The Kingdom of Spain, as it’s officially known, is the second largest country in the EU With an area of 505,955 square kilometres, Spain covers about 85% of the Iberian Peninsula, which it shares with Portugal.
The population of 49 million is the fifth largest in Europe – with more than three-quarters living in urban areas. Around 6.5 million people live in Madrid and 5.5 million in Barcelona – both cities have more inhabitants than the entire populations of Ireland or New Zealand.
Spain has the second highest life expectancy of all the OECD countries
With a life expectancy of 83 years, Spain comes second only after Japan. Spanish women live longer than men: 85 compared to 79 years.
Spain is a constitutional monarchy
Former king Juan Carlos I came to the throne after the right-wing dictator General Franco died in 1975. Once one of Europe’s most beloved monarchs, Juan Carlos fell from favour in recent years and abdicated in favour of his son, King Felipe VI, in 2014.
Spain has 47 UNESCO World Heritage Sites
This makes Spain the 3rd ranked country in the world, with pre-historic rock art, historic cities and buildings, bridges, national parks and landscapes. Only Italy with 49 sites and China with 45 have more.
Spain produces over half of the world’s olive oil – more than some 1.5 million tons, and almost all of it comes from the southern region of Andalusia. Spanish Wine is also a noted product: Spain is the second largest producer in the world, only after Italy, making 4,6 million tonnes (metric tons) in 2015.…
