what was 'un batan'? Rio Higueron

[julian]

let´s hope it doesn´t turn out that it was was where a guy called Paco Batan used to live, after all this investigation !!!!

[hiker]

Update on Batán.

An arabic-speaking neighbour of mine discussed this with me.
There are two arabic word that may have been mangled over the years into spanish.

Watán (pronounced Whatán), which is the arabic word for "Nation".

Batál, which is arabic for "Free" (gratis)

The local librarian reckons that there was paper made there in the 19th century but there is no remains of the structure other than the Pozo.

Lost in the history, I'm afraid.
Whatever the original meaning of the Pozo Batán, there is no one alive now who remembers.

[markwilding]

Got this from the Internet

'Esta interesante palabra, se designa tanto para nombrar a un edificio como a una máquina destinada a usos textiles'



Also looking at the word it seems that the word is similar and is used in a similar way to our word batter.
The Spanish version being 'abatanar', a synonym being 'golpear'.
It's only a theory but it might help.

[gavilan]

As it is cold, wet and windy in London today, I have been messing about on the internet trying to find out more about papel estraza and batanes ... and stumbled across a long and fascinating article about the paper mills in Mijas from 1700s ... if you are interested go to 'The Library of Iberian Resources Online' and search for 'La Industria Papelera de Mijas en tiempos de la Industrializacion Malaguena', download as pdf.

This article also refers to a book published in 1998 by the University of Malaga entitled 'Los batanes papeleros de Malaga y su provincia' ... which I will order from Yerma in Velez when I am back in early October.

The next edition of the Green party newsletter is due out at the end of this month ... hope to pick up some info re local paper mills then too.