Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
Alcoy
Introduction References & Edit History Related Topics
Images
Alcoy
Quizzes
Tower Bridge over the Thames River in London, England. Opened in 1894. Remains an Important Traffic Route with 40,000 Crossings Every Day.
Guess the City by Its River Quiz
Quick Facts
Valencian:
Alcoi
See all related content
Britannica AI Icon
Adding us as a Preferred Source tells Google you trust our content, so our articles show up more often in your Google Search, Discover feed, and AI Overviews.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Alcoy
Alcoy Alcoy, Spain, with the church of Santa Maria in the background.

Alcoy

Spain
Also known as: Alcoyll
Written and fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
History

Alcoy, town, Alicante provincia (province), in the comunidad autónoma (autonomous community) of Valencia, southeastern Spain. It lies in rugged foothills at the confluence of the two headstreams of the Serpis River, north of Alicante city. The site was settled before Roman times, but the present Alcoy was founded by the Moors, who named it Alcoyll after a city in Tunisia.

The town is a rail terminus and an important centre of the textile industry. A royal textile factory was established there in 1800, and it was the site of the first Spanish industrial school. Alcoy’s manufactures include paper, especially for cigarettes and packaging for foodstuffs. Metalworking and agricultural trade are also carried on. A celebration, held in April on the Festival de San Jorge (St. George), Alcoy’s patron, commemorates a 13th-century battle when the saint supposedly helped the Christians defeat the Moors; it is a tourist attraction. Pop. (2007 est.) mun., 60,700.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.
Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors.
By clicking “Sign Up”, you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.