Area Total | 505,370 sq km |
Climate | temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast |
Natural Resources | coal, lignite, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, tungsten, mercury, pyrites, magnesite, fluorspar, gypsum, sepiolite, kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land |
Imports | Germany 14.2%, France 11.9%, China 6.9%, Italy 6.8%, Netherlands 5.1%, UK 4% (2017) – machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, semi-finished goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, measuring and medical control instruments |
Exports | France 15.1%, Germany 11.3%, Italy 7.8%, Portugal 7.1%, UK 6.9%, US 4.4% (2017) – Exports – machinery, motor vehicles; foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, medicines, other consumer goods |
Government | parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
Capital | Madrid |
Population | 49.3 million (July 2018 est.) |
Ethnicity | Spanish 86.4%, Morocco 1.8%, Romania 1.3%, other 10.5% (2018 est.) |
Language | 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 Basquespeaking area of Navarre) 2%, Aranese (official in the northwest corner of Catalonia (Vall d’Aran) along with Catalan, <5,000 speakers) |
News about Spain
- Venezuela opposition leader Edmundo González reportedly leaves country for Spainby Guardian staff and agencies (Spain | The Guardian) on September 8, 2024
Venezuelan vice-president Delcy Rodriguez and Spanish foreign minister José Manuel Albares release statements saying the opponent of Nicolas Maduro had leftVenezuelan opposition presidential candidate Edmundo González has left the South American country after seeking asylum in Spain, according to the Spanish foreign minister.“Edmundo González, at his […]
- Police find body in search for missing British tourist in Mallorcaby Daniel Lavelle (Spain | The Guardian) on September 7, 2024
Officials believe victims were swept away in flash flood amid heavy storms, after body of British woman was also found on island on Wednesday Police searching for a British man believed to have been swept away by heavy flooding in Mallorca have found a body.It comes after the body of a British woman was found on the Spanish tourist island on Wednesday. […]
- Inside Spain: Liquid gold and is this the most expensive return to school ever?by The Local on September 7, 2024
In this week's Inside Spain we look at why the 2024/2025 academic year will be the most expensive ever for parents in Spain, and how olive oil has gone from being a staple food to a luxury good in Spanish households.
- The illnesses and health conditions you can't have when driving in Spainby The Local on September 6, 2024
Spain has increased the number of illnesses and health conditions that will prevent people from legally driving or from renewing their licence from next year onwards. From mental disorders to cancer and heart problems, here’s the full list.
- Body found in search for British hiker missing in Spain's Mallorcaby The Local on September 6, 2024
Spanish police said Friday they found a body where a British hiker went missing after flash floods in Mallorca, three days after the missing Brit's partner was found dead.
- Spain's noisy nightlife pits neighbours against bar owners in Valencia and Alicanteby The Local on September 6, 2024
The two Valencian cities are embroiled in legal battles where the courts and town halls are siding with either sleep-deprived neighbours or disgruntled hospitality business owners.
- Spain's BBVA advances in Sabadell takeover as ECB stands asideby The Local on September 6, 2024
The hostile bid by Spain's second-largest bank BBVA to take over its smaller rival Banco Sabadell took a step forward Thursday when the ECB declined to block a merger.
- Train travel in Spain: Ouigo's new €9 Madrid-Murcia routeby The Local on September 6, 2024
French low-cost rail company Ouigo has launched its new high-speed Madrid to Murcia train, linking the two cities in under three hours and with prices starting for as little as €9. Here are frequencies, stops and other key travel info.
- 'La mano': 15 very handy Spanish idioms with the word for handby The Local on September 6, 2024
What does it mean in Spanish when someone says you have ‘your hands in the dough’? Or if you have ‘one hand in front and one behind’? The Spanish language is full of interesting expressions with the word 'mano' that are used all the time.
- Two dead after cranes collapse at port in northern Spainby The Local on September 6, 2024
Two workers died and at least four others were injured on Thursday after two cranes collapsed in the northern Spanish port of Gijón, emergency services officials said.
- Madrid moves to ban app-rented e-scooters over safety concernsby Reuters in Madrid (Spain | The Guardian) on September 5, 2024
Lime, Dott and Tier Mobility licences to be cancelled from October due to issues with circulation and parkingMadrid will ban e-scooters rented through mobile apps after the city’s three licensed operators failed to implement limits on their clients’ circulation or to control their parking, the Spanish capital’s mayor has said.José Luis […]
- Madrid to ban rental e-scooters over safety concernsby The Local on September 5, 2024
Madrid city hall said on Thursday it would ban all rental e-scooters from October 2024 because of the risk they pose to pedestrians, the latest city to make the move.
- Vinicius says Spain should lose 2030 World Cup unless racism declinesby The Local on September 5, 2024
Brazilian striker Vinicius Junior has called for Spain to be stripped of its 2030 World Cup hosting duties unless it makes progress on the issue of racism in stadiums.
- 'Fewer Lamborghinis': Spain's PM aims to tax the super-rich moreby The Local on September 5, 2024
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has announced that his government is planning higher taxes for those "with enough money to live 100 lives", which could mean a higher income tax than the current maximum of 47 percent.
- What is considered a decent salary in Spain?by The Local on September 5, 2024
How much money do you need to earn a month to live a relatively comfortable life in Spain in 2024? We've crunched the figures to give you an idea of what average and above average earnings are in the country.
- UK ambassador to Spain bids farewell to Brits - who is his successor?by The Local on September 5, 2024
UK ambassador to Spain Hugh Elliott on Wednesday had his last day in the job and bid his farewell to Brits in Spain after an eventful five years in the post. Who is set to replace him and what will they have waiting for them in their in tray?
- Self-employed in Spain: Four ‘unknown’ ways the taxman spies on you onlineby The Local on September 5, 2024
Spanish tax authorities no longer just keep an eye on your bank transactions to check that you're declaring all your income as an "autónomo", they also monitor what you do on social media and online as a whole.
- Shakira compares Spain's tax office to 'Spanish Inquisition'by The Local on September 4, 2024
Colombian pop star Shakira accused Spain's tax office of confiscating all the income she earned when she lived there, comparing the institution to "the Inquisition" in a letter published Wednesday in Spanish daily El Mundo.
- Archive, 1929: The bullfight in Spain todayby Ignatius Phayre (Spain | The Guardian) on September 4, 2024
8 September 1929: It is arrant nonsense to suggest that the bloody orgy of Spain’s Sundays and fiestas is on the waneIt is arrant nonsense for hopeful meliorists to assure us that the bloody orgy of Spain’s Sundays and fiestas is on the wane, or that “futbol” and kindred sports are steadily supplanting the corrida de toros which has been the […]
- Why Navarre is the region with the best quality of life in Spainby The Local on September 4, 2024
Whether it be education, health or overall happiness, this little-known autonomous community of Spain consistently ranks as the region with the best quality of life in the entire country.
- Which countries have banned or restricted arms sales to Israel?by Oliver Holmes (Spain | The Guardian) on September 3, 2024
As the UK shifts its position on supplying weapons, here is how different countries have responded to the war in GazaIsrael and Hamas at war – live updatesBritain is the latest country to shift its position on arms sales to Israel, which has been dependent on international weaponry for an 11-month assault on Gaza that has killed more than 40,000 […]
- Thieves try to steal almost half a tonne of olives as harvest begins in Spainby Sam Jones in Madrid (Spain | The Guardian) on September 3, 2024
Police find group ‘collecting olives in flagrante’ near Seville, with lucrative fruit a tempting target for criminalsPolice in southern Spain have thwarted the theft of almost half a tonne of olives as the country’s harvest season begins and the lucrative fruit becomes a tempting target for opportunistic thieves and professional criminal gangs.The […]
- LISTED: All the new flights to and from Spain this autumnby The Local on September 2, 2024
There are many new flight routes from Spanish airports to a variety of international destinations which are taking off in September, October, November and December 2024.
- Spanish police arrest three over raids on ‘at least 22’ luxury Ibiza homesby Ashifa Kassam (Spain | The Guardian) on September 1, 2024
Two men and one woman accused of carrying out robberies at night and using gas to make residents groggyThe string of robberies, spanning years and all following a similar pattern, had left Spanish police perplexed.Late at night as residents slept, the thieves – dressed in black and with their faces covered – would gain entry to some of Ibiza’s most […]
- YouTube chef found guilty of gruesome murder on Thai holiday islandby Guardian staff and agencies (Spain | The Guardian) on August 29, 2024
Daniel Sancho Bronchalo, from a prominent Spanish acting family, sentenced to life in prison after admitting dismembering the victim’s body and disposing of itA court in Thailand has found Daniel Sancho Bronchalo, a member of a famous Spanish acting family and a YouTube chef, guilty of premeditated murder and sentenced him to life in prison, in a lurid […]
- When does the 2024/2025 school year start in each region of Spain?by The Local on August 28, 2024
Back-to-school season is right around the corner after the long summer holidays, but did you know that children in different regions in Spain don't go back at the same time? Here's when the 2024/25 school year begins in each Spanish region.
- Poorer people bear brunt of extreme heat in Europe, say Spanish researchersby Ashifa Kassam Europe community affairs correspondent (Spain | The Guardian) on August 28, 2024
Madrid study finds people from below-average income groups more likely to die in heatwavesScorching temperatures across Europe have killed tens of thousands of people in recent years. But as fatalities rise, researchers are finding that one group is disproportionately bearing the brunt of extreme heat: those living in poverty.“It’s common sense,” said […]
- Spanish police boat appears to run over dinghy carrying four peopleby Ashifa Kassam in Madrid (Spain | The Guardian) on August 27, 2024
Calls for inquiry as video appears to show Guardia Civil boat knocking at least one person out of dinghy bound for SpainHuman rights campaigners in Morocco and Spain have called on Spanish authorities to launch an investigation after a video appeared to show a Spanish police boat briefly mounting a small dinghy carrying people towards the coast of Spain.The […]
- Spanish police boat appears to run over dinghy near Melilla – videoby (Spain | The Guardian) on August 27, 2024
A Spanish police boat appears to swerve dangerously near a dinghy carrying four people towards Spain before skimming over the top of it. The incident took place near the coast of Melilla, a Spanish city of 85,000 people on the coast of mainland Africa, on 26 August. Spanish police said no one was hurtSpanish police boat appears to mount migrant dinghy […]
- Calls to close ‘vile’ website ranking countries by tourist deaths on balconiesby Ashifa Kassam in Madrid (Spain | The Guardian) on August 27, 2024
Intervention over Spanish website from MSP Christina McKelvie comes days after death of Scottish law studentA Scottish politician has called for the closure of an “utterly vile” Spanish website that ranks countries by the number of their tourists who have died or been injured after falls from balconies.The intervention by Christina McKelvie, the MSP for […]