History

Typical landscape of terraced fields for crops. It is famous for the type of grape that during a good part of the XIX century and the beginning of the XX became a fundamental export product for this village and for so many others in the province of Almeria. It also brought with it the barrel industry as the grapes were transported in barrels.

This type of grape was obtained by the hybridization or crossing of the white grape called "Jaen" with the Ragol grape or the hanging grape known as "encarnada de Rágol'. Its cultivation was begun in this village and immediately afterwards in Ragol from where it quickly spread through the whole province.

The existence of a nazari fortress tells us about its history in the Al-Andalus period. The Christian conquest occurred at the end of the XV century and the Moorish uprisings in the middle of the XVI. Before the Moorish revolt in 1568, Ohanes had 495 inhabitants of Moorish origin. Two armies were formed to put down the rebellion, one under the Marquis of Mondejar and another under the Marquis of los Velez. The latter endured violent combats in Ohanes, Huecija and Felix. The ending of the fighting was engineered by don Juan of Austria. The Moorish population was expelled from the Kingdom of Granada.

Once repopulation was carried out with old Christians there was a slow recovery of the population during the following centuries. In the middle of the XVIII century it had 468 inhabitants.

The XIX century was the great century for Ohanes. Its name was known world-wide as the name of the type of grape: the Ohanes grape. It was exported to Europe and America. With the first crises of the XX century the international markets closed down and its production decreased irremediably.

Eminent citizens
Juan Cristobal Gonzalez Quesada, sculptor.
Diego Ventaja, Bishop.
Miguel Vizcaino, serviceman and lawyer.