ALENTEJO
Alentejo is a large region in southern Portugal. Its unique identity, climate, landscape, history and culture were crafted by the crossed influence of the west Atlantic and the Southern Mediterranean.
It is an immense natural space still free of the traces of industrialization and urbanization that marked the last century. It is one of the best-preserved regions of Europe: an extensive nature reserve where you can still live and feel Nature.
It was a crossroad of the great civilizations of the Mediterranean such as the Tartessos, the Phoenicians, the Romans and then the Arabs.
The early Neolithic civilizations have left some of the most remarkable megalithic monuments in Europe, such as the Almendre´s Cromeleque in Évora. The region was a spiritual place for pre-Roman and Lusitanian people in the lron Age, like cult of the Endovélico in Alandroal.
The three centuries of Roman presence in the whole region are very visible, especially in Évora, Beja, Castro Verde, Mértola and in some coastal regions.
After the Romans the Arabs came, they settled in Alentejo for about 500 years. Their presence marked the cultural identity of the region, its gastronomy, architecture and literature. Mértola is a living museum where you can still feel their presence.
After the region was reconquered, the Alentejo accompanied the historical and cultural development of the rest of Portugal with influence from the cultures of the North, resulting in a rich and diverse heritage from the medieval, Manueline, Renaissance and Baroque periods. The region has two world Heritage of UNESCO: Évora and Elvas.
With a wild beauty and a unique light, the South and the Alentejo are one of the “last utopias” on earth.
José de Sousa Cunhal Sendim (L’AND Founder/CEO)
“With ”Alentejo by L’AND” map we want to share what we love in Alentejo and what makes this region a special place to visit and to live”
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