Spain

Intro
Spain officially the Kingdom of Spain is a sovereign state and a member state of the European Union. It
is located on the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe. Its mainland is bordered to the south and
east by the Mediterranean Sea except for a small land boundary with Gibraltar; to the north and north
east by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay; and to the west and northwest by Portugal and
the Atlantic Ocean. It is one of three countries to have both Atlantic and Mediterranean coastlines. Spain's
1,214 km border with Portugal is thelongest uninterrupted border within the European Union.
Spanish territory also includes the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean, the Canary Islands in the
Atlantic Ocean off the African coast, and two autonomous cities in North Africa, Ceuta and Melilla, that
border Morocco, plus Alborn, Chafarinas Islands,Alhucemas, Vlez de la Gomera and other small islets
including Perejil. Furthermore, the town of Llvia is a Spanish exclave situated inside French territory. With
an area of 505,992 km2 ,Spain is the second largest country in Western Europe and the European Union
and the fifth largest country in Europe.
Modern humans first arrived in the Iberian peninsula around 35,000 years ago. It came under Roman rule
around 200 BCE, after which the region was named Hispania. In the Middle Ages it was conquered by
Germanic tribes and later by the Moors to the south. Spain emerged as a unified country in the 15th
century, following the marriage of the Catholic Monarchs and the completion of the centuries-long
reconquest, orReconquista, of the peninsula from the Moors in 1492. Spain became an influentialglobal
empire in the early modern period, being one of the first countries to colonize the New World and leaving
a legacy of over 500 million Spanish speakers today, making it the world's second most spoken first
language.
Spain is a democracy organised in the form of a parliamentary government under a
constitutional monarchy. It is a developed country with the thirteenth largest economy in the world by
nominal GDP. Spain also has high living standards with the tenth-highest quality of life index rating in the
world as of 2005. It is a member of the United Nations, NATO, OECD, and WTO.

History
Iberia enters written records as a land populated largely by the Iberians, Basques and Celts. After an
arduous conquest, the peninsula came under the rule of Rome. During the early Middle Ages it came
under Germanic rule but later, it was conquered by Moorish invaders from North Africa. In a process that
took centuries, the small Christian kingdoms in the north gradually regained control of the peninsula. The
last Moorish kingdom fell in the same year Columbus reached the Americas. A global empire began which
saw Spain become the strongest kingdom in Europe and the leading world power for a century and a half
and the largest overseas empire for three centuries.

Continued wars and other problems eventually led to a diminished status. The Napoleonic invasions of
Spain led to chaos, triggering independence movements that tore apart most of the empire and left the
country politically unstable. Prior to the Second World War, Spain suffered a devastating civil war and
came under the rule of an authoritarian government, whose rule oversaw a period of stagnation but that
finished with a powerful economic surge. Eventually democracy was peacefully restored in the form of a
parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Spain joined the European Union, experiencing a cultural
renaissance and steady economic growth.
Spain also hosts one of the largest festivals in the world. The Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, which
attracts up to a million tourists for the July week long celebration.

Geography
At 505,992 km2 (195,365 sq mi), Spain is the world's 52nd-largest country. It is some
47,000 km2 (18,000 sq mi) smaller than France and 81,000 km2 (31,000 sq mi) larger than the U.S. state
of California. Mt. Teide (Tenerife) has the highest mountain peak of Spain and the third largest volcano in
the world from its base.
Spain lies between latitudes 26 and 44 N, and longitudes 19 W and 5 E.
On the west, Spain borders Portugal; on the south, it borders Gibraltar and Morocco, through
its exclavesin North Africa (Ceuta, Melilla, and Pen de Vlez de la Gomera). On the northeast, along
the Pyrenees mountain range, it borders France and the tiny principality of Andorra. Along the Pyrenees
in Girona, a small exclave town called Llvia is surrounded by France.

Governance
The Spanish Constitution of 1978 is the culmination of the Spanish transition to democracy. The
constitutional history of Spain dates back to the constitution of 1812. Impatient with the pace of
democratic political reforms in 1976 and 1977, Spain's new King Juan Carlos, known for his formidable
personality, dismissed Carlos Arias Navarro and appointed the reformer Adolfo Surez as Prime Minister.
[56][57]
The resulting general election in 1977 convened the Constituent Cortes (the Spanish Parliament, in
its capacity as a constitutional assembly) for the purpose of drafting and approving the constitution of
1978.[58] After a national referendum on 6 December 1978, 88% of voters approved of the new
constitution.
As a result, Spain is now composed of 17 autonomous communities and two autonomous cities with
varying degrees of autonomy thanks to its Constitution, which nevertheless explicitly states the indivisible
unity of the Spanish nation. The constitution also specifies that Spain has no state religion and that all are
free to practice and believe as they wish.

Demographics
In 2008 the population of Spain officially reached 46 million people, as recorded by the Padrn municipal.
[118]
Spain's population density, at 91/km (235/sq mi), is lower than that of most Western European
countries and its distribution across the country is very unequal. With the exception of the region
surrounding the capital, Madrid, the most populated areas lie around the coast. The population of Spain
more than doubled since 1900, when it stood at 18.6 million, principally due to the spectacular
demographic boom in the 1960s and early 1970s.[119]
Native Spaniards make up 88% of the total population of Spain. After the birth rate plunged in the 1980s
and Spain's population growth rate dropped, the population again trended upward, based initially on the
return of many Spaniards who had emigrated to other European countries during the 1970s, and more
recently, fuelled by large numbers of immigrants who make up 12% of the population. The immigrants
originate mainly in Latin America (39%), North Africa (16%), Eastern Europe (15%), and Sub-Saharan
Africa (4%).[120]In 2005, Spain instituted a three-month amnesty program through which certain hitherto
undocumented aliens were granted legal residency.

Economy
Spain's capitalist mixed economy is the thirteenth largest worldwide and the fifth largest in the European
Union, as well as the Eurozone's fourth largest.
The centre-right government of former prime minister Jos Mara Aznar worked successfully to gain
admission to the group of countries launching the euro in 1999.Unemployment stood at 7.6% in October
2006, a rate that compared favorably to many other European countries, and especially with the early
1990s when it stood at over 20%. Perennial weak points of Spain's economy include high inflation, [83] a
largeunderground economy,[84] and an education system which OECD reports place among the poorest
for developed countries, together with the United States and UK. [85]

Since the 1990s some Spanish companies have gained multinational status, often expanding their
activities in culturally close Latin America. Spain is the second biggest foreign investor there, after the
United States. Spanish companies too have expanded into Asia, especially China and India. [86] This early
global expansion is a competitive vantage over its competitors and European neighbors. The reason may
primarily due to the booming interest toward Spanish language and culture in Asia and Africa, but also a
corporate culture that learned to take risks in unstable markets.
Spanish companies invested in fields like renewable energy commercialisation (Iberdrola was the world's
largest renewable energy operator[87]), technology companies like Telefnica, Abengoa, Mondragon
Corporation, Movistar, Hisdesat, Indra, train manufacturers like CAF, Talgo, global corporations such as
the textile company Inditex, petroleum companies like Repsol and infrastructure, with six of the ten
biggest international construction firms specialising in transport being Spanish,
like Ferrovial, Acciona, ACS, OHL andFCC.[88]

Culture
Culturally, Spain is a Western country. Because of the great strength of the Roman heritage in almost
every aspect of Spanish life, Spain is often described as a Latin country. Nevertheless, there have been
many influences on many aspects of Spanish life, from art and architecture to cuisine and music, from
many countries across Europe and from around the Mediterranean, through its long history.
The number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Spain, 44, is exceeded only by the number in Italy.[155]

Language Institutions
The Royal Spanish Academy is the institution responsible for regulating the Spanish language. It is based
in Madrid, but is affiliated with national language academies in 21 Spanish-speaking nations through
the Association of Spanish Language Academies.[157] With the same policy, the Royal Galician Academy
(Real Academia Galega orRAG, in Galician) was created in 1906 in A Corua with the help
of Havana emigrated Galicians. Its work is based in a Lexicography (the main results are the official and
standard Dicionario da Real Academia and the Vocabulario ortogrfico da lingua
galega), Terminology (through Termigal since
1997), Sociolinguistics, Onomastics and Grammar approaches from the Linguistics point of view, and
another two sections for History and Literature.[158] The Academy works closely with the government as an
advice institution, and its resolutions are almost binding about language standard. It had though recently
demonstrated criticism about the development of the Galician language policy by the Government. [159]

Art
Artists from Spain have been highly influential in the development of various European artistic
movements. Due to historical, geographical and generational diversity, Spanish art has known a great
number of influences. The Moorish heritage in Spain, especially in Andalusia, is still evident today and
European influences include Italy, Germany and France, especially during
the Baroque and Neoclassical periods.

Cinema
Spanish cinema has achieved major international success including Oscars for recent films such as Pan's
Labyrinthand Volver.[160] In the long history of Spanish cinema, the great filmmaker Luis Buuel was the
first to achieve world recognition, followed by Pedro Almodvar in the 1980s. Spanish cinema has also
seen international success over the years with films by directors like Segundo de Chomn, Florin
Rey, Luis Garca Berlanga, Carlos Saura, Julio Medem and Alejandro Amenbar.

Architecture
Due to its historical and geographical diversity, Spanish architecture has drawn from a host of influences.
An important provincial city founded by the Romans and with an extensive Roman

era infrastructure,Crdoba became the cultural capital, including fine Arabic style architecture, during the
time of the Islamic Umayyad dynasty.[161] Later Arab style architecture continued to be developed under
successive Islamic dynasties, ending with the Nasrid, which built its famed palace complex in Granada.
Simultaneously, the Christian kingdoms gradually emerged and developed their own styles; developing
apre-Romanesque style when for a while isolated from contemporary mainstream European architectural
influences during the earlier Middle Ages, they later integrated the Romanesque and Gothic streams.
There was then an extraordinary flowering of the gothic style that resulted in numerous instances being
built throughout the entire territory. The Mudjar style, from the 12th to 17th centuries, was developed by
introducing Arab style motifs, patterns and elements into European architecture.

Music and dance

Spanish music is often considered abroad to be synonymous with flamenco, a West Andalusian musical
genre, which, contrary to popular belief, is not widespread outside that region. Various regional styles
of folk music abound in Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia, Castile, the Basque Country, Galicia and Asturias.
Pop, rock, hip hop and heavy metal are also popular. In the field of classical music, Spain has produced a
number of noted composers such as Isaac Albniz,Manuel de Falla and Enrique Granados and singers
and performers such as Plcido Domingo,Jos Carreras, Montserrat Caball, Alicia de Larrocha, Alfredo
Kraus, Pablo Casals, Ricardo Vies, Jos Iturbi, Pablo de Sarasate, Jordi Savall and Teresa Berganza. In
Spain there are over forty professional orchestras, including the Orquestra Simfnica de
Barcelona, Orquesta Nacional de Espaa and the Orquesta Sinfnica de Madrid. Major opera
houses include theTeatro Real,the Gran Teatre del Liceu, Teatro Arriaga and the El Palau de les Arts
Reina Sofa.

Cuisine
Spanish cuisine consists of a great variety of dishes which stem from differences in geography, culture
and climate. It is heavily influenced by seafood available from the waters that surround the country, and
reflects the country's deep Mediterranean roots. Spain's extensive history with many cultural influences
has led to a unique cuisine. In particular, three main divisions are easily identified:

Science and technology

In the 19th and 20th centuries science in Spain was held back by severe political instability and
consequent economic underdevelopment. Despite the conditions, some important scientists and
engineers emerged. The most notable were Miguel Servet, Santiago Ramn y Cajal, Narcs Monturiol i
Estarriol, Celedonio Calatayud, Juan de la Cierva, Leonardo Torres y Quevedo and Severo Ochoa.

Sport
While varieties of football had been played in Spain as far back as Roman times, sport in Spain has been
dominated by English style Association football since the early 20th century. Real Madrid C.F. and FC
Barcelona are two of the most successful football clubs in the world. The country's national football

team won the UEFA European Football Championship in 1964, 2008 and 2012 and the FIFA World
Cup in 2010, and is the first team to ever win three back-to-back international tournaments.
Basketball, tennis, cycling, handball, futsal, motorcycling and, lately, Formula One are also important due
to the presence of Spanish champions in all these disciplines. Today, Spain is a major world sports
powerhouse, especially since the 1992 Summer Olympics that were hosted in Barcelona, which
stimulated a great deal of interest in sports in the country. The tourism industry has led to an improvement
in sports infrastructure, especially for water sports, golf and skiing.
Rafael Nadal is the leading Spanish tennis player and has won several Grand Slam titles including the
Wimbledon 2010 men's singles. In north Spain, the game of pelota is very popular. Alberto Contador is
the leading Spanish cyclist and has won several Grand Tour titles including three Tour de France titles.

Public Holidays
Public holidays celebrated in Spain include a mix of religious (Roman Catholic), national and regional
observances. Each municipality is allowed to declare a maximum of 14 public holidays per year; up to
nine of these are chosen by the national government and at least two are chosen locally.[166] Spain's
National Day (Fiesta Nacional de Espaa) is 12 October, the anniversary of the Discovery of America and
commemorate Our Lady of the Pillar feast, patroness of Aragon and throughout Spain.

Festivals
Semana santa
Semana Santa is the week leading up to Easter Sunday. Semana Santa is the Spanish name for
Easter. Members of local parishes carry ornate decorated floats depicting the Passion of Christ into the
city cathedral.

San ferim
The San Fermin Festival, where the Pamplona Bull Run takes place, runs for one week in early July. The Pamplona
Bull Run is a week-long bull running and bullfighting festival. Every morning at 8am, the city's brave and the
world's foolhardy run ahead of a group of angry bulls. The rest of us look on in amazement.

Tomatina tomato
The Tomatina Tomato Fight takes place on the fourth Wednesday in August. The Tomatina Tomato Fight is probably
the world's biggest food fight. Thousands of people gather in the streets of the tiny town of Buol to fling
tomatoes at each other. The origins of the festival are unknown and, to most people who like throwing food at each
other, largely unimportant.

Las fallas
Las Fallas is a five-day event leading up to Saint Joseph's Day (19 March). Each neighborhood traditionally gets
together to build giant puppets which are then later set fire to. There is usually a satirical nature to these puppets,
though not always.The burning of these puppets is of course accompanied with plenty of street parties throughout
the city.

Tamborrada
24 hours from the evening of January 19 (though strictly speaking the partying starts at midnight). A mass
participation drum festival. Hugh parades take to the streets bashing drums throughout the night and for most of
the following day.There are two sides to this festival - the organized processions and the free-for-all drum bashing
that anyone can be a part of.Without a doubt the noisiest festival in Spain.

Tourism
Alhambra
Part fortress, part palace and part garden the Alhambra is situated on a plateau overlooking the city of Granada in southern Spain.
The palace was constructed in the 14th century by the Nasrid sultans. The Alhambra is now one of Spains major tourist attractions
and many visitors come to Granada just to see the Alhambra.

Mezquita of Cordoba
The Mezquita (Spanish for Mosque) of Cordoba is a fascinating building famous for the forest of pillars and arches inside the main
hall. The site was originally a Roman temple, then a Visigothic church, before the Umayyad Moors built the Mezquita. After the
Spanish Reconquista a cathedral was built into the center of the large Moorish building.

El Escorial
Nestled in the foothills of the Sierra de Guadarrama, El Escorial was the political center of the Spanish empire under King Philip II.
Philip appointed Juan Bautista de Toledo as the architect in 1559 and together they designed El Escorial as a monument to Spains
role as a center of the Christian world. Today it functions as a monastery, royal palace, museum, and school.

Sagrada Familia
The Sagrada Familia is a large Roman Catholic church in Barcelona, and one of Spains most visited tourist attractions. Its a design
by Antoni Gaud, a Catalan architect who worked on this project for almost 40 years until his death in 1926. The construction of the
basilica began in 1882 and still as yet not finished

Cuenca
Situated between Madrid and Valencia, Cuenca is a marvelous example of a medieval city, built on the steep sides of a mountain.
The many hanging houses are built right up to the cliff edge, making Cuenca one of the most striking towns in Spain, a gem in the
province of Castilla La Mancha.