ALPUJARRAS, THE, a district of southern Spain, in the provinces of Granada and Almeria, from the Nevada to the coast between Motril and Almeria. A structural depression between the Nevada and the coastal sierras contains the mid-courses of Nevada streams which have wild gorges above and below. These mid-courses are in beautiful fertile secluded valleys with villages of ten on ledges overhanging the streams, and to them the name Alpujarras is often exclusively applied. The vegetation ranges from sugar cane and palm in the valleys to Alpine flora on the heights through belts of orange, lemon and fig, of vine and olive, of chestnut and walnut and of oak and has no parallel in Europe.
The treaty of Granada assigned the district to Boabdil but it was not observed. The descendants of the Moors were removed in 157o after long rebellions, and colonists, especially from Es tremadura, came in. An Alpujarras militia for coast-defence was dependent on Velez-Malaga. Ugijar was formerly the capital, Orgiba is another town ; Lan jaron has a castle and chalybeate baths, Trevelez is the highest village.
See Boletin de la Real Soc. Geogr. Madrid, xlviii., 1906 pp.