Extremadura (ĕstrəməd
`rə), autonomous region (1990 pop. 1,102,319), W central Spain, on the border with Portugal. It was established as an autonomous region in 1983 by the statute of autonomy. A tableland crossed by mountains and by the Tagus (Tajo) and Guadiana rivers, it comprises the provinces of Badajoz and Cáceres. Much of it is poverty-ridden, with poor communications, absentee landlordism, and steady emigration. Wine, olive oil, and cereals are produced through dry farming. Elsewhere, the more rugged terrain serves as winter grazing land for sheep from Castile and León; hogs are also raised in large numbers. Reconquered from the Moors in the 12th and 13th cent., the region was frequently a battlefield in the Spanish wars with Portugal and again in the Peninsular War. Most of Extremadura fell to the Nationalists early in the Spanish civil war. The conquistadors Pizarro and Cortés were born there.
`rə), autonomous region (1990 pop. 1,102,319), W central Spain, on the border with Portugal. It was established as an autonomous region in 1983 by the statute of autonomy. A tableland crossed by mountains and by the Tagus (Tajo) and Guadiana rivers, it comprises the provinces of Badajoz and Cáceres. Much of it is poverty-ridden, with poor communications, absentee landlordism, and steady emigration. Wine, olive oil, and cereals are produced through dry farming. Elsewhere, the more rugged terrain serves as winter grazing land for sheep from Castile and León; hogs are also raised in large numbers. Reconquered from the Moors in the 12th and 13th cent., the region was frequently a battlefield in the Spanish wars with Portugal and again in the Peninsular War. Most of Extremadura fell to the Nationalists early in the Spanish civil war. The conquistadors Pizarro and Cortés were born there.Extremadura
or EstremaduraHistorical region and autonomous community (pop., 2001: 1,058,503), west-central Spain. Covering an area of 16,075 sq mi (41,634 sq km), it encompasses the southwestern provinces of Cáceres and Badajoz. Its capital is Mérida. During the Christian reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, the name Extremadura was used to refer to the zones outside of Moorish territory. From the late Middle Ages the term was applied to an area approximating the modern region. The countryside remains partitioned into latifundios (large estates); wheat, grapes, and olives are important crops.
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