The Guadalquivir (Spanish pronunciation: [ɡwaðalkiˈβir]) is the fifth longest river in the Iberian peninsula and the second longest river with its entire length in Spain. The Guadalquivir is 657 kilometers long and drains an area of about 58,000 square kilometers. It begins at Cañada de las Fuentes in the Cazorla mountain range (Jaén), passes through Córdoba and Seville and ends at the fishing village of Bonanza, in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, flowing into the Gulf of Cádiz, in the Atlantic Ocean. The marshy lowlands at the river's end are known as "Las Marismas". It borders Doñana National Park reserve.
The Guadalquivir river is the only great navigable river in Spain. Currently it is navigable to Seville, but in Roman times it was navigable to Córdoba.
The ancient city of Tartessos was said to have been located at the mouth of the Guadalquivir, although its site has not yet been found.
Córdoba (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈkorðoβa]; Arabic: قُرطبة, DIN: Qurṭubah), also called Cordova in English, is a city in Andalusia, southern Spain, and the capital of the province of Córdoba. An Iberian and Roman city in ancient times, in the Middle Ages it became the capital of an Islamic caliphate. The old town contains numerous architectural reminders of when Corduba was the capital of Hispania Ulterior during the Roman Republic and capital of Hispania Baetica during the Roman Empire; and when Qurṭubah (قرطبة) was the capital of the Islamic Caliphate of Córdoba, including most of the Iberian Peninsula.
It has been estimated that in the 10th century Córdoba was the most populous city in the world, and under the rule of Caliph Al Hakam II it had also become a center for education under its Islamic rulers. Al Hakam II opened many libraries on top of the many medical schools and Universities which existed at this time. Such Universities contributed towards developments in mathematics and astronomy. During these centuries Córdoba had became the intellectual center of Europe and was also noted for its predominantly Muslim society that was tolerant toward its Christian and Jewish minorities. Today it is a moderately-sized modern city; its population in 2011 was 330,033.