General Information
The Kingdom of Spain is a European state in southwestern Europe, with archipelagos in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. It has common borders with France, Andorra, Portugal and Morocco.
Madrid is the capital of Spain, and its largest city. Spanish is the official language spoken by more than 400 million people in Latin America.
Spain’s population number is 46,030,109 (2010 estimate) and it occupies an area of 504,030 km2. Spain is the second largest country by population in Western Europe following France, and the fourth largest country in the European continent following Russia, Ukraine, and France. Spain’s average height is 650 m above sea level, which makes it the fifth biggest mountainous country in Europe following Switzerland, Austria, Andorra and Liechtenstein.
Spain includes most of the Iberian Peninsula Spain, the Balearic Islands, south of the Mediterranean Sea, the Canary Islands, and north of the Atlantic Ocean. It also includes the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla in North Africa.
Spain is a member of the United Nations, the European Union, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the World Trade Organization.
Climate
Spain has a varied climate due to its geographical situation. It can be divided into four main climatic zones: Continental, Mediterranean, Oceanic and Subtropical climate.
Economy
Spain has witnessed a rapid economic growth since the end of the Spanish Civil War in 1939 that became famous as the “Spanish Miracle“. Tourism, industry and agriculture became the main pillars of the country’s economy. However, with the beginning of the global financial crisis in 2008, the government undertook austerity measures to reduce a large budget deficit and reassure foreign investors which led to a staggering 22% unemployment rate in 2015, one of the highest in Europe.
Nonetheless, Spain has started to show signs of recovery since 2014. According to the European Commission 2016 country profile report, Spain is currently considered the fourth largest economy in the euro area, accounting for some 10 % of its overall GDP.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Competitiveness Report for 2014/2015 ranked Spain 33rd out of 140 countries. Spain’s competitiveness performance is boosted by the large market available to its national companies, strong technological adoption and first-class infrastructure. Spain also ranked 32nd on the Global Finance magazine’s 2016 list of The Richest Countries in the World based on GDP.
Religions
Christianity
76 %
No Religion
19 %
Islam
2.3 %
Judaism
0.1 %
Other religions
1.7 %
Even though the second chapter of the Spanish constitution states that the state has no religion, Roman Catholicism is the main religion in the country. Around 76% of the Spanish population is a Catholic Christian. While around 19% don’t follow any religion.
The wave of Muslim immigration has increased. The number of Muslims reached around 1 million.
Education
Spain has a great verity of public and private universities, some of which are considered among the oldest in the world. For example: The famous UA university (Universidad Autónoma) in Barcelona and Madrid which are considered two of the best and most famous Spanish universities. The UA University of Madrid has one of the most important Arab studies departments in Spain. The Complutense University, the biggest in Spain and one of the oldest in the world, teaches scientific disciplines.
Sport
Spanish people are fond of all types of sports and Spain is an accomplished country in this aspect as it won several world championships. Football is the most popular sport in Spain; the Spanish tournament is considered one of the best football tournaments in the world. Among the most prominent football teams are the Barcelona, Real Madrid, Seville, Valencia and Atletico de Madrid. It is worth mentioning that Real Madrid won the European Cup 11 times. In 2010, Spain won the World Cup after winning the European Cup two times in a row in 2008 and 2010.
Spain is also interested in other sports as well, and boasts distinguished players, such as Tennis, Bicycle and Formula races.
