Almádena

Etymology

According to certain authorities, the toponym 'Almádena' has an Arabic origin, like many place names in the area. The name is assumed to derive from the Arabic word for minaret (al-madin).

Geography

The village is located in the Vale de Barão. It lies 3 km north of the fishing village of Burgau and 4 km from Luz itself, just outside of the boundary of the Southwest Alentejo and Vicentine Coast Natural Park.

Almádena's location is on the edge of fertile sedimentary deposits including the 'ribeiras' of Almádena, of Burgau and of the Vale de Barão. In the past, local farmers' focused on fig cultivation rather than almonds, olives or carob beans, which were more ubiquitous to the east. However, one additional crop, rice, flourished and was consequently grown in the irrigable lowlands south west of the village.

Buildings

Almádena resembles many rural villages in the Algarve. Its housing stock mainly consists of small white houses with traditional chimneys, a domestic architectural style influenced by the Moorish occupation of the area up to the thirteenth century. There is a small market for farmers' produce and a community centre in the heart of the village as well as several bars and restaurants.

Nearby buildings of interest include Quinta das Alagoas: A fifteenth century fortified farmhouse and known locally as the " Roman Farm", now converted into accommodation