Biar

Biar
Biar
Municipality
	Castle and town of Biar.
	Coat of arms
	Biar Location in Spain
	Coordinates: 38°37′59″N 0°46′00″W / 38.63306°N 0.76667°W
Country	Spain
Autonomous community	Valencian Community
Province	Alicante
Comarca	Alt Vinalopó
Judicial district	Villena
Government
• Alcalde	Julio L. Sanjuan Martínez (2015-present) (PSOE)
Area
• Total	98.17 km2 (37.90 sq mi)
Elevation	700 m (2,300 ft)
Population (2018)
• Total	3,651
• Density	37/km2 (96/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Biarut, biaruda
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	03410
Official language(s)	Valencian
Website	Official website

Biar (Valencian: [biˈaɾ]; Spanish: [biˈaɾ]) is a town and municipality in the comarca of Alt Vinalopó, province of Alicante, Spain. Biar lies at the foot of the Serra de Mariola and is located 39 km from the city of Alicante.

The economy in Biar is based on manufacture, particularly dolls, and pottery.

On the origin of the name of this town there are two versions, one says that it comes from the Latin word apiarium meaning "place of bees", justifying this giving the importance that Biar had as a producer and exporter of honey,^[2] and the other says it is derived from the Arabic word (biʿar) "well" o بِئَار (biʿār) "wells"^[3]

Events

The Moros i Cristians festival of Biar is celebrated each year from May 10 to 13.

References

^ Municipal Register of Spain 2018. National Statistics Institute.
^ Juan Piqueras Haba, ed. (1995). "Biar". Geografia de les comarques valencianes (in Catalan). Vol. 6. València: Foro. p. 348.
^ Asín Palacios, Miguel (1940). Contribución a la toponimia árabe de España. Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. p. 94.