The INE website hides some surprises among tables, graphs, numerous columns of data and very comprehensive (and dry) PDFs on statistical methodology. The Almanzora Valley in the state of Almería leaves a fine example. There are a handful of localities that have revolutionized their censuses so radically and so quickly that in some cases their censuses have doubled in two decades. This phenomenon arose along with other, no less interesting events: it is becoming increasingly difficult to meet children or grandchildren of Andalusians on the streets, and it is easier to hear conversations on the street. Spanish or see posters and sidelines published in English.

The reason is that they have become “English paradises” in the heart of Almería.

What do the statistics say? In the Almanzora Valley in the northwestern region of the province of Almería, there are some municipalities that seem to have found the definitive demographic salve for evacuated Spain. Their situation is very strange because they managed to increase their numbers exponentially from very low censuses of only a few hundred inhabitants, losing population at the end of the 20th century. In some cases, it is even possible to multiply them by two.

This is the case, for example, in the town of Partaloa, which had 377 registered residents in 2001 and now has around a thousand. Or, the population of Bédar, which was 550 in 1998, has increased to over a thousand. Another case is in Arboleas: the number increased from 1,550 in the 90s to 4,439.

getting into the numbers. Although the entire province of Almería has gained population by this century, the increase in Partaloa, or Béder, far exceeds this, with an increase of 37.2% between 2011 and 2021. In the same period, the first one grew by 182.5 percent and the second one by 63.1 percent.

These “booms” are accompanied by an even more interesting fact: not only are the populations of these regions much larger today than they were a quarter of a century ago, but their populations today are also quite different from those in the 90s. In 2003, 77.6% of those living in Partaoa were born in Spain, while this rate of foreigners was 22.4%. Today the situation is different: 68% of those registered were born outside the country.

welcome to Almeria. Partaloa’s situation is not unique. It is not isolated. Last summer Voice of Almeria published a report with a descriptive title: “More foreigners now live in Arboleas, Bédar and Partaloa than Almerians.” There is even irony and talk in other local media that the indigenous people are “in danger of extinction”. The data is absolutely striking. The population is 68% foreign in Partaloa, 67% in Arboleas and 58% in Bédar. Another example with a majority of people born abroad is Mojácar, also in Almería.

The towns of the Almanzora Valley share another important characteristic: a huge concentration of foreign population… and more specifically those from the United Kingdom. Also according to INE data, the predominance of British immigrants in Arboleas, Bédar and Partaloa is very large both among the population of foreign origin, including the Dutch, Belgians or immigrants from North Africa, and also among the residents of the region. .

“This one was dying”. The comment comes from 76-year-old Partaloa resident María Antonia López, who recently told elDiario.es how she, like neighboring Bédar, experienced the process that transformed her town into two quaint “English paradises”. In the north of the state of Almería.

“A joy. It was dying because the young are gone and the old are dead, but it is a victory since the strangers have come.” Perhaps the most curious result of this coexistence is dialect. Spanish from the streets. Some have already coined a term for their use of language and accent: “Almeringlish”, a mixture of English with an Almerian touch and Spanish with a British accent. “We all understand each other here. You hear what they say bye and you greet them.”

To facilitate communication, residents of Partaloa have the opportunity to attend free English lessons and even workshops where Spanish and British retirees live together without having to speak the same language. As elDiario.es points out, this does not mean that a certain cultural gap remains and that there are foreigners who have been living in Almería for decades and barely know how to speak Spanish.

“We Spaniards are a minority”. The speaker of this event is Cristóbal García, former mayor of Arboleas, who became known in 2020. Almeria Newspaper He said that “one of the most important challenges” that the local government is dealing with is precisely the social mixing and coexistence between locals and the large foreign population. “We Spaniards are a minority,” he said.

The predominance of foreigners, especially the British, was so high that the government team even included two council members of that nationality who were responsible for the Citizens’ Services and Translation areas. “English has become the second official language.” The police use this. Just like the local parties.

A trend full of challenges. Just because Partaloa or Bédar have gained weight in recent years doesn’t mean all is bright on their demographic horizons. There are also shadows. Attracting a foreign population is not synonymous with attracting a young foreign population, the indicator that reflects the difference between births and deaths, families that can rejuvenate the population pyramid and replenish the vegetative balance.

Very few births are recorded in Partaloa each year. Something similar is happening in Bédar: most of the foreigners who decide to settle there and continue their lives are actually retirees. INE once again reveals the truth: In 2022, one baby was born in Partaloa, while 14 people died. In Bédar, the statistical observatory counted four births, but there were twice as many deaths that year.

The (big) challenge of Brexit. Brexit hasn’t made things easier for the British either, which can be seen again in the INE charts. While the volume of foreigners in Bédar increased by 6.1% in the years before its entry into force, it has increased by 2.85% since 2020. “It was stupid,” Partaloa resident and Liverpool native Stephen Conroy laments when talking about leaving the European Union. “Living in Spain now means having a lot of money, and not everyone has that money. My life is not like that. I changed with Brexit because “I came much earlier, but I have friends who wanted to come but couldn’t.”

As the newspaper in Bédar notes, the UK’s departure from the EU has even been felt in the housing market: “Living in Spain has become more expensive since Brexit, and those who come do so with a lot of money. The bank is increasing house prices”. British people who wanted to settle in the south of Spain repossessed empty houses, but over time these houses multiplied and their purchasing power began to be felt in local market prices.

Pictures | Wikipedia (CG Bédar-Almeríapedia Students) and Partaloa City Council

via | elDiario.es

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