El Hierro Location, Surface & Population
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One fourth on the way to Brazil
On El Hierro you are more than one fourth on the way from Spain to Brazil. The distance between El Hierro and Isla Canela, the closest point in mainland Spain, is 1,442 km. The distance between El Hierro and Calcanhar Lighthouse in Brazil is approximately 4,092 km.
Location of El Hierro
The island’s nickname is Isla del Meridiano (the Meridian Island) referring to the fact that El Hierro was the westernmost point of the known world for centuries and determined the prime meridian for maps used in various countries ranging from Ancient Egypt to Richelieu’s France).
Naturally, El Hierro is also the island located furthest to the west and to the south of all the Canary Islands. The closest islands are La Gomera 60 km to the east-northeast and La Palma 67 km to the north-northeast. The coordinates of El Hierro are 27°45’ N 18°00’ W.
El Hierro size and surface
El Hierro is the smallest of the seven major Canary Islands. Its surface area is 278 km². The length of El Hierro shoreline is about 87 km. The highest point of El Hierro is the peak of Malpaso (Pico de Malpaso) with 1,501 metres above sea level.
Population and towns on El Hierro
Total population of El Hierro island is 10,162 (as of 2003). From the administrative point of view, El Hierro belongs to the Tenerife province (the capital of this province is Santa Cruz de Tenerife).
There are only three municipalities on El Hierro: El Pinar, Frontera, and Valverde. Valverde is the capital and the biggest town on El Hierro with population of 5,797.
