Spain

Your complete guide to Spain

Quick Facts

Capital

Madrid

Population

50,015,792

Languages

Castilian Spanish (official nationwide) 74%, Catalan (official in Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, and the Valencian Com…

Currency

euros (EUR)

Area

505,370 sq km

Government

Parliamentary constitutional monarchy

About Spain

Spain occupies most of the Iberian Peninsula, a diverse kingdom of autonomous communities whose regional identities — Catalan, Basque, Galician, Andalusian — create a country of extraordinary variety within a single state. From the arid meseta of Castile to the green Atlantic coast of Galicia, from Moorish Andalusia to modernist Barcelona, Spain resists any single characterization.

Madrid, the capital, is a city of wide boulevards, world-class art museums (the Prado, the Reina Sofía), and a social life that stretches deep into the night. Barcelona dazzles with Gaudí's visionary architecture, and Seville, Granada, Valencia, Bilbao, and San Sebastián each claim their own cultural gravity.

Spain is the euro zone's fourth-largest economy, one of the world's top tourist destinations, and a global leader in renewable energy. Its social transformation since the end of Franco's dictatorship in 1975 — from authoritarian backwater to vibrant democracy — is one of modern Europe's great success stories.

History

Spain's history is a pageant of civilizations: Phoenician traders, Roman legions, Visigothic kingdoms, and nearly eight centuries of Moorish rule that left an indelible architectural and cultural legacy. The Reconquista culminated in 1492 — the same year Columbus sailed for the Americas under the Spanish crown, inaugurating a vast colonial empire.

The Spanish Empire declined from the seventeenth century, and the nineteenth and twentieth centuries brought civil wars, the loss of overseas colonies, and the devastating Spanish Civil War (1936–1939), which installed Franco's dictatorship. The transition to democracy after Franco's death in 1975, guided by King Juan Carlos I, is a model of peaceful political transformation. Spain joined NATO in 1982 and the European Community in 1986.

Spain's powerful world empire of the 16th and 17th centuries ultimately yielded command of the seas to England. Subsequent failure to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions caused the country to fall behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic and political power. Spain remained neutral in World War I and II, but suffered through a devastating civil war (1936-39). A peaceful transition to democracy following the death of dictator Francisco FRANCO in 1975, and rapid economic modernization (Spain joined the EU in 1986) gave Spain a dynamic and rapidly growing economy, and made it a global champion of freedom and human rights. More recently, Spain has emerged from a severe economic recession that began in mid-2008, posting four straight years of GDP growth above the EU average.…
CIA World Factbook

Culture & Society

Spanish culture is a feast for the senses. Flamenco — with its passionate singing, guitar, and dance — is the soul of Andalusia, while the Basque Country and Catalonia maintain their own rich artistic traditions. Spanish cuisine varies enormously by region: tapas in the south, pintxos in the Basque Country, paella in Valencia, and jamón ibérico everywhere. The siesta, the paseo, and the late-night dinner express a relationship with time and pleasure that is distinctly Spanish.

Languages: Castilian Spanish (official nationwide) 74%, Catalan (official in Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, and the Valencian Community (where it is known as Valencian)) 17%, Galician (official in Galicia) 7%, Basque (official in the Basque Country and in the Basque-speaking area of Navarre) 2%, Aranese (official in the northwest corner of Catalonia (Vall d'Aran) along with Catalan, <5,000 speakers)

Religions: Roman Catholic 68.9%, atheist 11.3%, agnostic 7.6%, other 2.8%, non-believer 8.2%, unspecified 1.1% (2019 est.)

Ethnic Groups: Spanish 86.4%, Moroccan 1.8%, Romanian 1.3%, other 10.5% (2018 est.)