About Spain
Spain is located in the southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The mainlandis bordered to the south and the east almost entirely by the Mediterranean Sea, to the north it is bordered by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay and to the west by the Atlantic Ocean and Portugal. Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea and the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean also belong to the territory of Spain. Spain is the second largest country in Western Europe (behind France) and the second highest country (behind Switzerland).
Spain is a constitutional monarchy organized as a parliamentary democracy and has been a member of European Union since 1986. It is a developed country with the eighth largest economy in the world and fifth largest in the EU, based on nominal GPD.
The Chief of State is King Juan Karlos I since 22 November 1975. Jose Zapareto is the Prime Minister of Spain.
The Spanish Constitution of 1978 is the culmination of the Spanish transition to democracy.
Spain is politically organized into 17 Autonomous Communities and 2 autonomous cities.
Administratively Spain also comprises fifty provinces. Seven autonomous communities are composed of only one province Asturius, Balearic Islands, Cantabria, La Rioja, Madrid, Murcia and Navarre.
Spain is the world's 51st largest country.
Spain borders Portugal on the west, on the south it borders Gibraltar and Morocco, on the northeast it borders France and the tiny principality of Andorra.
Mainland Spain is dominated by high plateaus and mountain ranges, such as the Sierra Nevada.
The climate of Spain is extremely diverse. It can be roughly divided into three areas:
A Continental Mediterranean climate in the inland area of the Peninsula (largest city, Madrid).
A Mediterranean climate region extends from the Andalusian plain along the southern and eastern coasts up to the Pyrenees, on the seaward side of the mountain ranges that run near the coast (Barcelona).
An Oceanic climate in Galicia and the coastal strip near the Bay of Biscay (largest city Bilbao). This area is often called Green Spain.
The Economy of Spain is the eighth largest worldwide and the fifth largest in Europe.
Spain has a population of 45,2million people some of the biggest cities are Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Malaga, Bilbao .
The main religion of the country is Roman Catholicism.
About 76% of the population are Catholic.
Spanish culture is diverse, it has its origins in the Iberian, Celtiberian, Latin, Roman, Catholic and Islamic cultures.
After Italy, Spain is the country with the second highest number of Unesco World Heritage sites in the world, with a total of 40.
State education in Spain is free and compulsory from the age of 6 to16.
Some of the most famous sports are football, basketball, tennis, cycling, handball.
