Terra Nostra (novel) Terra Nostra (novel) Terra Nostra is a 1975 novel by the Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes. The narrative covers 20 centuries of European and American culture, and prominently features the construction of El Escorial by Philip II. The title is Latin for "Our earth". The novel received the Xavier Villaurrutia Award in 1976 and the Rómulo Gallegos Prize in 1977. "Terra Nostra", perhaps Fuentes' most ambitious novel, is a "massive, Byzantine work" that tells the story of all Hispanic civilization. Modeled on James Joyce's "Finnegans Wake", "Terra Nostra" shifts unpredictably between the sixteenth century and the twentieth, seeking the roots of
Terra Alta, West Virginia Terra Alta, West Virginia Terra Alta is a town and former coal town in Preston County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,477 at the 2010 census. Terra Alta was originally called Portland, and under the latter name had its start in the 1850s. The present name Terra Alta is derived from Latin meaning "high land". The town is home to the James S. Lakin House and Terra Alta Bank, each listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Terra Alta is located at (39.444343, -79.544002). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area