Town hall

The classic version of the meaning of the word "nombela", is that it took the name of his Christian conqueror, Aragonese infante don Vela, from here as a corruption, that one. Other one meaning happened in 1578: in the Escalona castle shift was done of sail or lookout and as an insignificant farmhouse existed in territory, it was said of her that "odd number stays awake", because his inhabitants did not have to do this weapon service. None of both interpretations seems correct, after this name exists already, as Garibay, in the Moslem domination. In Fernando's Cosmography Columbus is read "monvela". Of this is his ancient name, it might mean "mount where from it is watched or stay awake". The mount in question might be The Rocky area or The Lookout, this one placed next to the called Shallow of Hormigos in The Alberche.

As for the origin of the Town we have two versions: The Iberian one and the Hebrew. The last one was gathered by Miscellany in the XVIIth century, Road in the XVIIIth and for the relation of 1787. Garibay affirms that in the XIth century, after Alfonso VI goes to Castile, the Moors of Toledo accompanied him up to Nombela The count of Mulberry, according to Cedillo, says that the village was conquered by don Vela, in 1100. Alfonso VIII, , after conquering Cuenca in 1177, gave, between others, the castle from Nombela to García Yáñez, who had helped him in the company, to change of the places of Magán, Mocejón and the wine vaults of Talavera and Madrid. The town integrates later into the duchy of Escalona, created for Enrique IV in 1472 in favor of Juan Pacheco, Marquess of Villena; Felipe II exempts Nombela, in 1567, from the jurisdiction of Escalona, the roll being erected to indicate his villazgo. (Fte.-Texto Delegation to see link)

Nucleus of Nombela: Urban development White cairn