Spain's population density, at 87.8/km² (220/sq. mile), is lower than that of most Western European countries. With the exception of the capital, Madrid, the most populated regions lie around the coast. World map showing the location of Europe. ... Motto: De Madrid al Cielo (From Madrid to Heaven) Location Coordinates: Country Spain Autonomous Community Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid Province Madrid Administrative Divisions 21 Neighborhoods 127 Founded 9th century Government  - Mayor Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón (PP) Area  - Land 607 km² (234. ...

The population of Spain doubled during the twentieth century, but the pattern of growth was extremely uneven due to large-scale internal migration from the rural interior to the industrial cities, a phenomenon which happened later than in other Western European countries. No fewer than eleven of Spain's fifty provinces saw an absolute decline in population over the century.

Geographical distribution of the Spanish population in 2005

The last quarter of the century saw a dramatic fall in birth rates. Spain's fertility rate of 1.28 (the number of children the average woman will have during her lifetime) is now one of the lowest in the world. Image File history File links Population_densities_in_Spain_(2005). ... Image File history File links Population_densities_in_Spain_(2005). ...

Spain has no official religion. The Spanish Constitution of 1978 abolished the Roman Catholic Church as the official state religion, while recognizing the role it plays in Spanish society. More than 90% of the population are at least nominally Catholic. The Spanish Constitution of 1978 is the culmination of the Spanish transition to democracy. ... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Wycliffe Tyndale · Luther · Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Pope · Archbishop of Canterbury Patriarch of Constantinople Christianity Portal This box:      The Roman Catholic Church...

Immigration and Demographic Issues

The population of Spain doubled during the twentieth century, due to the spectacular demographic boom by the 60's and early 70's. Then, the birth rate plunged by the 80's and Spain's population became stalled, its demographics showing one of the lowest sub replacement fertility rate in the world, only second to Japan's.^{[citation needed]}. Many demographers have linked Spain's very low fertility rate to the country's lack of any real family planning policy. Spain is the Western European country that spends least on family support (a paltry 0.5% of GDP). A graphic illustration of the enormous social gulf between Spain and the rest of Europe in this field is the fact that a Spanish family would need to have 57 children to enjoy the same financial support as a family with 3 children in Luxembourg. Sub-replacement fertility is a fertility rate that is not high enough to replace an areas population. ...

In emigration/immigration terms, after centuries of net emigration, Spain, has recently experienced large-scale immigration for the first time in modern history. According to the Spanish government there were 4,145,000 foreign residents in Spain in January 2007. Of these well over half a million were Moroccan while the Ecuadorians figure was around half a million as well. Romanian and Colombian populations ammounted to around 300,000 each. There are also a significant number of British (761,000 as of 2006) and German (133,588) citizens, mainly in Alicante, Málaga provinces, Balearic islands and Canary islands. Chinese in Spain are estimated to number between ten and sixty thousand. Immigrants from several sub-Saharan African countries have also settled in Spain as contract workers, although they represent only 4.08% of all the foreign residents in the country. Location of Alicante province in Spain. ... Capital Palma de Mallorca Official language(s) Spanish and Catalan Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 17th  4,992 km²  1. ... Capital Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and Santa Cruz de Tenerife Official language(s) Spanish Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 13th  7,447 km²  1. ... Chinese in Spain form the ninth-largest non-European Union foreign community in Spain. ...

During the early 2000's, the mean year-on-year demographic growth set a new record with its 2003 peak variation of 2.1%, doubling the previous record reached back in the 1960's when a mean year on year growth of 1% was experienced.^[1] This trend is far from being reversed at the present moment and, in 2005 alone, the immigrant population of Spain increased by 700 000 people ^[2].

Allegedly, the growing immigrant population is the main reason for the slight increase in Spain's fertility rate ^[3]. The (total) fertility rate of a population is the average number of child births per woman. ...

Metropolitan areas

The most important metropolitan areas in 2005 are:

Main metropolitan areas in Spain

1. Madrid 5,646,572[3]
2. Barcelona 3,135,758[4]
3. Valencia 1,623,724
4. Sevilla 1,317,098
5. Málaga 1,074,074
6. Bilbao 947,581
7. Asturias (Gijón-Oviedo) 855,199
8. Alicante-Elche 711,215
9. Zaragoza 683,763
10. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 616,903
11. Bahía de Cádiz (Cádiz-Jerez de la Frontera) 615,494
12. Murcia 563,272
13. Palma de Mallorca 474,035
14. Granada 472,638
15. Vigo 423,821
16. Santa Cruz de Tenerife 420,198
17. San Sebastián 399,125
18. La Coruña 396,015
19. Valladolid 383,894
20. Tarragona 375,749
21. Cordoba 321,164
22. Pamplona 309,631

Motto: De Madrid al Cielo (From Madrid to Heaven) Location Coordinates: Country Spain Autonomous Community Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid Province Madrid Administrative Divisions 21 Neighborhoods 127 Founded 9th century Government  - Mayor Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón (PP) Area  - Land 607 km² (234. ... Location Coordinates : Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Barcelona (Catalan) Spanish name Barcelona Nickname Ciutat Comtal (Catalan) Postal code 08001–08080 Area code 34 (Spain) + 93 (Barcelona) Website http://www. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the city in Spain. ... Location of Málaga Municipality Málaga  - Mayor Francisco de la Torre Prados Area    - City 385. ... La Muy Noble y Muy Leal e Invicta (The most noble and most loyal and undefeated) Location Location of Bilbao in Spain and Biscay Coordinates : 43,15° n. ... Anthem: Asturias, patria querida Capital Oviedo Official language(s) Spanish; Asturian have special status Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 10th  10,604 km²  2. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Location of Alicante in Spain Alicante (Castillian Spanish) or Alacant (Valencian) is the capital of the province of Alicante and of the comarca of the Alacantí, in the southern part of the Valencian community, Spain, a historic Mediterranean port. ... View of Elche Elche (in Spanish) or Elx (in Catalan) is a city in the Alicante province in Valencia, Spain, near the city of Alicante. ... Location Coordinates : Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Zaragoza (Spanish) Spanish name Zaragoza Founded 24 Postal code 50001 - 50018 Website http://www. ... Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is a Spanish city, the capital city of Gran Canaria which is one of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, 210 kilometers located off the northwestern coast of Africa. ... comarca in the province of Cádiz named Bay of Cádiz, see Bay of Cádiz (comarca). ... Nickname: Tacita de plata (little silver cup) Location within Spain Province Cádiz  - Mayor Teófila Martínez (PP) Area    - City 12. ... Location of Jerez de la Frontera Municipality Cádiz Mayor Pilar Sánchez Muñoz Area    - City 1,186 km²  - Land 1,186 km²  - Water 0. ... For the Roman goddess, see Venus. ... Location Coordinates : Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Palma (Catalan) Spanish name Palma de Mallorca Postal code 070XX Area code 34 (Spain) + 971 (Palma de Mallorca) Website http://www. ... Coordinates: Country Spain Autonomous community Andalusia Settled since 7th century BC Area  - City 88 km²  (34 sq mi) Elevation 738 m (2,421. ... Nickname: The Olive City Situation of Vigo within Galicia Parroquias Alcabre, Beade, Bembrive, Cabral, Candeán, Castrelos, Comesaña, Coruxo, Lavadores, Matamá, Navia, Oia, Saiáns, Sampaio, Sárdoma, Valadares, Zamáns. ... Santa Cruz de Tenerife (2005 population 221,627) is a Spanish city on the island of Tenerife, the largest and most populated of the Canary Islands as stated in the 2005 census. ... Location Location of Donostia-San Sebastian in Spain Coordinates : 43º 19 17 w. ... Torre de Hércules View from the Torre de Hércules A Coruña (Galician name, also known in English as Corunna; in Spanish as La Coruña) is a Galician city, in north-western Spain at 43° 22′ 0″ N 8° 22′ 60″ W. It is the capital of... Location Coordinates : ( ) Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Valladolid (Spanish) Spanish name Valladolid Nickname Pucela Founded 1072 Postal code 47001-47016 Website http://www. ... Tarragona (IPA: in Catalan) is a city located in the south of Catalonia, northeastern Spain, by the Mediterranean Sea. ... Location Coordinates : , , Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Córdoba (Spanish) Spanish name Córdoba Founded 8th century BC Postal code 140xx Website http://www. ... Pamplona (Basque: Iruñea or Iruña) is the capital city of Navarre, Spain. ...

Statistical indicators

Population: by baby dan 44,708,964 (January 2006)

Age structure (2000 est.):
0-14 years: 14.4% (male 3,000,686/female 2,821,325)
15-64 years: 67.8% (male 13,751,963/female 13,653,426)
65 years and over: 17.7% (male 2,993,496/female 4,176,946) (2006 est.) Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (974x604, 32 KB) Subject : Evolution of demography in Spain (1900-2005) Source : Data INE (National Institute of Stadistics) INE web Y-axis : Number of inhabitants Imagen: Evolución demográfica de España (1900-2005) Fuente: Datos del INE (Instituto Nacional...

Population growth rate: 0.13% (2006 est.)

Birth rate: 10.06 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate: 9.72 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate: 15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) ^[4]

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 4.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 79.65 years
male: 76.32 years
female: 83.2 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.28 children born/woman (2006 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Spaniard(s)
adjective: Spanish

Religions: Roman Catholic 80.4%, atheistics or agnostics 17.2%, other 2.3% ^[5]. According to a December 2006 study, 41% of the population described themselves as atheist or agnostic, while 48% believed in a God or supreme being.^[6] The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... For information about the band, see Atheist (band). ... The term agnosticism and the related agnostic were coined by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1869. ...

Languages:

• Spanish (official) 100%
• Catalan 10% (co-official in Catalonia, Balearic Islands, and Valencia — see Valencian)
• Galician 6% (co-official in Galicia)
• Basque 1.6% (co-official in Basque Country and designated areas in Navarre).
• Aranese (a variant of Gascon Occitan) is co-official in Val d'Aran, a small valley in the Pyreenes.

Others with no official status: Catalan IPA: (català IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia (in the latter with the name of Valencian), and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of... Anthem: Capital Barcelona Official language(s) Catalan,Spanish and Aranese. ... Capital Palma de Mallorca Official language(s) Spanish and Catalan Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 17th  4,992 km²  1. ... Location Coordinates : 39°29′ N 0°22′ W Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name València (Catalan) Spanish name Valencia Founded 137 BC Postal code 46000-46080 Website http://www. ... Valencian (valencià) is the historical, traditional, and official name used in the Valencian Community (Spain) to refer to the language spoken therein, also known as Catalan (català) in the Spanish Autonomous Communities of Catalonia, Aragon and the Balearic Islands; in the country of Andorra; in the southern French region of... Galician (Galician: galego, IPA: ) is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community with the constitutional status of historic nationality, located in northwestern Spain and small bordering zones in neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castilla y León. ... Galicia (Spain) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Basque (native name: euskara) is the language spoken by the Basque people who inhabit the Pyrenees in North-Central Spain and the adjoining region of South-Western France. ... Pays Basque) see Northern Basque Country. ... Capital Pamplona Official language(s) Spanish and Basque Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 11th  10,391 km²  2. ... Aranese (Aranès or Aranais) is a dialect of Gascon (which is part of the Occitan language group of the Romance languages), spoken in Spain, where it is an official language. ... Occitan, known also as Lenga dòc or Langue doc (Occitan: occitan, lenga dòc) is a Romance language spoken in Occitania (i. ... Val dAran, a small valley (620. ...

• Asturian (in Asturias and part of Leon province)
• Aragonese (in Huesca province, Aragon)

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.9% (2003 est.)
male: 98.7% (2003 est.)
female: 97.2% (2003 est.) Asturian, Leonese, Astur-Leonese or Bable (Asturianu in Asturian, Llïonés in Leonese) is a Romance language spoken in some parts of the provinces of Asturias, León, Zamora and Salamanca in Spain, and in the area of Miranda de Douro in Portugal (where it is officially recognized as... Anthem: Asturias, patria querida Capital Oviedo Official language(s) Spanish; Asturian have special status Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 10th  10,604 km²  2. ... Categories: Spain geography stubs | Castile-Leon | Provinces of Spain ... Aragonese, IPA: (), is a Romance language now spoken by some 10,000 people over the valleys of the Aragón River, Sobrarbe and Ribagorza in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. ... Huesca (Aragonese Uesca, Catalan Osca) is a city in Aragon, Spain. ... Capital Zaragoza Official language(s) Spanish Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 4th  47,719 km²  9. ...

Educational system

About 70% of Spain's student population attends public schools or universities. The remainder attend private schools or universities, the great majority of which are operated by the Catholic Church. The word student is etymologically derived through Middle English from the Latin second-type conjugation verb stŭdērĕ, meaning to direct ones zeal at; hence a student is one who directs zeal at a subject. ...

Compulsory education begins with primary school or general basic education for ages 6-16. It is free in public schools and in many private schools, most of which receive government subsidies. Following graduation, students attend either a secondary school offering a general high school diploma or a school of professional study in all fields — law, sciences, humanities, and medicine — and the superior technical schools offer programs in engineering and architecture. In economics, a subsidy is generally a monetary grant given by a government to lower the price faced by producers or consumers of a good, generally because it is considered to be in the public interest. ...

References

1. ^ Official report on Spanish recent Macroeconomics, including data and comments on immigration
2. ^ Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Evolution of the foreign population in Spain since 1998[1]
3. ^ Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Evolution of the global fertility rate between 1975 and 2005 [2]
4. ^ Eurostat, Chronos Database. 2005
5. ^ CIS study, 2005, question 35
6. ^ Religion Important for Americans, Italians, Angus Reid Global Monitor, December 30, 2006

See also

• Spain
• List of Spaniards
• Nationalities in Spain

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... The Wikimedia Commons (also called Wikicommons) is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. ... This is a list of notable people who either: are or were Spanish citizens during at least one period of their life, were born in Spain or in the territory of present-day Spain, but who were not or are not Spanish citizens (either because Spain did not exist at... Historically, the modern country of Spain was formed by the accretion of several independent Iberian realms through dynastic inheritance, conquest and the will of the local elites. ...

External links

• Spanish Instituto Nacional de Estadística Statistical data about demography and population