It is the most north-western town in Andalusia, bordering Extremadura and Portugal. The holm oak, together with the cork oak -and later the oak-, is the characteristic tree of the area and of practically the whole of this western strip of Spain.

According to some legends, the name comes from a solitary tree under which the border smugglers used to gather; but, although smuggling activity has been present for a long time and until recently in these lands, and there is evidence of this in the toponymy itself –Cuesta del Contrabandista– and perhaps even in the gentilicio itself –marocho-, the imposition of the name Encinasola must be older, so it cannot refer to smuggling. For a more extensive explanation of this toponym, as well as of the neighbouring Portuguese name Barrancos and the minor toponyms in the surrounding area, see García Sánchez (2023).

Cited bibliography

García Sánchez, Jairo Javier (2023). “Análisis toponímico de un territorio fronterizo iberorrománico: Encinasola junto a Barrancos y el barranqueño”. Corbella, Dolores, Josefa Dorta y Rafael Padrón (eds.), Perspectives de recherche en linguistique et philologie romanes, Textes choisis par la Société de linguistique romane, Strasbourg: Éditions de linguistique et philologie (ELiPhi) / Société de linguistique romane (SLR), pp. 499-508 (DOI: 10.46277/SLR.18.2023.499-508).