A document from 1168 records Bishop Rodrigo of Calahorra and Nájera authorising doña Isabel to build an oratory and a cemetery reserved for pilgrims at the hospital she was already constructing in Azofra. The hospital later became an established centre of assistance for pilgrims and survived until the 19th century.
The name Azofra is thought to derive from the Arabic as-suxra, referring to compulsory personal service or labour owed to a lord, and is documented in forms of the present name from the 11th century.
