Hermigua
Encyclopedia
Hermigua is located on the northeastern coast of La Gomera
in the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife
of the Canary Islands
. It is located to the northwest, along the main highway, of the island's capital: San Sebastián de la Gomera
. Garajonay National Park
is located 7 km east of the town of Hermigua.
Its valleys are made up of farmland, while mountains and hills dominate the southern part of the municipality. Its climate is mainly suited to vegetation; cedar forests dominate around Hermigua in the area known as El Cedro. Most of Hermigua's villages are rural, and tourism is the second main industry.
The valley was first inhabited by the Guanches
and was known as Mulagua. The municipality of Hermigua was founded in the 16th century as the settlement of Valle Bajo (Spanish
for "Lower Valley")
s.
La Gomera
La Gomera is one of Spain's Canary Islands, located in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. In area, it is the second-smallest of the seven main islands of this group.- Political organization :...
in the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital , second-most populous city of the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the 21st largest city in Spain, with a population of 222,417 in 2009...
of the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
. It is located to the northwest, along the main highway, of the island's capital: San Sebastián de la Gomera
San Sebastián de La Gomera
San Sebastián de la Gomera is a town and also an administrative district on La Gomera in the Canary Islands. Its population is 2,176 , its density is 47.6/km² and the area is 114.78 km²....
. Garajonay National Park
Garajonay National Park
Garajonay National Park is located in the center and north of the island of La Gomera, one of the Canary Islands . It was declared a national park in 1981 and a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986...
is located 7 km east of the town of Hermigua.
Its valleys are made up of farmland, while mountains and hills dominate the southern part of the municipality. Its climate is mainly suited to vegetation; cedar forests dominate around Hermigua in the area known as El Cedro. Most of Hermigua's villages are rural, and tourism is the second main industry.
The valley was first inhabited by the Guanches
Guanches
Guanches is the name given to the aboriginal Berber inhabitants of the Canary Islands. It is believed that they migrated to the archipelago sometime between 1000 BCE and 100 BCE or perhaps earlier...
and was known as Mulagua. The municipality of Hermigua was founded in the 16th century as the settlement of Valle Bajo (Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
for "Lower Valley")
Settlements
- Valle Bajo divides the settlements of El Curato and El Palmerejo
- Valle Alto divides the settlements of La Castellana and Playa Hermigua
- El Cabo
- Monteforte
- Los Estanquillos
- El Corralete
- El Convento
- La Cerca
- Las Hoyetas
- Caserío del Cedro
Historical population
| Year | Population | Change | Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 2,120 | - | - |
| 1996 | 2,150 | - | - |
| 2001 | 2,038 | - | 50.95/km² |
| 2002 | 2,151 | - | - |
| 2003 | 2,167 | - | 54.63/km² |
| 2004 | 2,176 | - | 55.62/km² |
Sites of interest
- Valle Alto, the first settlement in Hermigua: it's neighbourhood "El Convento" features a Dominican church and monastery built between 1515 and 1520; another landmark is the Escuela popular.
- El Chorro waterfall.
- Los Telares Museum: contains handicrafts from the surrounding area.
- "Roques Pedro y Petra".
- "El Curato"
- "El Pescante" (The Old Davit).
- "El Caserío del Cedro": a hamlet by the National Park in a small isolated valley.
- "Playa de La Caleta" (La Caleta Beach).
- "Ermita de San Juan".
- Mahona Natural Reserve
Other
Hermigua has primary and secondary schools, a gymnasium, churches, beaches, a post office and a few plazaPlaza
Plaza is a Spanish word related to "field" which describes an open urban public space, such as a city square. All through Spanish America, the plaza mayor of each center of administration held three closely related institutions: the cathedral, the cabildo or administrative center, which might be...
s.
External links
- Gomera Info:Tourist Office
- Map and aerial photos
- Street map: Street map from Mapquest, MapPoint, Google or Google or Yahoo! Maps
- Satellite images: Google or Microsoft Virtual Earth - image now available