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Portuguese RepublicRepública Portuguesa
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: "A Portuguesa"
Location of Portugal (green) – in Europe (light green & dark grey) – in the European Union (light green)  –  [Legend]
Capitaland largest city	Lisbon
Official languages	Portuguese
Recognised regional languages	Mirandese
Ethnic groups	96.87% Portuguese and 3.13% legal immigrants (Cape Verdeans, Brazilians, Ukrainians, Angolans, etc.) (2007)
Demonym(s)	Portuguese
Government	Semi-presidential republic
• President	Aníbal Cavaco Silva (PSD)
• Prime Minister	José Sócrates (PS)
• Assembly President	Jaime Gama (PS)
Formation Conventional date for Independence is 1139
• Founding	868
• Re-founding	1095
• De facto sovereignty	24 June 1128
• Kingdom	25 July 1139
• Recognized	5 October 1143
• Papal Recognition	23 May 1179
• Restoration of independence	1 December 1640
• Restoration of independence recognized	13 February 1668
• Republic	5 October 1910
• 3rd Republic	25 April 1974
Area
• Total	92,090 km (35,560 sq mi) (110th)
• Water (%)	0.5
Population
• May 2010 estimate	11,317,192 (77th)
• 2001 census	10,355,824
• Density	114/km (295.3/sq mi) (87th)
GDP (PPP)	2009 estimate
• Total	$232.656 billion
• Per capita	$21,858
GDP (nominal)	2009 estimate
• Total	$227.855 billion
• Per capita	$21,407
HDI (2007)	0.909 Error: Invalid HDI value (34th)
Currency	Euro (€)² (EUR)
Time zone	UTC0 (WET³)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+1 (WEST)
Date format	dd-mm-yyyy, yyyy-mm-dd, yyyy/mm/dd (CE)
Drives on	Right (since 1928)
Calling code	351
ISO 3166 code	PT
Internet TLD	.pt
Mirandese, spoken in some villages of the municipality of Miranda do Douro, was officially recognized in 1999 (Lei n.° 7/99 de 29 de Janeiro), since then awarding an official right-of-use Mirandese to the linguistic minority it is concerned. The Portuguese Sign Language is also recognized. Before 1999: Portuguese escudo. Azores: UTC-1; UTC in summer. The .eu domain is also used as it is shared with other European Union member states.

Portugal /ˈpɔɹtʃʉɡəl/ (Template:Lang-pt, Template:Lang-mwl), officially the Portuguese Republic (Template:Lang-pt; Template:Lang-mwl), is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east. The Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira are also part of Portugal.

The land within the borders of today's Portuguese Republic has been continuously settled since prehistoric times. In 29 B.C. the territory was occupied by the Gallaeci and the Lusitanians when it was integrated in the Roman Empire as the provinces of Lusitania and part of Gallaecia. Roman settlers strongly influenced Portuguese culture, particularly the Portuguese language, mostly derived from Latin. In the 5th century, after the fall of the Roman empire, it was occupied by several Germanic peoples, mainly the Suevi and the Visigoths. In the early 8th century Muslim Moors conquered those Christian kingdoms, occupying most of the Iberian Peninsula.

During the Christian Reconquista (Reconquering), the County of Portugal was settled, as part of the Kingdom of Galicia. With the establishment of the Kingdom recognized in 1143 and the stabilization of its borders by 1249, Portugal claims to be the oldest European nation-state. In the 15th and 16th centuries, as the result of maritime exploration, Portugal established a global empire that included possessions in Africa, Asia and South America, becoming the world's major economic, political and military power. Portugal´s Empire was the first, and most long-lived Global Empire in the world. In 1580, after a succession crisis it was united with Spain for a period called the Iberian Union; however in 1640 it re-established full independence during the Portuguese Restoration War that resulted in the establishment of a new dynasty and a return to the previous separation between the two empires.

The 1755 Lisbon earthquake, Spanish and French invasions, which preceded the loss of its largest territorial possession abroad, Brazil, resulted in both the disruption of political stability and economic growth as well as the reduction of Portugal's international status as a global power during the 19th century. After the overthrow of the monarchy in 1910, a democratic but unstable republic was established that was then replaced by the "Estado Novo" dictatorship. After the Portuguese Colonial War and the Carnation Revolution in 1974, the democracy was restored and the country handed over its last overseas provinces (most prominently Angola and Mozambique in Africa); the last overseas territory, Macau, was handed over to China in 1999.

Portugal is a developed country and it has the world's 19th-highest quality-of-life, according to The Economist Intelligence Unit. It is the 13th-most peaceful and the 8th-most globalized country in the world. It is a member of the European Union (joined the then EEC in 1986, leaving the EFTA where it was a founding member in 1960) and the United Nations; as well as a founding member of the Latin Union, the Organization of Ibero-American States, OECD, NATO, Community of Portuguese Language Countries, the European Union's Eurozone, the ESA, and also a Schengen state.

History

Early history

The early history of Portugal is shared with the rest of the Iberian Peninsula. The name of Portugal derives from the Roman name Portus Cale. The region was settled by Pre-Celts and Celts, giving origin to peoples like the Gallaeci, Lusitanians, Celtici and Cynetes, visited by Phoenicians and Carthaginians, incorporated in the Roman Republic dominions as Lusitania after 45 BC until 298, settled again by Suevi, Buri, and Visigoths, and conquered by Moors. Other minor influences include some 5th century vestiges of Alan settlement, which were found in Alenquer, Coimbra and even Lisbon.

Reconquista

During the Reconquista period, Christians reconquered the Iberian Peninsula from the Muslim and Moorish domination. In 868, the First County of Portugal was formed. A victory over the Muslims at Battle of Ourique in 1139 is traditionally taken as the occasion when the County of Portugal as a fief of the Kingdom of León was transformed into an the independent Kingdom of Portugal.

On 24 June 1128, the Battle of São Mamede occurred near Guimarães. Afonso Henriques, Count of Portugal, defeated his mother Countess Teresa and her lover Fernão Peres de Trava, thereby establishing himself as sole leader. Afonso Henriques officially declared Portugal's independence when he proclaimed himself king of Portugal on 25 July 1139, after the Battle of Ourique. He was recognized as such in 1143 by Alfonso VII, king of León and Castile, and in 1179 by Pope Alexander III.

Afonso Henriques and his successors, aided by military monastic orders, pushed southward to drive out the Moors, as the size of Portugal covered about half of its present area. In 1249, this Reconquista ended with the capture of the Algarve on the southern coast, giving Portugal its present-day borders, with minor exceptions.

In 1348 and 1349, like the rest of Europe, Portugal was devastated by the Black Death.

In 1373, Portugal made an alliance with England, which is the longest-standing alliance in the world.

In 1383, the king of Castile, husband of the daughter of the Portuguese king who had died without a male heir, claimed his throne. An ensuing popular revolt led to the 1383-1385 Crisis. A faction of petty noblemen and commoners, led by John of Aviz (later John I), seconded by General Nuno Álvares Pereira defeated the Castilians in the Battle of Aljubarrota. This celebrated battle is still a symbol of glory and the struggle for independence from neighbouring Spain.

Exploration, colonization and trade

In the following decades, Portugal spearheaded the exploration of the world and undertook the Age of Discovery. Prince Henry the Navigator, son of King João I, became the main sponsor and patron of this endeavor.

In 1415, Portugal conquered the first of its overseas colonies by conquering Ceuta,which was also the first overseas colony in the world, enough to make Portugal´s Empire the first global empire in the world. It was the first prosperous Islamic trade center in North Africa. There followed the first discoveries in the Atlantic: Madeira and the Azores, which led to the first colonization movements.

Throughout the 15th century, Portuguese explorers sailed the coast of Africa, establishing trading posts for several common types of tradable commodities at the time, ranging from gold to slaves, as they looked for a route to India and its spices, which were coveted in Europe.

The Treaty of Tordesillas, intended to resolve the dispute that had been created following the return of Christopher Columbus, was signed on 7 June 1494, and divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between Portugal and Spain along a meridian 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde islands (off the west coast of Africa).

In 1498, Vasco da Gama finally reached India and brought economic prosperity to Portugal and its population of 1.5 million residents then.

In 1500, Pedro Álvares Cabral discovered Brazil and claimed it for Portugal. Ten years later, Afonso de Albuquerque conquered Goa, in India, Ormuz in the Persian Strait, and Malacca, now a state in Malaysia. Thus, the Portuguese empire held dominion over commerce in the Indian Ocean and South Atlantic. The Portuguese sailors set out to reach Eastern Asia by sailing eastward from Europe landing in such places like Taiwan, Japan, the island of Timor, and may have been the first Europeans to discover Australia and even New Zealand.

The Treaty of Zaragoza, signed on 22 April 1529 between Portugal and Spain, specified the antimeridian to the line of demarcation specified in the Treaty of Tordesillas. All these facts made Portugal the world´s major economic, military, and political power from the 15th century to the beginning of the 16th century.

Union with Spain and struggle for independence

Portugal's independence was interrupted between 1580 and 1640. Because the heirless King Sebastian died in the battle of Alcácer Quibir in Morocco, Philip II of Spain claimed his throne and so became Philip I of Portugal. Although Portugal did not lose its formal independence, it was governed by the same monarch who governed Spain, briefly forming a union of kingdoms, as a personal union.

The joining of the two crowns deprived Portugal of a separate foreign policy, and led to the involvement in the Eighty Years War being fought in Europe at the time between Spain and The Netherlands. War led to a deterioration of the relations with Portugal's oldest ally, England, and the loss of Hormuz. From 1595 to 1663 the Dutch-Portuguese War primarily involved the Dutch companies invading many Portuguese colonies and commercial interests in Brazil, Africa, India and the Far East, resulting in the loss of the Portuguese Indian Sea trade monopoly.

In 1640, John IV spearheaded an uprising backed by disgruntled nobles and was proclaimed king. The Portuguese Restoration War between Portugal and Spain on the aftermath of the 1640 revolt, ended the sixty-year period of the Iberian Union under the House of Habsburg. This was the beginning of the House of Braganza, which was to reign in Portugal until 1910. On 1 November 1755, Lisbon, the largest city and capital of the Portuguese Empire, was strongly shaken by an earthquake which killed thousands and destroyed a large portion of the city. In 1762 Spain invaded Portuguese territory as part of the Seven Years' War, however by 1763 the status-quo between Spain and Portugal of before the war had been restored.

During the 18th century approximately 400,000 left for Brazil. In the autumn of 1807, Napoleon moved French troops through Spain to invade Portugal. From 1807 to 1811, British-Portuguese forces would successfully fight against the French invasion of Portugal.

Independence of Brazil (1822)

Portugal began a slow but inexorable decline until the 20th century. This decline was hastened by the independence in 1822 of the country's largest colonial possession, Brazil. In 1807, as Napoleon Bonaparte's army closed in on Portugal's capital city of Lisbon, the Prince Regent João VI of Portugal shipped himself off to the Portuguese colony of Brazil. Once there, João VI established Rio de Janeiro as the capital of the Portuguese Empire which was then rebranded in 1815 as the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves.

Due to the change in its status and the arrival of the Portuguese royal family, Brazilian administrative, civic, economical, military, educational, and scientific apparatus were expanded and highly modernized. Portuguese and their allied British troops fought against the French Invasion of Portugal and by 1815 things in Europe had cooled down sufficiently that João VI would be able to safely return to Lisbon. However, the King of Portugal remained in Brazil until the Liberal Revolution of 1820, which started in Porto, demanded his return to Lisbon in 1821.

Thus he returned to Portugal but left his son Pedro in charge of Brazil. When the king attempted the following year to return the Kingdom of Brazil to subordinate status as a principality, his son Pedro, with the overwhelming support of the Brazilian elites, declared Brazil's independence from Portugal. Cisplatina (today's sovereign state of Uruguay), in the south, was one of the last additions to the territory of Brazil under Portuguese rule.

Portuguese Africa revival

At the height of European colonialism in the 19th century, Portugal had already lost its territory in South America and all but a few bases in Asia. Luanda, Benguela, Bissau, Lourenço Marques, Porto Amboim and the Island of Mozambique were among the oldest Portuguese-founded port cities in its African territories. During this phase, Portuguese colonialism focused on expanding its outposts in Africa into nation-sized territories to compete with other European powers there.

With the Conference of Berlin of 1884, Portuguese Africa territories had their borders formally established on request of Portugal in order to protect the centuries-long Portuguese interests in the continent from rivalries enticed by the Scramble for Africa. Portuguese Africa's cities and towns like Nova Lisboa, Sá da Bandeira, Silva Porto, Malanje, Tete, Vila Junqueiro, Vila Pery and Vila Cabral were founded or redeveloped inland during this period and beyond. New coastal towns like Beira, Moçâmedes, Lobito, João Belo, Nacala and Porto Amélia, were also founded. Even before the turn of the century, railway tracks as the Benguela railway in Angola, and the Beira railway in Mozambique, started to be built to link coastal areas and selected inland regions.

Other episodes of this period of Portuguese presence in Africa, include the 1890 British Ultimatum that forced the retreat of Portuguese military forces in the land between the Portuguese colonies of Mozambique and Angola (most of present-day Zimbabwe and Zambia) which had been claimed by Portugal and included in its "Pink Map", which had clashed with British aspirations to create a Cape to Cairo Railway. The Portuguese territories in Africa were Cape Verde, São Tomé and Príncipe, Portuguese Guinea, Angola, and Mozambique. The tiny fortress of São João Baptista de Ajudá on the coast of Dahomey, was also under Portuguese rule. In addition, the country still ruled the Asian territories of Portuguese India, Portuguese Timor and Macau.

Regime changes

On 1 February 1908, the king Carlos I of Portugal and his heir apparent, Prince Luis Filipe, were murdered in Lisbon. In 1910, a revolution deposed the Portuguese monarchy and its last King, Manuel II, but chaos continued during the Portuguese First Republic and considerable economic problems were aggravated by the military intervention in World War I, which led to a military coup d'état in 1926. This in turn led to the establishment of the right-wing dictatorship of the Estado Novo under António de Oliveira Salazar. Portugal was one of only five European countries to remain neutral in World War II. From the 1940s to the 1960s, Portugal was a founding member of NATO, OECD and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).

In 1961, São João Baptista de Ajudá's annexation by Dahomey was the start of a process that led to the final dissolution of the centuries-old Portuguese Empire. According to the census of 1921 São João Baptista de Ajudá had 5 inhabitants and, at the moment of the ultimatum by the Dahomey Government, it had only 2 inhabitants representing Portuguese Sovereignty. Another forcible retreat from overseas territories occurred in December 1961 when the Portuguese army and navy were involved in armed conflict in its colony of Portuguese India against an Indian invasion.

The operations resulted in the defeat of the isolated and relatively small Portuguese defensive garrison which was forced to surrender. The outcome was the loss of the Portuguese territories in the Indian subcontinent. Also in the early 1960s, independence movements in the Portuguese overseas provinces of Angola, Mozambique and Guinea in Africa, resulted in the Portuguese Colonial War (1961–1974). Throughout the colonial war period Portugal had to deal with increasing dissent, arms embargoes and other punitive sanctions imposed by most of the international community.

In April 1974 a bloodless left-wing military coup in Lisbon, known as the Carnation Revolution, led the way for a modern democracy as well as the independence of the last colonies in Africa, after two years of a transitional period known as PREC (Processo Revolucionário Em Curso, or On-Going Revolutionary Process), characterized by social turmoil and power disputes between left- and right-wing political forces. Some factions, including Álvaro Cunhal's Partido Comunista Português (PCP), unsuccessfully tried to turn the country into a totalitarian communist state. The retreat from the overseas territories and the acceptance of its independence terms by Portuguese head representatives for overseas negotiations, which would create newly-independent communist states in 1975 (most notably the People's Republic of Angola and the People's Republic of Mozambique), prompted a mass exodus of Portuguese citizens from Portugal's African territories (mostly from Portuguese Angola and Mozambique).

Over a million destitute Portuguese refugees fled the former Portuguese colonies. Mário Soares and António de Almeida Santos were charged with organising the independence of Portugal's overseas territories. By 1975, all the Portuguese African territories were independent and Portugal held its first democratic elections in 50 years. However, the country continued to be governed by a military-civilian provisional administration until the Portuguese legislative election of 1976.

European integration

In 1986, Portugal joined the European Economic Community that later became the European Union.

Portugal's last overseas territory, Macau, was not handed over to the People's Republic of China (PRC) until 1999, under the 1987 joint declaration that set the terms for Macau's handover from Portugal to the PRC. In 2002, the independence of East Timor (Asia) was formally recognized by Portugal, after an incomplete decolonization process that was started in 1975 because of the Carnation Revolution.

On 26 March 1995, Portugal started to implement Schengen Area rules, eliminating border controls with other Schengen members while simultaneously strengthening border controls with non-member states. In 1996 the country was a co-founder of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) headquartered in Lisbon. The 1998 World Exposition took place in Portugal and in 1999 it was one of the founding countries of the euro and the Eurozone.

On 5 July 2004, José Manuel Durão Barroso, then Prime Minister of Portugal, was nominated President of the European Commission, the most powerful office in the European Union. On 1 December 2009, the Treaty of Lisbon entered into force, after had been signed by the European Union member states on 13 December 2007 in the Jerónimos Monastery, in Lisbon, enhancing the efficiency and democratic legitimacy of the Union and improving the coherence of its action.

Government and politics

Portugal is a democratic republic ruled by the Constitution of 1976 with Lisbon, the nation's largest city, as its capital. The four main governing components are the President of the Republic, the Parliament, known as Assembly of the Republic, the Government, headed by a Prime Minister, and the courts. The constitution grants the division or separation of powers among legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Portugal like most European countries has no state religion, making it a secular state.

The president, who is elected to a five-year term, has a supervising non-executive role. The current President is Aníbal Cavaco Silva. The Parliament is a chamber composed of 230 deputies elected in four-year terms. The government is headed by the prime minister (currently José Sócrates) who chooses the Council of Ministers, comprising all the ministers and state secretaries.

The national and regional governments (those of Azores and Madeira autonomous regions), and the Portuguese parliament, are dominated by two political parties, the Socialist Party and the Social Democratic Party. Minority parties Unitarian Democratic Coalition (Portuguese Communist Party plus Ecologist Party "The Greens"), Bloco de Esquerda (The Left Bloc) and CDS-PP (Popular Party) are also represented in the parliament and local governments.

The courts are organized in several categories comprising the judicial, administrative, and fiscal branches. The supreme courts are courts of last appeal. A 13-member constitutional court oversees the constitutionality of the laws.

Executive branch

The President, elected to a 5-year term by direct, universal suffrage, is also commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Presidential powers include appointing the prime minister and Council of Ministers, in which the president must be guided by the assembly election results; dismissing the prime minister; dissolving the assembly to call early elections; vetoing legislation, which may be overridden by the assembly; and declaring a state of war or siege.

The Council of State, a presidential advisory body, is composed of six senior civilian officers, any former presidents elected under the 1976 constitution, five members chosen by the assembly, and five selected by the president. The government is headed by the presidentially appointed prime minister, who names the Council of Ministers. A new government is required to define the broad outline of its policy in a program and present it to the assembly for a mandatory period of debate. Failure of the assembly to reject the program by a majority of deputies confirms the government in office.

Legislative branch

The four main organs of the national government are the presidency, the prime minister and Council of Ministers (the government), the Assembly of the Republic (the parliament), and the judiciary. The Assembly of the Republic is a unicameral body composed of up to 230 deputies. Elected by universal suffrage according to a system of proportional representation, deputies serve terms of office of 4 years, unless the president dissolves the assembly and calls for new elections.

Foreign relations and armed forces

A member state of the United Nations since 1955, Portugal is also a founding member of NATO (1949), OECD (1961) and EFTA (1960); it left the latter in 1986 to join the European Economic Community, that would become the European Union in 1993. In 1996 it co-founded the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), which seeks to foster closer economic and cultural ties between the world's Lusophone nations. In addition, Portugal is a full member of the Latin Union (1983) and the Organization of Ibero-American States (1949).

It has a friendship alliance and dual citizenship treaty with its former colony, Brazil. Portugal and England (subsequently, the UK) share the world's oldest active military accord through their Anglo-Portuguese Alliance, which was signed in 1373.

The only international disputes concerns the municipality of Olivença. Under Portuguese sovereignty since 1297, the municipality of Olivença was ceded to Spain under the Treaty of Badajoz in 1801, after the War of the Oranges. Portugal claimed it back in 1815 under the Treaty of Vienna.

There are also some controversies over the Savage Islands. 1881 – The Spanish Foreign Affairs Ministry stated during the meeting that "...it is not clear if the sovereignty of the island belongs to Spain or Portugal". 1911 – In September the Portuguese government received an official communication from the Spanish government in which it was stated that Spain would build a lighthouse in the islands and had decided to include them in the Canary archipelago. Portuguese administration protested and it was agreed not to take any actions that might endanger a friendly solution to the dispute. The Permanent Commission of International Maritime Law gave sovereignty of the Savage Islands to Portugal on February 15, 1938. Nevertheless, bilateral diplomatic relations between the two neighbouring countries are cordial, as well as within the European Union.

Military

The armed forces have three branches: Army, Navy, and Air Force. The military of Portugal serves primarily as a self-defense force whose mission is to protect the territorial integrity of the country and providing humanitarian assistance and security at home and abroad. As of 2002, the total armed forces of Portugal numbered 43,600 active personnel including 2,875 women. Reservists numbered 210,930 for all services.

The army had 25,400 personnel with equipment including 187 main battle tanks. The navy of 10,800, including 1,580 marines, had two submarines, six frigates, and 28 patrol and coastal combatants. The air force of 7,400 was equipped with 50 combat aircraft. Paramilitary police and republican guards, the Guarda Nacional Republicana (GNR), number 40,900. GNR is a police force under the authority of the military, its soldiers are subject to military law and organization. It has provided detachments for participation in international operations in Iraq and East Timor. The United States maintains a military presence with 770 troops in the USA Air Force Base at Terceira Island, in the Azores. Portugal participates in peacekeeping operations in several regions. Defense spending in 1999–00 was $1.3 billion, representing 2.2 percent of GDP.

Since the early 2000s compulsory military service is no longer practiced. The changes also turned the forces' focus towards professional military engagements. The age for voluntary recruitment is set at 18. In the 20th century, Portugal engaged in two major military interventions: the First Great War and the Portuguese Colonial War (1961–1974). Portugal has participated in peacekeeping missions in East Timor, Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq (Nasiriyah) and Lebanon. The Portuguese Military's Rapid Reaction Brigade, a combined force of the nation's elite Paratroopers, Special Operations Troops Centre and Commandos, is a special elite fighting force.

Law and criminal justice

The Portuguese legal system is part of the civil law legal system, also called the continental family legal system. Until the end of the 19th century, French law was the main influence. Since then the major influence has been German law. The main laws include the Constitution (1976, as amended), the Civil Code (1966, as amended) and the Penal Code (1982, as amended). Other relevant laws are the Commercial Code (1888, as amended) and the Civil Procedure Code (1961, as amended).

Portuguese law applied in the former colonies and territories and continues to be the major influence for those countries. Portugal's main police organizations are the Guarda Nacional Republicana – GNR (National Republican Guard), a gendarmerie; the Polícia de Segurança Pública – PSP (Public Security Police), a civilian police force who work in urban areas; and the Polícia Judiciária – PJ (Judicial Police), a highly specialized criminal investigation police which is overseen by the Public Ministry.

Portugal was one of the first countries in the world to abolish the death penalty. Maximum jail sentences are limited to 25 years.

Portugal has arguably the most liberal laws concerning possession of illicit drugs in the Western world. In 2001 Portugal decriminalized possession of effectively all drugs that are still illegal in other developed nations including, but not limited to, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and LSD. While possession is legal, trafficking and possession of more than "10 days worth of personal use" are still punishable by jail time and fines. Since decriminalization was implemented, Portugal has seen rapid improvement in the number of deaths from drug overdoses as well as a decline in new HIV infections.

On 31 May 2010, Portugal became the sixth country in Europe and the eighth country in the world to legally recognize same-sex marriage on the national level. The law came into force on 5 June 2010.

Geography and climate

Mainland Portugal is split by its main river, the Tagus. The northern landscape is mountainous in the interior with plateaus indented by river valleys, whereas the south, that includes the Algarve and the Alentejo, features mostly rolling plains and a climate somewhat warmer and drier than in the north.

The Algarve, separated from the Alentejo by mountains, has a climate much like the southern coastal areas of Spain. Portugal's highest point is Mount Pico on Pico Island in the Azores. This is an ancient volcano measuring 2,350 m (7,710 ft). Mainland Portugal's highest point is Serra da Estrela, with the summit being 1,993 m (6,539 ft) above sea level.

Portugal has a Mediterranean climate, Csa in the south and Csb in the north, according to the Köppen climate classification. Portugal is one of the warmest European countries: the annual average temperature in mainland Portugal varies from 13 °C (55.4 °F) in the mountainous interior north to over 18 °C (64.4 °F) in the south and on the Guadiana basin. In some areas, as in the Tejo and Douro basins, annual average temperatures can be as high as 20 °C (68 °F). Here in the summer temperatures may be over 50 °C (122 °F) as it is documented in a climatology study done recently, for example in the Arqueology Park in Côa, Douro valley. In high mountains, such as Gerês, a maritime temperate climate predominates (Cfb, according to Koppen-Geiger).

The record high of 47.4 °C (117.3 °F) was recorded in Amareleja. The country has around 2500 to 3200 hours of sunshine a year, an average of 4–6 h in winter and 10–12 h in the summer, with higher values in the southeast and lower in the northwest.

The Madeira and Azores archipelagos have a narrower temperature range with annual average temperatures exceeding 20 °C (68 °F), according to the Portuguese Meteorological Institute, in the south coast of Madeira Island. The annual average rainfall in the mainland varies from a bit more than 3,000 mm (118.1 in) in the mountains in the north to less than 300 mm (11.8 in) in Massueime region, near Côa on the Douro river. In the Pico mountain, in Azores, is the rainiest spot of Portugal, reaching over 6,250 mm (246.1 in) per year, according to IM (Portuguese Meteorological Institute).

The islands of the Azores are located in the Mid-Atlantic Ridge whilst the Madeira islands were formed by the activity of an in-plate hotspot, much like the Hawaiian Islands. Some islands have had volcanic activity as recently as 1957. Both the Azores and the Madeira Islands have a subtropical climate, but there are differences between the islands, mainly because of differences in temperature and rainfall.

Some islands in Azores do have dry months in the summer therefore a Mediterranean climate according to Koppen-Geiger (both Csa and Csb types) Maritime Temperate (Cfb) in some islands (Flores) and Humid subtropical (Cfa) in the others (Corvo), according to Koppen-Geiger where are no dry months in the summer. The Savage Islands, that belong to the Madeira archipelago, have a Desertic climate (BWh) with an annual average rainfall of just around 150 mm (5.9 in). The sea surface mean temperatures in these archipelagos vary from 16 °C (60.8 °F)-18 °C (64.4 °F) in winter to 23 °C (73.4 °F)-24 °C (75.2 °F) in the summer, occasionally reaching 26 °C (78.8 °F).

In South Azores, there´s an oceanic area, inside Portuguese maritime territory which has the unique tropical climate (As type according to Koppen-Geiger)known in Europe, because of Gulf Stream influence on this area. Sea temperatures here are over 20 °C (68 °F) even on the peak of the winter (Source AEMET). Portugal's Exclusive Economic Zone, a seazone over which the Portuguese have special rights over the exploration and use of marine resources, has 1,727,408 km². This is the 3rd largest Exclusive Economic Zone of the European Union and the 11th largest in the world.

• Lagoa das Sete Cidades, located in São Miguel Island, is the largest freshwater lake in the Azores.
• Mount Pico, in the island of Pico, Azores, is Portugal's highest point.
• The highest point in mainland Portugal is in the Serra da Estrela mountain range.
• Cape Roca, Europe's most western continental point.

Fauna and Flora

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Conservation areas of Portugal include one national park (Parque Nacional), 12 natural parks (Parque Natural), 9 natural reserves (Reserva Natural), 5 natural monuments (Monumento Natural), and 7 protected landscapes (Paisagem Protegida), ranging from the Parque Nacional da Peneda-Gerês to the Parque Natural da Serra da Estrela to the Paul de Arzila. Climate and geographical diversity shaped the Portuguese Flora.

As far as Portuguese forests are concerned, because of economic reasons the pine tree (especially the Pinus pinaster and Pinus pinea species), the chestnut tree (Castanea sativa), the cork oak (Quercus suber), the holm oak (Quercus ilex), the Portuguese oak (Quercus faginea), and the eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus) are very widespread.

Mammalian fauna is diverse and includes the fox, badger, Iberian lynx, Iberian Wolf, wild goat (Capra pyrenaica), wild cat (Felis silvestris), hare, weasel, polecat, chameleon, mongoose, civet, brown bear (spotted near Rio Minho, close to Peneda-Gerês) and many others. Portugal is an important stopover place for migratory birds, in places such as Saint Vicent Cape or Monchique mountain, where thousands of birds that fly from Europe to Africa in the Autumn or on the opposite direction can be seen in the Spring. They congregate there because the Iberian Peninsula is the closest place in Europe to Africa. Portugal has around 600 bird species and almost every year there are new records. The islands have some species of American, European, and African origin, while the mainland shares European and African bird species.

Portugal has over 100 freshwater fish species, that vary from the giant European catfish (Tejo International Natural Park) to some small and endemic species that live only in small and located lakes (West Zone, for example). Some of these rare and specific species are highly endangered because of habitat loss, pollution and drought.

Marine fish species number are on the thousands mark and include the sardine (Sardina pilchardus), tuna and Atlantic mackerel. The marine bioluminescence is very well-represented (in different colors spectra and forms), with interesting phenomena like the glowing plankton, that is possible to observe in some beaches. In Portugal it is also possible to observe the upwelling phenomena, especially on the west coast, which makes the sea extremely rich in nutrients and biodiversity. Portuguese marine waters are one of the richest in biodiversity in the world.

There are many endemic species of Insect fauna, that are only found in some places in Portugal, others are more widespread like the stag beetle (Lucanus cervus) and the cicada. Macaronesian islands (Azores and Madeira) have many endemic species (like birds, reptiles, bats, insects, snails and slugs) that developed differently from other places in the world because of their isolated locations and so very unique species have evolved there. Only in Madeira island is possible to observe more than 250 species of land gastropods. Laurissilva is a unique type of subtropical rainforest in Europe and in the world. It is found in Madeira, Azores and also on the Canary islands, Spain.

Administrative divisions

Portugal has an administrative structure of 308 municipalities (Portuguese singular/plural: concelho/concelhos), which are subdivided into more than 4,000 parishes (freguesia/freguesias). Municipalities are grouped for administrative purposes into superior units. For continental Portugal the municipalities are gathered in 18 districts, while the islands have a regional government directly above them. Thus, the largest unit of classification is the one established since 1976 into either mainland Portugal (Portugal Continental) or the autonomous regions of Portugal (Azores and Madeira).

The 18 districts of mainland Portugal are: Aveiro, Beja, Braga, Bragança, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Évora, Faro, Guarda, Leiria, Lisbon, Portalegre, Porto, Santarém, Setúbal, Viana do Castelo, Vila Real and Viseu – each district takes the name of the district capital.

The European Union's system of Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics is also used. According to this system, Portugal is divided into 7 regions (Açores, Alentejo, Algarve, Centro, Lisboa, Madeira and Norte), which are subdivided into 30 subregions.

Districts
	District	Area	Population			District	Area	Population
1	Lisbon	2,761 km²	2,824,000		10	Guarda	5,518 km²	173,831
2	Leiria	3,517 km (1,358 sq mi)	477,967		11	Coimbra	3,947 km²	436,056
3	Santarém	6,747 km (2,605 sq mi)	445,599		12	Aveiro	2,808 km²	752,867
4	Setúbal	5,064 km (1,955 sq mi)	815,858		13	Viseu	5007 km²	394.844
5	Beja	10,225 km (3,948 sq mi)	154,325		14	Bragança	6,608 km²	148,808
6	Faro	4,960 km (1,915 sq mi)	458,734		15	Vila Real	4,328 km²	218,935
7	Évora	7,393 km²	170,535		16	Porto	2395 km²	1,867,986
8	Portalegre	6,065 km²	119,543		17	Braga	2,673 km²	879,918
9	Castelo Branco	6,675 km²	208,069		18	Viana do Castelo	2,255 km²	252,011

Demographics

Population

The population of Portugal has been relatively homogeneous for most of its history. A single religion (Catholicism) and a single language have contributed to this ethnic and national unity, namely after the expulsion of the Moors, Moriscos and Sephardi Jews.

Portugal was one of the last western European nations to give up its colonies and overseas territories (among them Angola and Mozambique in 1975), turning over the administration of Macau to the People's Republic of China in 1999. Its colonial history has long since been a cornerstone of its national identity, as has its geographic position at the southwestern corner of Europe looking out to the Atlantic ocean.

Native Portuguese are an Iberian ethnic group and their ancestry is very similar to other western and southern European peoples, particularly from Spain, with whom it shares ancestry and has cultural proximity. It is largely consistent with the geographic position of the western part of the Iberian peninsula, located on the extreme southwest of continental Europe. There are clear connections with Mediterranean people as well as with those of Atlantic and Western Europe.

The most important demic influence in modern Portuguese seems to be the oldest one — current interpretation of Y-chromosome and mtDNA data suggests that modern-day Portuguese traces largely a significant amount of their origin to the paleolithic peoples which began arriving to the European continent around 45,000 years ago. All subsequent migrations did leave an impact, genetically and culturally, but the main populational source of the Portuguese is still paleolithic.

The Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE, Portugal's official bureau of statistics), estimated that, according to the 2001 census, the population was 10,355,824 of which 52% was female, 48% was male. By 2007, Portugal had 10,617,575 inhabitants of whom about 332,137 were legal immigrants. Portugal, long a country of emigration (the vast majority of Brazilians have some Portuguese ancestry), has now become a country of net immigration, and not just from the last Indian (Portuguese until 1961), African (Portuguese until 1975), and Far East Asian (Portuguese until 1999) overseas territories. An estimated 800,000 Portuguese returned to Portugal as the country's African possessions gained independence in 1975.

Since the 1990s, along with a boom in construction, several new waves of Ukrainian, Brazilian, people from the former Portuguese colonies in Africa and other Africans have settled in the country. Those communities currently make up the largest groups of immigrants in Portugal. Romanians, Moldovans and Chinese have also chosen Portugal as destination.

A number of EU citizens mostly from the United Kingdom, but also from Nordic countries, are permanent residents of the country, with the British community being mostly composed of retired pensioners and choosing to live in the Algarve and Madeira. Portugal's Gypsy population, estimated at about 40,000, offers another element of ethnic diversity. Most gypsies live apart, and primarily in the south. They can often be found at rural markets selling clothing and handicrafts.

There are seven Greater Metropolitan Areas (GAMs): Algarve, Aveiro, Coimbra, Lisbon, Minho, Porto and Viseu.

Source of the city populations: INE census, 2001.
* – The Autonomous Region of Madeira is not a Metropolitan Area.

Religion

Church and state were formally separated during the Portuguese First Republic (1910–26), a separation reiterated in the Portuguese Constitution of 1976. Portugal is a secular state. Other than the Constitution, the two most important documents relating to religious freedom are the 2001 Religious Freedom Act and the 1940 Concordata (as amended in 1971) between Portugal and the Holy See.

According to the CIA World Factbook, 84.5% of the Portuguese population are Roman Catholic while 2.2% follow other Christian faiths.

Many Portuguese holidays, festivals and traditions have a Christian origin or connotation. Although relations between the Portuguese state and the Roman Catholic Church were generally amiable and stable since the earliest years of the Portuguese nation, their relative power fluctuated. In the 13th and 14th centuries, the church enjoyed both riches and power stemming from its role in the reconquest and its close identification with early Portuguese nationalism and the foundation of the Portuguese educational system, including the first university. The growth of the Portuguese overseas empire made its missionaries important agents of colonization with important roles of evangelization and teaching in all inhabited continents.

The country has small Protestant, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon), Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Christian Orthodox, Jehovah's Witnesses, Baha'i, Buddhist and Jewish communities.

Languages

Portuguese is the official language of Portugal. Portuguese is a Romance language that originated in what is now Galicia (Spain) and Northern Portugal, from the Galician-Portuguese language. It is derived from the Latin spoken by the romanized Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula around 2000 years ago. In the 15th and 16th centuries, it spread worldwide as Portugal established a colonial and commercial empire (1415–1999).

As a result, nowadays the Portuguese language is also official and spoken in Brazil, Angola, Mozambique, Cape Verde, São Tomé and Príncipe, Guinea-Bissau, and East Timor. These countries, plus Macau Special Administrative Region (People's Republic of China), make up the Lusosphere, term derived from the ancient Roman province of Lusitania, which currently matches the Portuguese territory south of the Douro river. Mirandese is also recognized as a co-official regional language in some municipalities of northeastern Portugal. It retains fewer than 5,000 speakers in Portugal (a number that can be up to 12,000 if counting second language speakers).

Economy

Portugal's economic development model has been changing from one based on public consumption to one focused on exports, private investment, and development of the high-tech sector. Business services have overtaken more traditional industries such as textiles, clothing, footwear, cork (of which Portugal is the world's leading producer), wood products and beverages.

The country changed its political regime in 1974 because of the Carnation Revolution, culminating with the end of one of its most notable periods of economic growth, which had started in the 1960s.

Portugal has a strong tradition in the fisheries sector and is one of the countries with the highest fish consumption per capita.

Travel and tourism will continue to be extremely important for Portugal, with visitor numbers forecast to increase significantly over the next five years. However, there is increasing competition from Eastern European destinations such as Croatia who offer similar attractions to Portugal, and are often cheaper. Portugal must keep its focus on its niche attractions such as health, nature and rural tourism to stay ahead of its competitors.

Most industry, business and finance are concentrated in Lisbon and Porto metropolitan areas. The districts of Aveiro, Braga, Coimbra, and Leiria are the biggest economic centres outside those two main metropolitan areas. Modern non-traditional technology-based industries like aerospace, biotechnology, and software, have been developed in several locations across the country. Alverca, Covilhã, Évora, and Ponte de Sor are the main centres of Portuguese aerospace industry.

The insurance sector has performed well, partly reflecting a rapid deepening of the market in Portugal. While sensitive to various types of market and underwriting risks, both the life and non-life sectors, overall, are estimated to be able to withstand a number of severe shocks, even though the impact on individual insurers varies widely.

The Global Competitiveness Report for 2005, published by the World Economic Forum, placed Portugal's competitiveness in the 22nd position, but the 2008–2009 edition placed Portugal in the 43rd position out of 134 countries and territories. Research about quality of life by the Economist Intelligence Unit's quality of life survey placed Portugal as the country with the 19th-best quality of life in the world for 2005, ahead of other economically and technologically advanced countries like France, Germany, the United Kingdom and South Korea, but 9 places behind its only neighbour, Spain. This is despite the fact that Portugal remains the country with the lowest per capita GDP in Western Europe.

The poor performance of the Portuguese economy was explored in April 2007 by The Economist which described Portugal as "a new sick man of Europe". From 2002 to 2007, the unemployment rate increased by 65% (270,500 unemployed citizens in 2002, 448,600 unemployed citizens in 2007). By early December 2009, unemployment had reached 10.2% – a 23-year record high. In December 2009, ratings agency Standard and Poor's lowered its long-term credit assessment of Portugal to "negative" from "stable," voicing pessimism on the country's structural weaknesses in the economy and weak competitiveness that would hamper growth and the capacity to strengthen its public finances and reduce debt.

Corruption has become an issue of major political and economic significance for the country. Some cases are well known and were widely reported in the media, such as the affairs in several municipalities involving local town hall officials and businesspersons, as well as a number of politicians with wider responsibilities and power.

Major State-owned companies include Águas de Portugal (water), Caixa Geral de Depósitos (banking), Comboios de Portugal (railways), CTT (postal services) and Rádio e Televisão de Portugal (media). Publicly owned companies like EDP, Galp, Jerónimo Martins, Millennium bcp, Portugal Telecom and Sonae are among the largest corporations of Portugal by both number of employees and net income. Most of these large companies are listed on the stock exchange. The major stock exchange of Portugal is the Euronext Lisbon which is part of the NYSE Euronext, the first global stock exchange. The PSI-20 is Portugal's most selective and widely known stock index. Portugal's central bank is the Banco de Portugal, which is an integral part of the European System of Central Banks.

Energy

In 2006 the world's largest solar power plant began operating in the nation's sunny south while the world's first commercial wave power farm opened in October 2006 in the Norte region. As of 2006, 66% of electricity production was from coal and fuel power plants. A total of 29% was produced by hydroelectrics and 6% by wind energy.

In 2008, up to 43% of the electricity consumed in the country had been produced through the renewable energies, even though the hydroelectric production had decreased because of the severe drought that regularly affects the country. As of June 2010 the electricity exports have outnumbered the imports, being 70% of the national production provided by renewable sources.

Labour

Although being both a developed country and a high income country, Portugal has the lowest GDP per capita in Western Europe and its population has one of the lowest incomes per head among member states of the European Union. According to the Eurostat it had the 6th lowest purchasing power among the 27 member states of the European Union for the period 2005-2007.

The average wage in Portugal is 804.22€ per month, and the minimum wage, which is regulated by law, is 475€ per month. Officially, in 2008 the unemployment decreased to 7.3% in the second quarter of 2008. However, it immediately rose again to higher rates. By December 2009, unemployment had surpassed the 10% mark nationwide and by 2010 it was about 11%.

Science and technology

Scientific and technological research activities in Portugal are mainly conducted within a network of R&D units belonging to public universities and state-managed autonomous research institutions like the INETI – Instituto Nacional de Engenharia, Tecnologia e Inovação and the INRB – Instituto Nacional dos Recursos Biológicos. The funding and management of this research system is mainly conducted under the authority of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education (MCTES) itself and the MCTES's Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT). The largest R&D units of the public universities by volume of research grants and peer-reviewed publications, include biosciences research institutions like the Instituto de Medicina Molecular, the Centre for Neuroscience and Cell Biology, the IPATIMUP, and the Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular.

Among the private universities, notable research centers include the Facial Emotion Expression Lab. Internationally notable state-supported research centres in other fields include the International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, a joint research effort of both Portugal and Spain. Among the largest non-state-run research institutions in Portugal are the Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência and the Champalimaud Foundation which yearly awards one of the highest monetary prizes of any science prize in the world. A number of both national and multinational high-tech and industrial companies, are also responsible for research and development projects. One of the oldest learned societies of Portugal is the Sciences Academy of Lisbon which was founded in 1779.

Portugal made agreements with several European scientific organizations aiming at full membership. These include the European Space Agency (ESA), the European Laboratory for Particle Physics (CERN), ITER, and the European Southern Observatory (ESO). Portugal has entered into cooperation agreements with MIT (USA) and other North American institutions to further develop and increase the effectiveness of Portuguese higher education and research.

Portugal has the largest aquarium in Europe, the Lisbon Oceanarium, and the Portuguese have several other notable organizations focused on science-related exhibits and divulgation, like the state agency Ciência Viva, a programme of the Portuguese Ministry of Science and Technology to the promotion of a scientific and technological culture among the Portuguese population, the Science Museum of the University of Coimbra, the National Museum of Natural History at the University of Lisbon, and the Visionarium.

With the emergence and growth of several science parks throughout the world which helped create many thousands of scientific, technological and knowledge-based businesses, Portugal started to develop several science parks across the country. These include the Taguspark (in Oeiras), the Coimbra iParque (in Coimbra), the biocant (in Cantanhede), the Madeira Tecnopolo (in Funchal), Sines Tecnopolo (in Sines), Tecmaia (in Maia) and Parkurbis (in Covilhã). Companies locate in the Portuguese science parks to take advantage of a variety of services ranging from financial and legal advice through to marketing and technological support.

Egas Moniz, a Portuguese physician who developed the cerebral angiography and leucotomy, received in 1949 the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine – he is the first Portuguese recipient of a Nobel Prize and the only in the sciences.

Education

The educational system is divided into preschool (for those under age 6), basic education (9 years, in three stages, compulsory), secondary education (3 years, till the 12th grade), and higher education (university and polytechnic).

Total adult literacy rate is 95%. Portuguese primary school enrollments are close to 100%. According to the Programme for International Student Assessment, the average Portuguese 15-years old student is not the best-rated in terms of reading literacy, mathematics and science knowledge in the OECD, nearly tied with the Italian and just above those from countries like Greece, Turkey and Mexico. About 35% of college-age students (20 years old) attend one of the country's higher education institutions (compared with 50% in the United States and 35% in the OECD countries). In addition to being a key destination for international students, Portugal is also among the top places of origin for international students. All higher education students, both domestic and international, totaled 380,937 in 2005.

Portuguese universities have existed since 1290. The oldest Portuguese university was first established in Lisbon before moving to Coimbra. The largest university in Portugal is the University of Porto. Universities are usually organized into faculties. Institutes and schools are also common designations for autonomous subdivisions of Portuguese higher education institutions, and are always used in the polytechnical system. The Bologna process has been adopted since 2006 by Portuguese universities and polytechnical institutes. Higher education in state-run educational establishments is provided on a competitive basis, a system of numerus clausus is enforced through a national database on student admissions.

Healthcare

According to the latest Human Development Report, the average Life Expectancy in 2007 was 78.6 years.

The Portuguese health system is characterized by three coexisting systems: the National Health Service (NHS), special social health insurance schemes for certain professions (health subsystems) and voluntary private health insurance. The NHS provides universal coverage. In addition, about 25% of the population is covered by the health subsystems, 10% by private insurance schemes and another 7% by mutual funds.

The Ministry of Health is responsible for developing health policy as well as managing the NHS. Five regional health administrations are in charge of implementing the national health policy objectives, developing guidelines and protocols and supervising health care delivery. Decentralization efforts have aimed at shifting financial and management responsibility to the regional level. In practice, however, the autonomy of regional health administrations over budget setting and spending has been limited to primary care.

The NHS is predominantly funded through general taxation. Employer (including the state) and employee contributions represent the main funding sources of the health subsystems. In addition, direct payments by the patient and voluntary health insurance premiums account for a large proportion of funding.

Similar to the other Eur-A countries, most Portuguese die from noncommunicable diseases. Mortality from cardiovascular diseases (CVD) is higher than in the Eurozone, but its two main components, ischaemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease, display inverse trends compared with the Eur-A, with cerebrovascular disease being the single biggest killer in Portugal (17%). Portuguese people die 12% less often from cancer than in the Eur-A, but mortality is not declining as rapidly as in the Eur-A. Cancer is more frequent among children as well as among women younger than 44 years. Although lung cancer (slowly increasing among women) and breast cancer (decreasing rapidly) are scarcer, cancer of the cervix and the prostate are more frequent. Portugal has the highest mortality rate for diabetes in the Eur-A, with a sharp increase since the late 1980s.

Portugal's infant mortality rate has dropped sharply since the 1980s, when 24 of 1000 newborns died in the first year of life. It is now around 3 deaths per a 1000 newborns. This improvement was mainly due to the decrease in neonatal mortality, from 15.5 to 3.4 per 1000 live births.

People are usually well informed about their health status, the positive and negative effects of their behaviour on their health and their use of health care services. Yet their perceptions of their health can differ from what administrative and examination-based data show about levels of illness within populations. Thus, survey results based on self-reporting at the household level complement other data on health status and the use of services. Only one third of adults rated their health as good or very good in Portugal (Kasmel et al., 2004). This is the lowest of the Eur-A countries reporting and reflects the relatively adverse situation of the country in terms of mortality and selected morbidity.

Transport

Transportation was seen as a priority in the early 1970s because of the fast growing economy, and again in the 1990s, after the 1974 Carnation Revolution, pushed by the growing use of automobiles and mass consumption. The country has a 68,732 km (42,708 mi) network of roads, of which almost 3,000 km (1,864 mi) are part of a 44 motorways system. Portugal was among the first countries in the world to have a motorway, opened in 1944, linking Lisbon to the National Stadium, the future highway Lisbon-Cascais (now A5). However, although they were later built a few other sections in the 1960 and 1970, only in late 1980 started the construction of motorways in a large scale.

Founded in 1972, Brisa is the largest highway management concessionaire. With 89,015 km (34,369 sq mi), Continental Portugal has 3 international airports located near Lisbon, Porto and Faro. The national railway system service is provided by Comboios de Portugal. The major seaports are located in Leixões, Aveiro, Figueira da Foz, Lisbon, Setúbal, Sines and Faro.

The two largest metropolitan areas have subway systems: Lisbon Metro and Metro Sul do Tejo in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area and Porto Metro in the Porto Metropolitan Area, each with more than 35 km (22 mi) of lines. In Portugal, Lisbon tram services have been supplied by the Companhia de Carris de Ferro de Lisboa (Carris), for over a century. In Porto a tram network, of which only a tourist line on the shores of the Douro remain, began construction in 12 September 1895, the first in the Iberian Peninsula. All major cities and towns have their own local urban transport network, as well as taxi services.

Rail transport of passengers and goods is derived using the 2,791 km (1,734 mi) of railway lines currently in service, of which 1,430 km (889 mi) are electrified and about 900 km (559 mi) allow train speeds greater than 120 km/h (75 mph). The railway network is managed by the REFER while the transport of passengers and goods are the responsibility of Caminhos de Ferro Portugueses (CP), both public companies. In 2006 the CP carried 133 million passengers and 9,750,000 t (9,600,000 long tons; 10,700,000 short tons) of goods.

Lisbon's geographical position makes it a stopover point for many foreign airlines at airports all over the country. The government decided to build a new airport outside Lisbon, in Alcochete, to replace Lisbon's Portela airport. Currently, the most important airports are in Lisbon, Faro, Porto, Funchal (Madeira), and Ponta Delgada (Azores), managed by the national airport authority group ANA – Aeroportos de Portugal.

Culture

Portugal has developed a specific culture while being influenced by various civilizations that have crossed the Mediterranean and the European continent, or were introduced when it played an active role during the Age of Discovery.

Since the 1990s, Portugal has increased the number of public cultural facilities, in addition to the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation established in 1956 in Lisbon. These include the Belém Cultural Center in Lisbon, Serralves Foundation and the Casa da Música, both in Porto, as well as new public cultural facilities like municipal libraries and concert halls which were built or renovated in many municipalities across the country.

Architecture

Traditional architecture is distinctive and include the Manueline, also known as Portuguese late Gothic, a sumptuous, composite Portuguese style of architectural ornamentation of the first decades of the 16th century, incorporating maritime elements and representations of the Portuguese Age of Discovery. Modern Portugal has given the world renowned architects like Eduardo Souto de Moura, Álvaro Siza Vieira and Gonçalo Byrne. Internally, Tomás Taveira is also noteworthy.

Cinema

Portuguese cinema has a long tradition, reaching back to the birth of the medium in the late 19th century. Portuguese film directors such as Arthur Duarte, António Lopes Ribeiro, Pedro Costa, Manoel de Oliveira, António-Pedro Vasconcelos, João Botelho and Leonel Vieira, are among those that gained notability. Noted Portuguese film actors include Joaquim de Almeida, Daniela Ruah, Evelina Pereira, Maria de Medeiros, Diogo Infante, Soraia Chaves, Vasco Santana, Ribeirinho, and António Silva, among many others.

Literature

Portuguese literature, one of the earliest Western literatures, developed through text and song. Until 1350, the Portuguese-Galician troubadours spread their literary influence to most of the Iberian Peninsula. Gil Vicente (ca. 1465 – ca. 1536), was one of the founders of both Portuguese and Spanish dramatic traditions.

Adventurer and poet Luís de Camões (ca. 1524–1580) wrote the epic poem "Os Lusíadas" (The Lusiads), with Virgil's Aeneid as his main influence. Modern Portuguese poetry is rooted in neoclassic and contemporary styles, as exemplified by Fernando Pessoa (1888–1935). Modern Portuguese literature is represented by authors such as Almeida Garrett, Camilo Castelo Branco, Eça de Queiroz, Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, António Lobo Antunes and Miguel Torga. Particularly popular and distinguished is José Saramago, winner of the 1998 Nobel Prize for literature.

Gastronomy

Portuguese cuisine is diverse. The Portuguese consume a lot of dry cod (bacalhau in Portuguese), for which there are hundreds of recipes. There are more than enough bacalhau dishes for each day of the year. Two other popular fish recipes are grilled sardines and caldeirada, a potato-based stew that can be made from several types of different, scrambled fish or meats or even vegetables. Typical Portuguese meat recipes, that may be made out of beef, pork, lamb, or chicken, include cozido à portuguesa, feijoada, frango de churrasco, leitão (roasted piglet) and carne de porco à alentejana.

Typical fast food dishes include the francesinha from Porto, and bifanas (grilled pork) or prego (grilled beef) sandwiches which are well known around the country. The Portuguese art of pastry has its origins in Middle-Ages Catholic monasteries widely spread across the country. These monasteries, using very few ingredients (mostly almonds, flour, eggs and some liquor), managed to create a spectacular wide range of different pastries, of which pastéis de Belém (or pastéis de nata) originally from Lisbon, and ovos moles from Aveiro are examples. Portuguese cuisine is very diverse, with different regions having their own traditional dishes. The Portuguese have a culture of good food and throughout the country there are myriad good restaurants and small typical tascas.

Portuguese wines have deserved international recognition since the times of the Roman Empire, which associated Portugal with their god Bacchus. Today the country is known by wine lovers and its wines have won several international prizes. Some of the best Portuguese wines are: Vinho Verde, Vinho Alvarinho, Vinho do Douro, Vinho do Alentejo, Vinho do Dão, Vinho da Bairrada and the sweet: Port Wine, Madeira Wine and the Moscatel from Setúbal and Favaios. Port Wine is well known around the world and the most widely known wine type in the world. The Douro wine region is the oldest in the world.

Music

Portuguese music encompasses a wide variety of genres. The most renowned is fado, a melancholy urban music, usually associated with the Portuguese guitar and saudade, or longing. Coimbra fado, a unique type of fado, is also noteworthy. Internationally notable performers include Amália Rodrigues, Carlos Paredes, José Afonso, Mariza, Carlos do Carmo, António Chainho, Mísia, and Madredeus. One of the most notable Portuguese musical groups outside the country, and specially in Germany, is the goth-metal band Moonspell.

In addition to fado and folk, the Portuguese listen to pop and other types of modern music, particularly from North America and the United Kingdom, as well as a wide range of Portuguese and Brazilian artists and bands. Bands with international recognition include Buraka Som Sistema, Blasted Mechanism and The Gift, both of which were nominated for an MTV Europe Music Award.

Portugal has several summer music festivals, such as Festival Sudoeste in Zambujeira do Mar, Festival de Paredes de Coura in Paredes de Coura, Festival Vilar de Mouros near Caminha, and Optimus Alive!, Rock in Rio Lisboa, Super Bock Super Rock and Avante! Festival in the Lisbon Region. Out of the summer season, Portugal has a large number of festivals, designed more to an urban audience, like Flowfest or Hip Hop Porto. Furthermore, Boom Festival, one of the largest international Goa trance festivals, takes place in central Portugal every two years. The student festivals of Queima das Fitas are also major music events in a number of cities across Portugal. In 2005, Portugal held the MTV Europe Music Awards, in Pavilhão Atlântico, Lisbon.

Fandango is one of the most popular regional dances.

In the Classical music domain, Portugal is represented by names as the pianist Artur Pizarro, Maria João Pires, Sequeira Costa, and in the past by the great cellist Guilhermina Suggia. Notable composers include José Vianna da Motta, Carlos Seixas, João Domingos Bomtempo, João de Sousa Carvalho, Luís de Freitas Branco and his student Joly Braga Santos, Fernando Lopes-Graça, Emmanuel Nunes and Sérgio Azevedo.

Painting

It has also a rich history as far as painting is concerned. The first well-known painters date back to the XV century – like Nuno Gonçalves – were part of the Gothic painting period. José Malhoa, known for his work Fado, and Columbano Bordalo Pinheiro (who painted the portraits of Teófilo Braga and Antero de Quental) were both references in naturalist painting.

The 20th century saw the arrival of Modernism, and along with it came the most prominent Portuguese painters: Amadeo de Souza-Cardoso, who was heavily influenced by French painters, particularly by the Delaunays. Among his best known works is Canção Popular a Russa e o Fígaro. Another great modernist painter/writer was Almada Negreiros, friend to the poet Fernando Pessoa, who painted his (Pessoa's) portrait. He was deeply influenced by both Cubist and Futurist trends. Prominent international figures in visual arts nowadays include painters Vieira da Silva, Júlio Pomar, and Paula Rego.

Sport

Football (soccer) is the most popular and played sport. There are several football competitions ranging from local amateur to world-class professional level. The legendary Eusébio is still a major symbol of Portuguese football history. FIFA World Player of the Year winners Luís Figo and Cristiano Ronaldo, are among the numerous examples of other world-class football (soccer) players born in Portugal and noted worldwide. Portuguese football managers are also noteworthy, with José Mourinho, Carlos Queiroz and Manuel José among the most renowned.

The Portuguese national teams, have titles in the FIFA World Youth Championship and in the UEFA youth championships. The main national team – Selecção Nacional – finished second in Euro 2004 (held in Portugal), reached the third place in the 1966 FIFA World Cup, and reached the fourth place in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, their best results in major competitions to date.

Sport Lisboa e Benfica, Futebol Clube do Porto, and Sporting Clube de Portugal are the largest sports clubs by popularity and in terms of trophies won, often known as "os três grandes" ("the big three"). They have 12 titles won in the European UEFA club competitions, were present in many finals and have been regular contenders in the last stages almost every season. Other than football, many Portuguese sports clubs, including the "big three", compete in several other sports events with a varying level of success and popularity, these may include basketball, futsal, handball, and volleyball.

Portugal has a successful rink hockey team, with 15 world titles and 20 European titles, making it the country with the most wins in both competitions. The most successful Portuguese rink hockey clubs in the history of European championships are Futebol Clube do Porto, Sport Lisboa e Benfica and Óquei de Barcelos. The national rugby union team made a dramatic qualification into the 2007 Rugby World Cup and became the first all amateur team to qualify for the World Cup since the dawn of the professional era. The Portuguese national rugby sevens team has performed well, becoming one of the strongest teams in Europe, and proved their status as European champions in several occasions.

In athletics, the Portuguese have won a number of gold, silver and bronze medals in the European, World and Olympic Games competitions. Cycling, with Volta a Portugal being the most important race, is also a popular sports event and include professional cycling teams such as Sport Lisboa e Benfica, Boavista, Clube de Ciclismo de Tavira, and União Ciclista da Maia. The country has also achieved notable performances in sports like fencing, judo, kitesurf, rowing, sailing, surfing, shooting, triathlon and windsurf, owning several European and world titles. The paralympic athletes have also conquered many medals in sports like swimming, boccia and wrestling.

In motor sport, Portugal is internationally noted for the Rally of Portugal, and both the Estoril and Algarve Circuits, whilst Tiago Monteiro is a successful Portuguese racing driver, having competed in the Champ Car World Series in the USA, Formula One between 2005 and 2006, and most recently the World Touring Car Championship.

Northern Portugal has its own original martial art, Jogo do Pau, in which the fighters use staffs to confront one or several opponents.

In equestrian sports, Portugal won the only Horseball-Pato World Championship (in 2006), achieved the third position in First Horseball World Cup (organized in Ponte de Lima, Portugal, in 2008), achieved several victories in the Working Equitation European Cup.

International rankings

See also

• Index of Portugal-related articles

References

1. ^ INE, Statistics Portugal
2. ^ "Portugal". International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 2010-04-21.
3. The Euromosaic study, Mirandese in Portugal, europa.eu – European Commission website. Retrieved January 2007.
4. at nhpr.org
5. at azores-islands.info
6. at destinazores.com
7. Brian Jenkins, Spyros A. Sofos, "Nation and identity in contemporary Europe", p.145 Routledge, 1996, ISBN 0415123135
8. Appendix B – International Organizations and Groups: developed countries (DCs), CIA — The World Factbook — Appendix B, The World Factbook
9. Milhazes, José. Os antepassados caucasianos dos portugueses – Rádio e Televisão de Portugal in Portuguese.
10. Black Death, Great Moments in Science, ABC Science
11. The standard view of historians is that Cabral was blown off course as he was navigating the currents of the South Atlantic, sighted the coast of South America, thereby accidentally discovering Brazil. However, for an alternative account of the discovery of Brazil, see Alternative theory of the European discovery of Brazil
12. Map proves Portuguese discovered Australia: new book, in Reuters (Wed Mar 21, 2007) – (see Theory of Portuguese discovery of Australia)
13. "Historical Depictions of the 1755 Lisbon Earthquake"
14. "The Cambridge history of Latin America: Colonial Latin America". Leslie Bethell (1986). Cambridge University Press. p.47. ISBN 0521245168
15. Flight from Angola, The Economist (August 16, 1975).
16. Dismantling the Portuguese Empire, Time Magazine (Monday, July 07, 1975).
17. 5 Years After: Portugal's Drug Decriminalization Policy Shows Positive Results
18. http://dre.pt/pdf1sdip/2010/05/10500/0185301853.pdf
21. http://www.ptsi.pt (2010-01-15). "Instituto de Meteorologia, IP Portugal". Meteo.pt. Retrieved 2010-01-27. {{cite web}}: External link in |author= (help)
22. "Districts of Portugal". Retrieved 2008-10-06.
23. "Portugal". The Virtual Jewish History Tour.
24. ^ Portugal – Emigration, Eric Solsten, ed. Portugal: A Country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress, 1993.
25. "Portugal sees integration progress", BBC News, November 14, 2005
26. "Brasileiros são a maior colónia estrangeira em Portugal". Embaixada de Portugal No Brasil.
27. Etnia cigana. A mais discriminada, (Expresso-05.04.2008)
28. "CIA — The World Factbook – Portugal". 17 January 2009.
29. Grande Enciclopédia Universal, p. 10543, "Portugal", para. 4
30. Investing in Portugal Report, Financial Times
31. Template:Pt icon Fundação da SEDES – As primeiras motivações, "Nos anos 60 e até 1973 teve lugar, provavelmente, o mais rápido período de crescimento económico da nossa História, traduzido na industrialização, na expansão do turismo, no comércio com a EFTA, no desenvolvimento dos sectores financeiros, investimento estrangeiro e grandes projectos de infra-estruturas. Em consequência, os indicadores de rendimentos e consumo acompanham essa evolução, reforçados ainda pelas remessas de emigrantes.", SEDES
32. Template:Pt icon PESSOA, M.F.; MENDES, B.; OLIVEIRA, J.S. CULTURAS MARINHAS EM PORTUGAL, "O consumo médio anual em produtos do mar pela população portuguesa, estima-se em cerca de 58,5 kg/ por habitante sendo, por isso, o maior consumidor em produtos marinhos da Europa e um dos quatro países a nível mundial com uma dieta à base de produtos do mar."
33. , Euromonitor International
34. Template:Pt icon Covilhã: Aleia vai montar avião até agora vendido em kit e jactos portugueses em 2011, 14th April 2008
35. Template:Pt icon Évora aprova isenções fiscais aos projectos da Embraer, Diário Digital (22nd August 2008)
36. Portugal: Financial System Stability Assessment, including Reports on the Observance of Standards and Codes on the following topics: Banking Supervision, Securities Regulation, and Insurance Regulation, IMF, (October 2006)
37. "The Global Competitiveness Index rankings" (PDF). World Economic Forum. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
38. http://www.economist.com/media/pdf/QUALITY_OF_LIFE.pdf
39. Template:Pt icon Portugueses perderam poder de compra entre 2005 e 2007 e estão na cauda da Zona Euro, Público (December 11, 2008)
40. "A new sick man of Europe", The Economist, 2007-04-14. http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9009032
41. Luis Miguel Mota, População desempregada aumentou 65% em cinco anos, Destak.pt (6th June 2008)
42. Standard and Poor's pessimistic on Portugal, Agence France-Presse (December 7, 2009)
43. Eurojust chief embroiled in Portuguese corruption scandal, euobserver.com (May 13, 2009)
44. People & Power, Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera (March 2008)
45. "IEA Energy Statistics: Portugal". International Energy Agency. 2006. Retrieved 2009-04-07.
46. Staff (2009-04-08). "Fontes renováveis originaram 43% da electricidade consumida". Diário Digital (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2009-04-17.
47. Staff (2010-06-08). "Portugal já exportou mais electricidade este ano que em 2009". Agência Financeira (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2010-06-08.
48. Template:Pt icon Portugueses perderam poder de compra entre 2005 e 2007 e estão na cauda da Zona Euro, Público (December 11, 2008)
49. Template:Pt icon Taxa de desemprego desce para 7,3 por cento no segundo trimestre, Público (14th August 2008)
50. Ciência Viva
51. Tecparques – Associação Portuguesa de Parques de Ciência e Tecnologia
52. Madeira Tecnopolo
53. Sines Tecnopolo
54. http://www.tecmaia.com.pt Tecmaia
55. Parque de Ciência e Tecnologia da Covilhã (Parkurbis)
56. Template:Pt icon http://www.portugal.gov.pt/pt/GC18/Governo/Ministerios/MCTES/Intervencoes/Pages/20100111_MCTES_Int_Contrato_Confianca_EnsSup.aspx Um Contrato de confiança no Ensino Superior para o futuro de Portugal, Government of Portugal official site portugal.gov.pt
57. see http://www.euro.who.int/document/chh/por_highlights.pdf
58. ListAfterList.com
59. Curious? Read
60. Poesia e Prosa Medievais, p. 9, para. 4
61. "Vision of Humanity". Vision of Humanity. Retrieved 2010-02-04.

• Ribeiro, Ângelo & Saraiva, José Hermano História de Portugal I — A Formação do Território QuidNovi, 2004 (ISBN 989-554-106-6)
• Ribeiro, Ângelo & Saraiva, José Hermano História de Portugal II — A Afirmação do País QuidNovi, 2004 (ISBN 989-554-107-4)
• de Macedo, Newton & Saraiva, José Hermano História de Portugal III — A Epopeia dos Descobrimentos QuidNovi, 2004 (ISBN 989-554-108-2)
• de Macedo, Newton & Saraiva, José Hermano História de Portugal IV — Glória e Declínio do Império QuidNovi, 2004 (ISBN 989-554-109-0)
• Ribeiro, Ângelo & Saraiva, José Hermano História de Portugal V — A Restauração da Indepêndencia QuidNovi, 2004 (ISBN 989-554-110-4)
• Saraiva, José Hermano História de Portugal X — A Terceira República QuidNovi, 2004 (ISBN 989-554-115-5)
• Loução, Paulo Alexandre: Portugal, Terra de Mistérios Ésquilo, 2000 (third edition; ISBN 972-8605-04-8)
• Muñoz, Mauricio Pasto: Viriato, A Luta pela Liberdade Ésquilo, 2003 (third edition; ISBN 972-8605-23-4)
• Grande Enciclopédia Universal Durclub, 2004
• Constituição da República Portuguesa, VI Revisão Constitucional, 2004
• Programa do Movimento das Forças Armadas, 1974

External links

Government

• Official Portuguese Government website Template:En icon/Template:Pt icon
• Official Parliament website
• Chief of State and Cabinet Members

General information

• "Portugal". The World Factbook (2024 ed.). Central Intelligence Agency.
• Portugal at UCB Libraries GovPubs
• Template:Dmoz
• Portugal in Photography 2007
• National English language newspaper
• Wikimedia Atlas of Portugal
• National Wine Website

Travel

• Official Travel and Tourism office website
• Official Portuguese Government Travel/media website

38°42′N 9°11′W / 38.700°N 9.183°W / 38.700; -9.183

Articles related to Portugal

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