The
Azores (; ) is a
Portuguese archipelago in the
Atlantic Ocean, about from
Lisbon and about from the east coast of
North America. The
Monchique Islet on
Flores Island, located at 31° 16' 24" W is regarded as the
westernmost point in
Europe, even though from a geographical standpoint, the two westernmost Azorean islands (
Flores and
Corvo) actually lie on the
North American plate. The current Azores' main industries are
tourism,
cattle raising for milk and meat, and
fishing.
The nine major Azorean
islands and the eight small
Formigas extend for more than and lie in a northwest-southeast direction. The vast extent of the islands defines an immense
exclusive economic zone of . The westernmost point of this area is from the North American continent. All of the islands have
volcanic origins, although Santa Maria also has some
reef contribution.
Mount Pico on
Pico Island, at in altitude, is the highest in all of Portugal. The Azores are actually the tops of some of the tallest mountains on the planet, as measured from their base at the bottom of the ocean. The archipelago forms the
Autonomous Region of Azores, one of the two
autonomous regions of Portugal.
Because these once uninhabited, remote islands were settled sporadically over a span of two centuries, their culture, dialect, cuisine and traditions vary considerably from island to island. Farming and fishing are key industries that support the Azorean economy. 240,000 Azoreans live within the archipelago’s 868 square miles.
History
Discovery
thumb|left|210px|A modern map of the islands.thumb|left|Sixteenth-century map of the Azores Islands.The islands were known in the
fourteenth century and parts of them can be seen, for example, in the
Atlas Catalan. In 1427, one of the captains sailing for
Henry the Navigator, possibly
Gonçalo Velho, rediscovered the Azores, but this is not certain. A History of the Azores by
Thomas Ashe written in 1813 marks the discovery by
Joshua Vander Berg of
Bruges in
Flanders.
Vander Berg was said to have landed there during a storm on his way to
Lisbon.
Ashe then claims that the Portuguese left to explore the area and claim it for Portugal shortly after.
Although it is commonly said that the archipelago is named after the
goshawk ( in Portuguese) because it was supposed to be a common bird at the time of discovery, in fact the bird never existed on the islands. Most, however, insist that the name is derived from birds, pointing to a local subspecies of the
buzzard (), as the animal the first explorers erroneously identified as goshawks.The name may also derive from the word Azure ( color ) that was associated with the vulcanic eruptions in the archipelago.
Settlement
At some point, following the discovery of Santa Maria, sheep were let loose on the island before settlement actually took place. This was done to supply the future settlers with food because there were no animals on the island. Settlement didn't take place right away, however. There was not much interest among the Portuguese people in an isolated island world hundreds of miles from civilization. But patiently Cabral gathered resources and settlers for the next three years (1433-1436) and sailed to establish colonies on Santa Maria first and then later on Sao Miguel.
Brush had to be cleared and rocks removed for the planting of crops; therefore, enslaved Africans were left alone on the island of São Miguel for a while. Grain, grape vines, sugar cane, and other plants suitable for settler use and of commercial value, were planted. Domesticated animals were brought, such as, cattle, sheep, goats, and hogs. Houses were built and villages established.
The first settlers were a mixed group of people from the Portuguese provinces of Algarve and Minho. Also, Madeirans, Moorish prisoners, enslaved Africans, French, Italians, Scots, English, Germans and Flemings were among the early settlers. There were petty criminals, Spanish clergy, Jews, soldiers, government officials, European merchants and sugar cane growers.
São Miguel was first settled in 1444, the settlers—from mainly the Estremadura, Alto Alentejo and Algarve areas of Portugal, under the command of
Gonçalo Velho Cabral—landing at the site of modern-day Povoação . In 1522 Vila Franca do Campo, then the capital of the island, was devastated by a landslide caused by an earthquake which killed about 5,000 people, and the capital was moved to Ponta Delgada. The town of Vila Franca was rebuilt on the original site and today is a thriving fishing and yachting port. Ponta Delgada received its city status in 1546. Since the first settlement the pioneers applied themselves to the area of agriculture. By the 15th century Graciosa exported wheat, barley, wine and brandy. The goods were sent to Terceira largely due to the proximity of the island.
During the 18th and 19th century, Graciosa was host to many prominent figures including Chateaubriand, the French writer who passed through upon his escape to America during the French revolution; Almeida Garrett, the great Portuguese poet who visited an uncle and wrote some poetry while there; and Prince Albert of Monaco the famous 19th century oceanographer who led several expeditions in the waters of the Azores. He arrived on his yacht “Hirondelle”, and visited the “furna da caldeira”, the famous hot springs grotto.
The first reference to the island of São Jorge was made in 1439 but the actual date of discovery is unknown. In 1443 the island was already inhabited but active settlement only began with the arrival of the noble Flemish native
Wilhelm Van der Haegen. Arriving at Topo, where he lived and died, he became known as
Guilherme da Silveira to the islanders. João Vaz Corte Real received the captaincy of the island in 1483. Velas became a town before the end of the 15th century. By 1490, there were 2,000 Flemings living in the islands of Terceira, Pico, Faial, São Jorge, and Flores. Because there was such a large Flemish settlement, the Azores became known as the Flemish Islands or the Isles of Flanders. Henry was responsible for this settlement. His sister, Isabel, was married to Duke Philip of Burgundy of which Flanders was a part. There was a revolt against Philip's rule and disease and hunger became rampant. Isabel appealed to Henry to allow some of the unruly Flemings to settle in the Azores. He granted this and supplied them with the necessary transportation and goods.
The
settlement of the then-unoccupied islands started in 1439 with people mainly from the continental provinces of Algarve and Alentejo. In 1583,
Philip II of Spain, as
king of Portugal, sent his fleet to clear the Azores of a combined multinational force of adventurers, mercenaries, volunteers and soldiers who were attempting to establish the Azores as a staging post for a rival
pretender to the Portuguese throne. Following the success of his fleet at the
Battle of Ponta Delgada, the captured enemy were hanged from yardarms, as they were considered pirates by Philip II. (This was added to the "
Black Legend" by his enemies.) An English expedition against the Azores in 1597, the
Islands Voyage, also failed. Spain held the Azores in what is called The Babylonian captivity of 1580-1642.
The Azores were the second-to-last part of
the Portuguese empire to resist Philip's reign over Portugal (
Macau being the last) and were returned to Portuguese control with the end of the
Iberian Union in 1640, not by the professional military, who were used in the
Restoration War in the mainland, but by local people attacking a fortified
Castilian garrison ().
thumb|left|200px|Pico viewed from Faial.Portuguese Civil War
The
Portuguese Civil War (1828–1834) had strong repercussions in the Azores. In 1829, in
Vila da Praia, the
liberals won over the
absolutists, making
Terceira Island the main headquarters of the new Portuguese regime and also where the Council of Regency () of
Mary II of Portugal was established.
Beginning in 1868,
Portugal issued its stamps overprinted with "" for use in the islands. Between 1892 and 1906, it also issued separate stamps for the three administrative districts of the time.
From 1836 to 1976, the archipelago was divided into three
districts, equivalent (except in area) to those in the
Portuguese mainland. The division was arbitrary, and did not follow the natural island groups, rather reflecting the location of each district capital on the three main cities (none of which were on the western group).
- Angra do Heroísmo consisted of Terceira, São Jorge, and Graciosa, with the capital at Angra do Heroísmo on Terceira.
- Horta consisted of Pico, Faial, Flores, and Corvo, with the capital at Horta on Faial.
- Ponta Delgada consisted of São Miguel and Santa Maria, with the capital at Ponta Delgada on São Miguel.
200px|thumb|left|Angra do Heroísmo. In 1943, during the
Second World War, The Portuguese dictator,
António de Oliveira Salazar, leased bases in the Azores to the British, despite his previous collaboration with Germany. This was a key turning point in the
Battle of the Atlantic, allowing the Allies to provide aerial coverage in the middle of the Atlantic. This helped them to hunt
U-boats and protect convoys.
In 1944,
American forces constructed a small and short-lived air base on the island of Santa Maria. In 1945, a new base was constructed on the island of
Terceira and is currently known as
Lajes Field. This base is in an area called Lajes, a broad, flat sea terrace that had been a farm. Lajes Field is a plateau rising out of the sea on the northeast corner of the island. This
Air Force base is a joint American and Portuguese venture. Lajes Field continues to support United States and
Portuguese military operations. During the
Cold War,
the United States Navy P-3 Orion anti-submarine squadrons patrolled the North Atlantic for Soviet submarines and surface spy vessels. Since its inception, Lajes Field has been used for refuelling aircraft bound for Europe, and more recently, the Middle East.
The United States Army operates a small fleet of military ships in the harbour of
Praia da Vitória, three kilometres (2 mi) southeast of Lajes Field. The airfield also has a small commercial terminal handling scheduled and chartered passenger flights from other islands in the archipelago, Europe, and North America.
In 1976, the Azores became the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), one of the
Autonomous regions of Portugal, and the Azorean districts were suppressed.
Today people connected to the Azores are living around the globe. With a strong sense of community and unique ancestral bond, pride in their unique cultural history keeps them connected. Many are using the Internet to stay connected and to share their stories and pictures about the enchanting Azores Islands.
Politics
Since becoming a Portuguese autonomous region, the executive branch of the regional authority has been located in
Ponta Delgada, the legislative branch in
Horta, and the judicial branch in
Angra do Heroísmo. The current president of the regional government is
Carlos César.
Azorean politics are dominated by the two largest Portuguese political parties, the
Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the
Socialist Party (PS), the latter holding a majority in the Regional Legislative Assembly. The
Democratic and Social Center / People's Party (CDS/PP), the
Left Bloc (BE), the
Unitarian Democratic Coalition (CDU) and the
People's Monarchist Party (PPM) are also represented in the local parliament. Even though the PS dominates the administrative scene, the PSD is usually more popular in city and
town council elections.
Municipalities
The Azores are divided into nineteen municipalities (); each municipality is further divided into parishes (), of which there is a
total of 156 in all of the Azores. The municipalities, by island, are:
Cities
There are five cities in the Azores:
Ponta Delgada and
Ribeira Grande on São Miguel Island;
Angra do Heroísmo and
Praia da Vitória on the island of Terceira, and
Horta on the island of Faial. Three of these
Ponta Delgada,
Angra and
Horta are considered
capital cities in the regional government, homes to the President (Ponta Delgada), the Judiciary (Angra) and the Regional Assembly (Horta).
Airports
Each of the nine biggest islands has its own airport:
Santa Maria:
Santa Maria Airport (LPAZ)Sao Miguel:
João Paulo II Airport (LPPD)Terceira:
Lajes Field (LPLA) Lajes Air Base (Portugues Airforce and US Airforce)Sao Jorge:
São Jorge Airport (LPSJ)Pico:
Pico Airport (LPPI)Faial:
Horta Airport (LPHR)Graciosa:
Graciosa Airport (LPGR)Flores:
Flores Airport (LPFL)Corvo:
Corvo Airport (LPCR) Geography and environment
220px|left|thumb|Lagoa das Sete CidadesThe
archipelago is spread out in the area between 37° N and the
parallels of latitude that pass through the Lisbon area (39° 43' / 39° 55' N), giving it a tepid, oceanic, subtropical climate, with mild annual oscillations. The average annual rainfall increases from east to west, and it ranges from 700 to 1600 annual millimetres (27.6–63 in) on average, reaching on
Mount Pico, the highest Portuguese mountain at . The
Azores high, an area of high
atmospheric pressure, is named after the islands.
The Formigas (the Portuguese word for "
ants") islands (also known as Dollabarat Reefs) have rich maritime fauna, including
exotic species such as the
black coral and
manta rays, sharks, and
sea turtles.
The archipelago lies in the
Palearctic ecozone, forming a unique
biome that includes the
macaronesian subtropical laurissilva, with many
endemic species of plants. Even though the Azores look very green and sometimes wild, the vegetation has been extremely altered. Most of the original
laurisilva has been wiped out for its valuable wood (for tools, buildings, boats,
fire wood, etc) and to clear land for agriculture. Many cultivated places (which are traditionally dedicated to pasture or to growing
colocasia,
potatoes,
maize and other crops) have now been abandoned, especially as a result of emigration. Consequently, some
invasive plants have filled these deserted and disturbed lands. The two most common of these exotic species are
Pittosporum undulatum and
Acacia melanoxylon. They are usually restricted to ancient agricultural land and, fortunately, only rarely penetrate into undisturbed native vegetation. The main loss is in the lowlands (below 400 metres), where virtually all laurisilva was eradicated.
A few
Persea indica and
Picconia azorica still survive in some places, but appear to be extremely vulnerable. Only
Myrica faya seems to have survived human impact quite well, and it is commonly found in hedges or among exotic trees. More recent introductions could become a serious threat, like
Leptospermum scoparium which has the ability to colonize the still nearly-untouched medium-altitude vegetation (
Ilex,
Myrsine africana,
Erica, etc).
Hydrangeas are another potential pest, but their threat is less serious. Notwithstanding the fact that Hydrangeas were introduced from America or Asia, some locals consider them to be a symbol of the archipelago and propagate them along roadsides, helping them to escape into the wild.
Cryptomeria, the Japanese cedar, is a
conifer extensively grown for its timber; many seedlings can be found in the last remnants of medium-altitude native vegetation.
The Azores only
endemic bird species is the
Azores Bullfinch, or Priolo, which is retricted to remnant laurisilva forest in the mountains at the eastern end of São Miguel. It is listed as
critically endangered. The Azores also has an endemic
bat, the
Azores Noctule, which is unusual in regularly feeding during the day.
The nine islands have a total area of . Their individual areas range between
São Miguel's and
Corvo's . Three islands (São Miguel, Pico and Terceira) are larger than
Malta (composed of three islands), São Miguel Island alone being twice as large.
The nine islands are divided into three groups:
Climate
Time zone
The Azores are located in the
UTC-1 N time zone (Cape Verde Time, CVT). However, the Azores observe
daylight saving time, while
Cape Verde does not. The
Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) offset is -0100 (CVT/CVST) / 0000 (CVDT). The relevant coordinates are +3744−02540.
Geology
The islands are located atop an active
triple junction between three large tectonic plates: the
North American Plate, the
Eurasian Plate and the
African Plate. Volcanism associated with the formation of the islands arises from the fact that the
Azores Triple Junction involves rifting, a process whereby the crust is spreading along three ridge legs radiating out from the triple junction. The volcanism is also related to the
Azores hotspot. The islands began forming during the
Tertiary period.
Pico, a volcano that stands high on the island of the same name, has the highest altitude in the Azores and all of Portugal.
The last volcano to erupt was the Capelinhos Volcano () in 1957, in the western part of Faial Island, increasing the size of the island by 2.4 km, but it's estimated that the great part of it will be washed away in next 20 years.
Santa Maria Island is the oldest Azorean island, formed 4.8 million years ago, and is the only island in the Azores with an abundance of sediments where marine fossils have been discovered.
The
Gruta das Torres,
Algar do Carvão,
Gruta do Natal,
Gruta das Cinco Ribeiras are some of the many caves of the Azores.
Demographics
On 31 December 2002, the Azores' population was 238,767 at a density of .
Population
The vast majority of the inhabitants of the Azores are
Portuguese, descendants of
15th century immigrants from
Algarve and from
Minho, with a minor
Dutch admixture (particularly from
Flanders). The nature of the economy dictated that
African slavery never became common in the Azores because they were sent to Brazil and the Caribbean, only a few remained in the Azores to help with domestic chores, although the islands sometimes served as a waypoint for ships carrying
African slaves.
Since the 17th century, many Azoreans have emigrated, mainly to
Brazil, the
United States and
Canada.
Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts, especially the cities of
New Bedford and
Fall River have been, and continue to be the primary destination for Azorean emigrants. Northern California was the final destination for many of the Massachusetts immigrants who then moved on to the
San Joaquin Valley. In 1919, there were approximately 300,000 people in the Azores while there were 100,000 Azoreans in the United States. Many Azoreans also moved to
Bermuda and pre-U.S.
Hawaii. From 1961 to 1977, about 150,000 Azoreans immigrated to
the United States.
Florianópolis and
Porto Alegre in the
Southern Region of Brazil were founded by Azoreans, who accounted for over half of
Rio Grande do Sul and
Santa Catarina's population in the late 18th century.
Traditional festivals from May through September
Holy Ghost Festivals, or
Espírito Santo Festivals, are very important to the Azorean people, who are mainly
Roman Catholic. The festivals are rooted in medieval traditions and typically held on all the islands from May to September, including lively parades and large feasts. As part of the tradition, soup and bread are handed out to revelers during these events. On Terceira and other islands, decorative houses called Imperios are the staging points for the feeding of the masses.
May marks the Festival of Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres (Lord Holy Christ of Miracles) in Ponta Delgada on the island of São Miguel. The largest religious event in the Azores is the Festa do Senhor Santo Cristo, which takes place on the fifth Sunday after Easter. Pilgrims from all over the world unite to parade behind the image of Christ on a three-hour procession along the flower-decorated streets of the city. The Sanjoaninas Festivities in Angra do Heroísmo in Terceira are held in June honoring S. Antonio, S. Pedro and St. João, in a large religious celebration. The traditional bullfights in the bullring are ongoing, as is the running of bulls in the streets.
The festival of Nossa Senhora de Lourdes, (
Our Lady of Lourdes),
patron saint to the whalers, begins in Lajes on Pico on the last Sunday the August and runs through the week—Whalers Week. It is marked by social and cultural events connected to the tradition of
whale hunting. The Festa das Vindimas, (Wine
Harvest Festival), takes place during the first week of September and is a century old custom ways by the people of Pico.
In Corvo the people celebrate their patron saint Nossa Senhora dos Milagres, (Our Lady of Miracles), on August 15 every year in addition to the festivals of the Divine Holy Spirit. The Festival da Maré de Agosto (August Sea Festival), takes place every year beginning on 15 August in Praia Formosa on Santa Maria. And, the Semana do Mar (Sea Week), dedicated almost exclusively to
water sports, takes place in August in the city of Horta, on Faial.
Carnaval is also celebrated in the Azores. Parades and pageants are the heart of the Carnaval festivities. There is lively music, colorful costumes, hand-made masks, and floats.
Population genetics
As in
continental Portugal, the most frequent
mtDNA haplogroup in the Azores is
H (45.2%), followed by
U (16.7%),
T (10.1%),
K (6.5%),
pre-HV clades (5.6%) and a smaller sub-Saharan
L haplogroups frequency (3.4%) than in Madeira as the number of sub-Saharan slaves in the Açores never reached the proportions that took place in Madeira.
Concerning the males
Y-Dna haplogroups,
R1b (particularly R1b3) was found to be the most dominant Y chromosomal lineage in the Azores, covering about 60% of the Y chromosomal lineages. The high frequency of this haplogroup is typical in all West European populations, reflecting a
cline and likely continuity of the Paleolithic
gene pool in Europe. Haplogroups
I and
G, also characteristic markers for many different West European populations, were found in the Azores at frequencies above 5%. Together with R1b, haplogroups
J (13%) and
E1b1b (9%) comprise about 80% of the Y-chromosomal gene pool in the Azores. Haplogroups J and E1b1b consist of lineages with differential distribution within
Middle East,
North Africa and
Europe. The typical
berber haplogroup E1b1b (M81) was found like in continental Portugal at a frequency of 5-6%.
See also
