Other cities and towns in the province include Calahorra, Arnedo, Alfaro, Haro, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, and Nájera.

On the other hand, the oldest document found in which its demonym appears dates from the 13th century, with the spellings riogeñ and riogensi, that is, Riojan (Spanish: riojano).

In the first written appearances of this toponym in the 11th century, the westernmost area of the present-day Spanish region is designated under the same name; therefore, the primitive Rioja was the territory around the basins of the rivers Tirón and Oja, with some divergences in its exact location by different authors.

Gradually and as a result of various historical events, the toponym was extended from the Middle Ages, to name a larger region, consisting of seven river valleys, located between the Tirón in the west and the Alhama in the east, which flow into the Ebro, namely La Rioja today.

The Visigoths created the Duchy of Cantabria that probably included most of La Rioja, as a border march against the Vascones.

[citation needed] Later, there was a dispute between Count Fernán González of Castile and the kings of Pamplona-Navarra, involving great battles.

[citation needed] After the independence of Castile in 1035, this new kingdom fiercely fought against Pamplona for the possession of Bureba, La Rioja and other territories.

[6] The name "La Rioja" first appears in written records in the Miranda de Ebro charter of 1099.

[citation needed] The region was awarded to Castile in a judgement by Henry II of England and annexed in 1177.

The Cortes of Cádiz declared La Rioja an independent province at the time of the Liberal Constitution of 1812, and during the Liberal Triennium in January 1822 the province of Logroño was created by royal decree as part of the administrative reform of Riego, taking in the whole of the historical territory of La Rioja.

In 1980 the province changed its name to La Rioja, and following the adoption of the Estatuto de San Millán in 1982, during the reorganization following the Spanish transition to democracy, it was constituted as a uni-provincial autonomous community.

There are only three municipalities, Briñas, San Vicente de la Sonsierra and Ábalos on the left bank (known as the Riojan Sonsierra), although Logroño, Agoncillo, Alcanadre, Rincón de Soto and Alfaro also have parts of their respective municipal territories on that bank.

Because of their proximity[citation needed], the Álava area between the Ebro and the Sierra de Cantabria is called Rioja Alavesa.

Emerging from the narrow channel between the rocks of the Conchas de Haro, it reaches La Rioja, through which it runs for 120 km (75 miles), before continuing its journey to the Mediterranean.

Seven rivers descend rapidly towards the Ebro from the mountain range, which is why La Rioja is sometimes called: "Zone of the seven valleys".

There is an almost unlimited number of grandiose canyons, quite splendid in nature, such as Aguas Buenas, Nieva, Manzanares, Ardancha, Navajún, Valderresa, Ollora, Tobia, San Martín and others.

Near the Ebro, in the plains, the land is used for cereal, sugar beet and potatoes, while the hills are covered with vast vineyards of the wine that has brought worldwide fame to this region.

About the Riojan Alamos Ana Maria Matute has written: "... see them on the edge of the water, turning the landscape, like spears magical pointing towards the unreal and mysterious country of the riverbed.

Erosion has been wearing down the upper layers making many of these rock formations visible, bringing into view the fossilized footprints.

The Gross domestic product (GDP) of the autonomous community was 8.5 billion euros in 2018, accounting for 0.7% of Spanish economic output.

There is dryland farming of wheat, barley and grape; irrigated cultivation of asparagus, capsicum and other crops; and animal husbandry of sheep.

[14] The majority of educational institutions in the community are public, followed by subsidized and private schools, the latter of which are very scarce at the primary and secondary levels.

Rail journeys to Madrid, Zaragoza, Barcelona, Valladolid, Oviedo, Bilbao, La Coruña, Vigo are possible, since the Castejón-Miranda line crosses the region from east to west.

Other major road routes include: The current President of La Rioja is Gonzalo Capellán of PP.