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Tenerife

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Tenerife
—  Island  —
View looking across to Mt Teide, the highest point

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Satellite image
Map of Tenerife
Coordinates: 28°16′7″N 16°36′20″W / 28.26861°N 16.60556°W / 28.26861; -16.60556Coordinates: 28°16′7″N 16°36′20″W / 28.26861°N 16.60556°W / 28.26861; -16.60556
Country  Spain
Autonomous Community  Canary Islands
Province Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Capital and Largest City Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Pop. 221,956)
Escudo de armas de Santa Cruz de Tenerife.svg

Area
 - Total 2,034 km2 (785.3 sq mi)
Population (2008)
 - Total 899,833
 - Density 435/km2 (1,126.6/sq mi)
 - Ethnicities Spanish, other minority groups
Time zone UTC (UTC0)
 - Summer (DST) UTC+1 (UTC+1)
Highest Point Teide (3,718 metres (12,198 ft))
Website http://www.tenerife.es

Tenerife (Spanish pronunciation: [teneˈɾife]) is the largest of the seven Canary Islands, Spain, in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. Tenerife has an area of 2034.38 square kilometers, and 899,833 inhabitants. It is the most populated island of the Canary Islands and Spain. About 43% of the population of the Canary Islands is on this island. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, which is also one of the busiest Spanish resorts and the first of Canary Islands. Tenerife also has one of the world's largest carnivals, and the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife now aspires to become a World Heritage Site. Tenerife is the only Spanish island that has two airports. Tenerife is the largest number of tourists it receives, it is also headquarters of the main financial institution of the archipelago, Tenerife so is the economic capital of the Canary Islands.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital of the island and the seat of the island council (cabildo insular). The city is capital of the autonomous community of Canary Islands (shared with Las Palmas), sharing governmental institutions such as Presidency and ministries. Between the 1833 territorial division of Spain and 1927 Santa Cruz de Tenerife was the sole capital of the Canary Islands, until in 1927 a decree ordered that the capital of the Canary Islands be shared, as it remains as at present.

The island is home to the University of San Fernando de La Laguna, which was founded in 1792. The University of La Laguna is the oldest university in the Canaries. San Cristóbal de La Laguna (World Heritage Site) is the second city of the island and the third one of the archipelago. The city of La Laguna was also capital of the Canary Islands until Santa Cruz replaced it in 1833.

Tenerife also has the highest elevation of Spain, a World Heritage Site that is the third largest volcano in the world from its base, El Teide. The island's capital contains the architectural symbol of the Canary Islands, the modern Auditorio de Tenerife.

Toponymy

Saint George's church, Tenerife

The last inhabitants on the island, the guanches, referred to the island as Achinet or Chenet (variant spellings are found in the literature). According to Pliny the Younger, King Juba II sent an expedition to the Canary Islands and Madeira and gave the Canary Islands its name because he found particularly ferocious dogs (canaria) on the island. Juba II and Ancient Romans referred to Tenerife as Nivaria, derived from the Latin words nivis or nieve, meaning snow, in clear reference to the snow-covered peak of the Teide volcano. On the other hand, maps dating to the 14th and 15th century, from authors like Bontier and Le Verrier refer to the island as Isla del Infierno, literally meaning Island of Hell, a reference to the volcanic activity and eruptions of Mt Teide. Finally, Teide is also responsible for the name of the island widely used today, named by the benehaorits (natives of La Palma) derived from the words Tene (mountain) and ife (white). Later, after colonisation, the hispanisation of the name resulted in the adding of a letter "r" uniting both words to obtain the name Tenerife as a result.

Demonym

The formal demonym used to refer to the people of Tenerife is tinerfeño/a", also used colloquially is the term "Chicharrero/a". However, in modern society, this is generally only given to inhabitants of the capital, Santa Cruz. The term "chicharrero" was once a derogatory term used by the people of the former capital of La Laguna, in reference to the poor inhabitants and fishermen of Santa Cruz. It was used in reference to the fishermen who would survive by catching poor quality mackerel and citizens who ate potatoes of a low quality. However, as Santa Cruz grew in commerce and status, replacing La Laguna as capital of Tenerife in the 19th century during the reign of Fernando VII, the inhabitants of Santa Cruz ironically began using the insult to honour the new status of the city at La Laguna's expense.

Geography

Juba II who named the Canary Islands and referred to Tenerife as Nivaria in reference to the snow on Mount Teide.

The oldest mountain ranges in Tenerife rose from the Atlantic Ocean by volcanic eruption which gave birth to the island around twelve million years ago. The island as it is today was formed three million years ago by the fusion of three different islands made up of the mountain ranges of Anaga, Teno and Valle de San Lorenzo, due to volcanic activity from Teide. The volcano is visible from most parts of the island today, and the crater is 17 km long at some points.

History

The earliest known human settlement in the islands date to around 200 BC, by people known as the Guanches. They had little technology, even by Stone Age comparison and dressed in animal hides and lived in caves on the island. According to legend, many islands in the chain, among them Tenerife, were believed to be the uppermost peaks of Atlantis, which catastrophically sank under the ocean leaving only the highest mountains above sea level.

Territorial organization before the conquest (The Guanches)

About one hundred years before the conquest, the title of mencey was given to the monarch or king of the Guanches of Tenerife, who governed a menceyato or kingdom. This role was later referred to as a "captainship" by the conquerors. Tinerfe el Grande, son of the mencey Sunta governed the island from Adeje in the south. However, upon his death, his nine children rebelled and argued bitterly about how to divide the island. Two independent achimenceyatos were created on the island, and the island was divided into 9 menceyatos, with the menceyes within them forming what would be similar to municipalities today. The menceyatos and their menceyes (ordered by the descendants of Tinerfe who ruled them) were the following:

Territorial map of Tenerife before the conquest.

There was also the achimenceyato of Punta del Hidalgo, governed by Aguahuco, a "poor noble" who was an illegitimate son of Tinerfe and Zebenzui.

Spanish conquest

Alonso Fernandez de Lugo presenting the native kings of Tenerife to Ferdinand and Isabella

In December of 1493, Alonso Fernández de Lugo obtained from the king the confirmation of the right to lead a conquest of the island of Tenerife. In April of 1494, and coming from Gran Canaria, the conqueror landed on the coast of present day Santa Cruz de Tenerife and disembarked with troops which amounted to about 2,000 men on foot and 200 on horseback. After taking the fort, the army prepared to move inland, later capturing the native kings of Tenerife and presenting them to Ferdinand and Isabella.

It is notable that the menceyes of Tenerife adopted differing responses to the conquest. They divided themselves into the side of peace (Spanish: bando de paz) and the side of war (Spanish: bando de guerra), with the first including the menceyatos of Anaga, Güímar, Abona and Adeje, and the second group with the Tegueste, Tacoronte, Taoro, Icoden and Daute. The opposing group tenaciously fought the conquerors delaying the conquest of the island for two years. Though the Spanish forces under the Adelantado ("military governor") de Lugo, suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Guanches in the First Battle of Acentejo in 1494, the Guanches, eventually overcome by superior technology and surrendered to the Crown of Castile on 25 December 1494.

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