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Stories, history and food traditions from Córdoba

Long-form editorial pieces written by resident correspondents: cultural deep-dives, the origins of local dishes, and the people and traditions that shape everyday life in Córdoba.

Mihrab ribbed dome of the Mezquita of Córdoba at dusk, gold mosaic crossed-arch vault with ribs meeting off-centre in an eight-pointed star pattern, warm interior lighting, ornate Islamic architecture

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Mihrab Ribbed Dome: Córdoba's Gothic Vault Precursor

Sophie Marchand

Córdoba's mihrab dome used a crossed-arch vault, raised 961–965 CE, predating medieval Europe's rib vaults by a century and read by some as Gothic's precursor.

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Aerial view of Córdoba's historic centre at golden hour, the Mezquita-Catedral's striped arches and bell tower dominating a skyline above the Guadalquivir river — Spain travel statistics 2026 reference image

Spain Travel Statistics 2026: Arrivals, Spending & Trends

María Fernanda González Updated

Spain welcomed a record 96.8M tourists in 2025. See full 2026 travel statistics: arrivals, spending, top regions, source markets, and wellness trends.

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The remnants of Madīnat al-Zahrā's grand halls where Al-Hakam II's legendary 400,000-manuscript library once stood, destroyed during the Fitna civil war. Al-Hakam II library Córdoba.

Al-Hakam II's Library — 400,000 Books That Vanished

Sophie Marchand Updated

Al-Hakam II's library at Madinat al-Zahra, now a UNESCO World Heritage site, held 400,000 manuscripts in the 960s. Almanzor burned the philosophy books.

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Aerial view of the Guadalquivir, Roman Bridge and Mezquita-Catedral that frame the population of Córdoba Spain, at golden hour with the city spreading toward the Sierra Morena

Population of Córdoba, Spain: Size vs Seville and Granada

Sophie Marchand

Córdoba's official population is 323,262 (1 January 2025). City, province and why there is no single official metro figure, set against Seville and Granada.

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Puerta del Puente Córdoba at dusk: the Renaissance triumphal-arch gate with fluted columns and a curved pediment beside the Roman Bridge and the San Rafael column

Puerta del Puente Córdoba: The Gate and What It Replaced

Sophie Marchand

Puerta del Puente in Córdoba: a 16th-century Renaissance gate by Hernán Ruiz III, the older gates it replaced, a tripled budget, 1928 rebuild and San Rafael.

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Calle Cairuan Córdoba at golden hour: the crenellated Almodóvar Gate and old city wall beside a promenade with ponds and water channels

Calle Cairuan and the Almodóvar Gate: A Walk Along the Wall

Sophie Marchand

Walk Calle Cairuan in Córdoba from the Almodóvar Gate: a 14th-century rebuild, a 1968 Tunisian street name, Roman wall footings and the Judería lanes.

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Arquillos alley Córdoba: a narrow whitewashed lane in the Judería closed by an iron gate, small stone arches overhead, soft morning light

Arquillos Alley Córdoba and the City's Narrowest Lanes

Sophie Marchand

The Arquillos alley in Córdoba's Judería is gated, so you see it through bars. Why 'narrowest' is unproven, and how the Pañuelo and Flores lanes compare.

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Roman theatre Córdoba Archaeological Museum basement: curved excavated stone substructure of the cavea with radial passages and stepped terraces, lit beneath a modern concrete ceiling

The Roman theatre under Córdoba's Archaeological Museum

Sophie Marchand

Córdoba's Roman theatre lay beneath the Archaeological Museum until a 1994 dig. How it was dated, plundered and displayed in the 2011 annex, and how to visit.

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Glass of tap water on a café table beside a whitewashed Córdoba patio at midday, answering can you drink tap water in cordoba

Can You Drink Tap Water in Córdoba? What the Data Shows

María Fernanda González

Yes, Córdoba tap water is safe. The 2024 health-ministry data, how it tastes, what to say in restaurants and what to do for baby formula or cloudy water.

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FLORA Mezquita Patio de los Naranjos: rows of orange trees in the arcaded courtyard of the Mezquita-Catedral of Córdoba in warm afternoon light, the tower rising behind

The Mezquita Handed Its Orange Courtyard to Flower Artists

María Fernanda González

How the Patio de los Naranjos went from a caliphal court of ablutions to a garden of orange trees, and how the Cabildo lends it to FLORA's living-flower art.

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Interior of the Villaviciosa chapel in the Mezquita-Catedral of Córdoba, a pointed Gothic nave in warm light beside the striped Islamic arches, villaviciosa chapel mezquita history 1880

The 1880 Repair That Revealed a Mosque Ceiling and Lost a Mural

Sophie Marchand

How fallen plaster in 1880 led to a Baroque vault's collapse in Córdoba's Villaviciosa chapel, uncovering an Islamic ceiling as a Gothic mural cycle vanished.

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Open-air excavation ground at Cueva del Angel Lucena, a collapsed limestone rock shelter on the Sierra de Aras at golden hour, trench walls and scrub hills beyond

Cueva del Ángel, Lucena: A 'Neanderthal' Site With One Tooth

Sophie Marchand

Cueva del Ángel near Lucena: 46 handaxes, burnt bone and one 104,300-year-old tooth. What the Neanderthal headline rests on, and what to check before visiting.

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Red stone Puente Mayor with four semicircular arches over the Guadalquivir at Montoro in late afternoon light, cordoba province bridge women jewellery funded

Did Women's Jewels Pay for Montoro's Bridge? What Records Say

Sophie Marchand

Montoro's Puente Mayor is famed as the bridge women paid for with jewels. ABC cites a heritage group dating the name to the 1980s; records name the council.

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Spain museum thefts 2026: empty glass display case in a dim archaeological museum gallery, one security light falling on a velvet-lined tray where gold pieces once lay

Spain Museum Thefts 2026: What They Mean for Córdoba

María Fernanda González

Three Spanish museums lost gold in 2026, none in Córdoba. Why thieves want metal that melts, and what looting cases in Córdoba province show about the trade.

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cabra cordoba name origin illustration of a white Andalusian town in hills, with Roman stone fragments, a coin and a parchment bearing abstract marks

Cabra Córdoba Name Origin: Older Than the Goat

Sophie Marchand Updated

Cabra's name runs from ancient Igabrum through Egabrum and Arabic Qabra. The records rule out the poet story and make the goat link a later association.

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