Province of Leon
León (in Leonese Llión) is a Spanish province located in the northwest of the autonomous community of Castilla y León. Its capital is Leon. It limits to the north with Asturias and Cantabria, to the east with the province of Palencia, to the south with the provinces of Zamora and Valladolid and to the west with Galicia, specifically with the provinces of Orense and Lugo. It has an area of 15,581 km² and in 2022 it had 448,179 inhabitants.
As such, it was constituted in the administrative division of 1833, after the reforms carried out by Javier de Burgos, forming part, although without administrative operation, of the region of León. It is divided into 211 municipalities, grouped into seven judicial districts: Sahagún, León, La Bañeza, Ponferrada, Astorga, Cistierna and Villablino.
A place of passage between important regions of the Iberian Peninsula, two major routes run through the province of Leon: from south to north the Vía de la Plata, and from east to west the Camino de Santiago.
Toponymy
Like most of the provinces of Spain, the province of León takes its name from its capital. This derives from the Latin legio, legionis, meaning 'legion', from where the popular etymology derived the current name. It refers to the Roman legion that was stationed in its current location; over time the same name of the legion was used to designate the urban complex that grew around it.
Regarding the evolution from legio to León, in classical Latin the gi is pronounced as if it were a gui, so the pronunciation of legio would be leguio, something that ended up deriving into Leio or Leionem, which in turn ended up in the current name of León.
Physical geography
Location
The province of León is located in the northwestern part of the Iberian Peninsula, in the historical region of León within the autonomous community of Castilla y León (Spain). It limits to the north with the principality of Asturias and with Cantabria, where the Cantabrian mountain range plays the role of natural border between the northern plateau and the Cantabrian coast. To the west, different units of the Galaico-Leonés massif act as the border with the Galician provinces of Orense and Lugo. To the south it limits with the provinces of Zamora and Valladolid and to the east with the province of Palencia, without there being a natural border between them.
| Northwest: Lugo Province | North: Principality of Asturias | Northeast: Cantabria |
| West: Lugo Province and Province of Orense |  | This: Province of Palencia |
| Southwest: Province of Orense | South: Province of Zamora | Sureste: Valladolid Province |
Provincial map
Orography
From a structural point of view, the relief of the province is organized around three large morphological units: the Cantabrian mountain range, the Galaico-Leonés massif and the Meseta. The mountainous formations occupy an important part of the relief, being more than 50% of the total surface above 1000 meters of altitude.
- Cordillera Cantábrica
The Cantabrian mountain range is represented by the so-called Asturian massif. Among the whole complex, the Picos de Europa stand out, where the topographic contrasts resulting from the Hercynian-Alpine orogeny have been accentuated by the boxing in of the fluvial network (with deep gorges such as the Los Beyos gorge and the Cares gorge), and where we find peaks that exceed 2,500 m in altitude, such as Torre de Cerredo (2,648 m) or Torre del Llambrión (2,642 m). The vertical forms, the glacial cirques, the karstic complexes, the gorges, the snowfields, the sinkholes and the chasms are the most significant elements.
In the western zone, the alignments are arranged from west to east, leaving fluvial corridors that, in the case of the Luna and Omaña rivers, opened the depressions that make up the Babia and Omaña regions. In the central sector, different watercourses opened transversal valleys in a north-south arrangement, sometimes forming gorges such as the Hoces de Vegacervera or the Hoces de Valdeteja. Glacier modeling and karstic modeling left their mark with formations such as the Valporquero cave.
- Macizo Galaico-Leonés
The Galician-Leonese mountains close the province to the west, separating it from Galicia. They constitute a bulge of the ancient Paleozoic massif that fractured into different units: the Sierra de Gistredo, with the Catoute peak (2,117 m), the Montes de León, with the Teleno (2,188 m), La Cabrera, with the Vizcodillo (2,121 m), and the western mountains such as the Ancares, with the Cuiña (1992 m), and the Caurel, with the Montouto (1541 m). In the center of all of them, the Hoya del Bierzo was formed, characterized by a landscape of countryside and meadows. The peaks are flattened, interrupted by alignments of quartzite outcrops (picones, altos, peñas), and the glacial forms are manifested with examples U-shaped valleys or lakes such as Truchillas and La Baña.
- The Meseta
The Leonese sector of the Meseta occupies the central and southeastern part of the province, being the northwestern end of the sedimentary basin that occupies the interior of Spain. With an average altitude between 700 and 1,000 meters above sea level, it is an almost horizontal relief of moors with gentle undulations only interrupted by terraces and interfluves, formed by rivers that descend from both the Cantabrian mountain range and the Galaico-Leonés massif. These flat and elevated reliefs are known as páramos de rañas or chanas. In the southern zone, on the sedimentary materials the erosion originated wide valleys with interfluves that barely stand out. These undulating plains, upon coming into contact with the páramos in the center of the basin, cease to be open spaces as they are interrupted by witness hills, tessos or alcores.
Hydrography
- Rios
Due to its mountainous structure, the province of León divides its territory between three hydrographic basins: Cantabrian, Miño-Sil (until 2008, both made up the Northern Hydrographic Confederation), and Duero. The Cantabrian basin represents only 2.2% of the surface, limited, on the one hand, to the Sajambre and Valdeón valleys, drained by the Sella and Cares rivers, and on the other, to the Balouta and Suarbol valleys with the Balouta and Moreira rivers, which they flow towards the Navia river.
The Miño-Sil basin represents 27.7% of the provincial surface and is separated from the Duero basin by the Montes de León, from which, and to the west, the Sil system expands. This, which is born at more than 1500 meters of altitude on the Leonese slope of the port of Somiedo, crosses the regions of Laciana, El Bierzo and La Cabrera Baja and has as its main contributions, within the province, the rivers Boeza, Cúa, Burbia, Selmo and Cabrera.
The Duero basin represents 72.1% of the surface and its main axis is the Esla river, one of the main tributaries of the Duero with 5040 hm³ per year. Most of the river courses discharge their waters into it of the basin through its tributaries Porma (with its tributary the Curueño), Bernesga (with its tributary the Torío), Cea and Órbigo (with its tributaries Tuerto, Turienzo, Duerna, Jamuz and Eria). Also part of the basin are the Valderaduey River, which flows into the Duero near Zamora, and the Grande River, which flows from the Besande and Valverde de la Sierra valleys into the Carrión, now in the province of Palencia.
- Lagos
Among the lakes and lagoons of natural origin we can distinguish two types, those of glacial origin and those of steppe. To the former correspond, among others, the Ausente and Isoba lakes in Puebla de Lillo, the La Baña lake, the Truchillas lake or the Cheiroso well in Valdeprado. Of a steppe type are, among others, the Chozas de Arriba lagoon, the Sahelices del Payuelo lagoons, the Cal lagoon in Fontecha (Valdevimbre), the Grande Lagoon in Bercianos del Real Camino and the Villadangos del Páramo lagoon.
The deterioration of the water table has caused the disappearance of many of the wetlands that existed in the province, as well as the drying up of lagoons in the Páramo after land consolidation and the start-up of artificial irrigation. In his 1948 work, Luis Pardo described 125 in León, of which only fifty survive.
- Embalses
Several river channels have their flow regulated by swamps, reservoirs and dams. In the Miño-Sil basin are those of La Campañana, Las Rozas, Matalavilla and Bárcena. Except for the latter, which is also used for water supply and irrigation, all of them are used to generate hydroelectric power.
In the Duero basin are located the Barrios de Luna, Casares, Porma, Riaño and Villameca. Most of them also generate hydroelectric power in addition to their use as supply and irrigation, and some of them, such as those in Barrios de Luna, Porma and Riaño, are also used for the practice of water sports, with the School of Porma being of Nautical Sports of Castilla y León.
Climate
In climatic terms, the province of León serves as a transition between the Meseta and the mountainous areas. The predominant climate is continental Mediterranean, although nuanced in some areas, such as the northwest, with Atlantic influence, and the Hoya Berciana, with milder temperatures. In general, a high thermal amplitude is characteristic (from 12 to 20 °C), cold and long winters, short spring and autumn, frosts and short and hot summers.
Precipitation is distributed irregularly throughout the year and depending on the area. Thus, in the north and northwest fringes, 1,500 mm per year are reached, while in certain areas of the south of the province they barely reach 500 mm. Said precipitations are concentrated mainly in autumn and spring with a minimum in summer, especially accentuated in the plain, and in the form of snow in winter.
As for temperatures, in general it is a cold climate due to the altitude and the abundance of frosts (which persist from November to May), being more intense in mountainous areas reaching –18 °C for example in Villamanin. Summers are short, with the hottest days between July 15 and August 15, when temperatures can exceed 30 °C.
Nature
Geology
The territory of the province of León does not constitute a homogeneous unit but rather three large geological units can be distinguished: to the north, coinciding with the morphological unit of the Cantabrian mountain range, the Paleozoic base surfaces, to the west is the depression of the Bierzo and the constituent set of the Galaico-Leonés massif, and the rest of the territory is made up of the sedimentary basin that occupies most of the autonomous community and in which two types of rock are distinguished, the materials of the old plinth of the Primary and the sedimentary materials deposited during the Tertiary and Quaternary in the center of it.
Flora
The flora of the province of León is very varied, with some 3000 different species that represent 20% of those that can be found in the Iberian Peninsula. The plant formations present show a differentiation between the plains and the mountains, although in both domains Mediterranean species and transition to Atlantic vegetation predominate.
After the last ice age, a more arid climate was introduced, favoring the development of xerophytic vegetation and thus, the beech forest retreated to the Cantabrian mountains. Wherever it withdrew, the holm oak was implanted, and is currently present only in scattered stands since most of it disappeared when it was replaced by farmland. They are hills with stunted feet, traditionally used for charcoal and firewood, of which the largest is the Becares holm oak grove. sabinas, which is found in more arid spaces and with lower temperatures, such as the juniper groves of Crémenes and Mirantes de Luna. them) as a degraded mountain that has lost its original size.
As for the mountain, it offers nuances such as height, temperature or humidity. Up to 1,400 meters of altitude, the rebollares develop that link with the repopulations of Scots pine (or in a natural state as in Cofiñal), and at the base with the oak and albar oak groves, with the chestnut forests in El Bierzo or the beech forests of the Cantabrian mountains, among which the Faedo de Ciñera stands out, considered in 2007 the best-kept forest in Spain.
The understory of these forests is covered by scrub formations made up of ferns, heather or gorse. Where the trees cannot grow due to the effect of the cold and the winds, there is a vegetation made up of brooms, junipers, brooms or brooms. The varied forest mass favors the appearance of different species of mosses and lichens, such as capuchin beards, lungworts or Iceland moss, as well as an abundant mycological flora.
Wildlife
The province has a rich and varied fauna due to its transition situation between the Mediterranean world and the Eurosiberian world and between the plains and the mountains. Thus, in terms of ichthids, the Leonese waters support native species such as trout common, tench and barbel or alien like pike. In relation to the different aquatic environments, there are amphibians such as the marbled newt, mammals such as the desman or the otter, and birds such as different species of ducks and wagtails or the kingfisher.
In the flat areas of the province there are birds such as the bustard or the kestrel and small mammals such as the hare and, in wooded areas, the weasel or the stoat. In the surroundings of the population centers, white storks, swallows, different species of tits, jackdaws, which in Spain only breed in the central-southern area of the province, or birds of prey such as the red kite are common. Mammals such as wild boar, fox, roe deer or wolves are present in areas that give way to fields or forests. Finally, in mountain areas, either in grasslands or in forests, inhabit the deer, the ibex, the chamois, the gray partridge or the marten and birds such as the golden eagle.
However, the most emblematic species within the province are the brown bear and the capercaillie. The first, in its western nucleus, extends, within the province, through Los Ancares, Laciana, Babia and Omaña, and in its eastern nucleus it occupies the Riaño Mountain. Threatened with danger of extinction, in recent years its population It has increased thanks to the support of the administrations and the work of organizations such as the Oso Pardo Foundation with conservation projects and environmental education. As for the capercaillie, since the early eighties it has been suffering a decline in its population of up to 70% due to the fragmentation of its habitat, the low reproduction rate and the high degree of predation, which is why conservation programs are being carried out through habitat improvements or captive breeding, among others. In addition, since 2005 The existence of a capercaillie population in the mountains of León has been confirmed, the most southerly of all known populations, whose adaptation to a Mediterranean ecosystem is unique in its kind. ie, living in dry summer conditions and with a different diet than usual.
Protected spaces
- Network of Natural Spaces
Since in 1991 the Junta de Castilla y León adhered to the legal framework that allowed the protection and regulation of its natural spaces, a network has been configured that, as of 2010, integrates nearly forty spaces under different figures of protection. Of all of them, the province of León is home to eight spaces, including the Picos de Europa National Park, created in 1995 from the expansion of the Montaña de Covadonga National Park, and the Picos de Europa Regional Park. of Europe, created in 1994.
As for Natural Spaces, there are the Sierra de Ancares, an example of the coexistence of Galician, Leon and Cantabrian influences, Las Médulas, with its characteristic anthropic modeling resulting from Roman mining, the San Emiliano Valley, an example of a transition zone between the Eurosiberian and Mediterranean flora and fauna, and the Hoces de Vegacervera, of high geomorphological value. Finally, the natural monuments of Lake La Baña and Lake Truchillas, which stand out for their botanical, faunal and geomorphological values but which are currently threatened by the presence of open-air mining.
- Biosphere reserves
The areas classified as Biosphere Reserves, recognized by Unesco for their scientific interest and their natural and cultural wealth, are represented in León by seven spaces that occupy a total of 3,290,253 km² (21.12% of the total of the provincial surface).
- Red Natura 2000
The Natura 2000 Network, whose objective is to ensure the survival of the most threatened species and habitats in Europe and which consists of Special Conservation Areas (ZEC), previously cataloged as Sites of Community Importance (LIC), in accordance with the Habitats Directive, and Special Protection Areas for Birds (ZEPA), given by virtue of the Bird Directive. It is present in the province with 16 LICs and 11 ZEPAs.
History
Symbols
- Shield
The figure of the lion appeared for the first time on coins minted in the time of Alfonso VII (1126-1157), and its use became general under Ferdinand II (1157-1188) and Alfonso IX (1188-1230). This lion would be the oldest symbol in Western Europe, before the English lions and the French fleurs-de-lis, and although at first it did not conform to later heraldic regulations, under Alfonso IX the Leonese arms appear fixed, with the rampant lion that looks to his right. The crown that the lion wears began to be seen on coins and signs of Sancho IV, possibly from 1284, and the reason for its addition would be to reinforce the regal character of the insignia. When, in the XIX century, the Provincial Council wanted to differentiate its emblems, this distinction consisted in that the lion of the provincial emblem was crowned and not the one used by the Town Hall, since, moreover, the representations of both shields do not show substantial differences.
One of the most characteristic aspects of this lion is its color, purple; In addition to its rarity —it hardly exists in the heraldry of other countries and its origin as heraldic enamel would be in the Leonese coat of arms itself—, the choice of this color must be sought in the representation of the imperial condition, being, perhaps, the Alfonso VII himself who elected it. In the XX century, despite the specifications about the color of the lion in the Decree 2267/1982, of September 3, the official representations of this figure adopted a pink or fuchsia tone with the aim, it seems, of avoiding the original purple tone, perhaps because it is associated with the Republic. As for the enamel of the field of the shield, the silver color appeared for the first time in the portrait of Alfonso IX of the Tumbo A, and its choice was due to the fact that it offered contrast and harmony with the purple of the lion.
- Flag
In medieval times, royal banners with a rampant lion are cited, while army banners would have the shape of a banner, with a passing lion. This would be purple on a white or silver background. Later, the kingdom of León is represented in the XVI centuries and XVII by means of a white flag with a purple lion.
In the Modern Age, the only banner used was the royal banner and councilor of the Leonese capital, which was crimson and carried the arms of the city. A new one was made for each proclamation of a new king and, for example, an act dated February 18, 1789 from the Municipal Agreements Book indicates that the city banner was crimson, with six small shields with gold, silver and silk. Over time, and with some variations, it would end up representing the entire province. Thus, at the end of the XIX century, the Provincial Council used a flag with the coat of arms on a red background, and in 1960 it adopted a flag that he would use regularly for the next decade; Inspired by the crimson banner, it carried the shield of León in the center and around those of its judicial districts.
In 1977 it was proposed that the provincial flag be purple and, although it consisted of an artificial reinterpretation of crimson, the proposal was well received among official and Leonist circles. Thus, both the City Council and the Provincial Council adopted this banner as their own and it was successfully generalized and popularized.
Government and administration
The provinces are Regional Administrative Entities, lower than the autonomous community, determined by the grouping of municipalities, with their own legal personality and full capacity to comply with the guarantee of the principles of inter-municipal solidarity and balance, within the framework of the economic and social policy.
The Government and the autonomous administration of the Province correspond to the Provincial Council.
History of the Provincial Council of León
Until the creation of the Provincial Councils, the provincial administration was basically an oversight instrument, but through article 335 of the Constitution of Cádiz (1812) the Provincial Councils were endowed with a series of perks such as the distribution of contributions, surveillance of violations of the Constitution, the provincial census and statistics, the establishment of constitutional Town Halls, etc. In front of it was a Superior Chief, appointed by the King. This new position, which he also held as a Government Delegate, assumed the powers of public order and executive power and served as a link between the Town Halls and the Provincial Council. However, after fourteen months of existence, Fernando VII put an end to the work of Las Cortes declaring the Constitution null and void.
During the absolutist six-year term of Fernando VII (1814-1820), the liberal reformist current came to a standstill, turning to the conservatism of the old regime. After this period, during the Liberal Triennium (1820-1823), the provincial question reappeared. The Law for the economic-political Government of the Provinces considers the Provincial Councils as the General Council of the Province.
In 1919-1920 Julio Fernández y Fernández was president of the Provincial Council of León and in 1930 it was Germán Gullón Núñez, a lawyer from Astorgan with liberal and progressive ideas and father of the literary critic, jurist and academic of the RAE Ricardo gullon. Germán Gullón Núñez was part of the Provincial Council of León that was committed to the Castilian Commonwealth, a project, which was not administratively formed, to create a commonwealth of provincial councils of Castilla la Vieja, Castilla la Nueva and León with the largest number of provinces Castilian, ensuring that it be called Castilla y León. In both governments, the renowned professor and mathematician José del Corral y Herrero was a provincial deputy for the district of Sahagún.
Human Geography
Territorial organization
1. Sahagún
2. León
3. La Bañeza
4. Ponfer
5. Astorga
6. Cistierna
7. Villablino
The territorial organization of the province is divided into counties, municipalities and local entities. At the administrative level there is no official region except for El Bierzo, recognized in 1991, so there are agricultural, health or tourism divisions, among others. The only official division is the judicial one, with the distribution of the province among seven parties: Sahagún, León, La Bañeza, Ponferrada, Astorga, Cistierna and Villablino.
However, since the Middle Ages, when they reached an administrative and jurisdictional character, there is news of the traditional regions of León, whose origins were various councils, manors and ecclesiastical divisions. Thus, the eastern mountain is articulated in a multitude of valleys with their own characteristics, opened by the Esla, Valdellorma, Cea, Grande, Yuso rivers and their tributaries, and which has Cistierna as an economic, commercial and administrative center. In the central mountain, the valleys of the Porma rivers, Curueño and Torío and the headwaters of Bernesga give the region personality, in which Boñar stands out as a commercial and economic center. For its part, the western mountain regions are grouped around the Bernesga, Luna and Omaña rivers and they have La Robla as their most dynamic nucleus; Most of these demarcations were linked to an important castle, their center during the period of consolidation of the kingdom of Asturias.
The lowlands of the southeast of the province are distributed among various regions defined by geographic types such as riverbanks, meadows and páramos; To the north, the banks and meadows of the Bernesga, Torío, Curueño, Porma, Esla and Cea rivers predominate, while to the south the páramos extend, interrupted by hillocks and by the meadows of Órbigo, Esla and Cea. Territories historically influenced by León and Astorga, its main nuclei are the old capitals of jurisdictions and manors: Valencia de Don Juan, Santa María del Páramo, Valderas, Sahagún and Mansilla de las Mulas. The Astorga region, the main center of all this This area includes a series of well differentiated territories between the mountains of Montes de León, Las Vegas del Órbigo and El Tuerto and the valleys of Duerna, Eria and Jamuz. In addition to Astorga, other important towns are La Bañeza, Benavides de Órbigo, Carrizo de la Ribera and Veguellina de Órbigo.
As for the western part of the province, although very different meanings have been applied to the term Bierzo (giving its name to the current region of El Bierzo), its traditional distribution is spread over the low valleys of Sil, the Boeza, Cúa and Burbia, which were an important part of the old Partido de Ponferrada. The entire region, made up of the plains of the Hoya Berciana and the valleys and banks of its mountainous border, was the result of numerous jurisdictional and ecclesiastical distributions, and as a consequence of all this derives a set of well-identified territories.
At the local level, the province is divided into 211 municipalities, politically governed by a city council, in which there are 1,226 population entities or EATIMES, 33% of those existing in Spain. These are governed through a neighborhood board, which is made up of a President and various members, and deals with the management of communal property. When the population has less than 250 inhabitants, it can be managed through an open council, made up of a mayor and the assembly of all the residents.
These institutions, below the municipal level, are direct heirs of the medieval councils, which arose in the northern territories of the Peninsula, including the kingdom of León. These councils consisted of the meeting of all the neighbors to manage the lands and other communal assets (pastures, mountains, mills) as well as common work, such as landowners to fix roads and fountains.
Demographics
- Evolution
The first official census of 1857 revealed that a total of 348,756 people resided in the province, in 81,212 households, the bulk of the population being in rural areas, the only urban centers being that León stood out, with 10,040 inhabitants, Astorga, with 4,804 inhabitants, and Villafranca del Bierzo, with 4,547 inhabitants. In Ponferrada, today the second city of the province, there were 3,565 inhabitants, a figure very similar to that of Valderas, with 3,544, and La Bañeza, with 3,106.
Demographic growth during the second half of the 19th century was weighed down by high mortality, barely offset by the birth rate, with the greatest increase occurring in rural areas. Thus, in 1900, practically in the 20th century, the province it had 386,083 people residing in 103,052 homes; The capital then had 15,580, and Ponferrada had already begun to become the reference urban nucleus of the Bercian region, with 7,188 inhabitants, surpassing Astorga, with 5,573 inhabitants, as the second nucleus of the province, a position that has never been will leave.
Throughout the first half of the XX century, following the dynamics of the rest of the country, mortality fell rapidly while the birth rate did so at a much lower rate; causing a great vegetative growth, which coincided in time with the autarkic period at the end of the period, which promoted the development of coal and iron mining, caused a great population growth. Urban development in this period, however, was scarce, with the capital reaching 59,549 inhabitants in 1950, Ponferrada 23,773 and Astorga 9,916. Finally, San Andrés del Rabanedo was already beginning a timid urban development due to the overflow to the west of the capital., reaching 6045 inhabitants. Overall, the province reached 544,779 inhabitants, residing in 140,007 homes.
In the following half of the 20th century, the province reached its all-time high, with 584,594 people living in 143,040 dwellings in 1960, beginning to decline from then on, as a result of the rural exodus and the industrial weakness of the province, which based its economy on mining and agriculture. Thus, almost at the end of the century, in 1991, the province already had 520,433 inhabitants residing in 170,407 homes, which shows that fewer people shared a roof in each home than in 1960. Despite the depopulation of the province, its urban nuclei are reinforced, reaching the capital in that year the 147,625 inhabitants, the historical maximum registered in the municipality, Ponferrada, 59,702, San Andrés del Rabanedo, already consolidated as the third municipality of the province to be benefited by the overflow from the capital, reaches 21,643; Astorga the 13,802.
Throughout the remainder of the XX century and after the turn of the century, the population continued to decline to a low of 492,720 inhabitants in 2004, after which the arrival of foreign immigrants reversed the trend and allowed the recovery of half a million inhabitants in 2008, with 500,200; a figure that, however, would lose again at the end of the decade, in 2010, with 499,284 inhabitants. Since then, urban development continues to be maintained in the face of rural depopulation, reaching the urban area of the Leonese capital with 199,281 inhabitants and Ponferrada with 63,747, both representing more than 50% of the provincial population. During this period of demographic decline, there has been a parallel progressive aging of the population, with 33.15% over 60 years of age.
| Population pyramid 2021 | ||||
| % | Men | Age | Women | % |
| 1.4 | 85+ | 2.44 | ||
| 1.65 | 80-84 | 2.44 | ||
| 2.2 | 75-79 | 2.74 | ||
| 2.73 | 70-74 | 3,02 | ||
| 3,25 | 65-69 | 3,28 | ||
| 4,02 | 60-64 | 3,97 | ||
| 4,13 | 55-59 | 4.21 | ||
| 3,91 | 50-54 | 4 | ||
| 3,8 | 45-49 | 3,78 | ||
| 3,63 | 40-44 | 3,61 | ||
| 3,06 | 35-39 | 2.96 | ||
| 2.44 | 30-34 | 2.33 | ||
| 2.19 | 25-29 | 1.98 | ||
| 2.08 | 20-24 | 1,95 | ||
| 2.04 | 15-19 | 1.96 | ||
| 2.01 | 10-14 | 1.94 | ||
| 1.84 | 5-9 | 1.7. | ||
| 1.45 | 0-4 | 1.37 | ||
The data for the 2021 population pyramid can be summarized as follows:
- The population under 20 is 14.31 % of the total.
- The figure between 20-40 years is 19.02 %.
- The figure between 40-60 years is 31.08 %.
- Over 60 years is 33.15 %.
| Graphic of demographic evolution of the province of León between 1900 and 2021 |
 |
Population of Law (1900-1991) or resident population (2001) according to population censuses of the INE. Population according to the 2017 municipal plan of the INE. |
Population by municipality (2018)
Population density (2018)
Population growth from 1998 to 2008
Population growth between 2008 and 2018
- Distribution
The province of León has an area of 15,581 km² and a population of 451,706 people, resulting in a density of 28.99 inhab/km², higher than the density of the autonomous community of 26.57 inhab/km² but very less than the 91.13 inhab/km² of Spain. The province ranks as the second most populous in Castilla y León, after losing the first position due to the low demographic dynamism of the province. In the national group, the province is in position 32.
The distribution of the Leonese population is not uniform, distinguishing between two especially populated areas that are in turn the most demographically and economically dynamic: the areas of León and Ponferrada, which together account for more than 50% of the provincial population, a percentage that tends to increase due to the greater dynamism of these areas compared to the rest of the province. After these two areas we can highlight the cities of Astorga and La Bañeza and Ribera del Órbigo, more populated in the past. On the opposite side, the least populated areas are the regions of Tierra de Sahagún, La Cabrera and Montaña Oriental, with population densities below 10 inhab/km².
- Migrant movements
- Historical review
Late 19th century, early <span style="font-variant:small-caps;text" century XX, the development of mining will create a large influx of population towards the main extractive poles; the basins of Laciana, El Bierzo, La Magdalena, Ciñera, Sabero, San Emiliano and Valderrueda, the latter extending beyond the province of León, towards the Palencia mining basin. The mining valleys, sparsely populated and dependent on a rudimentary economy subsistence farms registered significant demographic growth.
In the sixties, the province lost a large part of its demographic force due to the rural exodus, migrating a large part of the population to other more dynamic areas; Madrid and Barcelona above all, but also the Basque Country, Asturias and abroad. Due to this demographic phenomenon, the provincial population went from 584,594 in 1960 to 517,368 in 1981, producing at the same time a process of concentration of the people of Leon in the capital and Ponferrada, which went from 73,483 to 131,134 people and from 37,053 to 52,499 respectively in the same period. The mining crisis in the eighties adds to the emigration caused by the rural exodus, causing a demographic decline in the mining areas that continues today.
Lastly, the last notable migratory movement in the province occurred at the beginning of the 1990s with the influx of foreigners to the province, coinciding with the construction boom. The increase in the number of foreigners managed to invest the decline that the province maintained, except in small periods, since the sixties, with a minimum in the year 2004, when 492,720 people inhabit the province. The process of concentration around the urban centers continues, reinforcing the role of the areas of León and Ponferrada; San Andrés del Rabanedo and especially Villaquilambre multiply their population due to the scarce land available in the municipality of León.
- Main localities
- Current status
During the period 2003-2007 the following migratory flows took place:
In 2009, the population of Leon was made up of 466,116 people born in Spain and 34,053 people born abroad. Among the main immigrant groups, the 4,450 Portuguese, 3,111 Colombians and 3,039 Moroccans stand out. Behind them also stand out the 2,514 French, the 2,455 Bulgarians and the 2,144 Romanians. By continent, after Europe, the 12,135 Americans stand out, of which 8,680 are from South America, followed very far by the 4,419 Africans.
Regarding emigration, in 2009, of the 620,657 people born in the province and residing in Spain, only 396,377 resided in León, the rest being distributed throughout the national geography, highlighting the 52,889 people residing in Madrid, the 30,536 residents in Catalonia, highlighting the group of 25,455 people from Leon in Barcelona, the 29,759 residents in Asturias, the 22,169 people from Leon residing in the Basque Country and the 15,006 people residing in Galicia.
Economy
Transport and communications
Due to its location, the province of León is a fundamental node for traffic from or to Galicia and Asturias. In this way, the axes of the A-66 and A-6, the main access roads to Asturias and Galicia respectively, meet in the province, with the junction of these two roads located in Benavente, just ten kilometers from the provincial limit. The railway network follows this pattern and León is the main gateway to Asturias and the access to Galicia, through El Bierzo, is one of the existing ones to this autonomous community. Regarding air transport, the province has an airport in the capital.
- Road network
The province's road network is managed by the State, the Board, the Provincial Council and finally by the Miño-Sil Hydrographic Confederation, the latter being in charge of the roads that allow access to canals and reservoirs for the construction of of maintenance work.
| Identifier | Name | From/ | Important cities of León where it passes |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Northwest motorway | Madrid-La Coruña | La Bañeza, Astorga, Torre del Bierzo, Bembibre, Ponferrada, Villafranca del Bierzo |
 | Autovía Ruta de la Plata | Gijón-Sevilla | León, Villamañán |
 | Autopista Ruta de la Plata | León-Campomanes | Lion, La Robla |
 | Autopista León-Astorga | León-Astorga | Lion, Astorga |
 | Autovía Camino de Santiago | Burgos-León | Lion, Sahagún |
 | Communication highway between LE-20 and LE-30 | Lion (from LE-20 to LE-30 and N-601) | |
 | Interior Circumvalation of León | From N-630 to Trobajo del Camino (N-120) | |
 | Exterior circle of León | From Puente Castro (N-601) to Valverde de la Virgen (A-66 and AP-71) |
| Name | From/ | Important cities of León where it passes |
|---|---|---|
| N-6 | Madrid-La Coruña | La Bañeza, Astorga, Torre del Bierzo, Bembibre, Ponferrada, Villafranca del Bierzo |
| N-120 | Logroño-Vigo | Sahagún, León, Astorga, Ponferrada, Toral de los Vados |
| N-536 | Ponferrada-El Barco de Valdeorras | Ponferrada, Carucedo, Puente de Domingo Flórez |
| N-601 | Madrid-León | Lion, Mulas Mansilla |
| N-621 | Lion-Unquera | Lion, Cistierna, Riaño |
| N-625 | Handle of the Mulas-Arriondas | Mansilla de las Mulas, Cistierna |
| N-630 | Gijón-Sevilla | La Robla, León, Villamanín |
- Railway transportation
The province's railway lines are managed by Adif, distinguishing three networks of different gauge: the Iberian and standard gauge networks, operated by Renfe Operadora, and the metric gauge network, operated by Renfe Cercanías AM (commercial division of Renfe Operadora, heir to the services of the extinct FEVE).
The railway lines managed by Adif and that pass through the province are Venta de Baños-Gijón and León-La Coruña, as well as León Clasificación - Torneros del Bernesga, the latter being recently differentiated from the common trunk of the Venta de Baños-Gijón for the arrival of the high-speed train to the capital. The province is also the headquarters of the northwest command post, located in the capital. León has a third line, the Ruta de la Plata, whose section between Astorga and Plasencia has been closed since 1985.
As for the metric gauge lines managed by Adif (previously by Feve, until 2013), there is the «Ferrocarril de La Robla», inaugurated in 1894, closed in 1991 to passenger traffic, restricting traffic to freight trains and reopened in 2003, when passenger services between León and Bilbao resumed.
The Valladolid-Palencia-León high-speed line came into service in 2015. The line to Asturias is currently under construction. The León-Ponferrada-Monforte de Lemos high-speed line is also under informative study, included in the PEIT, but whose future execution is nevertheless on hold.
The main railway stations are located in León, Ponferrada, Sahagún and Astorga.
Renfe Operadora offers medium and long distance services. In Media Distancia, it manages the lines R23, R29 and R30, with 6, 2 and 1 train per direction and day respectively. All the lines have as origin or destination the provincial capital or Ponferrada and as destination or origin Madrid, Valladolid, Gijón and Monforte de Lemos, being operated by S-449 trains.
Regarding Long Distance, Renfe Operadora offers the following products: Alvia, Arco and Trenhotel. Alvia trains began to circulate on the León-Madrid route in November 2007, the opening in December of the same year of the high-speed line to Valladolid expanded the service to three daily trains, which became four in September 2008. shortly after the commissioning of a new line between Barcelona and Vigo, with a daily train in each direction and whose route runs partly through the province of León. Finally, in November of the same year, the León-Madrid service changed to the current frequency of five trains in each direction distributed in three different services: Alicante-Madrid; Gijón-Madrid and León-Madrid with one, three and one frequencies per direction respectively.
The Arco service present in the province is specified in the Arco Camino de Santiago, which runs the Bilbao - Vigo and Irún - La Coruña routes. Regarding Trenhotel services, the province benefited from the first service of these characteristics launched in Spain: the Trenhotel Galicia, which connects Barcelona with La Coruña and Vigo, currently having a second, the Trenhotel Asturias, which connects Asturias with Barcelona.
The construction of the high-speed line, whose inauguration to León is scheduled for 2012, will allow Renfe Operadora to offer AVE services in the province.
Renfe Cercanías AM
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Renfe Cercanías AM operates a Cercanías service between the towns of León and San Feliz, taking advantage of the railway line that runs between León and Bilbao. This service crosses the municipalities of León, Villaquilambre and Garrafe de Torío on its route.
The train covers the distance of 11 km that separates the two extreme locations in 16 minutes and has 22 frequencies in each direction on weekdays that are reduced to 9 on weekends and holidays, with the frequency of Variable train pace, with an average of 50 minutes between each train. Units of the 2600 and 2700 series currently circulate on this commuter line. After the town of San Feliz, the service extends to Cistierna and after it to Guardo, although with a different rate regime.
Renfe Cercanías AM also offers regional trains between the capital and Bilbao, with a daily train in each direction.
- Air transportation
León Airport, which came into service in 1999, is located in the municipalities of Valverde de la Virgen and San Andrés del Rabanedo, six kilometers from the provincial capital, taking advantage of the facilities of the Virgen military base of the Way. After several expansions, the airport has a 3,000 meter long runway and a terminal building inaugurated in October 2010 with a capacity of 580 passengers per hour.
It maintains flights operated by Air Nostrum with Barcelona airport throughout the year, which are reinforced in the summer season with connections to other destinations.
Services
Energy
The energy sector in León accounts for approximately 11% of the provincial GDP, but its importance goes beyond its participation in total production, since it is a strategic sector that is needed by all branches of economic activity, and this is necessary for any kind of production of goods and services.
During 2009, the energy produced in the province amounted to 5,192,550 MWh, after a sharp decrease compared to last year due to the stoppage produced in Leon thermal power plants. Regarding electricity consumption, the province consumed less than it produced, with 2,303,283 MWh, also with a slight decrease compared to last year. Natural gas consumption reached 2,345,487 equivalent MWh, while 1,054,457 tons of domestic coal and 222,071 tons of imported coal were burned. In turn, 72,429 tons of gasoline, 586,556 of diesel and 18,796 of fuel oil were consumed. Final energy consumption was below 1.2 million tons of oil equivalent.
Most of the electrical power installed in the province is of thermal origin, with three plants that take advantage of the Leonese coal resources, burning them together with imported coal. The three plants, by installed capacity, are the Compostilla thermal power plant, with 1,341 MW installed, followed by La Robla, with 620 MW installed, and finally the Anllares power plant, with 350 MW, in total, 2,311 MW installed of thermal origin..
The use of water resources is carried out through large dams and small hydroelectric plants that take advantage of the course of the rivers, among which the Cornatel plant stands out, with 132 MW. Regarding the use of wind energy, nine parks with an installed capacity of 225.75 MW are in operation.
Education
Regulated training is given in the different public schools for early childhood education, primary education, secondary education and higher education, dependent on the Ministry of Education of the Junta de Castilla y León, and in the different private religious schools. These add up to a total of forty schools, being public centers, for their part, one hundred and thirty-five between infant education schools and primary education centers, and forty-one secondary education and higher education institutes, among which are two agricultural training centers. On the other hand, there are nineteen adult education centers and three special education centers. Regarding special regime education, the province has three language schools, five music conservatories and an Art School and Higher School of Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Property.
Regarding university education, there are two universities in the province: the University of León and the UNED. The first was founded in 1979, separating it from the University of Oviedo, from the various schools and faculties that, dependent on it, existed in the city of León, and on land called Vegazana. The university has two campuses, the aforementioned Vegazana campus in León, located in the northeastern part of the city, and the one in Ponferrada. It has eight faculties (among which the Veterinary School, created in 1852, stands out) and seven schools (three of them affiliated), it offers more than 50 degrees, and has 26 departments, seven university institutes, four technology centers and a language center. In the 2006-07 academic year it had 13,217 students. As for the UNED, it has an associated center in Ponferrada, created in 1981, which offers 28 degrees.
Health
The health system in the province includes eight hospitals (with a capacity of 1,979 beds), 39 health centers and 729 local clinics. At the public level, managed by Sacyl, the province is divided into two areas health: El Bierzo, divided into 11 basic health areas, and among whose resources are eleven health centers and the El Bierzo hospital, with 450 beds, and the rest of León, divided into 28 basic areas, and which has 25 health centers and the Hospital de León, with 795 beds. In addition, there are three specialty centers, two in León and one in Villablino, and the San Antonio Abad mental health center in León.
At a private level, the province has six other hospitals: in Ponferrada there are the Hospital de la Reina, with 88 beds, and the Clínica Ponferrada, with 45 beds, in San Andrés del Rabanedo the Hospital San Juan de Dios, with 231 beds, in Villablino the Valle de Laciana Hospital, with 20 beds and in León the San Francisco Clinic, with 104 beds and considered one of the four best private clinics in the autonomous community, and the Obra Hospitalaria Nuestra Señora de Regla, belonging to the bishopric of León, with 110 beds. In addition, there are nine mobile health care centers, 16 multipurpose centers, 117 medical consultations and 317 pharmacies. Finally, the Spanish Red Cross has a network of 16 local assemblies throughout the province through which it carries out its different social programs.
Culture
Artistic heritage
Art in the province of León covers all the artistic manifestations carried out from the Bronze Age (4000 years ago), when the petroglyphs found in 2008 in Maragatería belong, up to the present day. From pre-Roman times there are several sites or castros located, highlighting, among others, those of Chano and Bergidum. With the Roman conquest the territory was romanized, being visible both in the remains of cities such as Lancia, Asturica Augusta or Legio, as in the public works of Las Médulas (declared a World Heritage Site) or the canals of La Cabrera. With the crisis of the Empire, the settlement became rural, counting in the province with the examples of Navatejera and Los Villares, while Christianity offers its first signs in the church of Marialba de la Ribera, from the 4th century. In the middle of the Middle Ages, in the 10th century, Mozarabic art left its mark in examples such as Santiago de Peñalba, San Miguel de Escalada and Santo Tomás de las Ollas. For its part, the Mudejar has a special role in Sahagún, where the Church of San Lorenzo, the Church of San Tirso and the Sanctuary of the Pilgrim stand.
Since the first third of the 11th century, Romanesque architectural forms penetrated through the Camino de Santiago, which runs through the province from east to west, with various examples of religious architecture. This is the Basilica of San Isidoro de León, in which the Pantheon of Kings is located, considered one of the summits of Spanish Romanesque, the church of San Salvador in Destriana, the church of Santiago in Villafranca del Bierzo, the church of San Miguel in Corullón or the Collegiate Church of Santa María de Arbas, in one of the branches of the Jacobean route. Likewise, the crown promoted, through different orders, the creation of monasteries such as San Benito in Sahagún, San Miguel de las Dueñas, Monastery of Santa María de Gradefes or Santa María de Sandoval. The presence of the Gothic is also notable, with samples such as the Monastery of Santa María de Carracedo and the Cathedral of Astorga (although with later reforms), but especially the Cathedral of León (13th-14th centuries), which presents a most refined design. French Gothic style and is considered one of the best examples of Spanish Gothic, highlighting its set of stained glass windows.
Museums
Languages
- Leon
Leonés is the gluttony term used to refer to the set of vernacular Romance speeches of the Astur-Leonese linguistic domain in the provinces of León and Zamora., The division of said domain, which describes linguistics, it appears divided into three dialect blocks shared mainly between Asturias, León and Zamora, Occidental, Central and Oriental, of which the The predominant one in León is the Occidental, extending through Laciana, El Bierzo, La Cabrera, Maragatería, La Cepeda, Babia and Omaña, with the presence of the Central in the central area of the Leonese mountain. There is no linguistic census that allows to know precisely what is the actual number of Leonese speakers in the province, but estimates for León and Zamora range between 5,000 and 50,000 speakers.
After several centuries relegated to the background, in the XIX century it began its recovery, consolidated throughout the century XX with authors such as Eva González Fernández and, especially in the early years of the 21st century, with a new generation of writers who that various sociolinguistic studies are added, at the same time that various institutions and cultural associations such as La Caleya, Furmientu or Facendera pola Llengua promote its use and dissemination. Thus, Leonese is recognized by the Junta de Castilla y León and is cited in the autonomy statute, in article 5 of the Preliminary Title:
Lioness will be subject to specific protection by institutions for their particular value within the Community's linguistic heritage. Their protection, use and promotion shall be subject to regulation.
Unesco currently classifies the Asturian language as a language in danger of extinction.
- Gallego
The Galician language is present in several municipalities in the western part of the province in contact with the autonomous community of Galicia and the number of speakers, according to a study by Professor Xosé Henrique Costas, is more than 23,000, being used by 60% by people over 65 years of age. There are authors who maintain that the language spoken in the province arose evolving from a hybridization of Galician, Asturian, Leonese and Castilian, a dialect known as the Berciano dialect, with its own differentiated characters and with local dialectal variations depending on the area. Organizations such as Fala Ceibe work in its defense and promotion and, like the Leonese, it is recognized by the Junta de Castilla y León, indicating the following in article 5 of the autonomy statute:
The Galician language and linguistic modalities will enjoy respect and protection in places where they are usually used.
Its teaching has been regulated since 2002 following an agreement between the Education Council of the Galician Government and the Castilla y León Government Education Council, and thus it is possible to learn it in nine primary schools, three secondary education institutes and the official language school of Ponferrada. In the 2008-09 academic year there were 1,003 students who studied Galician and in 2009-10 there were 1,094.
Fiestas and pilgrimages
The cultural diversity of the different regions of Leon favors festivities characterized by their great variety of forms, ceremonies, dances and costumes, although all of them have a common historical and cultural background. It is frequent that, under Christian celebrations, pagan customs appear and thus, for example, sanctuaries and hermitages are built on sacred places of pagan origin. On the other hand, due to the agricultural nature of the province, it is the agrarian rhythms that marked the festive calendar, framing the different Christian celebrations within them. In all of them, the two most traditional elements are the banner and the bouquet.
Chronologically, around Christmas and New Year, the tradition of the Bouquet survives, consisting of a wooden frame that is decorated with handkerchiefs, candles, donuts, fruits, colored ribbons and plant elements, to which they sing once taken to church. In February there are many towns that celebrate Candelas and Águedas, in which women take power. Carnivals are civil in nature, represented through various characters such as guirriros, zafarrones, jurrus or maranfallos and through parades such as those in León, Astorga or La Bañeza, the latter declared of National Tourist Interest.
With the arrival of spring, numerous pilgrimages and rogations take place throughout the province, among which Easter in Cacabelos or San Jorge in San Esteban de Nogales stand out, both declared of Provincial Interest. The Vow festivities are also traditional, frequent in the Páramo, which express gratitude for the favors that the town would have received from the hands of the Virgin or some saint. Of a similar nature is the festival of Las Cabezadas, in the provincial capital, for which the municipal corporation, in gratitude for different miracles, goes to the Basilica of San Isidoro with a candle and four wax axes, where they engage in a dialectical discussion about the character of the offering, saying goodbye to the Cabildo with three bows. The month of May begins with the celebration of the Mayos, in its different variants, from placing a tree in the square to the living mayos of Villafranca del Bierzo, while, Parallel to the profane festival, the Cruz de Mayo is celebrated in different parts of the province, such as in Valderas with its Pastorcica. Valdorria, both of Provincial Interest. Without a fixed periodicity, since they vote when the drought requires it, the Castrotierra pilgrimage is celebrated, in which thousands of people and dozens of banners accompany the Virgen del Castro from her sanctuary to the Cathedral of Astorga and, after nine days of prayers, back to her sanctuary.
In June, Corpus Christi is widely celebrated throughout the province, highlighting the festivities of Laguna de Negrillos, declared of Regional Tourist Interest. Very different are the Medieval Jousts of Hospital de Órbigo, which recall the historic Paso Honroso de Suero de Quiñones and nine other knights in 1434. In San Juan there are many towns that celebrate their festivals, including the provincial capital, when its main popular festivals take place. In Astorga, and every three years, the Christian victory of the battle of Clavijo through a parade in which the Banner of Clavijo, accompanied by authorities and the Zuiza Guard, moves to the cathedral in thanksgiving. At the end of the month, in Prioro, the Transhumance festival takes place, of Provincial Interest, in which the arrival of the flocks is celebrated. In the month of July, historical recreations take center stage, such as the Templar Night of Ponferrada, in which the Templar past of the city is remembered, the Medieval Festival of Mansilla de las Mulas, with a market, jousting and a medieval atmosphere, and the festival of Astures and Romans in Astorga, in which the market or the circus recall the early days of the city of Maragata.
At the beginning of August, Nuestra Señora de las Nieves is celebrated, with numerous towns in the mountains of Leon celebrating such a date, such as the pilgrimages of Puebla de Lillo or Páramo del Sil. In the middle of the month are the festivities of the Asunción and San Roque, celebrated in the province by more than a hundred towns in festivals and pilgrimages such as Pandorado, which is attended by the entire Omaña region. At the end of August Astorga celebrates its patron saint festivities in honor of Santa Marta while other pilgrimages, such as that of the Virgen de los Remedios in Barrillo de las Arrimadas, gather hundreds of faithful from different parts of the province. On September 8, the date of the Nativity de Nuestra Señora, more than 40 towns celebrate their festivities under different dedications, such as the Virgen de la Encina (patron saint of El Bierzo) in Ponferrada or la Carballeda in Val de San Lorenzo. Likewise, on the 14th of the same month, there are more than forty towns that celebrate festivals in honor of Christ, highlighting those of Bembibre and Villafranca del Bierzo. Between the two dates, the Festival of the Shepherd takes place in Los Barrios de Luna and the Festival of the Shepherds in Joarilla de las Matas, both declared of Provincial Interest.
At the beginning of October, the festival of Las Cantaderas is celebrated in the provincial capital, which commemorates the release of the tribute of the hundred maidens that the kings of Asturias had to pay to the caliphs of Al-Andalus. At the same time, in La Virgen del Camino, the pilgrimage takes place in honor of San Froilán and the Virgen del Camino, patron saints of the León Region, while in the city of León you can see a parade of banners and decorated cars. On the second Sunday of October, the town of Luyego hosts the Romería de los Remedios to which people from Maragatería and the bordering regions come, and at the beginning of November it is customary in different parts of the province to celebrate the magosto with the beginning of the chestnut harvest. Finally, throughout the autumn various patron saint festivities take place, among which Santa Bárbara stands out, celebrated in most mining basins.
- Holy Week
Widely rooted throughout the province, and which includes customs such as killing Jews or playing tag, the celebration of Holy Week has its central point in the provincial capital. In it, thousands of papones (cofrades), belonging to 16 brotherhoods and brotherhoods, walk the streets of the city over ten days. Among its most significant moments are the Round and the Procession of the Steps, both on Good Friday, which received special mention in its declaration as a Festival of International Tourist Interest in 2002. Likewise, on the night of Holy Thursday the Burial of Genarín takes place, a pagan celebration in honor of a skinner from León who was run over in 1929 while relieving himself at the base of the wall, a place where year after year he receives homage, having become in recent years one of the most massive events of Holy Week.
In Astorga, declared of Regional Tourist Interest and of National Tourist Interest, there are eight brotherhoods and brotherhoods that, together with the Holy Week Promoting Board, take to the streets on these days, highlighting the different processions that They take place on Good Friday. Likewise, every year (the 18th edition was held in 2011) there is a contest of music bands that offer a varied repertoire of processional marches. In 2011, the declaration as a Festival of National Tourist Interest is pending. Bañeza there are three brotherhoods that go through the streets of the city in a total of 14 processions, highlighting as one of its most significant acts the procession of Santo Potajero (Holy Wednesday), declared of Provincial Tourist Interest, in which they are distributed to the town portions of chickpea stew with rice and cod.
In Sahagún, declared of Regional Tourist Interest, the Brotherhood of Jesús Nazareno y Patrocinio de San José walks the streets of the town during the big days of the week with events such as the auction of steps, the use of the horn, the Isa and the procession of the Steps. In Ponferrada, also declared of Regional Tourist Interest, there are four brotherhoods and brotherhoods that process throughout the week, highlighting the character of Lambrión Chupacandiles, who, with a bell, announces the start of these days through the streets. In the rest of the province, the events held in places such as Villafranca del Bierzo, Valencia de Don Juan, Almanza, Santa Lucía de Gordón or Valderas are also notable.
Traditions
- Lions Pendoms
The banners are large banners made up of a rod or mast, which can measure between 3 and 14 meters, and a damask silk fabric in stripes that combine various colors. The weight of the entire set ranges from 15 to 35 kilograms and to help move it, it has so-called "oars", cords that are attached to the top of the rod. The most common colors are crimson (in relation to the kingdom of León), green (perhaps related to the Reconquest, since it is the color of Islam), white and blue (both linked to Marian devotions).
According to the historian Alejandro Valderas, its origin is military, serving in the Middle Ages as a symbol of the council militias that each town armed to go to war, thus being a symbol of the town itself. With the passage of time, the banners deteriorated, being repaired on several occasions, which is why there are very few preserved medieval banners, among which the Baeza Banner and the Royal Banner are famous. In recent years, many towns in the province have carried out a recovery of their banners and have proceeded to the cataloging, restoration and recovery of many others kept for decades in parish offices.
Currently, the banners are still insignia of the councils (neighborhood councils) but on many occasions linked to the parishes, taking to the streets in religious processions and pilgrimages. Likewise, through the Association Banners of the Kingdom of León, and supported by various institutions such as the Provincial Council and the town halls, the concentrations of banners have reached a great peak, such as the one held in the provincial capital on July 27, 2010. in which the world record for the concentration of banners was broken, with a total of 143.
- Ramo leonés
The Leonese Christmas bouquet is a decorative element, used during the Christmas holidays in different parts of the province, which was offered to the Virgin Mary during the midnight mass. Its origins seem to go back to pre-Christian times, in which it had a votive character, being, therefore, a pagan symbol assimilated by the Church since the Middle Ages. From the natural branch it evolved into a wooden structure, and from the churches it passed to be used in homes, similar to the Christmas tree. With the depopulation of rural areas during the XX century, the tradition was close to being lost, helped by the push of other traditions like the aforementioned tree, but in recent years it has experienced a rebirth, especially in the provincial capital.
The bouquet consists of a wooden support with a structure in which twelve candles are placed and from which different offerings hang, such as embroidered ribbons, bows, woolen threads, lace, donuts or fruits. The types of bouquet are varied but, in general, one can speak of four especially; the triangular (characteristic of the Ribera and the Páramo), the round (abundant in Omaña), the oval or in the shape of a peacock's tail, and the so-called "rastro", similar to the agricultural implement.
- Flanders
The filandón was a tradition consisting of a meeting, once dinner was over, in which stories were told aloud while working on some manual labor, generally textiles. Said meeting used to be done around the home, with the participants seated in seats or benches. In addition to the province of Leon, it is also a tradition in some areas of Galicia and Asturias.
In recent decades this tradition has been recovered, mainly in León, thanks to the work of narrators, storytellers or musicians, being for example the central theme of the film 'El Filandón', from 1984, in which several writers (Luis Mateo Díez, Pedro Trapiello, Antonio Pereira, José María Merino and Julio Llamazares) tell different stories, all of them, together with the also writer Juan Pedro Aparicio, responsible for the literary popularity and revival of the filandón. In 2010 it was declared an Asset of Cultural Interest, also requesting its inclusion as Unesco Intangible Cultural Heritage, something that was ultimately not achieved.
Gastronomy
The province of León has numerous traditional products derived from agricultural and livestock activity, all of them characterized by their quality and artisanal production, many of them being protected. The geographical and climatic configuration of the territory allows a wide variety of foods such as fruits, wines, cheeses, garden products, sausages and legumes, among others.
Among the fresh meats, the Montañas del Teleno beef and the Montañas del Teleno lamb stand out, both protected by a Guarantee Mark. In the sausages and cured meats are the Botillo del Bierzo, the cecina de León, both with Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), and the cecina de chivo de Vegacervera, with a Guarantee Brand.Among cheeses and dairy products, Valdeón cheese stands out, with I.G.P. I.G.P., and among the fruits and vegetables mention the denomination of origin apple reineta del Bierzo, the Bierzo conference pear, with a Guarantee Mark, the roasted pepper from Bierzo and the Fresno and Benavente pepper, both with I.G.P., and the leek from Sahagún, with a Guarantee Mark.
Among the cooked dishes, trout soup, black pudding and the characteristic maragato stew stand out, whose main peculiarity is that it is eaten upside down, starting with the meat and ending with the soup. As for the bakery and confectionery, the mantecadas from Astorga, the puff pastry from Astorga, the lazos from San Guillermo de Cistierna, the imperiales from La Bañeza and the nicanores from Boñar stand out. Among the wines, the denominations of origin of Bierzo and Tierra de León stand out.
Finally, tapas are also typical of the province, widespread throughout the entire province, being one of the places where the Barrio Húmedo of the provincial capital is most famous, and the celebration, at the end of October or beginning of November, of magosto, a tradition that is especially widespread in the western half of the province and whose most characteristic elements are the bonfire and chestnuts. In relation to the latter, in Santa Marina del Sil the Chestnut Fair is held every year, a festival declared of Regional Tourist Interest.
Sports
- Sports entities
Sports in the province is represented by the set of sports institutions that compete in different disciplines at the national, regional, provincial and local levels.
Thus, in football, stand out SD Ponferradina, which plays in the Second Division of Spain, Cultural and Sports Leonesa, in the Second Division B of Spain, and Atlético Astorga CF, Atlético Bembibre, CD La Virgen del Camino, Júpiter Leonés and La Bañeza FC are members of the Third Division of Spain - Group VIII. Of all of them, the most successful are Cultural, champion of the Second Division in the 1954-55 season, and Ponferradina, champion of the Second Division B in the 2004-05 and 2007-08 seasons. CD Fabero, CD Onzonilla, CD Atlético Mansillés and SD Ponferradina B are other important teams, all of them in the First Regional Amateur Division of Castilla y León.
In basketball, among the different existing clubs, there is the Ciudad de Ponferrada Basketball Club, which plays in the Spanish Silver Basketball League, the Agustinos-Eras Basketball Club and the Baskwt León 2015 Sports Club, which plays in the Spanish League Amateur Basketball. Previously there was the León Basketball that played in the LEB until its disappearance and that reached the quarterfinals of the Korać Cup in the 1997-98 season. and the Bembibre Sports Center Club for women's basketball, currently in the first division of Spanish women's basketball.
In indoor soccer, Ruta Leonesa stood out, a member of the Silver Division of the LNFS, a club dissolved due to financial problems and, until its disappearance in 2001, Astorga Futsal, which for many years remained in the Division of Honor.
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However, the most successful sport in the province is handball thanks to the Ademar León Handball Club, winner of an ASOBAL League, two ASOBAL cups, a Copa del Rey and two European Cup Winners' Cups. León Handball Club (Cleba), member of the Spanish Women's Handball League.
In relation to winter sports, the province has several entities such as the CD León Curling, in the discipline of curling, and the clubs San Isidro Esquí Club, Paraven Esquí Club or MAF Esquí Club, among others, in ski discipline.
- Sports events
Throughout the year various sporting events take place in the province. In the capital, the Ciudad de León Chess Master has been held since 1988, in which some of the best chess players in the world participate. Every year, and in 2010 its XXI edition was held, the Cycling Tour takes place a León, organized by the Provincial Council. In terms of motor sports, the Bierzo Rally stands out, valid for the Castilla y León and Madrid championships, and which celebrated its 17th edition in 2010, and the City Speed Grand Prix de La Bañeza, which takes place in mid-August, and which in 2010 celebrated its 51st edition. It is one of the few urban motorcycling circuits that exist in Spain, with classic motorcycle races (2-stroke and 4-stroke) and 125cc motorcycles. Likewise, different Leonese wrestling competitions take place every year, such as the league for teams or the summer championship, holding circles in different locations in the province.
- Lion fight
Wrestling from Leon, or aluches as it is popularly known, is a combat sport in which two opponents try to throw their opponent to the ground using a series of techniques. Its origin dates back to the 14th century, when repopulation caused disputes between shepherds and farmers. At that time, crops were at risk of being lost while livestock farming was more profitable, being able to be taken from one place to another, so disputes over the pastures they provoked fights. Currently there are three areas, Tierra de León, Montaña Oriental and Montaña Central (30% of the province), which present a greater survival of the aluches, being present the fight rings in multitude of pilgrimages and festivities of the towns, being the sporting event that gathers more people between the months of June and September.
- Lion bowls
Leonese bowling is a traditional sport originating in the province that is very popular both as entertainment and as a show. There are several modalities such as individual, pairs or team play, in which the bowling pins are knocked down, and the so-called « miche”, in which the routes of the balls are valued. Throughout the year, different approved championships are organized as well as a national league.
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