Luzón (Spain)

Luzón municipality
Luzón - the townscape
coat of arms	Map of Spain
Basic data
Autonomous Community :	Castile-La Mancha
Province :	Guadalajara
Comarca :	Señorío de Molina-Alto Tajo
Coordinates	41 ° 2 ′  N , 2 ° 17 ′  W Coordinates: 41 ° 2 ′  N , 2 ° 17 ′  W
Height :	1176  msnm
Area :	56.98 km²
Residents :	68 (Jan. 1, 2019)
Population density :	1.19 inhabitants / km²
Postal code :	19285
Municipality number  ( INE ):	19163

Luzón refers to a place and a municipality ( municipio ) with 68 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2019) in the northeast of the province of Guadalajara in the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha . The Catholic parish belongs to the diocese of Sigüenza-Guadalajara .

Toponym

It is believed that the place name is derived from the Celtiberian tribe of the Lusons .

location

The place Luzón is located on the upper reaches of the Río Tajuña in the mountainous northeast of the province of Guadalajara near the border with the province of Soria at an altitude of about 1180 meters above sea level. d. M. The distance to the southwestern provincial capital Guadalajara is almost 100 kilometers (driving distance). The city of Sigüenza is about 40 kilometers to the west; the small but historically and culturally significant town of Medinaceli is only about 30 kilometers to the northwest.

Population development

year	1960	1970	1981	1991	2001	2010
Residents	420	234	144	97	81	78

At the beginning of the 20th century the community still had around 1,000 inhabitants, but the population development has declined sharply in recent decades due to the mechanization of agriculture and the associated loss of jobs.

economy

For centuries the community lived exclusively from growing grain ( barley and wheat ), which was mainly operated for self-sufficiency ; livestock farming (sheep, goats, chickens) also took place to a small extent. The place Anguita served as a mercantile, craft and cultural center for the hamlets and farmsteads in its area, which have since mostly disappeared. Today agriculture still plays the most important role, but there is also income from tourism (rental of holiday homes).

history

The Celtiberian castrum of La Cava was exposed on a hill in the municipality ; however, neither Roman nor Visigoth traces were discovered. After the Arab-Moorish conquest , large areas in the north of the Iberian Peninsula were depopulated , which began in the 10th century and in the second half of the 11th century under Alfonso VI. Completed reconquest ( reconquista ) of New Castile , which reached its preliminary climax in 1085 when the city of Toledo , located about 200 kilometers to the southwest, was repopulated ( repoblación ). In the high Middle Ages the region belonged to the Villa y Tierra de Medinaceli ; During this time, the population of the city of Medinaceli and the surrounding areas was temporarily excommunicated because they refused to contribute to the cost of building the new cathedral in Sigüenza .

Attractions

Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol

• The local parish church is dedicated to the Apostle Peter and dates from the 16th century. The building impresses above all with its western facade, which ends in a bell storey, but generally looks more like a castle, the right buttress of which in the baroque period was still given a top in the form of a bell gable ( espadaña ). The renaissance portal of the church is - as usual in the region - on the south side. The single nave and transept impress with their height. The baroque altarpiece in the apse dates from 1747 and was made by the sculptor Francisco del Castillo . The two altarpieces in the transept date from around the same time .
• On a hill above the village is the Ermita de la Virgen de la Peña , which houses a portrait of the local patroness, the Virgin Mary , who is venerated as a miraculous worker .

Castro Celtibérico de La Cava

• The much smaller Ermita de San Roque is on the way towards the cemetery outside the village .
• There is a cattle trough and a restored 19th century washhouse near a well .
• About one and a half kilometers outside of the village, the Celtiberian Castrum La Cava was exposed as early as the first half of the 20th century . The hiking trail leading here continues westwards to the neighboring village of Anguita , about 15 kilometers away , in the vicinity of which Celtiberian traces can also be found.

Others

The name of the main Philippine island Luzón may have been derived from the Spanish place.

Web links

Commons : Luzón (Spain)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Luzón - photos + info (spanish)
• Luzón, Church - Photos

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Cifras oficiales de población resultantes de la revisión del Padrón municipal a 1 de enero . Population statistics from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (population update).