According to some historians Las Rozas de Madrid could have been a Roman mansion or staging-post called Miacum, from which the name Madrid may have derived. This is somewhat speculative, although there is evidence of occupation locally in about the 3rd century of the Common Era when the Roman Empire was active in Spain. Las Rozas is located on the Roman Military Route between Segovia and Titulcia and eventually to Emerita Augusta, and is adjacent to the Rio Guadarrama, which provided plentiful fresh water all year round. The modern name means 'the clearings' which may have related to military activity, as the agricultural value if the area is low, and the traditional economic activity seems to have been sheep rearing. The first document that refers to Las Rozas itself dates from 1376, although it would appear that the town existed earlier than that. The town of "Las Rozas" appears in Volume V of the "Relaciones Historico-Geografico-Estadisticas" ("Historical, Geographical, and Statistical List") of the towns of Spain that was written during the reign of Felipe II and that is now kept in the library at the El Escorial Monastery. (en)