HISTORY
The earliest record we have of Cástaras comes from a text by the Almerian al-Udri (1003–1085), who lists the name 'Yûz' Qāšturiš' alongside a series of other place names in La Alpujarra. These places were part of the cora of Elvira during the period when it was under the control of the Caliphate of Córdoba.
During the Nasrid period in the Kingdom of Granada, Cástaras belonged to the Taha of Juviles and remained so after the Reconquista until the Morisco Rebellion.
During the repopulation process that began in 1571, the Council of Cástaras and Nieles was established within the Kingdom of Granada and the Alpuxarras district. This united the two towns and their associated territories under the jurisdiction of ordinary district mayors, who were dependent on the mayor of Ugíjar — the district's capital.
Following the reforms of 1833 and 1834, the town was incorporated into the province of Granada and the judicial district of Albuñol, to which it belonged until the judicial demarcation was modified in 1965 and it was assigned to the judicial district of Órgiva, where it remains today.
Between 1863 and 1869, two successive files were processed at the request of numerous Nieles residents to separate from the municipality of Cástaras. In both cases, the Government rejected the claim following recommendations from the Council of State.
Cástaras has seen its population drastically reduced due to emigration. In the 1970s, faced with the mass exodus of its inhabitants in search of work in other parts of Spain, two thirds of its houses were abandoned.