Taganana

{{Infobox settlement

| name = Taganana

| image_skyline = Tagana2008.jpg

| image_caption = Panorama of Taganana.

| image_map = 270px

| map_caption = Location of Taganana in the Anaga district

| population_total = 511

| population_as_of = 2018

| population_demonym = Tagananero, -a

| postal_code = 38130

| subdivision_type = Country

| subdivision_name = {{ESP}}

| subdivision_type1 = Autonomous community

| subdivision_name1 = Canary Islands

| subdivision_type2 = Province

| subdivision_name2 = 13px Santa Cruz de Tenerife

| subdivision_type3 = Municipality

| subdivision_name3 = 13px Santa Cruz de Tenerife

| subdivision_type4 = District

| subdivision_name4 = Anaga

| subdivision_type5 = Boundaries

| subdivision_name5 = North: Atlantic Ocean
East: Almáciga
South: San Andrés and El Bailadero
West: Afur and María Jiménez

| established_date = 1501

| area_total_km2 = 10.21

| elevation_m = 112

| population_density_km2 = {{formatnum:{{#expr:(511/10.21) round 2}}}}

| website =

}}

Taganana is a population entity within the municipality of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, on the island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Spain. It is administratively part of the {{Interlanguage link|Anaga (Spain)|lt=Anaga|es|Anaga}} district and is officially recognized as a village.[http://www.santacruzdetenerife.es/distritos/distrito-anaga/sus-barrios/ Barrios del Distrito de Anaga [Neighborhoods of the Anaga District]] (in Spanish) {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202235514/http://www.santacruzdetenerife.es/distritos/distrito-anaga/sus-barrios/}} Source: Santa Cruz de Tenerife City CouncilThis village status was approved by the Santa Cruz de Tenerife City Council on October 25, 2013, changing its previous classification as a neighborhood, which both Taganana and San Andrés had held since their annexation to the capital in the 19th century. This decision acknowledged the historical reality of both localities.{{Cite news |date=October 22, 2013 |title=Pueblos de Anaga con identidad propia |trans-title="Anaga Villages with Their Own Identity" |url=http://www.laopinion.es/tenerife/2013/10/22/pueblos-anaga-identidad-propia/505314.html |work=La Opinión de Tenerife |language=es}}

It is the most significant settlement within the interior of the Macizo de Anaga. Founded in 1501, it is the third oldest settlement in the massif, following the nearby San AndrésThe first settler and founder of San Andrés was Lope de Salazar in 1498, who received land in the valley during the land distribution. The land grants for Taganana, issued by Alonso Fernández de Lugo, are dated May 16, 1501, considered the founding date of the village. and {{Interlanguage link|Igueste de San Andrés|lt=|es|Igueste de San Andrés}},The first land grant for Igueste de San Andrés was awarded to the Gran Canarian conquistador Rodrigo el Cojo in 1499. and one of the oldest on the island. It was also an independent municipality throughout much of the 19th century.{{Cite web |last=Avisos |first=Diario de |date=2014-03-14 |title=Taganana, el barrio más viejo de Santa Cruz y dos veces independiente |trans-title=Taganana, the Oldest Neighborhood in Santa Cruz and Twice Independent |url=https://www.diariodeavisos.com/2014/03/taganana-barrio-mas-viejo-santa-cruz-dos-veces-independiente/ |access-date=2025-04-09 |website=Diario de Avisos |language=es}}

Taganana is home to notable monuments such as the {{Interlanguage link|Church of Our Lady of the Snows (Taganana)|lt=Church of Our Lady of the Snows|es|Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de las Nieves (Taganana)}} and the {{Interlanguage link|Chapel of Saint Catherine Martyr of Alejandria|lt=Chapel of Saint Catherine|es|Ermita de Santa Catalina Mártir de Alejandría (Taganana)}}. The church houses a significant artistic heritage, including sculptures, paintings, and goldsmith works. The village also preserves a rich architectural heritage of traditional houses and stone wine presses.{{Cite web |last=Servicio de Control y Gestión Medioambiental, Negociado de espacios naturales y del litoral, Ayuntamiento de Santa Cruz de Tenerife [Environmental Control and Management Service, Natural Spaces and Coastline Department, Santa Cruz de Tenerife City Council] |title=Estudio y catalogación del patrimonio rural de Anaga |trans-title=Study and Cataloging of Anaga's Rural Heritage |url=http://www.santacruzdetenerife.es/uploads/media/catalogoanaga_FASEI.pdf}}

The village offers a network of trails for hiking, connecting to {{Interlanguage link|Afur (Spain)|lt=Afur|es|Afur}}, {{Interlanguage link|El Bailadero|lt=|es|El Bailadero}}, and {{Interlanguage link|Almáciga (Santa Cruz de Tenerife)|lt=Almáciga|es|Almáciga}}, as well as a self-guided route through the village center highlighting its ethnographic values.

The beaches of Tachero and {{Interlanguage link|Roque de las Bodegas Beach|lt=|es|Playa del Roque de las Bodegas}} are located here.

Etymology

The name Taganana is of Guanche origin,{{cite book |last=Pérez Pérez |first=Buenaventura |title=La Toponimia Guanche (Tenerife). Nueva aportación a la lingüística aborigen de las Islas Canarias |publisher=Ediciones Idea |year=2007 |isbn=978-84-83823-28-6 |trans-title=Guanche Toponymy (Tenerife). A New Contribution to the Aboriginal Linguistics of the Canary Islands}} with some scholars linking it to the word anagan, meaning "surrounded by mountains," or tagănan, meaning "ascent" or "slope."{{cite web |last=Reyes |first=Ignacio |date=September 12, 2012 |title=Taganana |url=http://insuloamaziq.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/taganana.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131226200705/http://insuloamaziq.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/taganana.html |archive-date=December 26, 2013 |access-date=December 25, 2013 |work=Diccionario histórico-etimológico del amaziq insular (Canarias) [Historical-Etymological Dictionary of Insular Amazigh (Canaries)]}}

Characteristics

Taganana is located in the homonymous valley on the northern slope of the Macizo de Anaga, approximately 15 miles (24 km) from the municipal capital's center. It covers an area of 3.94 square miles (10.21 km²) and sits at an average elevation of 367 feet (112 m) above sea level.{{Cite web |title=Infraestructura de Datos Espaciales de Canarias |trans-title=Canary Islands Spatial Data Infrastructure |url=http://www.idecan.grafcan.es/idecan/ |website=Consejería de Educación, Universidades y Sostenibilidad. Gobierno de Canarias [Department of Education, Universities, and Sustainability, Government of the Canary Islands]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020034441/http://www.idecan.grafcan.es/idecan/ |archive-date=20 October 2014 }}

The village comprises several hamlets: Azanos, Bajo Roque, Casas de la Iglesia, Casas del Camino, Cruz Vieja, El Cabezo, El Calvario, El Cardonal, El Chorro, Fajanetas, La Chanca, La Cuestilla, Lomo Blanco, Lomo los Lirios, Los Naranjos, Mazapé, Portugal, Roque de las Bodegas, San Antonio, and Tachero.

The village features a church, several chapels—Saint Catherine in the village center, Saint John the Baptist in Tachero, and Virgin of Charity of Cobre in Azanos—a public square, a medical clinic, a children’s playground, a pharmacy dispensary,[http://www.eldia.es/2010-06-28/santacruz/6-pago-Taganana-contara-botiquin-farmaceutico-urgencia-traslado-farmacia.htm "The Taganana Hamlet Will Have an Emergency Pharmacy Dispensary After Pharmacy Relocation"] Source: El Día, 28/06/2010 / [http://www.eldia.es/2010-06-28/santacruz/6-pago-Taganana-contara-botiquin-farmaceutico-urgencia-traslado-farmacia.htm El pago de Taganana contará con un botiquín farmacéutico de urgencia tras el traslado de la farmacia] Fuente: El Día, 28/06/2010. a cultural center, a school, a sports facility, and a cemetery. It also has a pier at Roque de las Bodegas Beach, along with bars, restaurants, and small shops.

In its landscape, notable rocky formations known as Los Hombres stand out, consisting of the Roques de Las Ánimas, de Enmedio, Amogoje, and Roque del Valle. Other geological features include the Risco de la Guayosa and the Riscos del Fraile y la Monja. The coastline is dotted with numerous bajas—flat-surfaced rocky outcrops isolated in the sea.{{Cite web |title=Baja |url=http://www.academiacanarialengua.org/buscar/?q=baja&search-button.x=0&search-button.y=0 |website=Academia Canaria de la Lengua [Canary Islands Academy of Language]}}

The Monte de Las Vueltas holds significant scientific interest, preserving an excellent example of {{Interlanguage link|Canary laurisilva|lt=laurel forest|es|Laurisilva canaria}}.

The entire area of Taganana is part of the {{Interlanguage link|Anaga Rural Park|lt=|es|Parque rural de Anaga}}, and like other villages and hamlets in Anaga, it is included in the biosphere reserve of the Macizo de Anaga, designated by UNESCO in 2015.{{cite web |author= |date=June 9, 2015 |title=La Unesco otorga el título de Reserva de la Biosfera al Macizo de Anaga |trans-title=UNESCO Grants Biosphere Reserve Status to the Anaga Massif |url=http://www.abc.es/local-canarias/20150609/abci-anaga-unesco-reserva-201506091654.html |access-date=June 9, 2015 |work=ABC |language=es}}

= Topography =

The basal unit of Taganana emerges along the northern coast in a crescent-shaped outline—known as the Taganana Arc—possibly formed by greater marine penetration in the central area, which is more easily erodible due to its predominantly volcanic composition. This basal unit, equivalent in age to the fissure basalts of the Macizo de Teno (Upper Miocene), dips southward, opposite to the overlying formations. The high alteration of its materials, its dense network of rocks—formed by basaltic and phonolitic intrusions such as the Roques de Anaga and Roque de Las Ánimas—and the direction of its dip suggest a clear unconformity between this unit and those resting upon it.

Demographics

With 521 inhabitants as of 2016, Taganana is the sixth most populous locality in the Anaga District, following San Andrés, {{Interlanguage link|María Jiménez, Spain|lt=María Jiménez|es|María Jiménez (Santa Cruz de Tenerife)}}, {{Interlanguage link|Valleseco, Spain|lt=Valleseco|es|María Jiménez (Santa Cruz de Tenerife)}}, {{Interlanguage link|La Alegría, Spain|lt=La Alegría|es|La Alegría (Santa Cruz de Tenerife)}}, and {{Interlanguage link|Igueste de San Andrés|lt=|es|Igueste de San Andrés}}.

class="wikitable"

|+ Population distribution of Taganana (2016)

! Name

! Category

! Population

Taganana

| align="center" | Principal nucleus

| align="right" | 149

Azanos