|
|
|
 |
Conversions by The Personal Currency Assistant™, XE.com |
|
|
|
|
Thanks for visiting our Resort Information pages, we hope you will find the information here useful for Canary Islands as a whole as well as the individual islands listed (with links) below.
If you have any questions or would like to know further information please don't hesitate to contact us.
Canary Islands On The Map
The Archipelago of the Canary Islands is positioned in the Atlantic Ocean to the west of Marocco of African coast. There are seven main islands, Tenerife, Gran Canaria,Lanzarote,Fuerteventura,La Palma,La Gomera,and El Hierro with total population of more than 1.6 million – majority of the population based on Tenerife and Gran Canaria.
The total area of these volcanic islands is 7,447 sq km ( 2,875 sq miles) and encompasses rich variety of landscapes, from sandy beaches and desert like areas to dramatic mountain ranges and green forests.
All Islands are blessed with warm climate all year round due to the hot winds from Sahara desert with temperatures averaging 18° C (64° F) in winter and 24° C ( 75° F) in summer.
The Formation Of The Canary Islands
 |
|
Like other Atlantic islands such as Madeira, the Azores, and the Cape Verde Islands, the Canary Islands are of volcanic origin emerging from the sea some millions of years ago with the oldest being Fuerteventura and Lanzarote at 16-20 million years old and Tenerife, Gran Canaria and La Gomera being 8-12 million years old.
The Canary Islands are original tips of volcanoes that have been pushed from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean simply by the movement of the Earth’s crust. As the crust buckled along the fault lines, hot liquid magma burst up through cracks. |
History Of The Canary Islands
It is believed that the first inhabitants of the Canary Islands came from the North Africa around 3000 BC. Although there is a lot of difference in opinion about the origins of the island’s population, one very strong theory suggests that they were Neolithic people from Cro-Magnon era.
|
|
In the second century BC the islands have become populated by the next wave of inhabitants – the Guanches ( from the words "guan" meaning "man" and "che" meaning "white mountain"), whose origins have not been clearly established. |
A lot of information can be found about the islands in the writings of Roman historians, in 150 AD map by the Egyptian geographer represented the islands as the edge of the world. Following fall of the Roman Empire Canaries were forgotten by Europe for almost 1000 years.
The Canary Islands were rediscovered by Mediterranean sailors in 1312 when Captain Lanzarotto Malocello from Genoa reached the furthest northeast island later on named after him – Lanzarote.
Throughout the 14th century Italians, Portuguese and Catalans often sailed to the islands to bring back slaves and furs. In 1402 the Norman knight, Jean de Bethen-court arrived in Lanzarote and returned two years later with backing of the Castilian crown taking over the islands of El Hierro, La Gomera and Fuerteventura.
|
|
In the 15th century Portuguese followed Spanish conquistadors and the rivalry between these two powers lasted until 1479 when the Alcacovas Treaty gave the Canary Islands to Spain, and they in return let Portugal annex Azores, the Cape Verde Islands and island of Madeira.
Spanish continued to take over Gran Canaria, La Gomera and Tenerife forcing Guanches into slavery and those ones who survived were forced to convert to Christianity and become assimilated. |
In the 16th century there was a fairly rapid growth in the numbers of Europeans settling on the islands due to expanding sugar cane industry as sugar become number one export up until it came to stop following colonisation of America and Caribbean where sugar could be produced more cheaply. This was replaced by wine industry (local vino seco very popular even praised in Shakespeare’s play, Henry IV ) until the latter years of the 18th century when wine production and export was reduced drastically. This was the time when carmine – natural dye obtained from cochineal insects become major export until its collapse in 1870 when banana trade took over.
Spanish rule of the Islands throughout the 16th and 17th century was under constant attacks from the pirates, slave traders from Europe and northwest coast of Africa, and at this time number of castles have been built to protect ports from Dutch, French and British fleets.
|
|
In 1821 the Canary Islands become a province of Spain with the capital in Santa Cruz de Tenerife which led to intense rivalry between Gran Canaria and Tenerife until local rule was re-established on individual islands in 1911.In 1927 the rivalry between Tenerife and Gran Canaria has led to division into two provinces:the western province including islands of Tenerife,El Hierro, La Gomera and La Palma, and eastern province including islands of Gran Canaria,Lanzarote and Fuerteventura which remains in force to this day. |
In 1936 Franco took over the control of the Islands marking the start of the Spanish Civil War which lasted until 1939 and has hampered economic development of Canary Islands resulting in more inhabitants emigrating during 1950’s.
Changes following Franco’s death in 1975 brought about devolution of power in Spain, and in 1982 the Canary Island were granted autonomy so the local authorities are now in control of education, health services and transport while defence, foreign policy and finances are in the hands of the central Spanish government.
Today tourism accounts for 80 % of the island’s revenue although on the smaller islands the economy still relies on agriculture and fishing.
Flora Of The Canary Islands
The flora of the Canary Islands is unique as the mountains provide a home for different variety of flora with different plants growing at each level from semi desert vegetation to pine forests and in the highest regions to hard-leaf shrubs and rock plants. More than half of the island’s 1,800 species are indigenous and with their unusual character have been attracting attention of the world botanist.
Plant Zones:
 |
|
Coastal Zones – mostly rocky and home to plants that can tolerate salt and temperature variations. |
|
|
 |
|
Semi-Desert- found above 400 m (1,300 ft) store water within their fleshy leaves and stalks. |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Low Shrubs – found above 500m ( 1,650 ft) in areas with low annual rainfall. |
|
|
 |
|
Laurel forests – cover the northern slopes of the islands where the humidity is always high. |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Pine Woods – found at 2000m ( 6,560 ft ). |
|
|
 |
|
Areas above 2000m ( 6560 ft) – shrubs and rock grass. |
|
|
The Underwater World
 |
|
The waters around island are relatively cold despite their favourable position at the edge of the tropics which explains lack of coral reefs. There is a rich variety of marine life, including several species of dolphins and whales, small cardinal fish, huge crabs, colourful parrot fish and tiny seahorses. |
| The waters around Canary Islands are excellent and very attractive diving grounds either for beginners to gain their first experience or for more advanced to explore the underwater caves off Gran Canaria, La Palma, El Hierro and the coral reefs near Lanzarote. Water temperatures average between 15 - 20° C ( 59-68° F ). |
|
 |
Canary Islands Carnivals
Carnival in Santa Cruz in Tenerife takes place each year in the 10-14 days before Ash Wednesday, often compared to the carnivals in Rio de Janeiro and New Orleans, it is one of the largest carnivals in Europe with spectacular display of colourful costumes and Latin American music. In Gran Canaria carnival starts when the Tenerife one ends, with Lanzarote one starting at the beginning of March and Fuerteventura two weeks later.
Sports In The Canary Islands
 |
|
Excellent all year round weather makes The Canary Islands a paradise for all types of sports. The most popular are water sports such as sailing,surfing, windsurfing, diving. The best known long-board competitions are Trofeo O’Neil de Surf held on El Soccoro beach in Tenerife, and Festival Longboard de Canarias held in Playa de la Calleta, Gran Canaria.
The Canary Islands are among the world’s best windsurfing venues and play host to several events in the World Cup series, including Grand Prix de Fuerteventura. |
In addition, the Islands play the host to variety of the spectator’s sports such as golf, international car rallies and soccer matches. Excellent weather conditions all year round make the Islands an ideal place for golfing, there are 14 superb golf courses on the Islands, and from time to time the islands host such events as PGA Spanish Open.
All the islanders are very keen on sports, as they enthusiastically support their soccer teams and the islands traditional wrestling - 'Lucha Canaria' |
|
 |
|
|
| Advertise With Us |
You can advertise your properties for sale, holiday properties for rent and any other business here at Your Choice Canaries
To see the benefits and register for an account, please
click here. |
|
|
|
