Córdoba

Córdoba ( KOR-də-bə; Spanish: [ˈkoɾðoβa] ), or sometimes Cordova ( KOR-də-və), is a city in Andalusia, Spain, and the capital of the province of Córdoba. It is the third most populated municipality in Andalusia. The city primarily lies on the right bank of the Guadalquivir in the south of the Iberian Peninsula. Once a Roman colonia, it was taken over by the Visigothic Kingdom followed by the Muslim conquest in the eighth century. Córdoba became the capital of the Emirate and then Caliphate of Córdoba, from which the Umayyad dynasty ruled all of al-Andalus until 1031. Under Umayyad rule, Córdoba was transformed into a centre of education and learning, and by the 10th century it had grown to be the second-largest city in Europe. The caliphate experienced a manifold political crisis in the early 11th century that brought about state collapse. Following the Christian conquest in 1236, Córdoba became part of the Crown of Castile as the head of the Kingdom of Córdoba. Córdoba is home to notable examples of Moorish architecture such as the Mezquita-Catedral, which was named as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984 and is now a cathedral. The site has since been expanded to encompass the whole historic centre of Córdoba. Madinat al-Zahra near the city is also a World Heritage Site while the Festival de los Patios has been recognized as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. Córdoba has the highest summer temperatures in Spain and Europe, with average high temperatures around 37 °C (99 °F) in July and August. Summers are very dry whereas the mild winters have frequent rainfall.