Almería (Spanish pronunciation: [almeˈɾi.a]) is a city in Andalusia, Spain, on the Mediterranean Sea. It is the capital of the province of the same name.

Tradition says that the name Almería stems from the Arabic المرية Al-Mariyya: "The Mirror", comparing it to "The Mirror of the Sea". Nowadays, the most accepted interpretation is that it derives from the Arabic term مرأى Al-Mara'ā, which means "The Watchtower".

The city was founded by Calipha Abd-ar-Rahman III of Cordova in 955 AD. It was to be a principal harbour in his extensive domain to strengthen his Mediterranean defences.

Its Moorish castle, the Alcazaba of Almería, is the second largest among the Muslim fortresses of Andalusia, after the Alhambra.

In this period, the port city of Almería reached its historical peak. After the fragmentation of the Caliphate of Córdoba, Almería continued to be ruled by powerful local Muslim Taifa emirs like Jairan, the first independent Emir of Almería and Cartagena, and Almotacin, the poet emir. Both Jairan and Almotacin were fearless warriors, but also sophisticated patrons of the arts. A silk industry, based upon plantings of mulberry trees in the hot, dry landscape of the province, supported Almería in the 11th century and made its strategic harbour an even more valuable asset.

David Bisbal Ferré (born in Almería, Spain on June 5, 1979) is a Grammy-winning Spanish pop singer. He gained his initial fame as a runner up on the interactive reality television show Operación Triunfo.

He has since released four studio albums, all of which topped the Spanish Albums Chart, in addition to recording a number of live albums. He's toured throughout Europe and Latin America and is now considered to be a crossover international artist.

Until 2012, David Bisbal has sold more than 5 million records in Spain and America, getting 35 Platinum albums, 17 gold and 2 diamond. 'Corazón Latino' and 'Bulería' treasure each one IFPI Platinum Award, official certification for selling over 1 million copies across Europe.

David Bisbal left school early and worked in a platinum and flower nursery. He was encouraged by his colleagues to audition for a music contest and he initially became part of Orquesta Expresiones where he continued singing and dancing.

In October 2001 he auditioned for the first ever edition of Operación Triunfo (Spanish equivalent of Star Academy) where he was accepted and was one of the 16 finalists. The grand prize was the chance of representing Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest. He came second in the final losing to Rosa López. She went on to sing Europe's Living a Celebration for Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest 2002 (ESC) competition.

Keylor Navas (born 15 December 1986 in San Isidro de El General) is a Costa Rican football goalkeeper who used to play for Saprissa. He is considered to be one of the most secure, quick and agile young goalkeepers in CONCACAF. With Saprissa he has already won 6 National championship as well as a 1 CONCACAF Champions Cup title.

Navas made his professional debut with Saprissa in a league match against Carmelita on 6 November 2005.

He was part of the Costa Rican national team that played in the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship held in Finland, and was called to the Costa Rican national team for the first time in August 2006 to play a friendly tournament in Europe against Austria and Switzerland, before turning 20. He also played the 2005 FIFA Club World Championship Toyota Cup, where Saprissa finished third behind São Paulo Futebol Clube and Liverpool F.C.. On June 16, Albacete Balompie made public their interest to negotiate his transfer with Saprissa. Finally on 7 July 2010, he was presented as the new goalkeeper for Albacete Balompie.

Paco de Lucía, born Francisco Gustavo Sánchez Gómez (in Algeciras, Cádiz on December 21, 1947), is a Spanish flamenco guitarist and composer. Author Dorien Ross claims in his book "Return to "A" that de Lucía is one of the finest guitarists in the world and the greatest guitarist of the flamenco genre. He is noted in particular for his dexterity, technique and strength in his right hand, capable of executing extremely fast and fluent picados.

He is a leading proponent of the Modern Flamenco style, and is one of the very few flamenco guitarists who has also successfully crossed over into other genres of music such as classical and jazz. He is the winner of the 2004 Prince of Asturias Awards in Arts and in 2010 was awarded an honorary doctorate by Berklee College of Music in Boston.

Paco de Lucía was born Francisco Gustavo Sánchez Gómez in Algeciras, a city in the province of Cádiz, at the southernmost tip of Spain directly in front of the Rock of Gibraltar. The youngest of the five children of flamenco guitarist Antonio Sánchez, and brother of flamenco singer Pepe de Lucía and flamenco guitarist Ramón de Algeciras. In the documentary Paco de Lucía-Light and Shade: A Portrait he tells how, when he was playing in the streets as a young boy, there were many Pacos and Pablos so in order to distinguish them people would add the name of the boy's mother. This is how he came to have the name Paco de Lucia. (Paco de Lucía album)|Luzia]] .