Comarca in Valencian Community, Spain
Baix Maestrat |
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|
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| Country |  Spain |
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| Autonomous community |  Valencian Community |
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| Province | Castellón |
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| Capital | Vinaròs |
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| Municipalities |
- Alcalà de Xivert, Benicarló, Càlig, Canet lo Roig, Castell de Cabres, Cervera del Maestre, Chert/Xert, La Jana, Peñíscola, La Pobla de Benifassà, Rossell, La Salzadella, San Rafael del Río, Sant Jordi/San Jorge, Sant Mateu, Santa Magdalena de Pulpis, Traiguera, Vinaròs
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| • Total | 1,221.32 km2 (471.55 sq mi) |
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|
| • Total | 81,871 |
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| • Density | 67/km2 (170/sq mi) |
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| | [1] |
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| Demonym | |
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| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
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| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
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| Largest municipality | Vinaròs |
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Baix Maestrat (Valencian: [ˈbajʒ maesˈtɾat]; Spanish: Bajo Maestrazgo [ˈbaxo maesˈtɾaθɣo]) is a coastal comarca located in the north of the province of Castellón, Valencian Community, Spain. The capital of the comarca is Vinaròs.
Municipalities
The comarca is composed of 18 municipalities, listed below with their surface areas, their populations at the 2011 Census and according to the latest official estimates (for i January 2019) and their population density in 2019:
| Municipality
|
Surface
Area
in km2
|
Population
(2011)[2]
|
Population
(2019)[3]
|
Density
per km2
(2019)
|
| Vinaròs
|
95.46
|
28,267
|
28,682
|
300.46
|
| Benicarló
|
47.86
|
26,355
|
26,912
|
562.31
|
| Peniscola
|
78.97
|
7,822
|
7,612
|
96.39
|
| Alcalà de Xivert
|
167.56
|
7,826
|
6,680
|
39.87
|
| Sant Mateu
|
64.62
|
2,062
|
1,963
|
30.38
|
| Càlig
|
27.47
|
2,178
|
1,950
|
70.99
|
| Traiguera
|
59.76
|
1,586
|
1,378
|
23.06
|
| Sant Jordi/San Jorge
|
36.49
|
1,007
|
972
|
26.64
|
| Rossell
|
74.93
|
1,133
|
937
|
12.51
|
| Santa Magdalena de Polpís
|
66.49
|
844
|
768
|
11.55
|
| La Salzadella
|
49.92
|
846
|
704
|
14.10
|
| Xert
|
82.51
|
846
|
701
|
8.50
|
| La Jana
|
19.50
|
766
|
675
|
34.56
|
| Canet lo Roig
|
68.67
|
828
|
674
|
9.82
|
| Cervera del Maestrat
|
93.24
|
686
|
575
|
6.17
|
| San Rafael del Río
|
21.15
|
526
|
469
|
22.17
|
| La Pobla de Benifassà
|
136.00
|
288
|
202
|
1.49
|
| Castell de Cabres
|
30.72
|
20
|
17
|
0.55
|
Data from National Institute of Statistics 2019
Geography
The comarca borders to the north-west with the province of Teruel (Aragon), to the north-east with the province of Tarragona (Catalonia), to the east with the Mediterranean Sea, to the south with the comarca of Plana Alta (Castellón, Valencia) and to the west with the comarcas of Alt Maestrat (Castellón, Valencia) and Els Ports (Castellón, Valencia).
Within the comarca lies Serra d'Irta, an 18.8 km long mountain range and the largest undeveloped coastal area within the Valencian Community. The range includes the Natural Park of Serra d'Irta, which was declared a protected area by the Valencian Regional Government on July 16, 2002.
Economic activities
The area's traditional economic activities include agriculture (citrus fruits, olive trees, artichokes) and fishing. Artichokes from Benicarló are covered by a geographic designation of origin.
Historical delimitations
The current comarca of Baix Maestrat also includes the historical subcomarcas of Tinença de Benifassà and Plana de Vinaròs. The localities of Albocàsser and Tírig (today located in Alt Maestrat), and Les Coves de Vinromà, Sarratella, La Torre d'en Doménec, and Vilanova d'Alcolea (in Plana Alta), were also formerly part of the historic comarca.
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