Durangaldea (Spaingie: Duranguesado) is a comarca o Biscay locatit in the Basque Kintra, Spain. It is ane o the seiven comarcas or regions that compone the province o Biscay. The caipital ceety o Durangaldea is Durango.

Durangaldea
Pairtial view o Durangaldea
Kintra Spain
Autonomous commontyBasque Kintra
ProvinceBiscay
CaipitalDurango

Geografie

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Oiz muntain.

Durangaldea is locatit at the sootheast o the province o Biscay, limitin wi the provinces o Gipuzkoa an Álava. It spans the territory atween Oiz muntain an the border wi the province o Álava in the sooth. Its total extension is 240,13 km².

Maist o the touns that compone the comarca are locatit on a great valley shapit bi the Ibaizabal river, that crosses it frae east tae wast. Otxandio is the anerly toun that belangs tae Durangaldea but is no pairt o the valley.

History

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Durangaldea (kent bi its Spainyie name, Duranguesado an aw) wis durin the Middle Ages a destrict apairt frae Biscay (the Señorío) an a dependency o Navarre, but wis conquered bi Castile in 1200. It remained separate frae Biscay till 1630, an it held its awn compilation o laws, wi its regional cooncil jynin in Gerediaga, Abadiño. Its lairds foondit fower chairtered touns, namely Ermua, Elorrio, Durango, an Otxandio.

Municipalities

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Matiena, pairt o Abadiño.

Durangaldea is dividit intae twal municipalities, bein Durango the caipital ceety. The municipalities that compone the comarca are the same anes that made the merindad o Durango, the previous admeenistrative diveesion. Ermua an Mallabia belang tae the province o Biscay, but are no pairt o Durangaldea, bein pairt o ither comarca, which is pairt o Gipuzkoa.

# Municipality Population Territory km²
  Abadiño 7.260 36,06
  Amorebieta-Etxano 19.546 58,46
  Atxondo 1.447 23,21
  Berriz 4.759 30,07
  Durango 28.229 10,91
  Elorrio 7.116 37,32
  Garai 318 7,12
  Iurreta 3.901 18,84
  Izurtza 270 4,28
  Mañaria 459 17,73
  Otxandio 1.260 12,43
  Zaldibar 2.876 11,84

Economy

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The economy o Durangaldea is mainly industrial, awthou the primar sector is important an aw.

Primar sector

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It is the seicont maist important sector o the economy in the region efter the industry. The ainimal husbandry is specially important, as well as the firth production. The minery is a important section o the economy an aw, currently bein producit limestane an marble. Mines o airn, lead an copper hae been exploitit an aw.

Seicondar sector

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The siderurgy haes been ane o the maist developit teep o industries in Durangaldea. Besides it, ither industries like paper producers or tuil producers exist an aw.

Transportation

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Durangaldea is connectit tae the three Basque provinces bi roads, Álava in the sooth bi the BI-623 and Bilbao an Donostia bi the road N-634. The Cantabric Heich-gate crosses the comarca an aw, an can be accessed frae Durango an connecs the ceety wi Bilbao, Donostia an the French border.

EuskoTren operates in the region an aw, afferin commuter rail services. The train line connects wi Bilbao an ither comarcas o the province an wi Gipuzkoa an aw. EuskoTren haes train stations in Abadiño, Amorebieta-Etxano, Berriz, Durango an Zaldibar. The bus company BizkaiBus operates in the region an aw, connectin aw the municipalities wi ithers on different comarcas.

See an aw

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Coordinates: 43°09′34″N 2°37′16″W / 43.15944°N 2.62111°W / 43.15944; -2.62111