Spain [España] is a country in southwestern Europe on the Iberian peninsula. The mainland is bordered to the south and east of the Mediterranean, with the exception of a small land border with Gibraltar in the north of France, Andorra and the Bay of Biscay and west by the Atlantic Ocean and Portugal. Spanish territory includes the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean, the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, off the African coast, and two autonomous cities in North Africa, Ceuta and Melilla, Morocco and the border. With an area of 504.030 km ², Spain is the second largest country in Western Europe after France.
Due to its location, the region of Spain has many external influences, often simultaneously, since prehistoric times and the threshold of Spain as a country. On the other hand, the land itself is an important source of influence on other areas, especially in modern times, when a global empire, the legacy of more than 400 million Spanish speakers today.
Spain is a democracy with a parliamentary form of government under a constitutional monarchy. This is a developed country with the eighth largest economy in the world based on nominal GDP. He is a member of the European Union and NATO.
