{{Short description|River in the Iberian Peninsula}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}} {{Infobox river | name = Leza | name_etymology = Basque for chasm | image = Río Leza - panoramio.jpg | image_size = | image_caption = The Leza near Soto en Cameros | image_alt =
| map = Leza (rivière).png | map_size = | map_caption = | map_alt = | pushpin_map = | pushpin_map_size = | pushpin_map_caption= | pushpin_map_alt = | mapframe = yes
| subdivision_type1 = Country | subdivision_name1 = Spain | subdivision_type2 = Region | subdivision_name2 = La Rioja | subdivision_type3 = Comarca | subdivision_name3 = Camero Viejo
| length = {{Convert|55|km|mi|abbr=on}}
| source1 = | source1_location = | source1_coordinates= | source1_elevation = 1500 m. | mouth = Ebro | mouth_location = | mouth_coordinates = {{coord|42.45863|-2.30248|format=dms|type:river_region:ES|display=inline,title}} | mouth_elevation = | progression = | river_system = Ebro | basin_size = {{Convert|565.32|km2|mi2|abbr=on}} | basin_landmarks = | basin_population = | tributaries_left = | tributaries_right = Vadillos River, Rabanera River, Jubera River | waterbodies = | waterfalls = | bridges = }} The '''Leza River''' ('''Río Leza''') is a short (55 km.<ref name="García-1980">{{Cite journal|last=García |first=Pilar Ladrero |year=1980 |title=La evolución demográfica de la cuenca del río Leza: 1950-1979 |language=es |journal=Geographicalia |volume=5 |pages=33–70 |url=https://papiro.unizar.es/ojs/index.php/geographicalia/article/view/2775/2465 }}</ref>) river in La Rioja, Spain, a right-hand tributary of the Ebro. It rises in the northern mountains of the Sierra de Monterreal range and flows northeast through the comarca of Camero Viejo.
It is known for its Garganta del Leza gorge, the Leza River Canyon, where limestone walls rise up to 500 meters above the river. It is part of the Biosphere Reserve of the Valleys of Leza, Jubera, Cidacos, and Alhama.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Biosphere Reserve of the valleys of the Leza, Jubera, Cidacos and Alhama Rivers |url=https://www.spain.info/en/nature/valles-rios-leza-jubera-cidacos-alhama-biosphere-reserve/ }}</ref>
==Etymology== 'Leza' is the Basque word which means chasm, gorge, or cave. The earliest reference to the river is as the Leça in the year 891 CE. Subsequent references beginning in 933 general use 'Leza', although the forms 'Leccenses' and 'Lenza' also occur.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Martínez |first=Aznar |title=Repertorio Básico de Toponimia Euskérica en La Rioja |trans-title=Basic Repertoire of Basque Placenames in La Rioja |location=Biblioteca Gonzalo de Berceo, Burgos, Spain |url=https://www.vallenajerilla.com/berceo/aznar/toponimiaeuskericariojana.htm#L}}</ref>
==Geography== The headwaters of the Leza River lie in the northern part of the {{ill|Parque Natural Sierra de Cebollera|es|Parque natural de la Sierra de Cebollera}} at an altitude of around 1500 meters between the peaks of Cerro Castillo (1690 m.) and Canto Hincado (1761 m.) on the south and Quiñon (1451 m.) to the north.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lasanta |first1=Teodoro |first2=José |last2=Arnáez |first3=Marco |last3=Oserín |first4=Luis M. |last4=Ortigosa |year=2001 |title=Marginal lands and erosion in terraced fields in the Mediterranean mountains: a case study in the Camero Viejo (Northwestern Iberian System, Spain) |journal=Mountain Research and Development |volume=21 |issue=1 |pages=69–76, page 70 |doi=10.1659/0276-4741(2001)021[0069:MLAEIT]2.0.CO;2 }}</ref> The river flows in a northeasterly direction in the valley between the Sierra de Camero Viejo and the Sierra del Hayedo de Santiago. It receives water from small tributaries, the first of any size being the Vadillos and Rabanera rivers, right-hand tributaries near Jalón de Cameros. Between Soto en Cameros and Leza de Río Leza the river runs in a deep canyon. Near Murillo de Río Leza it receives its largest tributary, the Jubera River from the right. It finally flows into the Ebro a few kilometers west of the town of Agoncillo. The entire catchment area covers 565.32 km<sup>2</sup>, being under sixty kilometers long and averaging about twenty-five kilometers across.<ref name="García-1980" />
The settlements located in the Leza valley are: Agoncillo, Murillo de Río Leza, Leza de Río Leza, Ribafrecha, Arrúbal, Trevijano, {{ill|Villanueva de San Prudencio|es}}, Soto en Cameros, {{ill|Treguajantes|es}}, {{ill|Luezas|es}}, Terroba, {{ill|Montalbo, La Rioja|es|Montalbo en Cameros}}, {{ill|Santa María en Cameros|es}}, San Román de Cameros, Velilla, Jalón de Cameros, Torre en Cameros, Muro en Cameros, Cabezón de Cameros, Laguna de Cameros, Rabanera, Ajamil, {{ill|Valdeosera|es}}, Hornillos de Cameros, Larriba, Torremuña, Vadillos and {{ill|Avellaneda, La Rioja|es|Avellaneda (La Rioja)}}.<ref name="García-1980" />
==History== The first settlers of the area, in the Neolithic era, were shepherds, who took advantage of the pastures in the mountain valleys in the summer beginning about 5000 BCE, as Neolithic herders migrating from the eastern Mediterranean.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Los Cameros: historia de la sierra |language=es |url=https://www.larioja.org/medio-ambiente/es/espacios-naturales-protegidos/parque-natural-sierra-cebollera/cameros }}</ref> Archaeological studies of the remains at the nearby El Portalón de Cueva Mayor show both sheep and goats.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Francés-Negro |first1=Marta |last2=Iriarte |first2=Eneko |last3=Galindo-Pellicena |first3=M. A. |last4=Gerbault |first4=P. |last5=Carrancho |first5=A. |last6=Pérez-Romero |first6=Amalia |last7=Arsuaga |first7=Juan Luis |last8=Carretero |first8=José Miguel |last9=Roffet-Salque |first9=Mélanie |year=2021 |title=Neolithic to Bronze Age economy and animal management revealed using analyses lipid residues of pottery vessels and faunal remains at El Portalón de Cueva Mayor (Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain) |journal=Journal of Archaeological Science |volume=131 |issue=105380 |pages=1–34 |doi=10.1016/j.jas.2021.105380 |url=https://research-information.bris.ac.uk/files/271149742/PURE_Frances_Negro_et_al_2021.pdf }}</ref>
In 1366, the King Henry of Trastamara gave the area of the Cameros to his loyal follower Juan Ramírez de Arellano, later Count of Aguilar and Inestrillas, whose descendants remained the lords and landowners of the region for centuries.{{Citation needed|date=March 2025}}
==Resources== Traditionally the main economic activity has been grazing sheep, as well as goats and cattle.
The municipal areas of Agonzillo, Murillo de Río Leza, Ribafrecha and Leza de Río Leza belong to the wine-growing region of Rioja Baja.
==Points of interest== thumb|left|Leza River Canyon * Leza River Bridge, ruins of a Roman bridge over the Leza near the village of Agoncillo * The Leza River Canyon {{Clear}}
==Notes and references== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category|Leza (river)|Leza River|position=left}}
Category:Ebro basin Category:European drainage basins of the Mediterranean Sea Category:Rivers of La Rioja Category:Rivers of Spain