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| More History Resources |
 365 Santos/365 Saints SPA: Su Guia diaria de meditacion Woodeene Koenig-Bricker |
 Las Cartas Privadas de Jesus: Ultimas investigaciones y documentos reveladores sobre la muerte de Cristo Michael Baigent |
 The New Spaniards: Second Edition John Hooper |
 Cultures of Devotion: Folk Saints of Spanish America Frank Graziano |
 A Nation upon the Ocean Sea: Portugal's Atlantic Diaspora and the Crisis of the Spanish Empire, 1492-1640 Daviken Studnicki-Gizbert |
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About the Country |
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Background: 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 Wars I and II, but suffered through a devastating
Civil War (1936-39). In the second half of the 20th century, it has played a
catch-up role in the western international community. Continuing concerns are
large-scale unemployment and the Basque separatist movement.
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Map courtesy of www.theodora.com/maps used with permission. |
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Location: Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains, southwest of France Geographic coordinates: 40 00 N, 4 00 W Area: Area - comparative: slightly more than twice the size of Oregon Land boundaries: Climate: temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast
Population: 40,280,780 (July 2004 est.) Age structure: Population growth rate: 0.16% (2004 est.) Ethnic groups: composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types Religions: Roman Catholic 99%, other 1% Languages: Castilian Spanish (official) 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%
Government type: parliamentary monarchy Capital: Madrid Independence: 1492 (expulsion of the Moors and unification) National holiday: National Day, 12 October Constitution: 6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978 Legal system: civil law system, with regional applications; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Labor force: 17.1 million (2001) Unemployment rate: 11.7% (2003 est.) Exports - commodities: machinery, motor vehicles; foodstuffs, other consumer goods Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, semifinished goods; foodstuffs, consumer goods (1997) Currency: euro (EUR)
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Civil Guard, National Police, Coastal Civil Guard Military expenditures - dollar figure: $9,906.5 million (2003) |
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Source of background and statistical data: The World Factbook
For more on Spain, click here |
