Official Name: Reino de España (Kingdom of Spain)

Area: Europe

Size: 506,030 km²

Coastline: 4,964 km

Independence: Formation 15th century 

Form of Govt.: Constitutional monarchy

Head of Govt.: Prime Minister

Capital: Madrid

Largest City: Madrid

Demographics (2005): 44,708,964.    88.39 /km²

GDP per Capita (2005): $27,522

Languages: Spanish & Catalan

Geography: Continental Spain consists of the Meseta or Central Plateau which is surrounded by the Baetic, Andalusian and Iberian Mountains to the south and southeast, and the Pyrenees to the north as well as the Cordillera Cantabrica to the northwest. Along the northwest coast there are Rias which form several good harbors. The country has over 1,800 rivers and streams of which the Douro, Tajo, Guadiana, Ebro, Guadalquivir, Mino, Segura and the Jucar are the principal rivers.

Climate: Spain has a Mediterranean climate in the southern and eastern coastal areas as well as a temperate climate further inland. The central Meseta has hot summers and cold winters, while the southern regions at the foot of the mountains have the warmest winter temperatures in mainland Europe. On the Atlantic coast summers are not as hot with temperatures and rainfall decreasing inland. Average annual precipitation in the north and northwest is 890 mm or more and the Meseta receives between 305 mm to 635 mm annually. Average temperature ranges in Madrid are from 1 to 8 degrees in January to 17 to 31 degrees in July.