Albuñán

Located on the northern edge of the Parque Natural de Sierra Nevada, Albuñán is a cosy little village surrounded by beautiful landscapes. On the last Sunday of May the Festival of Flowers is celebrated during which girls of marriageable age pick flowers and bring wine to dine with brides-to-be, singing and dancing in their honour. In June the Muestra de Etnografía takes place, recreating an early-20^th-century market, with farmers and ranchers dressed in period costume and with local produce on offer. Songs and dances are also performed.

The Albuñán is recorded in the municipal archives of Guadix. The place-name (al-Bunyan) means “the building” in Arabic. However, we do not know to what this might refer. Although it has not been possible to find out the exact time of the town’s foundation, it is known that it is of medieval Moorish origin.

Like many other towns in Granada, Albuñán’s urban core began to grow after the expulsion of the Moors in the 16^th century; thereafter settlers from different parts of Spain came here to take their lands. Originally, Albuñán was an old Arab farmstead, where families lived and worked growing cereals and grains. According to the chronicles of the Marques de la Ensenada the town also had a small fortress of which no remains can be seen today. After the Reconquista Albuñán became part of the Diocese of Guadix.

Albuñán produces its own excellent cereals and vegetables. A delicious local dish is aubergine pie.