Mahon

Encyclopedia : M : MA : MAH : Mahon

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The Irish surnames Mahon and MacMahon are not related.

Mahon (alternately, Maó; Catalan/Balearic it is also the official name, Spanish Mahón), is a municipality and the capital city of the Balearic Island of Minorca (an autonomic Spanish community), located in the eastern part of the island. Mahon boasts one of the deepest natural ports in the world.

The name is attributed to the eponymous Carthaginian general Mago Barca, brother to Hannibal, who is thought to have taken refuge there in 205 BC.

Mahon was captured in 1287 from the Moors by Alfonso III of Aragon and incorporated into the Kingdom of Majorca, a vassal kingdom of the Kingdom of Aragon. Its harbour, one of the most strategically important in the western Mediterranean, was re-fortified.

Minorca was captured by the British during the War of the Spanish Succession in 1707, and its status as a British possession was confirmed by the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. During the island's years as a British dependency in the 18th century, Mahon served as its capital and residence for the governor, the most famous being General Sir Richard Kane.

Today it serves as the seat of the Island Council of Minorca (Consell Insular de Menorca).

Towards the end of the 20th century, a refurbishment of its historic centre was made possible by income from tourism.

A traditional cheese made on the island (Queso de Mahón) is named after the city. Mayonnaise is argued to have its origin and name from this Minorcan city (derived from French Sauce mahonnaise). In Spanish mahón is also the name of nankeen, especially the blue cloth.

Spelling controversy

There is some debate over what the correct spelling of the city's name in English should be; due to the general tendency in English to ignore accents in foreign words, many dictionaries refer to the city by an adaptation (Mahon) of its Spanish name (Mahón), while many other sources vouch for using the Catalan spelling (Maó) in English-language publications.

Related to this, there is controversy around the correct official toponomy: (Maó) is the proper form according to Catalan orthography and approved by local and regional governments, but (Mahó), is preferred by some conservatist and traditionalist Minorcan sectors.

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