Aldea del Cano

The first element, aldea, is one of the most widespread peninsular Arabisms (see Aldeanueva del Camino). The second, Cano, presents two competing hypotheses. The anthroponymic (most widespread) derives it from the Latin canus 'grey-haired, white', also the root of Castilian cano ('grey hair') and Italian canuto, applied as a medieval nickname to a knight of the Order of Santiago who received lands in the area after the 13th-century reconquest. The topographic hypothesis derives the name from the Castilian caño ('pipe, water source'), from the Latin cannus, alluding to some spout or fountain in the place; but documentation mentions 'de Cano' (not 'del Caño'), favouring the anthroponymic reading. The village settled on the network of the Order of Santiago, whose coat of arms still crowns the 15th-century Casa-Encomienda in the centre: a fleur-de-lis red cross, symbol of the Santiaguist knights who repopulated the Extremaduran dehesa.