Alcantara

Alcantara, Alcântara (Portuguese), Alcántara (Spanish), Alcàntara, Alcàntera, El-Qantarah and (El) Kantara are all transliterations of the Arabic word al qantara (القنطرة), meaning "the bridge". It can be found not only in Arab countries, but also in the Iberian Peninsula, where the name persisted past the Reconquista, and Latin America, derived from Iberian place names and other places that were under Arab influence in the past.

It may refer to:

People

Places

Algeria

Brazil

Alcantara (material)

Alcantara is a covering material manufactured and marketed by Alcantara SpA. It is primarily used in the design, fashion, accessories, consumer electronics, automotive and marine industries.

The material was developed in the early 1970s by Miyoshi Okamoto, a scientist working for the Japanese chemical company Toray Industries. It was based on the same technology as another product from the same company named Ultrasuede. Around 1972, a joint venture between Italian chemical company ENI and Toray formed Alcantara SpA in order to manufacture and distribute the material. The company is now owned by Toray and Mitsui.

Alcantara is produced by combining an advanced spinning process (producing very low denier bi-component "islands in the sea" fibre) and chemical and textile production processes (needle punching, buffing, impregnation, extraction, finishing, dyeing, etc.) which interact with each other.

Composition

Alcantara is composed of about 68% polyester and 32% polyurethane, giving increased durability and stain resistance. The appearance and tactile feel of the material is similar to that of suede, and it may be incorrectly identified as such.

Alcântara (Lisbon)

(São Pedro de) Alcântara (Portuguese pronunciation: [aɫˈkɐ̃tɐɾɐ]) is a civil parish (Portuguese: freguesia) of the city and municipality of Lisbon. Its name is derived from the Arabic (القنطارة), meaning the bridge, and refers to an ancient Roman bridge that once existed there, until the reign of John V. Located in the southwestern corner of Lisbon, along the northern margin of the Tagus River, Alcântara had a population in 2011 of 13,943, in an area of 5.07 km².

History

Primitive utensils from the Paleolithic era have been discovered on the margins of the Alcãntara ravine, and signs in the area of Alvito and Tapada da Ajuda indicate a level of occupation in the Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods. Around 1300, Bronze Age farmers and shepherds established small villages in this area, with a subsistence economy based on herding and the cultivation of cereal crops.

During the Roman era, the local area was called Horta Navia in honour of the Roman divinity Nabia, a goddess of rivers and water. The area was notable for a Roman bridge across the Alcântara ravine and, following the Muslim occupation, the area began to be referred to in terms of this bridge. The name Alcântara, derived from the Arab al-qantara (القنطارة) means bridge.