.jpg|thumb|right|[[Flamenco]] dance and music is native to Andalusia.]]

The patrimony of Andalusia has been shaped by its particular history and geography, as well as its complex flows of population. Andalusia has been home to a succession of peoples and civilizations, many very different from one another, each impacting the settled inhabitants. The ancient [[Iberians]] were followed by [[Celts]], [[Phoenicia]]ns and other Eastern Mediterranean traders, [[Ancient Rome|Romans]], [[Migration Period|migrating Germanic tribes]], [[Arab-Berber|Arabs or Berbers]]. All have shaped the Spanish patrimony in Andalusia, which was already diffused widely in the literary and pictorial genre of the ''[[costumbrismo andaluz]]''.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Siguan, M. |title=Nueva teoría de Andalucía |year=1969 |journal=Revista de Estudios Agrosociales |number=69 |issn=0034-8155 |pages=7–24 |language=es |hdl=2445/21886}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Gómez, P. |title=Cuestiones sobre la identidad cultural de Andalucía |year=1982 |journal=Gazeta de antropología |number=1 |issn=0214-7564 |language=es}}</ref>

In the 19th century, Andalusian culture came to be widely viewed as the Spanish culture ''par excellence'', in part thanks to the perceptions of [[romanticism|romantic]] travellers. In the words of [[José Ortega y Gasset|Ortega y Gasset]]:

{{Blockquote|Andalusia, which has never shown the swagger nor petulancy of particularism; that has never pretended to the status of a State apart, is, of all the Spanish regions, the one that possesses a culture most radically its own. Throughout the 19th century, Spain has submitted itself to the hegemonic influence of Andalusia. That century began with the [[Cortes of Cádiz]]; it ended with the assassination of [[Antonio Cánovas del Castillo|Cánovas del Castillo]], ''malagueño'' [from Málaga], and the exaltation of [[Francisco Silvela|Silvela]], no less ''malagueño''. The dominant ideas have an Andalusian accent. One paints Andalusia: a roof-terrace, some flowerpots, blue sky. One reads southern authors. One speaks at all times of the "land of the Most Holy Virgin Mary". The thief from the Sierra Morena and the smuggler are national heroes. All Spain feels its existence justified by the honor of having on its flanks the Andalusian piece of the planet. Around 1900, like so many other things, this changes. The North sits up.<ref>José Ortega y Gasset, [http://es.wikisource.org/wiki/Teor%C3%ADa_de_Andaluc%C3%ADa_%28versi%C3%B3n_para_imprimir%29 ''Teoría de Andalucía''] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110519152155/http://es.wikisource.org/wiki/Teor%C3%ADa_de_Andaluc%C3%ADa_%28versi%C3%B3n_para_imprimir%29 |date=19 May 2011 }}, 1927, online at Wikisource in Spanish.</ref>|Ortega y Gasset, ''Teoría de Andalucía'', 1927}}

===Arts===
[[File:Guitarra d'Antonio de Torres, MDMB 626, al Museu de la Música de Barcelona.jpg|thumb|130px|Andalusian [[Antonio de Torres Jurado]] in the 19th century invented the current [[classical guitar]].]]
Andalusia has been the birthplace of many great artists: the classic painters [[Diego Velázquez|Velázquez]], [[Bartolomé Esteban Murillo|Murillo]], and [[Juan de Valdés Leal]]; the sculptors [[Juan Martínez Montañés]], [[Alonso Cano]] and [[Pedro de Mena]]; and such modern painters as [[Daniel Vázquez Díaz]] and [[Pablo Picasso]].

The Spanish composer [[Manuel de Falla]] was from Cádiz and incorporated typical Andalusian melodies in his works, as did [[Joaquín Turina]], from Seville. The great singer [[Camarón de la Isla]] was born in [[San Fernando, Cádiz]], and [[Andrés Segovia]] who helped shape the romantic-modernist approach to [[classical guitar]], was born in [[Linares, Jaén]]. The virtuoso Flamenco guitar player [[Paco de Lucia]] who helped internationalize Flamenco, was born in Algeciras, Cadiz.

====Architecture====
[[File:Alhambra Löwenhof mit Löwenbrunnen 2014.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Alhambra]] in [[Granada]].]]
Since the [[Neolithic]] era, Andalusia has preserved important [[megalith]]s, such as the [[dolmen]]s at the [[Cueva de Menga]] and the [[Dolmen de Viera]], both at [[Antequera]]. Archeologists have found [[Bronze Age]] cities at [[Los Millares]] and [[El Argar]]. Archeological digs at Doña Blanca in [[El Puerto de Santa María]] have revealed the oldest [[Phoenicia]]ns city in the Iberian peninsula; major ruins have also been revealed at Roman [[Italica]] near Seville.<ref>{{cite journal |author=AA.VV |title=Reflexiones acerca de las actuaciones llevadas a cabo en la sede administrativa y accesos del Conjunto Arqueológico de Itálica |year=2004 |journal=Mus-A: Revista de los museos de Andalucía |number=3 |issn=1695-7229 |pages=132–137 |url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/cultura/museos/media/docs/PORTAL_musa_n3.pdf |language=es}}</ref>

Some of the greatest architecture in Andalusia was developed across several centuries and civilizations, and the region is particularly famous for its Islamic and Moorish architecture, which includes the [[Alhambra|Alhambra complex]], [[Generalife]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bloom |first=Jonathan M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IRHbDwAAQBAJ&q=Architecture+of+the+Islamic+West%3A+North+Africa+and+the+Iberian+Peninsula%2C+700-1800&pg=PP1 |title=Architecture of the Islamic West: North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, 700-1800 |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2020 |isbn=9780300218701 |location= |pages=164 |access-date=27 June 2023 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114130754/https://books.google.com/books?id=IRHbDwAAQBAJ&q=Architecture+of+the+Islamic+West%3A+North+Africa+and+the+Iberian+Peninsula%2C+700-1800&pg=PP1#v=snippet&q=Architecture%20of%20the%20Islamic%20West%3A%20North%20Africa%20and%20the%20Iberian%20Peninsula%2C%20700-1800&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> and the [[Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba|Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba.]] 
[[File:Patio cordobés (7155649863).jpg|thumb|A ''patio andaluz'' in [[Córdoba, Spain|Córdoba]].]]
The traditional architecture of Andalusia retains its [[Architecture of ancient Rome|Roman]] with Arab influences brought by [[Islamic architecture|Muslims]], with a marked Mediterranean character strongly conditioned by the climate. Traditional urban houses are constructed with shared walls to minimize exposure to high exterior temperatures. Solid exterior walls are [[Whitewash|painted]] with [[Lime (material)|lime]] to minimize the heating effects of the sun. In accord with the climate and tradition of each area, the roofs may be [[Terrace (building)|terraces]] or tiled in the Roman [[imbrex and tegula]] style. One of the most characteristic elements (and one of the most obviously influenced by Roman architecture) is the interior [[patio]] or [[courtyard]]; the patios of Córdoba are particularly famous. Other characteristic elements are decorative (and functional) [[wrought iron]] [[grating]]s and the [[tile]]s known as ''[[azulejo]]s''. Landscaping—both for common private homes and homes on a more lavish scale—also carries on older traditions, with plants, flowers, and fountains, pools, and streams of water. Beyond these general elements, there are also specific local architectural styles, such as the [[flat roof]]s, roofed chimneys, and radically extended [[Balcony|balconies]] of the [[Alpujarra]], the cave dwellings of [[Guadix]] and of Granada's [[Sacromonte]], or the traditional architecture of the [[Mancomunidad de Municipios Marquesado del Zenete|Marquisate of Zenete]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=López, J. |author2=López J.S. |title=Arquitectura tradicional en el Marquesado del Zenete |year=2000 |journal=Gazeta de antropología |number=16 |issn=0214-7564 |url=http://www.ugr.es/~pwlac/G16_24JuanSalvador_Lopez-Jaime_Lopez.html |language=es}}</ref>

[[File:PLAZA E IGLESIA DE UBEDA - panoramio.jpg|thumb|left|Church of El Salvador in [[Úbeda]].]]The monumental architecture of the centuries immediately after the Reconquista often displayed an assertion of Christian hegemony through architecture that referenced non-Arab influences.{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}} Some of the greatest [[Renaissance architecture|Renaissance]] buildings in Andalusia are from the [[Kingdom of Jaén|then-kingdom of Jaén]]: the [[Jaén Cathedral]], designed in part by [[Andrés de Vandelvira]], served as a model for the [[Cathedral of Malaga]] and [[Cathedral of Guadix|Guadix]];{{Citation needed|date=January 2012}} the centers of [[Úbeda]] and [[Baeza, Spain|Baeza]], dating largely from this era, are UNESCO [[World Heritage Site]]s. Seville and its kingdom also figured prominently in this era, as is shown by the [[Casa consistorial de Sevilla]], the [[Hospital de las Cinco Llagas]], or the [[Charterhouse of Jerez de la Frontera]]. The [[Palace of Charles V]] in Granada is uniquely important for its [[Italianate architecture|Italianate]] purism.<ref>{{cite journal |author=García Vázquez, C. |title=Apuntes para una breve historia de la arquitectura moderna en Andalucía |year=2005 |journal=Revista de historia y teoría de la arquitectura |number=6–7 |issn=1576-5628 |pages=119–138 |language=es}}</ref> Andalusia also has such [[Baroque architecture|Baroque]]-era buildings as the [[Palace of San Telmo]] in Seville (seat of the current autonomic presidency), the [[Church of Our Lady of Reposo]] in [[Campillos]], and the [[Granada Charterhouse]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Galera, P.A. |chapter=Arquitectura y ciudad en la Andalucía del barroco |title=Andalucía Barroca: exposición itinerante |year=2007 |isbn=978-84-8266-725-6 |pages=62–81 |publisher=Junta de Andalucía, Consejería de Cultura |language=es}}</ref> [[Academic art|Academicism]] gave the region the [[Royal Tobacco Factory]] in Seville and [[Neoclassicism]] the nucleus of Cádiz, such as its {{ill|City Hall of Cádiz|lt=city hall|es|Ayuntamiento de Cádiz}}, [[Cárcel Real (Cádiz)|Royal Prison]], and the [[Oratorio de la Santa Cueva]].{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}

[[Revivalism (architecture)|Revivalist]] architecture in the 19th and 20th centuries contributed the buildings of the [[Ibero-American Exposition of 1929]] in Seville, including the [[Neo-Mudéjar]] [[Plaza de España (Seville)|Plaza de España]]. Andalusia also preserves an important industrial patrimony related to various economic activities.

Besides the architecture of the cities, there is also much outstanding rural architecture: houses, as well as ranch and farm buildings and [[dog house]]s.<ref>{{cite book |author=Torices, N. |author2=Zurita, E. |title=Cortijos, haciendas y lagares: arquitectura de las grandes explotaciones agrarias de Andalucía. Provincia de Granada |year=2002 |publisher=Ediciones Ilustres |location=Córdoba |isbn=84-8095-305-5 |language=es}}</ref>

====Sculpture====
[[File:Entierro cristo museo sevilla.jpg|thumb|''Crying Over the Dead Christ'', {{ill|Pedro Millán|es}}, [[Museum of Fine Arts of Seville]].]]

The [[Iberian sculpture|Iberian reliefs]] of [[Osuna]], [[Lady of Baza]], and {{ill|León de Bujalance|ca|Lleona de Bujalance|es|Leona de Bujalance}}, the Phoenician [[sarcophagus|sarcophagi]] of Cádiz, and the [[Roman sculpture]]s of the [[Baetica|Baetic]] cities such as [[Italica]] give evidence of traditions of sculpture in Andalusia dating back to antiquity.<ref>{{cite book |author=VV.AA. |title=Escultura ibérica en el Museo Provincial de Jaén |year=1990 |publisher=Consejería de Cultura de la Junta de Andalucía |isbn=84-86944-04-X |language=es}}</ref> There are few significant surviving sculptures from the time of [[al-Andalus]]; two notable exceptions are the lions of the Alhambra and of the [[Maristan of Granada|Maristán of Granada]] (the [[Nasrid]] hospital in the Albaicín).

The [[Sevillian school of sculpture]] dating from the 13th century onward and the [[Granadan school of sculpture|Granadan school]] beginning toward the end of the 16th century both focused primarily on Christian religious subject matter, including many wooden [[altarpiece]]s. Notable sculptors in these traditions include [[Lorenzo Mercadante de Bretaña]], {{ill|Pedro Millán|es}}, [[Juan Martínez Montañés]], [[Pedro Roldán]], {{ill|José de Arce|es}}, [[Jerónimo de Balbás|Jerónimo Balbás]], [[Alonso Cano]], and [[Pedro de Mena]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Aroca, F. |title=Aportaciones al estudio del retablo del siglo XVIII en la Baja Andalucía |year=1997 |journal=Laboratorio de Arte: Revista del Departamento de Historia del Arte |number=10 |issn=1130-5762 |pages=233–250 |language=es}}</ref>

Non-religious sculpture has also existed in Andalusia since antiquity. A fine example from the Renaissance era is the decoration of the [[Casa de Pilatos]] in Seville. Nonetheless, non-religious sculpture played a relatively minor role until such 19th-century sculptors as {{ill|Antonio Susillo|es}}.

====Painting====
{{multiple image
|total_width=350
|width1=199|height1=247|image1=Pablo picasso 1.jpg|caption1=[[Pablo Picasso]]
|width2=2344|height2=2936|image2=La Fuensanta, by Julio Romero de Torres.jpg|caption2=''[[La Fuensanta]]'', considered a quintessential rendition of Andalusian beauty.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/BID/0x0x138022/AB5F2632-1918-400C-9867-A1295652005F/138022.pdf |title=Iconic Cultural Image Heads Selection of Works by Top Spanish Artists |publisher=[[Sotheby's]] |access-date=29 July 2016 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304051734/http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/BID/0x0x138022/AB5F2632-1918-400C-9867-A1295652005F/138022.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>
}}
As in sculpture, there were {{ill|Sevillian school of painting|lt=Sevillian|es|Escuela sevillana de pintura}} and the {{ill|Granadan school of painting|lt=Granadan|es|Escuela granadina de pintura}} schools of painting. The former has figured prominently in the history of Spanish art since the 15th century and includes such important artists as [[Francisco Zurbarán|Zurbarán]], [[Diego Velázquez|Velázquez]] and [[Bartolomé Esteban Murillo|Murillo]], as well as art theorists such as [[Francisco Pacheco]]. The [[Museum of Fine Arts of Seville]] and the [[Museo del Prado|Prado]]<ref>{{cite journal |author=Bermejo, E. |author2=Valdivieso, E. |title=Historia de la pintura sevillana, siglos XIII al XX. Sevilla, 1986 (Book Review) |year=1988 |journal=Archivo español de arte |volume=61 |number=241 |issn=0004-0428 |pages=89–90 |language=es}}</ref> contain numerous representative works of the Sevillian school of painting.

A specific [[Romanticism|romantic]] genre known as ''[[costumbrismo andaluz]]'' depicts traditional and folkloric Andalusian subjects, such as bullfighting scenes, dogs, and scenes from Andalusia's history. Important artists in this genre include [[Manuel Barrón]], [[José García Ramos]], [[Gonzalo Bilbao]] and [[Julio Romero de Torres]]. The genre is well represented in the private [[Carmen Cervera|Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection]], part of which is on display at Madrid's [[Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum]] and [[Carmen Thyssen Museum]] in Málaga.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cervantesvirtual.com/portal/romanticismo/actas_pdf/romanticismo_6/reina.pdf |title=El costumbrismo en la pintura sevillana del siglo XIX |access-date=9 October 2008 |work=Cervantesvirtual.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080916013953/http://www.cervantesvirtual.com/portal/romanticismo/actas_pdf/romanticismo_6/reina.pdf |archive-date=16 September 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Málaga also has been and is an important artistic center. Its most illustrious representative was [[Pablo Picasso]], one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. The city has a [[Museo Picasso Málaga|Museum]] and [[Fundación Picasso|Natal House Foundation]], dedicated to the painter.

===Literature and philosophy===
[[File:Antonio de Nebrija (1492) Gramática castellana.png|thumb|left|upright|The 1492 ''Gramática'' by [[Antonio de Nebrija]]]]

Andalusia plays a significant role in the history of Spanish-language literature, although not all of the important literature associated with Andalusia was written in Spanish. Before 1492, there was the literature written in [[Andalusian Arabic]]. Hispano-Arabic authors native to the region include [[Ibn Hazm]], [[Ibn Zaydún]], [[Ibn Tufail]], [[Al-Mu'tamid]], [[Ibn al-Khatib]], [[Ibn al-Yayyab]], and [[Ibn Zamrak]]<ref>{{cite journal |author=Garulo, T. |author2=Rubiera Mata M.ªJ. |title=Literatura hispanoárabe (Book Review) |year=1993 |journal=Al-Qantara |volume=14 |number=1 |issn=0211-3589 |pages=245–248}}</ref> or Andalusian Hebrew poets as [[Solomon ibn Gabirol]]. [[Ibn Quzman]], of the 12th century, crafted poems in the colloquial Andalusian language.<ref name="Robinson263">{{cite book |last=Robinson |first=Francis |title=The Cambridge illustrated history of the Islamic world |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780521435109 |url-access=registration |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge |year=1999 |page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780521435109/page/263 263] |isbn=0-521-66993-6}}</ref>

In 1492 [[Antonio de Nebrija]] published his celebrated ''[[Gramática de la lengua castellana]]'' ("Grammar of the Castilian language"), the first such work for a modern European language. In 1528 [[Francisco Delicado]] wrote ''[[Portrait of Lozana: The Lusty Andalusian Woman|La lozana andaluza]]'', a novel in the orbit of ''[[La Celestina]]'', and in 1599 the Sevillian [[Mateo Alemán]] wrote the first part of ''[[Guzmán de Alfarache]]'', the first [[picaresque novel]] with a known author.

The prominent [[humanism|humanist]] literary school of Seville included such writers as [[Juan de Mal Lara]], [[Fernando de Herrera]], [[Gutierre de Cetina]], [[Luis Barahona de Soto]], [[Juan de la Cueva]], [[Gonzalo Argote de Molina]], and [[Rodrigo Caro]]. The Córdoban [[Luis de Góngora]] was the greatest exponent of the ''[[culteranismo]]'' of [[Baroque]] poetry in the [[Siglo de Oro]];<ref>{{cite journal |author=Hernández, A. |title=Las dos vertientes del barroco español |year=2004 |journal=Correo del Maestro |volume=8 |number=92 |url=http://www.correodelmaestro.com/anteriores/2004/enero/artistas92.htm |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091221031820/http://www.correodelmaestro.com/anteriores/2004/enero/artistas92.htm |archive-date=21 December 2009}}</ref> indeed, the style is often referred to as ''Góngorismo''.

Literary Romanticism in Spain had one of its great centers in Andalusia, with such authors as [[Ángel de Saavedra, 3rd Duke of Rivas]], [[José Cadalso]] and [[Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer]]. ''Costumbrismo andaluz'' existed in literature as much as in visual art, with notable examples being the ''Escenas andaluzas'' of [[Serafín Estébanez Calderón]] and the works of [[Pedro Antonio de Alarcón]].

Andalusian authors [[Ángel Ganivet]], [[Manuel Gómez-Moreno Martínez|Manuel Gómez-Moreno]], [[Manuel Machado (poet)|Manuel]] and [[Antonio Machado]], and [[Francisco Villaespesa]] are all generally counted in the [[Generation of '98]]. Also of this generation were the [[Quintero brothers]], dramatists who faithfully captured [[Andalusian Spanish|Andalusian dialects]] and idiosyncrasies. Also of note, 1956 [[Nobel Prize]]-winning poet [[Juan Ramón Jiménez]] was a native of [[Moguer]], near Huelva.

[[File:Federico García Lorca. Huerta de San Vicente, Granada.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Federico García Lorca]], prominent poet executed by Francoists during the [[Spanish Civil War]].]]
A large portion of the ''[[avant-garde]]'' [[Generation of '27]] who gathered at the [[Ateneo de Sevilla]] on the 300th anniversary of Góngora's death were Andalusians: [[Federico García Lorca]], [[Luis Cernuda]], [[Rafael Alberti]], [[Manuel Altolaguirre]], [[Emilio Prados]], and 1977 Nobel laureate [[Vicente Aleixandre]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=De Cózar, R. |title=Andalucía y la generación del 27 |year=1993 |journal=Cuadernos Hispanoamericanos |number=514–515 |issn=0011-250X |pages=319–320 |language=es}}</ref>

Certain Andalusian fictional characters have become universal archetypes: [[Prosper Mérimée]]'s gypsy ''Carmen'', [[P. D. Eastman]]'s ''Perro'', [[Pierre Beaumarchais]]'s ''Fígaro'', and [[Tirso de Molina]]'s ''Don Juan''.

As in most regions of Spain, the principal form of popular verse is the [[romance (meter)|romance]], although there are also [[strophe]]s specific to Andalusia, such as the ''[[soleá]]'' or the ''{{ill|soleariya|es||it}}''. Ballads, lullabies, street vendor's cries, nursery rhymes, and work songs are plentiful.

Among the philosophers native to the region can be counted [[Seneca the Younger|Seneca]], [[Solomon ibn Gabirol|Avicebron]], [[Maimonides]], [[Averroes]], [[Fernán Pérez de Oliva]], [[Sebastián Fox Morcillo]], [[Ángel Ganivet]], [[Francisco Giner de los Ríos]] and [[María Zambrano]].

===Music of Andalusia===
{{Main|Music of Andalusia}}
{{See also|Music of Spain}}
[[File:Baile andaluz 1893 José Villegas Cordero.jpg|thumb|320px|''Flamenco, Andalusian dance'', 1893, by [[José Villegas Cordero]].]]

The music of Andalusia includes traditional and contemporary music, folk and composed music, and ranges from [[flamenco]] to [[rock music|rock]]. Conversely, certain metric, melodic and harmonic characteristics are considered Andalusian even when written or performed by musicians from elsewhere.

Flamenco, perhaps the most characteristically Andalusian genre of music and dance, originated in the 18th century, but is based in earlier forms from the region. The influence of the traditional music and dance of the [[Gitanos|Romani people]] or Gypsies is particularly clear. The genre embraces distinct vocal (''[[cante flamenco]]''), guitar (''[[toque flamenco]]''), and dance (''[[baile flamenco]]'') styles.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Bäcker, Rolf |title=Lo decisivo fue la mezcla: y esa mezcla sólo ocurrió en Andalucía. Algunas reflexiones acerca de la identidad andaluza en el discurso flamencológico |year=2005 |journal=Nassarre: Revista aragonesa de musicología |volume=21 |number=1 |issn=0213-7305 |pages=109–120 |url=http://www.dpz.es/ifc2/libros/ebook2572.pdf |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071006070546/http://www.dpz.es/ifc2/libros/ebook2572.pdf |archive-date=6 October 2007}}</ref>

The Andalusian Statute of Autonomy reflects the cultural importance of flamenco in its Articles 37.1.18 and 68:

{{Blockquote|Guiding principles of public policy: 18th The preservation and enhancement of the cultural, historic and artistic heritage of Andalusia, especially flamenco.<ref>From Article 37.1.18 of the Andalusian Statute of Autonomy: ''Principios rectores de las políticas públicas: 18º La conservación y puesta en valor del patrimonio cultural, histórico y artístico de Andalucía, especialmente del flamenco.''</ref>}}

{{Blockquote|Also within the Autonomous Community (of Andalucia) is the exclusive competence in knowledge, conservation, research, training, promotion and dissemination of flamenco as a unique element of the Andalusian cultural heritage.<ref>From Article 68 of the Andalusian Statute of Autonomy: ''Corresponde asimismo a la Comunidad Autónoma (Andaluza) la competencia exclusiva en materia de conocimiento, conservación, investigación, formación, promoción y difusión del flamenco como elemento singular del patrimonio cultural andaluz.''</ref>}}
{{multiple image
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| footer = [[Andrés Segovia]] (left), the musician who introduced the modern [[classical guitar]] to large audiences; Andalusian [[José María Ventura Casas]] (right) is regarded as the father of the modern Catalan [[sardana]].
}}
Fundamental in the history of Andalusian music are the composers [[Cristóbal de Morales]], [[Francisco Guerrero (composer)|Francisco Guerrero]], [[Francisco Correa de Arauxo]], [[Manuel del Pópulo Vicente García|Manuel García]], [[Manuel de Falla]], [[Joaquín Turina]], and {{ill|Manuel Castillo|da|Manuel Castillo|es|Manuel Castillo}}, as well as one of the fathers of modern [[classical guitar]], the guitarist [[Andrés Segovia]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ih4tDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA587 |title=The Rough Guide to Andalucia |last=Guides |first=Rough |date=1 May 2015 |publisher=Rough Guides UK |isbn=9780241217481 |language=en |access-date=30 October 2019 |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114130838/https://books.google.com/books?id=ih4tDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA587#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> Mention should also be made of the great folk artists of the ''[[copla (music)]]'' and the ''[[cante hondo]]'', such as [[Rocío Jurado]], [[Lola Flores]] (''La Faraona'', "the [[pharaoh]]"), [[Juanito Valderrama]] and the revolutionary [[Camarón de la Isla]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.flamenco-world.com/tienda/autor/camaron-de-la-isla/13/ |title=Camarón de la Isla |access-date=10 June 2008 |author=Ferca Network |publisher=Zerobox |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081123035752/http://www.flamenco-world.com/tienda/autor/camaron-de-la-isla/13/ |archive-date=23 November 2008}}</ref>

Prominent Andalusian rock groups include [[Triana (band)|Triana]] and [[Medina Azahara (band)|Medina Azahara]]. The duo [[Los del Río]] from [[Dos Hermanas]] had international success with their "[[Macarena (song)|Macarena]]", including playing at a [[Super Bowl]] half-time show in the United States, where their song has also been used as campaign music by the [[United States Democratic Party|Democratic Party]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.antonioburgos.com/sevilla/sevillanos/1999/04/se042599.html |title=Los del Río, o cómo hacerse perdonar el éxito |access-date=10 May 2008 |author=Antonio Burgos |year=1998 |work=S.L. Sevilla, España |publisher=Arco del Postigo |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080522051452/http://www.antonioburgos.com/sevilla/sevillanos/1999/04/se042599.html |archive-date=22 May 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> Other notables include the singer, songwriter, and poet [[Joaquín Sabina]], [[Isabel Pantoja]], [[Rosa López]], who represented Spain at [[Eurovision]] in 2002, and [[David Bisbal]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.formulatv.com/1,20080629,8029,1.html |title=Rosa López volverá a representarnos en Eurovisión |access-date=10 June 2008 |date=29 June 2008 |work=FórmulaTV.com |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080702022349/http://www.formulatv.com/1%2C20080629%2C8029%2C1.html |archive-date=2 July 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.valemusic.com/noticia.php?id=491 |title=David Bisbal recibe 5 discos de platino en España y un disco de oro en USA y Puerto Rico |access-date=10 June 2008 |year=2008 |work=Vale Music |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071028024000/http://www.valemusic.com/noticia.php?id=491 |archive-date=28 October 2007}}</ref>

On 16 November 2023, [[Seville]] will host the [[24th Annual Latin Grammy Awards]] at the [[FIBES Conference and Exhibition Centre]], making Seville the first city outside of the [[United States]] to host the [[Latin Grammy Awards]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://apnews.com/article/seville-spain-cf8138523aa769cc6bbde83acdd80ee4 |title=Latin Grammys to be held in Spain, leaving US for 1st time |website=[[Associated Press News]] |date=22 February 2023 |access-date=23 February 2023 |archive-date=23 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230223050020/https://apnews.com/article/seville-spain-cf8138523aa769cc6bbde83acdd80ee4 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Film===
[[File:Alberto San Juan en el Festival de Málaga 2009.jpg|thumb|[[Málaga Film Festival]]]]

The portrayal of Andalusia in film is often reduced to archetypes: flamenco, [[Spanish-style bullfighting|bullfighting]], Catholic pageantry, [[outlaw|brigands]], the property-rich and cash-poor ''señorito andaluz'' and emigrants. These images particularly predominated from the 1920s through the 1960s, and helped to consolidate a clichéd image of the region. In a very different vein, the province of Almería was the filming location for many [[Western (genre)|Westerns]], especially (but by no means exclusively) the Italian-directed [[Spaghetti Western]]s. During the dictatorship of [[Francisco Franco]], this was the extent of the film industry in Andalusia.

Nonetheless, Andalusian film has roots as far back as [[José Val del Omar]] in the pre-Franco years, and since the [[Spanish transition to democracy]] has brought forth numerous nationally and internationally respected directors: {{ill|Antonio Cuadri|ca|Antonio Cuadri Vides|es|Antonio Cuadri|ru|Куадри, Антонио}} (''[[Heart of the Earth]]''), [[Chus Gutiérrez]] (''[[Poniente (film)|Poniente]]''), {{ill|Chiqui Carabante|ca|Chiqui Carabante|es|Chiqui Carabante}} (''[[Carlos Against the World]]''), [[Alberto Rodríguez Librero|Alberto Rodríguez]] (''[[7 Virgins]]''), [[Benito Zambrano]] (''[[Solas (film)|Solas]]''), and [[Antonio Banderas]] (''[[Summer Rain (2006 film)|Summer Rain]]'').

Counting together feature films, documentaries, television programs, music videos etc., Andalusia has boomed from 37 projects shooting in 1999 to 1,054 in 2007, with the figure for 2007 including 19 feature films.<ref>[http://www.andaluciafilm.com/Noticias/NoticiasNoticia.asp?desde=3&id=191 Andalucía alcanza los 1.000 rodajes gestionados por la Red de Ciudades de Cine de AFC]{{dead link|date=October 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, 2008-07-30, www.andaluciafilm.com. Retrieved 16 December 2009.</ref> Although feature films are the most prestigious, commercials and television are currently more economically important to the region.

The {{ill|Filmoteca de Andalucía|es|Filmoteca de Andalucía|fr|Cinémathèque d'Andalousie}}, headquartered in Córdoba, is a government-run entity in charge of the investigation, collection and diffusion of Andalusian cinematic heritage. Other important contributors to this last activity are such annual film festivals as the [[Málaga Spanish Film Festival]], the most important festival dedicated exclusively to cinema made in Spain, the [[Seville European Film Festival]] (SEFF), the [[International Festival of Short Films—Almería in Short]], the [[Huelva Festival of Latin American Film]], the [[Atlantic Film Show]] in Cádiz, the [[Islantilla Festival of Film and Television]] and the [[African Film Festival of Tarifa]].<!-- Not sure if some of these festivals may have established names in English, which we should use if they do. In Spanish they are:
Festival de cine europeo de Sevilla,
Festival Internacional de Cortometrajes Almería en Corto,
Festival de Cine Iberoamericano de Huelva,
Muestra Cinematográfica del Atlántico Alcances,
Festival de cine y televisión de Islantilla,
Festival de Cine Africano de Tarifa.
All have articles in es-wiki. -->

===Culture===

====Customs and society====
[[File:El_Rocio_church_interior_R01.jpg|thumb|Interior of the [[Hermitage of El Rocío]], with the altar of the [[Virgin of El Rocío]]]]
Each sub-region in Andalusia has its own unique customs that represent a fusion of Catholicism and local folklore. Cities like Almería have been influenced historically by both [[Granada]] and Murcia in the use of traditional head coverings. The ''sombrero de Labrador'', a worker's hat made of black velvet, is a signature style of the region.

In Cádiz, traditional costumes with rural origins are worn at bullfights and at parties on the large estates. The ''tablao flamenco'' dance and the accompanying ''[[cante jondo]]'' vocal style originated in Andalusia and traditionally most often performed by the gypsy ([[Gitanos]]). One of the most distinctive cultural events in Andalusia is the [[Romeria de El Rocio|Romería de El Rocío]] in May. It consists of a pilgrimage to the [[Hermitage of El Rocío]] in the countryside near [[Almonte, Spain|Almonte]], in honor of the [[Virgin of El Rocío]], an image of the [[Virgin and Child]].<ref name=travelguides>[http://www.visithuelva.com/travelguides/province_elrocio-thepilgrimage.htm El Rocio Pilgrimage] {{webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151031134621/http://www.visithuelva.com/travelguides/province_elrocio-thepilgrimage.htm |date=31 October 2015 }}, visithuelva.com. Retrieved 15 April 2010.</ref><ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20120724002341/http://www.hermandadrociosevilla.com/EL%20ROCIO/ hermandadrociosevilla.com]}}, ''passim''. Retrieved 14 April 2010.</ref> In recent times the ''Romería'' has attracted roughly a million pilgrims each year.<ref name="Díaz Pérez">[[Eva Díaz Pérez]], [http://www.elmundo.es/cronica/2001/CR293/CR293-06.html "Los excesos del Rocío"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210226000150/https://www.elmundo.es/cronica/2001/CR293/CR293-06.html |date=26 February 2021 }}, ''El Mundo'', 27 May 2001. Retrieved 14 April 2010.</ref>

In [[Province of Jaén (Spain)|Jaén]], the [[saeta (flamenco)|saeta]] is a revered form of Spanish religious song, whose form and style has evolved over many centuries. Saetas evoke strong emotion and are sung most often during public processions. ''Verdiales'', based upon the [[Fandango (dance)|fandango]], are a flamenco music style and song form originating in Almogia, near Málaga. For this reason, the Verdiales are sometimes known as ''Fandangos de Málaga.'' The region also has a rich musical tradition of flamenco songs, or [[Palo (flamenco)|palos]] called [[cartageneras]]. Seville celebrates ''[[Holy Week in Seville|Semana Santa]]'', one of the better known religious events within Spain. During the festival, religious fraternities dress as penitents and carry large floats of lifelike wooden sculptures representing scenes of the [[Passion (Christianity)|Passion]], and images of the Virgin Mary. [[Sevillanas]], a type of old folk music sung and written in Seville and still very popular, are performed in fairs and festivals, along with an associated dance for the music, the ''Baile por sevillanas''. All the different regions of Andalusia have developed their own distinctive customs, but all share a connectedness to Catholicism as developed during baroque [[Spain]] society.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kern |title=The Regions of Spain |year=1995 |publisher=Greenwood Press |isbn=0-313-29224-8 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/regionsofspainre00kern}}</ref>

====Andalusian Spanish====
{{Main|Andalusian Spanish}}
[[File:Andalucía ceceante y seseante.PNG|thumb|300px|Most Spanish dialects in Spain differentiate between the sound of "z" and "c" (before e and i), pronounced {{IPA|/θ/}}, and that of "s", pronounced {{IPA|/s/}}. This distinction is lost in many Andalusian-speaking areas. In some mostly southerly areas, shown here in red, all three letters are pronounced {{IPA|/θ/|cat=no}}, which is known as ''[[Ceceo]]''. In other areas, all three letters are pronounced ({{IPA|/s/}}), which is known as ''[[Seseo]]''. Still other areas retain the distinction found elsewhere in Spain. Note that the city of [[Cádiz]] has seseo.]]

Andalusian Spanish is one of the most widely spoken forms of [[Spanish language|Spanish]] in Spain, and because of emigration patterns was very influential on [[Spanish language in the Americas|American Spanish]]. Rather than a single dialect, it is really a range of dialects sharing some common features; among these is
the retention of more [[Arabic language|Arabic]] words than elsewhere in Spain,<ref>{{cite journal |author=Fernández-Sevilla, Julio |title=Objetividad y subjetividad. Datos para el nombre de un dialecto |year=1976 |journal=Revista de dialectología y tradiciones populares |volume=32 |number=1/4 |issn=0034-7981 |pages=173–184}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=De Cos, F.J. |title=Las variedades lingüísticas en la enseñanza de E/LE: aplicación a la modalidad oral andaluza |year=2006 |journal=RedELE: Revista Electrónica de Didáctica ELE |number=6 |issn=1571-4667 |url=http://www.mepsyd.es/redele/revista6/FJavierdeCos.pdf |access-date=16 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091224061518/http://www.mepsyd.es/redele/revista6/FJavierdeCos.pdf |archive-date=24 December 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> as well as some [[phonology|phonological differences]] compared with [[Standard Spanish]]. The [[isogloss]]es that mark the borders of Andalusian Spanish overlap to form a network of divergent boundaries, so there is no clear border for the linguistic region.<ref>For some maps of various isoglosses, see the online [http://www.jotamartin.byethost33.com/alpi0_e.php Isogloss maps for Iberian Peninsula Spanish, according to ALPI] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928104728/http://www.jotamartin.byethost33.com/alpi0_e.php |date=28 September 2011 }}.</ref> [[Andalusian language movement|A fringe movement]] promoting an Andalusian language independent from Spanish exists.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.libertaddigital.com/andalucia/2021-09-27/la-extrema-izquierda-andaluza-reivindica-el-andaluh-en-el-senado-6822275/ |title=La extrema izquierda andaluza reivindica el 'andalûh' en el Senado |newspaper=[[Libertad Digital]] |date=27 September 2021 |language=es}}</ref>

====Religion====
[[File:Paso de palio de la virgen Maria santísima del amor de San Fernando 04791.jpg|left|thumb|Procession with statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Love of Saint Ferdinand (''Maria santísima del amor de San Fernando''), Cádiz.]]
The territory now known as Andalusia fell within the sphere of influence of ancient Mediterranean [[mythology|mythological]] beliefs. Phoenician colonization brought the cults of [[Baal]] and [[Melqart]]; the latter lasted into Roman times as [[Hercules]], mythical founder of both Cádiz and Seville. The [[Islote de Sancti Petri]] held the supposed tomb of Hercules, with representations of his [[Labours of Hercules|Twelve labors]]; the region was the traditional site of the tenth labor, obtaining the cattle of the monster [[Geryon]]. Traditionally, the [[Pillars of Hercules]] flank the [[Strait of Gibraltar]]. Clearly, the European pillar is the [[Rock of Gibraltar]]; the African pillar was presumably either [[Monte Hacho]] in [[Ceuta]] or [[Jebel Musa (Morocco)|Jebel Musa]] in [[Morocco]]. The [[Roman road]] that led from Cádiz to Rome was known by several names, one of them being ''{{ill|Via Herculea|fr|Via Herculia|it|Via Herculia|sv|Via Herculea}}'', Hercules route returning from his tenth labor. The present [[coat of arms of Andalusia]] shows Hercules between two lions, with two pillars behind these figures.

[[Roman Catholicism]] is, by far, the largest religion in Andalusia. In 2012, the proportion of [[Andalusians]] that identify themselves as Roman Catholic was 78.8%.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lavanguardia.com/vangdata/20150402/54429637154/interactivo-creencias-y-practicas-religiosas-en-espana.html |title=Interactivo: Creencias y prácticas religiosas en España |date=2 April 2015 |access-date=25 January 2017 |archive-date=4 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150404024037/http://www.lavanguardia.com/vangdata/20150402/54429637154/interactivo-creencias-y-practicas-religiosas-en-espana.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Spanish Catholic religion constitute a traditional vehicle of Andalusian cultural cohesion,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Opas |first1=Minna |last2=Haapalainen |first2=Anna |title=Christianity and the Limits of Materiality |year=2017 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |location=UK |isbn=9781474291781 |pages=243}}</ref> and the principal characteristic of the local popular form of Catholicism is devotion to the [[Virgin Mary]]; Andalusia is sometimes known as ''la tierra de María Santísima'' ("the land of Most Holy Mary").<ref>See [http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/SrvltConsulta?TIPO_BUS=3&LEMA=tierra ''la tierra de María Santísima''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305040134/http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/SrvltConsulta?TIPO_BUS=3&LEMA=Tierra |date=5 March 2016 }} in the dictionary of the [[Real Academia Española]].</ref> Also characteristic are the processions during [[Holy Week]], in which thousands of [[penance|penitents]] (known as ''nazarenos'') sing [[saeta (flamenco)|saetas]]. Andalusia is the site of such [[pilgrim]] destinations as the {{ill|Santuario de Nuestra Señora de la Cabeza|ca|Santuari de la Mare de Déu de la Cabeza|de|Wallfahrtskirche Virgen de la Cabeza|es|Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Cabeza|it|Basilica di Nostra Signora della Cabeza}} in [[Andújar]] and the [[Hermitage of El Rocío]] in [[Almonte, Spain|Almonte]].

====Bullfighting====
[[File:Joselito natural.jpg|thumb|[[José Gómez Ortega]]: Joselito "El Gallo".]]
While some trace the lineage of the [[Spanish Fighting Bull]] back to Roman times, today's fighting bulls in the Iberian peninsula and in the former [[Spanish Empire]] trace back to Andalusia in the 15th and 16th centuries.<ref name=repetida_1>{{cite web |url=http://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=638755 |title=Las plazas de toros de Andalucía y su incidencia turística |access-date=6 October 2008 |last1=Cepeda Carrión |first1=Gabriel |first2=María |last2=del Milagro Martín López |page=14 |language=es}}</ref> Andalusia remains a center of bull-rearing and [[Spanish-style bullfighting|bullfighting]]: its 227 ''fincas de ganado'' where fighting bulls are raised cover {{convert|146917|ha|acre}}.<ref name=repetida_1 /> In the year 2000, Andalusia's roughly 100 [[bullring]]s hosted 1,139 ''[[Spanish-style bullfighting|corridas]]''.<ref name=repetida_1 />

The oldest bullring still in use in Spain is the [[Neoclassicism|neoclassical]] ''[[Plaza de Toros de Ronda|Plaza de toros]]'' in [[Ronda]], built in 1784. The Andalusian Autonomous Government sponsors the ''Rutas de Andalucía taurina'', a touristic route through the region centered on bullfighting.

====Festivals====
[[File:Cruz de mayo bailio.jpg|thumb|left|[[Cruz de mayo]] of the [[confraternity]] Hermandad de la Paz y Esperanza ("Brotherhood of Peace and Hope"), [[Cuesta del Bailío]], Córdoba.]]
The Andalusian festivals provide a showcase for popular arts and traditional costume. Among the most famous of these are the [[Seville Fair]] or ''Feria de Abril'' in Seville, now echoed by smaller fairs in Madrid and Barcelona, both of which have many Andalusian immigrants; the ''[[Feria de Agosto]]'' in Málaga; the [[Feria de Jerez]] or ''Feria del Caballo'' in Jerez; the {{ill|Corpus Christi in Granada|lt=Feast of Corpus Christi|es|Corpus Christi en Sevilla}} in Granada; the {{ill|Feria de Nuestra Señora de la Salud|es|Feria de Córdoba (España)}} in Córdoba; the [[Columbian Festivals]] (''Fiestas Colombinas'') in Huelva; the [[Feria de la Virgen del Mar]] in [[Almería]]; and the {{ill|Feria de San Lucas|es|Feria de San Lucas (Jaén)}} in Jaén, among many others.

Festivals of a religious nature are a deep Andalusian tradition and are met with great popular fervor. There are numerous major festivals during [[Holy Week]]. An annual pilgrimage brings a million visitors to the Hermitage of El Rocío in Almonte (population 16,914 in 2008); similarly large crowds visit the Santuario de Nuestra Señora de la Cabeza in Andújar every April.

Other important festivals are the [[Carnival of Cádiz]] and the [[Fiesta de las Cruces]] or [[Cruz de mayo]] in Granada and Córdoba; in Córdoba this is combined with a competition for among the ''patios'' (courtyards) of the city.

Andalusia hosts an annual festival for the dance of flamenco in the summer-time.

====Cuisine====
{{Main|Andalusian cuisine|List of Andalusian food and drink products with protected status}}
[[File:Tomato gazpacho.jpg|thumb|''[[Gazpacho]]'' served with ''tropezones'' (chopped vegetables).]]
The Andalusian diet varies, especially between the coast and the interior, but in general is a [[Mediterranean diet]] based on [[olive oil]], [[cereal]]s, [[legume]]s, [[vegetable]]s, [[fish]], [[dried fruit]]s and [[Nut (fruit)|nuts]], and [[meat]]; there is also a great tradition of drinking [[wine]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Jiménez, C. |author2=López, B. |title=Gastronomía andaluza y dieta mediterránea |year=2000 |publisher=Miramar |location=Málaga |isbn=84-922831-9-X |language=es}}</ref>

[[Fried fish]]—''pescaíto frito''—and [[seafood]] are common on the coast and also eaten well into the interior under coastal influence. [[Atlantic bluefin tuna]] (''Thunnus thynnus'') from the [[Almadraba]] areas of the [[Gulf of Cádiz]], [[prawn]]s from [[Sanlúcar de Barrameda]] (known as ''langostino de Sanlúcar''), and deepwater rose shrimp (''{{Interlanguage link|Parapenaeus longirostris|es}}'') from Huelva are all highly prized. Fishing for the transparent goby or ''chanquete'' (''[[Aphia minuta]]''), a once-popular small fish from Málaga, is now banned because the techniques used to catch them trap too many immature fish of [[Bycatch|other species]].<ref>Resolución del 20 de junio de 1988 de la Dirección General de Pesca, por la que se establece una pesca indefinida para la pesca del Aphia minuta (chanquete) y similares (BOJA nº57 de 19 de julio de 1988).</ref>

The mountainous regions of the Sierra Morena and Sierra Nevada produce cured [[ham]]s, notably including ''[[jamón serrano]]'' and ''[[jamón ibérico]]''. These come from two different types of pig, (''jamón serrano'' from white pigs, the more expensive ''jamón ibérico'' from the [[Black Iberian pig]]). There are several [[Denominación de origen|denominaciones de origen]], each with its own specifications including in just which [[microclimate]] region ham of a particular denomination must be cured. ''[[Plato alpujarreño]]'' is another mountain specialty, a dish combining ham, sausage, sometimes other pork, egg, potatoes, and olive oil.

[[Confectionery]] is popular in Andalusia. [[Almond]]s and [[honey]] are common ingredients. Many enclosed [[convent]]s of [[nun]]s make and sell pastries, especially Christmas pastries: ''[[mantecado]]s'', ''[[polvorón|polvorones]]'', ''[[pestiños]]'', ''[[alfajor]]es'', ''{{ill|yemas de San Leandro|es|Yemas de San Leandro|ru|Желтки святого Леандра}}'', as well as ''[[churro]]s'' or ''{{lang|es|tejeringos}}'', [[meringue]] cookies (''merengadas''), and ''{{ill|amarguillo|lt=amarguillos|es|amarguillo}}''.

Cereal-based dishes include ''[[migas]] de harina'' in eastern Andalusia (a similar dish to [[couscous]] rather than the fried breadcrumb based ''migas'' elsewhere in Spain) and a sweeter, more aromatic porridge called ''[[poleá]]'' in western Andalusia.
Vegetables form the basis of such dishes as ''{{lang|es|[[alboronía]]}}'' (similar to ''ratatouille'') and the chopped salad known as ''{{lang|es|[[pipirrana]]}}'' or ''{{lang|es|piriñaca}}''. Hot and cold soups based in olive oil, garlic, bread, tomato and peppers include ''[[gazpacho]]'', ''[[salmorejo]]'', ''[[porra antequerana]]'', ''[[ajo caliente]]'', ''[[sopa campera]]'', or—using almonds instead of tomato—''[[ajoblanco]]''.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Moreno, J. |title=Productos americanos y gastronomía andaluza: el gazpacho |year=1998 |journal=Isla de Arriarán: Revista cultural y científica |number=11 |issn=1133-6293 |pages=423–440 |url=http://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/fichero_articulo?codigo=2571410&orden=0 |language=es}}</ref>

Wine has a privileged place at the Andalusian table. Andalusian wines are known worldwide, especially [[fortified wine]]s such as [[sherry]] (''jerez''), aged in [[solera]]s. These are enormously varied; for example, dry sherry may be the very distinct ''[[fino]]'', ''[[manzanilla (wine)|manzanilla]]'', ''[[amontillado]]'', ''[[oloroso]]'', or ''[[Palo Cortado]]'' and each of these varieties can each be sweetened with [[Pedro Ximénez]] or [[Muscat of Alexandria|Moscatel]] to produce a different variety of sweet sherry.<ref>{{cite book |last=Iglesias Rodríguez |first=Juan José (coor.) |title=Historia y cultura del vino en Andalucía |year=1995 |publisher=Universidad de Sevilla |isbn=84-472-0210-0 |language=es}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Moreno, I. |chapter=La cultura del vino en Andalucía: identidades socioculturales y culturas del trabajo |title=Historia y cultura del vino en Andalucía |publisher=Ed. J.J. Iglesias |year=1995 |isbn=84-472-0210-0 |pages=179–200 |language=es}}</ref> Besides sherry, Andalucía has five other [[Denominación de origen|denominaciones de origen]] for wine: [[D.O. Condado de Huelva]], [[D.O. Manzanilla-Sanlúcar de Barrameda]], [[Málaga and Sierras de Málaga|D.O. Málaga]], [[D.O. Montilla-Moriles]], and [[Málaga and Sierras de Málaga|D.O. Sierras de Málaga]].<ref name=MAPA-DO>For greater specificity on the denominaciones de origen, see [http://www.mapa.es/es/alimentacion/pags/Denominacion/consulta.asp M.A.P.A.] {{webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110306042138/http://www.mapa.es/es/alimentacion/pags/denominacion/consulta.asp |date=6 March 2011 }}, in Spanish.</ref> Most Andalusian wine comes from one of these regions, but there are other historic wines without a [[Protected Geographical Status]], for example [[Tintilla de Rota]], [[Pajarete]], [[Moscatel de Chipiona]] and [[Mosto de Umbrete]].

Andalusia also produces D.O. [[vinegar]] and [[brandy]]: [[D.O. Vinagre de Jerez]] and [[D.O. Brandy de Jerez]].<ref name=MAPA-DO/>

====Other traditions====
[[File:Misericordia Trono 3.jpg|thumb|Holy Week procession in [[Malaga]].]]
The traditional dress of 18th-century Andalusia was strongly influenced by ''{{lang|es|[[majo|majismo]]}}'' within the context of ''[[castizo|casticismo]]'' (purism, traditionalism, authenticity). The archetype of the ''majo'' and ''maja'' was that of a bold, pure Spaniard from a lower-class background, somewhat flamboyant in his or her style of dress. This emulation of lower-class dress also extended to imitating the clothes of brigands and [[Gitanos|Romani]] ("Gypsy") women.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Worth |first=Susannah |date=2014-05-01 |title=Gitana Dress and Dress à la Gitana |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1179/0361211214Z.00000000022? |journal=Dress |volume=40 |issue=1 |pages=31–45 |doi=10.1179/0361211214Z.00000000022 |issn=0361-2112|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The [[Museum of Arts and Traditions of Sevilla]] <!-- that's the name the institution itself uses in English, including the Spanish spelling "Sevilla" --> has collected representative samples of a great deal of the history of Andalusian dress, including examples of such notable types of hat as the ''[[sombrero cordobés]], ''[[sombrero calañés]], ''[[sombrero de catite]]'' and the ''{{ill|pavero|es|pavero}}'', as well as the ''[[traje corto]]'' and ''[[traje de flamenca]]''.

Andalusia has a great artisan tradition in [[tile]], [[leather]] (''see [[Shell cordovan]]''), [[weaving]] (especially of the heavy ''[[jarapa]]'' cloth), [[marquetry]], and [[ceramic]]s (especially in Jaén, Granada, and Almería), [[lace]] (especially Granada and Huelva), [[embroidery]] (in [[Andévalo]]), [[ironwork]], [[woodworking]], and [[basketry]] in [[wicker]], many of these traditions a heritage of the long period of Muslim rule.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Caravaca, I. |title=La artesanía andaluza |year=1986 |journal=Revista de estudios andaluces |number=7 |issn=0212-8594 |pages=37–50 |doi=10.12795/rea.1986.i07.02 |language=es |doi-access=free}}</ref>

Andalusia is also known for its dogs, particularly the [[Andalusian Hound]], which was originally bred in the region. Dogs, not just andalusian hounds, are very popular in the region.

Andalusian equestrianism, institutionalized in the [[Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art]] is known well beyond the borders of Spain. The [[Andalusian horse]] is strongly built, compact yet elegant, distinguished in the area of [[dressage]] and [[show jumping]], and is also an excellent horse for [[driving (horse)|driving]]. They are known for their elegant "dancing" [[gait]].<ref>[http://www.realescuela.org/home.htm Real Escuela Andaluza de Arte Ecuestre] {{Webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091215100745/http://www.realescuela.org/home.htm |date=15 December 2009 }}, official site.</ref>

<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">
File:Alhambra - decorazioni2.JPG|Tiles from the Alhambra.
File:Andalusian, in "Majo" dress.jpg|Andalusian, in "Majo" dress
File:Conjunto sombreros.jpg|alt=Sombreros cordobeses|''Sombreros cordobeses''.
File:Chorromujo.jpg|alt=Sombrero de catite|''Sombrero de catite''.
</gallery>

==Sports==
===Team sports===
[[File:Estado de la Rosaleda (Málaga C.F.).jpg|thumb|[[La Rosaleda]] is the stadium of [[Málaga CF]], one of four Andalusian clubs in [[Segunda División]].]]
In Andalusia, as throughout Spain, [[Association football|football]] is the predominant sport. Introduced to Spain by [[United Kingdom|British]] men who worked in mining for [[Rio Tinto Group|Rio Tinto]] in the province of Huelva, the sport soon became popular with the local population. As Spain's oldest existing football club, [[Recreativo de Huelva]], founded 1889, is known as ''El Decano'' ("the Dean").<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lfp.es/competiciones/2007-08/primera/equipo.asp?equ=rhu |title=Año fundación del Recreativo de Huelva |access-date=7 October 2008 |publisher=Liga de Fútbol Profesional (España) |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080418072641/http://www.lfp.es/competiciones/2007-08/primera/equipo.asp?equ=rhu |archive-date=18 April 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

For the 2024–2025 season, two Andalusian clubs compete in Spain's First Division ''[[La Liga]]'': [[Real Betis]] and [[Sevilla FC]]. Betis won La Liga in [[1934–35 La Liga|1934–35]] and Sevilla in the 1945–46 season.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lfp.es/historico/primera/clasificaciones/palmares.asp |title=Palmarés |publisher=Liga de Fútbol Profesional |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080730224245/http://www.lfp.es/historico/primera/clasificaciones/palmares.asp |archive-date=30 July 2008}}</ref><ref>[http://www.uefa.com/competitions/supercup/history/season=2006/intro.html 2006: Sevilla win big in Monaco] {{webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100108100401/http://www.uefa.com/competitions/supercup/history/season%3D2006/intro.html |date=8 January 2010 }}, 25 August 2006, UEFA.com. Retrieved 17 December 2009.</ref> There are five Andalusian clubs playing in the [[Segunda División|second division]]: [[Málaga CF]], [[Cádiz CF]], [[Córdoba CF|Cordoba CF]], [[UD Almería|UD Almeria]], and [[Granada CF]].

The [[Andalusia autonomous football team]] is not in any league, and plays only [[exhibition game|friendly matches]]. In recent years, they have played mostly during the Christmas break of the football leagues. They play mostly against national teams from other countries, but would not be eligible for international league play, where Spain is represented by a single national team.

In recent decades, [[basketball]] has become increasingly popular, with [[CB Málaga]], also known as '''Unicaja Málaga''' who have won the [[Liga ACB]] in 2007 and the [[Korać Cup]] in 2001 and usually play the [[Euroleague]], [[CB Sevilla]] (Banca Cívica) and [[CB Granada]] competing at the top level in the [[Liga ACB]].<ref>For a detailed history of basketball in Andalucia, see: {{cite book |last=Gallardo Rodríguez |first=Miguel |title=75 años de historia del baloncesto andaluz |year=2006 |publisher=Junta de Andalucía. Consejería de Turismo, Comercio y Deporte. Instituto Andaluz del Deporte |isbn=84-689-6145-0 |language=es}}</ref>

Unlike basketball, [[Team handball|handball]] has never really taken off in Andalusia. There is one Andalusian team in the [[Liga ASOBAL|Liga Asobal]], Spain's premier handball league: [[BM Puente Genil]], playing in the [[Province of Córdoba (Spain)|province of Córdoba]].

Andalusia's strongest showing in sports has been in [[table tennis]]. There are two professional teams: [[Cajasur Priego TM]] and [[Caja Granada TM]], the latter being Spain's leading table tennis team, with more than 20 league championships in nearly consecutive years and 14 consecutive Copas del Rey, dominating the [[Liga ENEBÉ]]. Cajasur is also one of the league's leading teams.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20081025075204/http://www.fttcv.org/webnueva/liga0708_eligamenu.asp?idm=2&idsm=0&IDNIVEL=11&IDGRUPO=%DANICO LIGAS NACIONALES / Liga "Arteal Ventanas" Superdivisión Masculina, Real Federación Española de Tenis de Mesa]. Retrieved 17 December 2009 cites for the current prominent status of these teams.</ref>{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}} <!-- need citation for the championships -->

===Olympics===
[[File:Panoramio - V&A Dudush - Estadio Olímpico 57 619.jpg|thumb|[[Estadio de La Cartuja]] was constructed as part of [[Seville]]'s bid to host the Summer Olympics]]
220 Andalusian athletes have competed in a total of 16 summer or winter [[Olympic Games]]. The first was [[Leopoldo Sainz de la Maza]], part of the silver medal-winning [[polo]] team at the [[1920 Summer Olympics]] in [[Antwerp]], [[Belgium]].<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Polo Encyclopedia, 2d Ed. |last=Laffaye |first=Horace A. |publisher=McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers |year=2015 |isbn=978-0-7864-9577-1 |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |pages=95}}</ref>

In all, Andalusians have won six gold medals, 11 silver, and two bronze. Winners of multiple medals include the Córdoban [[boxing|boxer]] [[Rafael Lozano (boxer, born 1970)|Rafael Lozano]] (bronze in the [[1996 Summer Olympics]] at [[Atlanta]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], US, and silver in the [[2000 Summer Olympics]] in [[Sydney]], Australia); sailor [[Theresa Zabell]], Malagueña by adoption (gold medals at [[Barcelona]] in [[1992 Summer Olympics|1992]] and Atlanta in 1996). Other notable winners have been Granadan [[tennis]] player [[Manuel Orantes]] (silver in the men's singles of the [[Tennis at the 1968 Summer Olympics|demonstration tournament]] in [[Mexico City]] in [[1968 Summer Olympics|1968]]), Jerezano riders [[Ignacio Rambla]] and [[Rafael Soto]] (silver in [[dressage]] in [[Athens]] in [[2004 Summer Olympics|2004]]) and the [[racewalking|racewalker]] [[Paquillo Fernández]] from [[Guadix]] (silver in [[Athens]] in [[2004 Summer Olympics|2004]]).

The largest number of Olympic appearances were by the Malagueña swimmer [[María Peláez]] (five appearances), the Granadan skier [[María José Rienda]] (four), the Sevillian rider [[Luis Astolfi]] (four), and the Sevillian rower [[Fernando Climent]] (four, including a silver at [[Los Angeles]], [[California]], US, in [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fundacionandaluciaolimpica.org/index_cont.php?xid=35 |title=Andalucía en los Juegos Olímpicos |access-date=8 October 2008 |work=Fundación Andalucía Olímpica |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080610022321/http://www.fundacionandaluciaolimpica.org/index_cont.php?xid=35 |archive-date=10 June 2008}}</ref>

Seville has been a pre-candidate to host the Summer Olympics in two occasions, 2004 and 2008, and Granada has been a pre-candidate to host the winter Olympics; neither has ever succeeded in its candidature. The ski resort of [[Sierra Nevada Ski Station|Sierra Nevada]], near Granada, has however hosted the [[FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1996|1996 Alpine World Ski Championships]], and Granada hosted the [[2015 Winter Universiade]].

===Other sports===
Other sporting events in Andalusia include [[surfing]], [[kitesurfing]] and [[windsurfing]] competitions at [[Tarifa]], various [[golf]] tournaments at courses along the coast, and [[horse racing]] and polo at several locations in the interior. Andalusia hosted the [[1999 World Championships in Athletics]] (Seville), the [[2005 Mediterranean Games]] (Almería) and the [[FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1996]] (Granada), among other major events. There is also the annual [[Vuelta a Andalucía]] bicycle road race and the [[Linares chess tournament]]. The [[Circuito de Jerez]], located near [[Jerez de la Frontera]], hosts the [[Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix]].

==Twinning and covenants==
Andalusia has had a [[sister cities|sister region]] relationship with [[Buenos Aires]] ([[Argentina]]), since 2001;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.buenosaires.gov.ar/areas/internacionales/docs/convenios_hermanamientos.pdf |title=Hermanamientos de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706083447/http://estatico.buenosaires.gov.ar/areas/internacionales/docs/convenios_hermanamientos.pdf |archive-date=6 July 2011 |work=official site of Buenos Aires |access-date=4 April 2019 |language=es |url-status=dead}}</ref> and with [[Córdoba, Argentina|Córdoba (Argentina)]]. Also Andalusia has a collaboration agreement with [[Guerrero]] ([[Mexico]]).

==See also==
{{Portal|Spain}}
* [[Andalusian people]]
* [[Andalusian nationalism]]
* [[Azulejo]]
* [[List of Andalusians]]
* [[List of the oldest mosques]]
* [[Roman Bética Route]]
* [[San Juan De Los Terreros]]
* [[White Towns of Andalusia]]
* [[Yeseria]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
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