Geology

thumb|Caldera de Los Cuervos in Los Volcanes Natural Park

thumb|Montaña Colorada in Los Volcanes Natural Park

Lanzarote is the northernmost and easternmost island of the main Canary Islands and has a volcanic origin. The island emerged about 15 million years ago as product of the Canary hotspot. The island, along with others, emerged after the breakup of the African and the American continental plates. The greatest recorded eruptions occurred between 1730 and 1736. The eruption period started outside the Timanfaya National Park area, at Caldera de Los Cuervos volcano on 1 September 1730 and ended with the eruption of Montaña Colorada volcano, north-east of El Cuervo, which has ceased the activity on 16 April 1736.

Biodiversity

thumb|upright=1|[[Malvasia grape vines growing in topsoil covered in lapilli, in La Geria. The low, curved walls protect the vines from the constant, drying wind.]]

Flora

There are five hundred different kinds of plants on the island, of which 17 species are endemic. These plants have adapted to the relative scarcity of water in the same way as succulents. They include the Canary Island date palm (Phoenix canariensis), which is found in damper areas of the north, the Canary Island pine (Pinus canariensis), ferns, and wild olive trees (Olea europaea). Laurisilva trees, which once covered the highest parts of Risco de Famara, are rarely found today. After winter rainfall, the vegetation comes to a colourful bloom between February and March.

The vineyards of La Gería, Lanzarote DO wine region, are a protected area. Single vines are planted in pits wide and deep, with small stone walls around each pit. This agricultural technique is designed to harvest rainfall and overnight dew and to protect the plants from the winds.

Natural symbols

The official natural symbols associated with Lanzarote are Munidopsis polymorpha (Blind crab) and Euphorbia balsamifera (Tabaiba dulce).

<gallery class="center" widths="180px" heights="120px">

File:Munidopsis polymorpha.jpg|Munidopsis polymorpha

File:Tabaiba Lanzarote.JPG|Euphorbia balsamifera

</gallery>

Demographics

thumb|Papagayo Beach

, people live on Lanzarote, an increase of 4.6% from the previous year (). The seat of the island government (Cabildo insular) is in the capital, Arrecife, which has a population of in 2024.

{| class="wikitable"

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! Nationality

! Population

! Percentage

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| Spanish

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| Colombian

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| British

| align="right" |

|

|-

| Italian

| align="right" |

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| Moroccan

| align="right" |

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| German

| align="right" |

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| Other nationalities

| align="right" |

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|}

Administration

Lanzarote is part of the province of Las Palmas, and is divided into seven municipalities:

{| class="wikitable sortable"

! rowspan="2" | Name

! rowspan="2" | Area<br />(km<sup>2</sup>)

! colspan="3" | Census Population

! rowspan="2" | Estimated<br>Population<br />(2024)

|-

! 2001

! 2011

! 2021

|-

|Arrecife

| align="right" |22.72

| align="right" |44,980

| align="right" |55,381

| align="right" |64,278

| align="right" |68,025

|-

|Haría

| align="right" |106.59

| align="right" |4,027

| align="right" |5,054

| align="right" |5,395

| align="right" |5,590

|-

|San Bartolomé

| align="right" |40.89

| align="right" |13,030

| align="right" |18,118

| align="right" |19,305

| align="right" |19,664

|-

|Teguise

| align="right" |263.98

| align="right" |12,392

| align="right" |20,294

| align="right" |22,976

| align="right" |23,762

|-

|Tías

| align="right" |64.61

| align="right" |12,820

| align="right" |19,148

| align="right" |20,469

| align="right" |21,456

|-

|Tinajo

| align="right" |135.28

| align="right" |4,512

| align="right" |5,738

| align="right" |6,441

| align="right" |6,832

|-

|Yaiza

| align="right" |211.85

| align="right" |5,020

| align="right" |14,468

| align="right" |17,080

| align="right" |17,901

|- style="background-color:#F6F6F6; font-weight:bold;"

|Totals

| align="right" |845.92

| align="right" |96,781

| align="right" |138,201

| align="right" |155,944

| align="right" |163,230

|}

Transport

Air

The island's main point of entry is César Manrique-Lanzarote Airport which, in 2018, handled passengers. It was renamed in 2019 to include the name of local artist César Manrique, in honour of the legacy he left behind on the island and coinciding with the centenary of his birth. The airport has two passenger terminal buildings, T1 and T2, with T2 being used exclusively for inter-island flights to and from the other Canary Islands. These inter-island flights are operated by regional airlines Binter Canarias and Canaryfly. Lanzarote Airport is located about southwest of the island's capital, Arrecife, to which it is connected by the LZ-2 road.

Sea

Most of the goods arrive by sea through the Port of Arrecife, Puerto de los Mármoles. This port is also used by cruise ships. There are regular ferry lines that connect the Port of Arrecife with Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Cadiz.

Three ferry companies (Fred Olsen Express, Naviera Armas and Líneas Marítimas Romero) operate several times a day between Playa Blanca, the southernmost town on Lanzarote, and Corralejo on the northern coast of Fuerteventura. Ferries to the island of La Graciosa depart from Órzola, Lanzarote's northernmost town. The two main companies operating these services are Fred Olsen Express and Naviera Armas.

Road

The LZ-1 road connects the capital, Arrecife, to the northernmost town of Órzola. The LZ-2 road connects Arrecife to the southernmost town of Playa Blanca. LZ-3 is a highway that acts as a ring road around Arrecife, connecting Puerto de los Mármoles on the northern side of the city to LZ-2 on the southern side. These three roads form the island's central road axis from which other roads connect to the rest of the island's towns, settlements and points of interest.

Public transport on the island is provided by Arrecife Bus, operating under the name of Intercity Bus Lanzarote. The company operates 30 bus lines connecting the island's major and minor settlements, as well as serving the airport, and includes internal bus services in the towns of Playa Blanca, San Bartolomé and Tías. Most lines begin or end in the capital, Arrecife. The public bus service within the city of Arrecife is provided by the local council and consists of five lines, including one to the neighbouring town of Playa Honda.

Notable people

  • Francisco Aguilar y Leal (1776–1840), soldier and merchant
  • Princess Alexia of Greece and Denmark (born 1965), Greek royalty, resides on the island
  • Rosana Arbelo (born 1963), singer
  • Diego Barber, guitarist
  • Benito Cabrera (born 1963), musician
  • Blas Cabrera Felipe (1878–1945), physicist
  • José Clavijo y Fajardo (1726–1806), journalist
  • Saúl Coco (born 1999), footballer
  • Juan Curbelo (1680–1760), politician, Alcalde (mayor) of San Antonio de Bexar, Texas (1737, 1739)
  • Robbie Dale (1940-2021), British radio disc jockey
  • Archie Davies (born 1998), English footballer
  • Dorotea de Armas (1899 – 1997), traditional ceramist
  • Pupo De Luca (1924-2006), Italian actor and jazz musician
  • Paco Delgado (born 1965), costume designer.
  • Penelope Farmer (born 1939), English fiction writer
  • Alan Kitching, British graphic designer and architect
  • Juan Leal (1676–1742/1743), settler and politician, first mayor of San Antonio
  • César Manrique (1919–1992), artist, architect and sculptor
  • Jordi Martín (born 1991), footballer
  • Óscar Martín (born 1988), footballer
  • Manuel Medina (born 1935), politician
  • Claudio Mendes (born 2000), footballer
  • Carlos Mendes Gomes (born 1998), footballer
  • Rafael Morera (1903-1981), footballer
  • Jonathan Pérez Olivero (born 1982), footballer
  • Hernan Peraza the Younger (c.1450-1488), nobleman and Castilian conquistador
  • Jonathan Proietti (born 1982), Luxembourgish footballer
  • Salvador Rodríguez (1688–unknown), politician, Regidor (council member) of San Antonio de Bexar, Texas
  • Carlos Morales Quintana (born 1970), architect and husband of Princess Alexia, resides on the island
  • Patricia Díaz Perea (born 1984), triathlete, represents Lanzarote-based club Triatlón Titanes
  • Stephan Remmler (born 1946), German musician
  • Nasser Saleh (born 1992), actor
  • José Saramago (1922–2010), Portuguese writer, resided on the island
  • Beverly Swerling (1938-2018), American writer
  • Jason deCaires Taylor (born 1974), British sculptor
  • Kimberley Tell (born 1989), Canarian actress and singer
  • Goya Toledo (born 1969), actress and model
  • Jonas Van de Steene (born 1987), Belgian Para-cyclist
  • Jacinto Vera (1813-1881), Uruguayan Roman Catholic prelate
  • Thomas Zacharias (born 1947), German high jumper
  • Rayderley Zapata (born 1993), gymnast

Festivals

The most established festival on the island is held each year on 15 September in the village of Mancha Blanca, in honour of Our Lady of Dolours (Virgen de los Dolores), also called the "Virgin of the Volcanoes" (the Patron Saint of Lanzarote). People from all over the island participate in this pilgrimage, mostly dressed in traditional costumes.

Sport

The island's only professional football team is UD Lanzarote, founded in 1970 who play at the 7,000 capacity Ciudad Deportiva de Lanzarote. The island is also home to smaller clubs CD Teguise and CD Orientación Marítima. In tennis, the Open Isla de Lanzarote was hosted between 2006 and 2008.

The island is well known for its epic Ironman Triathlon race held there for 34 years

Views

thumb|center|upright=3|Panoramic view of Lanzarote, from Los Ajaches on the SW, over [[Timanfaya National Park, to the Famara cliffs and mountain range on the NE, as seen from the peak of Montaña Blanca.]]

thumb|center|upright=3|[[Hacha Grande, in the south of the island, viewed from the road to Papagayo beach]]

thumb|center|upright=3|Panoramic view of lava and pyroclastic rock covered landscape in the central part of Lanzarote.

thumb|center|upright=2.5|[[Salinas de Janubio, in the west of the island]]

thumb|center|upright=2.5|Crater and laguna in [[El Golfo (Lanzarote)|El Golfo]]

References

Further reading

  • a fiction thriller set entirely on the island.
  • Official tourism site of Lanzarote
  • Map of Lanzarote with all the architectural works from César Manrique
  • Lanzarote, the Land of Volcanos