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Portugal

Country of Portugal Flag

Capital: Lisbon

Population: 10,226,187

Brief History of Portugal:

Portugal is located on the west side of the Iberian Peninsula next to Spain which is on the east side of the Peninsula. The name Portugal comes from the Roman name for the town Portus Cale.

The area of Portugal was originally settled by the Celtic peoples. Later, the Phoenician empire and the Carthage Empire would visit the area. During the age of the Roman Empire, Portugal was a part of the Empire from 45 BC to 298 AD.

In 711 AD the Moors invaded and proceeded to conquer the Iberian Peninsula. They would hold on to some portion of the area for hundreds of years. The Christian nations began the Reconquista period where they would ?re-conquer? the Iberian Peninsula from the Islamic Moors. This effort took hundreds of years. It was in 1139 that the Kingdom of Portugal was formed. Afonso Henriques was the first King of Portugal.

Starting in the 14th century, Portugal became a major power in the Age of Exploration. Portuguese explorers such as Vasco da Gama and Ferdinand Magellan began to build Portugal into a vast colonial empire. Portugal established colonies in South America, Africa, and the Far East.

Portuguese power would dwindle in the 1900s. In 1932, Dr. Antonio Salazar took power as prime minister, but ruled more as a dictator. For 42 years, first Salazar and then Marcelo Caetano would rule Portugal. In 1974 a left wing military coup took over the country and made drastic democratic reforms including granting independence to all of Portugal's African colonies. Portugal was a founding member of NATO and is a member of the European Union.



Country of Portugal Map

The Geography of Portugal

Total Size: 92,391 square km

Size Comparison: slightly smaller than Indiana

Geographical Coordinates: 39 30 N, 8 00 W

World Region or Continent: Europe

General Terrain: mountainous north of the Tagus River, rolling plains in south

Geographical Low Point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m

Geographical High Point: Ponta do Pico (Pico or Pico Alto) on Ilha do Pico in the Azores 2,351 m

Climate: maritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer and drier in south

Major cities: LISBON (capital) 2.808 million; Porto 1.344 million (2009), Vila Nova de Gaia

The People of Portugal

Type of Government: parliamentary democracy

Languages Spoken: Portuguese (official), Mirandese (official - but locally used)

Independence: 1143 (Kingdom of Portugal recognized); 5 October 1910 (independent republic proclaimed)

National Holiday: Portugal Day (Day of Portugal), 10 June (1580); note - also called Camoes Day, the day that revered national poet Luis de Camoes (1524-80) died

Nationality: Portuguese (singular and plural)

Religions: Roman Catholic 94%, Protestant (1995)

National Symbol: armillary sphere (a spherical astrolabe modeling objects in the sky)

National Anthem or Song: A Portugesa (The Song of the Portuguese)

Economy of Portugal

Major Industries: textiles and footwear; wood pulp, paper, and cork; metals and metalworking; oil refining; chemicals; fish canning; rubber and plastic products; ceramics; electronics and communications equipment; rail transportation equipment; aerospace equipment; ship construction and refurbishment; wine; tourism

Agricultural Products: grain, potatoes, tomatoes, olives, grapes; sheep, cattle, goats, swine, poultry, dairy products; fish

Natural Resources: fish, forests (cork), iron ore, copper, zinc, tin, tungsten, silver, gold, uranium, marble, clay, gypsum, salt, arable land, hydropower

Major Exports: clothing and footwear, machinery, chemicals, cork and paper products, hides

Major Imports: machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum, textiles, agricultural products

Currency: euro (EUR)

National GDP: $248,500,000,000




** Source for population (2012 est.) and GDP (2011 est.) is CIA World Factbook.

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