THE RELIEF OF SPAIN

UNIT. 8

Vocabulary• Mountain: high elevation of Land.

• Mountain Chain: row of several mountains.

• Plains: large extensions of flat Land

• Plateau: high area of flat Land..

• River basin: low-lying plain drained by a river .

• RELIEF: refers to variations in elevation o fan area of The Earth's surface.

The relief of SPAIN• The small diagram clearly shows the

relief of Spain.

• The Inner Plateau is in the centre of Spain. There are two mountain ranges in the middle of the Inner Plateau.

• Surrounding the Inner Plateau there are four mountain ranges.

• Beyond the Inner Plateau there are five mountain ranges and two large river basins.

• In addition, there are two archipelagos and the territories of Ceuta and Melilla in North Africa.

The Inner Plateau• A very extensive plain covers the centre of the

Iberian Peninsula. It is called the Inner Plateau. It has an average height of 600 metres above sea level. Three of the longest rivers of the Iberian Peninsula cross the Inner Plateau from east to west: the Duero, the Tagus and the Guadiana.

• On the edges of the Plateau, there is high moorland, such as the Paramo Leones and La Alcarria. There are fertile flood plains next to the rivers. Between the high moorland and the flood plains are low-lying fields.

• The Inner Plateau covers the Autonomous Communities of Castile-Leon, Castile-La Mancha, Madrid and Extremadura. Extensive farmland dominates the Inner Plateau. The largest towns are near the main rivers.

• Industrial and commercial areas have grown up around the towns.

Mountain Ranges in The Inner Plateau

• There are two mountain ranges on the Inner Plateau.

• The Central Mountain Chain. This mountain range divides the Inner Plateau in two: the Northern Sub-plateau and the Southern Sub-plateau. The mountains of the Central Mountain Chain are about two thousand metres high and are grouped in mountain ranges, such as the Gata, the Gredos and the Guadarrama ranges.

• The Mountains of Toledo. These mountains are in the centre of the Southern Sub-plateau. They are not very high, and they separate the River Tagus from the River Guadiana.

Surrounding The Inner Plateau• The Mountains of Leon, in the north. This range

is formed by mountains about two thousand metres high, for example, Mount Teleno. They separate Castile-Leon from Galicia.

• The Cantabrian Range, in the north. These mountains separate Castile-Leon from Asturias and Cantabria. The range consists of chains of high, rugged peaks, for example, the Picos de Europa.

• The Iberian Mountain Chain, in the east. This is a vast chain of mountain ranges, for example, the Moncayo Range, with heights of around two thousand metres. This mountain chain extends across the Autonomous Communities of Castile-Leon, Rioja, Aragon, Castile-La Mancha and the Community of Valencia.

• The Morena Range, or sierra Morena in the south. These mountains are not very high, less than 1,300 metres. There are few valleys between the mountains, and this complicates transport networks between the Inner Plateau and Andalusia.

River basins • There are two principal river basins

beyond the Plateau: the Ebro river basin and the Guadalquivir river basin. These river basins are low plains crossed by rivers and surrounded by mountains.

• Both river basins are triangular in shape and are dominated by extensive farmland.

• The Ebro river basin is in the north-east. The River Ebro flows across it.

• The Guadalquivir river basin is in the southwest.

• The River Guadalquivir flows across it..

Beyond The Inner Plateau• The Galician Massif lies to the north-east of the Iberian Peninsula,

in Galicia. This is formed by low mountains with rounded peaks. The highest mountain is Cabeza de Manzaneda, at a height of 1,778 metres.

• The Basque Mountains lie to the north, between the Basque Country and Navarre. They are not very high, with pointed peaks, such as Amboto Peak and Aitzkorri Peak, at a height of 1,544 metres.

• The Pyrenees lie to the north. They form a very extensive mountain range which stretches from the Cantabrian Sea to the Mediterranean Sea and crosses Navarre, Aragon and Catalonia. The mountains are high, at around three thousand metres. The highest mountain is Aneto, at a height of 3,404 metres.

• The Catalan Coastal Chain lies to the north-east. This is formed by two mountain chains which are parallel to the Mediterranean coast. The highest mountain is the Turo de l’home, at a height of 1,712 metres.

• The Baetic Mountain Chain lies to the south-east. These mountains run through Andalusia, Castile-La Mancha, the Region of Murcia and the Community of Valencia. There are two mountain ranges. The Penibetic Range runs parallel to the Andalusian coast and has the highest peaks on the Peninsula: Mulhacen at 3,482 metres and Veleta at 3,398 metres. The Subbetic Range lies inland and the mountains are around two thousand metres high.

Coasts

• The Spanish coasts are bathed by the Cantabrian Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Atlantic Ocean.

• The Cantabrian coast.

• This coast is high and rocky with many cliffs and estuaries.

• It extends from the Estaca de Bares Point to the French border. The coasts of the Basque Country, Cantabria, Asturias and a part of the Galician coast are bathed by the Cantabrian Sea. The main landforms of this coast are Cape Matxitxako, the Bay of Biscay, the Aviles estuary, Cape Ajo and Estaca de Bares Point.

• The Galician coast. This goes from Estaca de Bares Point to the Miño estuary. It is a high rocky coast, with many inlets. The principal capes are Finisterre and Ortegal, and the main estuaries are the rias of Arousa and Vigo.

• The Andalusian coast. This goes from the Portuguese border to the Straights of Gibraltar. It is a flat, low coast, with sandy beaches, wetlands and dunes. The main landforms are the Gulf of Cadiz, Cape Trafalgar and Tarifa Point.

• The coasts of the Canary Islands. The islands in the centre of the archipelago, Tenerife and Gran Canaria, have rocky coasts in the north and sandy beaches in the south. The islands in the west have high, rocky coasts, while the islands in the east have low-lying coasts.

Atlantic Coast

• This is the longest coast in Spain. There are four main areas:

• Andalusia. The Andalusian coast has extensive, flat areas, such as the beaches of Malaga. These areas alternate with cliffs, such as Cape Gata.

• Murcia and the Community of Valencia. This coast is low with sandy beaches, although there are some rocky areas, for example, Cape Palos and Cape Nao.

• Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. High, rocky areas, for example, Cape Creus, alternate with low, sandy beaches.

• The coast of Ceuta is low and irregular. The coast of Melilla is high and rocky.

Mediterranean Coast

• Spain has two large archipelagos: the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands.

• The Balearic Islands are located to the east of the Peninsula in the Mediterranean Sea. There are five main islands: Mallorca, Ibiza, Menorca, Formentera and Cabrera, as well as a few smaller islands. Mallorca is the largest island and is the most mountainous. The main mountain range is the Tramuntana Range.

• The Canary Islands are situated to the west of Africa in the Atlantic Ocean. There are seven main islands: La Palma, El Hierro, La Gomera, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. These islands are of volcanic origin. This means the land was formed by lava from volcanoes. The relief is very mountainous. Mount Teide in Tenerife is the highest peak in Spain.

Spanish Islands

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