Astúrias, or OVIEDO, a northern province of Spain, washed on the north by the Bay of Biscay. Area, 4091 sq. m.; population, 595,420. The low hills of Leon and Old Castile rise gradually to the mountain-chain which forms the south boundary, and which is but a prolongation of the Pyrenean system. The northern slopes are broken by steep and dark valleys or chasms, which are among the wildest and most picturesque in Spain. The chief rivers are the Nalon, Navia, and Sella. Agriculture is the chief industry. The coasts have good fisheries, but poor harbours. Asturias abounds in rich mines, which as yet are indifferently wrought. The chief minerals of the province are copper, iron, lead, cobalt, arsenic, antimony, and coal of excellent quality. A railway from Gijon connects Asturias with Leon and the Spanish railway system. The chief towns are Gijon, Aviles, Llanes, and Luarca. Oviedo (q.v.), the capital, has since 1833 given its name to the whole province. The eldest son of the Spanish king has the title of Prince of Asturias, professedly an imitation of the English Prince of Wales, having been taken at the solicitation of the Duke of Lancaster in 1388, when his daughter married the eldest son of Juan I.
The Romans had great difficulty in subduing Asturias, about 22 B.C. Later it offered an asylum to the Goths, whose prince, Pelayo, bravely withstood the Arabs (718 B.C.); his successors carried on the contest successfully, and became kings of Leon in the 10th century.