History of Dílar
by Saskia Mier
HISTORY
Pampaneira's history is similar to that of other towns in Granada's Alpujarra region. Due to its geographical isolation, the area developed its own distinctive characteristics, reaching its moment of greatest splendour during the Arab-Andalusian period when it was an important agricultural centre specialising in silk production.
Following the reconquest of Granada by the Catholic Monarchs in 1492, the population was subjected to intolerable pressure until, in 1568, a wealthy landowner named Hernando de Válor rose up in arms against Felipe II under the name Abén Humeya, sparking a general Morisco uprising throughout the Kingdom of Granada.
The subsequent depopulation was widespread, and the Alpujarra lands were repopulated with people from the Kingdom of Castile and Lower Andalusia. The place name Pampaneira, like other Alpujarran names ending in '-eira', comes from Andalusian or Mozarabic Romance and already existed before the Castilian conquest.
The current population originated in the sixteenth century, when the area was repopulated by families from the kingdoms of León and Galicia.