View source for Provinces of Spain

{{Short description|Second-level administrative divisions of Spain}}
{{Refimprove|date=May 2012}}

{{Infobox subdivision type
| name = Provinces of Spain
| alt_name = 
| map = [[Image:Blank Spain Map (Provinces).svg|300px]]
| category = [[Province]]
| territory = [[Spain|Kingdom of Spain]]
| upper_unit = [[Autonomous communities of Spain|Autonomous communities]]
| start_date = 1833
| legislation_begin = Royal Decree (30/11/1833)
| legislation_end = 
| end_date = 
| current_number = [[#Provinces|50]]
| number_date = 
| type = 
| status = 
| exofficio = 
| population_range = 95,258–6,458,684
| area_range = 1,980–21,766 km<sup>2</sup>
| government = [[Provincial deputation (Spain)|Provincial council]]
| subdivision = [[Municipalities of Spain|Municipalities]]
}}

A [[province]] in [[Spain]]<ref group="note">
* {{langx|es|provincias}}, {{IPA|es|pɾoˈβinθjas|IPA}}; [[grammatical number|sing.]] ''provincia'')
* [[Basque language|Basque]] {{lang|eu|probintziak}} ({{IPA|eu|pɾobints̻iak|IPA}}, [[grammatical number|sing.]] ''probintzia''.
* [[Catalan language|Catalan]] {{lang|ca|províncies}} ({{IPA|ca|pɾuˈβinsiəs|IPA}}), [[grammatical number|sing.]] ''província''.
* [[Galician language|Galician]] {{lang|gl|provincias}} ({{IPA|gl|pɾoˈβinθjɐs|IPA}}), [[grammatical number|sing.]] ''provincia''.</ref> is a [[political divisions of Spain|territorial division]] defined as a collection of [[municipalities of Spain|municipalities]].{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Article 141(1)}}{{sfn| Zafra Víctor |2004|page=102}}{{sfn|Local Government Act|1985|loc=Article 31}} The current provinces of Spain correspond by and large to the provinces created under the purview of the [[1833 territorial division of Spain|1833 territorial re-organization of Spain]], with a similar predecessor from [[1822 territorial division of Spain|1822]] (during the [[Trienio Liberal]]) and an earlier precedent in the 1810 Napoleonic division of Spain into 84 prefectures.{{sfn|Canel|1994|pp=51}} There are many other groupings of municipalities that comprise the [[local government in Spain|local government of Spain]].{{sfn|Local Government Act|1985|loc=Articles 40-44}} 

The boundaries of provinces can only be altered by the Spanish Parliament,{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Article 141(1)}} giving rise to the common view that the [[autonomous communities of Spain|17 autonomous communities]] are ''subdivided'' into [[#Provinces|50 provinces]]. In reality, the system is not hierarchical but defined according to jurisdiction ({{langx|es|competencias}}).{{sfn|MPA||loc=paragraph 1}} 

The body charged with government and administration of a province is the [[provincial deputation (Spain)|provincial council]], but their existence is [[Provincial deputation (Spain)#Criticism|controversial]]. As the province is defined as a "local entity" in the Constitution, the Provincial council belongs to the sphere of local government.

== Provincial organization ==
{{Main|History of the territorial organization of Spain}}
{{Unreferenced section|date=January 2016}}

The layout of Spain's provinces closely follows the pattern of the [[1833 territorial division of Spain|territorial division of the country carried out in 1833]]. The only major change of provincial borders since that time has been the division of the [[Province of Canary Islands]] into the provinces of [[Province of Las Palmas|Las Palmas]] and [[Province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife|Santa Cruz de Tenerife]].

Historically, the provinces served mainly as transmission belts for policies enacted in Madrid, as Spain was a highly centralised state for most of its modern history. The provinces were the "building-blocks" from which the autonomous communities were created following processes defined in the 1978 [[Constitution of Spain|Constitution]]. Consequently, no province is divided between these communities.

The importance of the provinces has declined since the adoption of the system of autonomous communities in the period of the [[Spanish transition to democracy]]. They nevertheless remain [[Elections in Spain#Congress of Deputies|electoral]] districts for national elections.

Provinces are also used as geographical references: for instance in [[Mail|postal]] addresses and telephone codes. National media will also frequently use the province to disambiguate small towns or communities whose names occur frequently throughout Spain. A small town would normally be identified as being in, say, [[Province of Valladolid|Valladolid province]] rather than the [[autonomous community]] of [[Castile and León]]. In addition, organisations outside Spain use provinces for statistical analysis and policy making and in comparison with other countries including [[NUTS of Spain|NUTS]], [[List_of_OECD_regions_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita|OECD]], [[List of FIPS region codes (S-U)#SP: Spain| FIPS]], [[CIA World Factbook]], [[ISO 3166-2:ES|ISO 3166-2]] and the UN's Second Administrative Level Boundaries data set project (SALB).

Most of the provinces are named after their capital town, with the exceptions of [[Asturias]], [[Cantabria]], the [[Balearic Islands]], [[La Rioja (Spain)|La Rioja]], and [[Navarre]] — which are autonomous communities consisting of a single province — as well as the historically autonomous [[Álava]], [[Biscay]] and [[Gipuzkoa]]. The names of the provinces of [[Las Palmas]] and [[Province of Castellón|Castellón]] are taken from their respective capital cities, but shortened. In almost all cases, the capital of the province is also its biggest settlement, with the exception of the provinces of [[Pontevedra]] ([[Vigo]]), [[Cádiz]] ([[Jerez]]), and [[Asturias]] (capital is [[Oviedo]], but largest city is [[Gijón]]). Only two capitals of autonomous communities —[[Mérida, Spain|Mérida]] in [[Extremadura]] and [[Santiago de Compostela]] in [[Galicia (Spain)|Galicia]] — are not also the capitals of provinces.

Seven of the autonomous communities comprise no more than one province each: Asturias, the Balearic Islands, Cantabria, La Rioja, [[Community of Madrid|Madrid]], [[Region of Murcia|Murcia]], and Navarre. These are sometimes referred to as "uniprovincial" communities. [[Ceuta]], [[Melilla]], and the [[plazas de soberanía]] are not part of any province.

[[File:Provinces of Spain.svg|thumb|750px|center|A map of Spain's provinces (names are shown in Spanish). Ceuta and Melilla were formerly part of Cádiz and Málaga provinces respectively, but are currently not part of any province.]]

== List of provinces ==
The table below lists the provinces of Spain. For each, the capital city is given, together with an indication of the autonomous community to which it belongs and a link to a list of municipalities in the province. The names of the provinces and their capitals are ordered alphabetically according to the form in which they appear in the main Wikipedia articles describing them. Unless otherwise indicated, their [[Spanish language|Spanish-language]] names are the same; locally valid names in Spain's other co-official languages ([[Basque language|Basque]], [[Catalan language|Catalan]], which is officially called [[Valencian language|Valencian]] in the [[Valencian Community]], [[Galician language|Galician]]) are also indicated where they differ.
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!scope="col"| Autonomous community
! scope="col" | Province name
! scope="col" | Capital
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Lists of municipalities
|-
| rowspan="8" |{{Sort|Andalusia|[[File:Flag of Andalucía.svg|x18px|Andalusia]] [[Andalusia]]}} (8 provinces)
|{{Sort|Almeria|[[File:Flag Almería Province.svg|x18px|Almería]]''' [[Province of Almería|Almería]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Almeria|[[Almería]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Almería|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Cadiz|[[File:Flag Cádiz Province.svg|x18px|Cádiz]] '''[[Province of Cádiz|Cádiz]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Cadiz|[[Cádiz]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Cádiz|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Cordoba|[[File:Provincia de Córdoba - Bandera.svg|x18px|Córdoba]] '''[[Province of Córdoba (Spain)|Córdoba]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Cordoba|[[Córdoba, Andalusia|Córdoba]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Córdoba|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Granada|[[File:Bandera de la provincia de Granada (España).svg|x18px|Granada]] '''[[Province of Granada|Granada]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Granada|[[Granada]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Granada|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Huelva|[[File:Bandera de la Provincia De Huelva.svg|x18px|Huelva]] '''[[Province of Huelva|Huelva]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Huelva|[[Huelva]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Huelva|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Jaen|[[File:Bandera de la provincia de Jaén.svg|x18px|Jaén]] '''[[Province of Jaén (Spain)|Jaén]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Jaen|[[Jaén, Spain|Jaén]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Jaén|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Malaga|[[File:Flag Málaga Province.svg|x18px|Málaga]] '''[[Province of Málaga|Málaga]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Malaga|[[Málaga]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Málaga|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Seville|[[File:Flag of Diputacion de Sevilla Spain.svg|x18px|Seville]] '''[[Province of Seville|Seville]]'''}}{{efn|name=Seville|{{langx|es|Sevilla}}}}
|{{Sort|Seville|[[Seville]]}}{{efn|name=Seville}}
|[[List of municipalities in Sevilla|Municipalities]]
|-
| rowspan="3" |{{Sort|Aragon|[[File:Flag of Aragon.svg|x18px|Aragon]] [[Aragon]]}} (3 provinces)
|{{Sort|Huesca|[[File:Flag of Huesca (province).svg|x18px|Huesca]] '''[[Province of Huesca|Huesca]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Huesca|[[Huesca]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Huesca|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Teruel|[[File:Teruel (provincia).svg|x18px|Teruel]] '''[[Province of Teruel|Teruel]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Teruel|[[Teruel]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Teruel|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Zaragoza|[[File:Flag of Zaragoza province (with coat of arms).svg|x18px|Zaragoza]] '''[[Province of Zaragoza|Zaragoza]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Zaragoza|[[Zaragoza]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Zaragoza|Municipalities]]
|-
| colspan="2" |{{Sort|Asturias|[[File:Flag of Asturias.svg|x18px|Asturias]] '''[[Asturias]]'''}}{{efn|{{langx|ast|Asturies}}<br />{{langx|es|Asturias}}}} (1 province)
|{{Sort|Oviedo|[[Oviedo]]}}{{efn|{{langx|ast|Uviéu}}<br />{{langx|es|Oviedo}}}}
|[[List of municipalities in Asturias|Municipalities]]
|-
| colspan="2" |{{Sort|Balearic Islands|[[File:Flag of the Balearic Islands.svg|x18px|Balearic Islands]] '''[[Balearic Islands]]'''}}{{efn|{{langx|ca|Illes Balears}}<br />{{langx|es|Islas Baleares}}}} (1 province)
|{{Sort|Palma|[[Palma, Majorca|Palma]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Balearic Islands|Municipalities]]
|-
| rowspan="3" | {{Sort|Basque Country|[[File:Flag of the Basque Country.svg|x18px|Basque Country]] [[Basque Country (autonomous community)|Basque Country]]}}{{efn|{{langx|eu|Euskadi}}<br />{{langx|es|País Vasco}}}} (3 provinces)
|{{Sort|Alava|[[File:Álava.svg|x18px|Álava]] '''[[Álava]]'''}}{{efn|{{langx|eu|Araba}}<br />{{langx|es|Álava}}}}
|{{Sort|Vitoria-Gasteiz|[[Vitoria-Gasteiz|Vitoria-Gasteiz]]}}{{efn|{{langx|eu|Gasteiz}}<br />{{langx|es|Vitoria}}}}
|[[List of municipalities in Álava|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Biscay|[[File:Bizkaikobanderea.svg|x18px|Biscay]] '''[[Biscay]]'''}}{{efn|{{langx|eu|Bizkaia}}<br />{{langx|es|Vizcaya}}}}
|{{Sort|Bilbao|[[Bilbao]]}}{{efn|{{langx|eu|Bilbo}}<br />{{langx|es|Bilbao}}}}
|[[List of municipalities in Biscay|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Guipúzcoa|[[File:Guipúzcoa.svg|x18px|≥Guipúzcoa]] '''[[Guipúzcoa]]'''}}{{efn|{{langx|eu|Gipuzkoa}}<br />{{langx|es|Guipúzcoa}}}}
|{{Sort|San Sebastian|[[San Sebastián]]}}{{efn|{{langx|eu|Donostia}}<br />{{langx|es|San Sebastián}}}}
|[[List of municipalities in Guipúzcoa|Municipalities]]
|-
| rowspan="2" |{{Sort|Canary Islands|[[File:Flag of the Canary Islands.svg|x18px|Canary Islands]] [[Canary Islands]]}} (2 provinces)
|{{Sort|Las Palmas|[[File:Bandera Provincial de Las Palmas.svg|x18px|Las Palmas]] '''[[Province of Las Palmas|Las Palmas]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Las Palmas|[[Las Palmas]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Las Palmas|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Santa Cruz de Tenerife|[[File:Bandera Provincial de Santa Cruz de Tenerife.svg|x18px|Santa Cruz de Tenerife]] '''[[Province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife|Santa Cruz de Tenerife]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Santa Cruz de Tenerife|[[Santa Cruz de Tenerife]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Santa Cruz de Tenerife|Municipalities]]
|-
| colspan="2" |{{Sort|Cantabria|[[File:Flag of Cantabria (Official).svg|x18px|Cantabria]] '''[[Cantabria]]'''}} (1 province)
|{{Sort|Santander|[[Santander, Cantabria|Santander]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Cantabria|Municipalities]]
|-
| rowspan="9" |{{Sort|Castile and Leon|[[File:Bandera de Castilla y León.svg|x18px|Castilla y León]] [[Castile and León]]}} (9 provinces)
|{{Sort|Avila|[[File:Bandera de la provincia de Ávila.svg|x18px|Ávila]] '''[[Province of Ávila|Ávila]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Avila|[[Ávila, Spain|Ávila]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Ávila|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Burgos|[[File:Burgos (provincia).svg|x18px|Burgos]] '''[[Province of Burgos|Burgos]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Burgos|[[Burgos]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Burgos|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Leon|[[File:Bandera de León.svg|x18px|León]] '''[[Province of León|León]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Leon|[[León, Spain|León]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in León|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Palencia|[[File:Bandera de la provincia de Palencia.svg|x18px|Palencia]] '''[[Province of Palencia|Palencia]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Palencia|[[Palencia]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Palencia|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Salamanca|[[File:Bandera de la provincia de Salamanca.svg|x18px|Salamanca]] '''[[Province of Salamanca|Salamanca]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Salamanca|[[Salamanca]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Salamanca|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Segovia|[[File:Flag Segovia province.svg|x18px|Segovia]] '''[[Province of Segovia|Segovia]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Segovia|[[Segovia]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Segovia|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Soria|[[File:Flag Soria province.svg|x18px|Soria]] '''[[Province of Soria|Soria]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Soria|[[Soria]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Soria|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Valladolid|[[File:Bandera de la provincia de Valladolid.svg|x18px|Valladolid]] '''[[Province of Valladolid|Valladolid]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Valladolid|[[Valladolid]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Valladolid|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Zamora|[[File:Escudo de la provincia de Zamora.svg|x18px|Province of Zamora]] '''[[Province of Zamora|Zamora]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Zamora|[[Zamora, Spain|Zamora]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Zamora|Municipalities]]
|-
| rowspan="5" |{{Sort|Castilla-La Mancha|[[File:Bandera Castilla-La Mancha.svg|x18px|Castilla-La Mancha]] [[Castilla-La Mancha]]}} (5 provinces)
|{{Sort|Albacete|[[File:Bandera provincia Albacete.svg|x18px|Albacete]] '''[[Province of Albacete|Albacete]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Albacete|[[Albacete]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Albacete|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Ciudad Real|[[File:Flag Ciudad Real Province.svg|x18px|Ciudad Real]] '''[[Province of Ciudad Real|Ciudad Real]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Ciudad Real|[[Ciudad Real]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Ciudad Real|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Cuenca|[[File:Flag Cuenca Province.svg|x18px|Cuenca]] '''[[Province of Cuenca (Spain)|Cuenca]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Cuenca|[[Cuenca (Spain)|Cuenca]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Cuenca|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Guadalajara|[[File:Flag Guadalajara Province.svg|x18px|Guadalajara]] '''[[Province of Guadalajara|Guadalajara]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Guadalajara|[[Guadalajara, Spain|Guadalajara]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Guadalajara|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Toledo|[[File:Bandera antigua de la provincia de Toledo.svg|x18px|Toledo]] '''[[Province of Toledo|Toledo]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Toledo|[[Toledo, Spain|Toledo]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Toledo|Municipalities]]
|-
| rowspan="4" |{{Sort|Catalonia|[[File:Flag of Catalonia.svg|x18px|Catalonia]] [[Catalonia]]}}{{efn|{{langx|ca|Catalunya}}<br />{{langx|oc|Catalonha}}<br />{{langx|es|Cataluña}}}} (4 provinces)
|{{Sort|Barcelona|[[File:Flag of Barcelona (province).svg|x18px|Barcelona]] '''[[Province of Barcelona|Barcelona]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Barcelona|[[Barcelona]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Barcelona|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Girona|[[File:Flag of Girona province (unofficial).svg|x18px|Girona]] '''[[Province of Gerona|Gerona]]'''}}{{efn|name=Girona|{{langx|ca|Girona}}<br />{{langx|es|Gerona}}}}
|{{Sort|Girona|[[Girona]]}}{{efn|name=Girona}}
|[[List of municipalities in Girona|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Lleida|[[File:Bandera de la provincia de Lérida.svg|x18px|Lleida]]}} '''[[Province of Lérida|Lérida]]'''{{efn|name=Lleida|{{langx|ca|Lleida}}<br />{{langx|oc|Lhèida}}<br />{{langx|es|Lérida}}}}
|{{Sort|Lleida|[[Lleida]]}}{{efn|name=Lleida}}
|[[List of municipalities in Lleida|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Tarragona|[[File:Bandera actual de la provincia de Tarragona (alternate).svg|25px|Tarragona]] '''[[Province of Tarragona|Tarragona]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Tarragona|[[Tarragona]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Tarragona|Municipalities]]
|-
| rowspan="2" |{{Sort|Extremadura|[[File:Flag of Extremadura with COA.svg|x18px|Extremadura]] [[Extremadura]]}}
|{{Sort|Badajoz|[[File:Bandera y Escudo de la Provincia de Badajoz, España.jpg|x18px|Badajoz]] '''[[Province of Badajoz|Badajoz]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Badajoz|[[Badajoz]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Badajoz|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Caceres|[[File:Flag of the province of Cáceres.svg|x18px|Cáceres]] '''[[Province of Cáceres|Cáceres]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Caceres|[[Cáceres, Spain|Cáceres]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Cáceres|Municipalities]]
|-
| rowspan="4" |{{Sort|Galicia|[[File:Flag of Galicia.svg|x18px|Galicia]] [[Galicia (Spain)|Galicia]]}} (4 provinces)
|{{Sort|La Coruna|[[File:Coat of Arms of the Province of Corunna.svg|x18px|La Coruña]] '''[[Province of La Coruña|La Coruña]]'''}}{{efn|name=La Coruña|{{langx|gl|A Coruña}}<br />{{langx|es|La Coruña}}}}
|{{Sort|La Coruna|[[La Coruña]]}}{{efn|name=La Coruña}}
|[[List of municipalities in La Coruña|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Lugo|[[File:Flag of Lugo province.svg|x18px|Lugo]] '''[[Province of Lugo|Lugo]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Lugo|[[Lugo]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Lugo|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Orense|[[File:Provincia de Ourense - Bandera.svg|x18px|Orense]] '''[[Province of Orense|Orense]]'''}}{{efn|name=Orense|{{langx|gl|Ourense}}<br />{{langx|es|Orense}}}}
|{{Sort|Orense|[[Ourense|Orense]]}}{{efn|name=Orense}}
|[[List of municipalities in Orense|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Pontevedra|[[File:Flag Pontevedra Province.svg|25px|Pontevedra]] '''[[Province of Pontevedra|Pontevedra]]'''}}
|{{Sort|Pontevedra|[[Pontevedra]]}}
|[[List of municipalities in Pontevedra|Municipalities]]
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Sort|La Rioja|[[File:Flag of La Rioja (with coat of arms).svg|x18px|La Rioja]] '''[[La Rioja (Spain)|La Rioja]]'''}} (1 province)
| {{Sort|Logrono|[[Logroño]]}}
| [[List of municipalities in La Rioja|Municipalities]]
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Sort|Madrid|[[File:Flag of the Community of Madrid.svg|x18px|Community of Madrid]] '''[[Province of Madrid|Madrid]]'''}} (1 province)
| {{Sort|Madrid|[[Madrid]]}}
| [[List of municipalities in Madrid|Municipalities]]
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Sort|Murcia|[[File:Flag of the Region of Murcia.svg|x18px|Region of Murcia]] '''[[Region of Murcia|Murcia]]'''}} (1 province)
| {{Sort|Murcia|[[Murcia]]}}
| [[List of municipalities in Murcia|Municipalities]]
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Sort|Navarre|[[File:Bandera de Navarra.svg|x18px|Navarre]] '''[[Navarre]]'''}}{{efn|{{langx|eu|Nafarroa}}<br />{{langx|es|Navarra}}}} (1 province)
| {{Sort|Pamplona|[[Pamplona]]}}{{efn|{{langx|eu|Iruña}}<br />{{langx|es|Pamplona}}}}
| [[List of municipalities in Navarre|Municipalities]]
|-
| rowspan="3" |{{Sort|Valencian Community|[[File:Flag of the Land of Valencia (official).svg|x18px|Valencian Community]] [[Valencian Community]]}} (3 provinces)
|{{Sort|Alicante|[[File:Escut de la Província d'Alacant.svg|x18px|Province of Alicante]] '''[[Province of Alicante|Alicante]]'''}}{{efn|name=Alacant|{{langx|ca-valencia|Alacant}}<br />{{langx|es|Alicante}}}}
|{{Sort|Alicante|[[Alicante]]}}{{efn|name=Alacant}}
|[[List of municipalities in Alicante|Municipalities]]
|-
|{{Sort|Castellon|[[File:Escut de la Província de Castelló.svg|x18px|Province of Castellón]] '''[[Province of Castellón|Castellón]]'''}}{{efn|name=Castelló|{{langx|ca-valencia|Castelló}}<br />{{langx|es|Castellón}}}}
|{{Sort|Castellon de la Plana|[[Castellón de la Plana]]}}{{efn|name=Castelló}}
|[[List of municipalities in Castellón|Municipalities]]
|-
| {{Sort|Valencian Community|[[File:Escut de la Província de València.svg|x18px|Province of Valencia]] '''[[Province of Valencia|Valencia]]'''}}{{efn|name=Valencia|{{langx|ca-valencia|València}}<br />{{langx|es|Valencia}}}}
| {{Sort|Valencia|[[Valencia, Spain|Valencia]]}}{{efn|name=Valencia}}
| [[List of municipalities in Valencia|Municipalities]]
|}
'''Native names:'''
{{notelist}}

== Notes ==
{{reflist|group=note}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
* {{cite web |title=The Spanish Constitution |url=https://www.boe.es/legislacion/documentos/ConstitucionINGLES.pdf |publisher=Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado |access-date=12 June 2019 |language=English |date=1978|ref={{harvid|Spanish Constitution|1978}}}}
* {{cite web|title=Local Government Act (Organic Law 7/1985)|url=https://www.boe.es/eli/es/l/1985/04/02/7/con |publisher=Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado |access-date=12 June 2019 |year=1985|language=Spanish|ref={{harvid|Local Government Act|1985}}}}
* {{cite journal |title=Reflexiones sobre el gobierno local |trans-title=Reflections on local government |language=Spanish |first=Manuel |last=Zafra Víctor |journal=Anuario del Gobierno Local |issn=2013-4924 |issue=1 |year=2004 |isbn=84-609-5895-7 |accessdate=9 June 2022 |location=Barcelona |publisher=Institut de Dret Públic |format=pdf |url=http://repositorio.gobiernolocal.es/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10873/519/097-114 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160809071942/http://repositorio.gobiernolocal.es/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10873/519/097-114%20Zafra.pdf |archivedate=2016-08-09}}
* {{cite web |title=Local Government in Spain |url=https://www.hacienda.gob.es/Documentacion/Publico/SGT/CATALOGO_SEFP/223_Regimen-Local-ING-INTERNET.pdf|publisher=Ministry of Public Administration |access-date=11 June 2022 |language=English|ref={{harvid|MPA|}}}}

== See also ==
* [[Political divisions of Spain]]
* [[Local government in Spain]]
* [[Autonomous communities of Spain]]
* [[Comarcas of Spain]]
* [[ISO 3166-2:ES]]
* [[List of provincial flags of Spain]]
* [[List of Spanish provinces by area|Ranked lists of Spanish provinces]]
* [[Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces]]


== External links ==
{{Commons category|Provinces of Spain}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160306051250/http://www.maps.data-spain.com/spain/political_provinces.html Maps of the provinces of Spain]
* [http://www.ine.es/daco/daco42/codmun/codmun07/07codmunmapa.htm List of municipalities of Spain listed by province] from the Spanish [http://www.ine.es/ INE] ([[Instituto Nacional de Estadística (Spain)|National Statistics Institute]]) {{in lang|es}}

{{Articles on second-level administrative divisions of European countries}}
{{Provinces of Spain}}
{{Spain topics}}

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[[Category:Provinces of Spain| ]]
[[Category:Administrative divisions in Europe|Spain 2]]
[[Category:Lists of subdivisions of Spain|Provinces]]
[[Category:Second-level administrative divisions by country|Spain]]
[[Category:Subdivisions of Spain]]