Geography |
The Kingdom of Spain, located in south-western Europe, occupies the greater part of the Iberian Peninsula. It is bounded on the north by the Bay of Biscay, France, and Andorra; on the east by the Mediterranean Sea; on the south by the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean; and on the west by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. The British dependency of Gibraltar is in the extreme south. The Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean and the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa are provinces of Spain. Also, Spain administers two small exclaves in MoroccoCeuta and Melillaas well as three island groups near AfricaPeñón de Vélez de la Gomera and the Alhucemas and Chafarinas islands. The area of Spain, including the African and insular territories, is 505 960 km2.
Mountains extend across northern Spain from the Atlantic Ocean almost to the Mediterranean Coast. These begin with the mountains of Galicia in the west, extend through the Cantabrian Mountains in the central area to the Pyrenees Mountains in the east, which separate Spain from France. The mountains rise sharply from the sea along most of the Atlantic coast.
The Ebro Basin encompasses the broad plains that extend along the Ebro River in north-eastern Spain. The Ebro, one of Spain's longest rivers, flows 909 km from the northern mountains to the Mediterranean Sea.
Fertile plains stretch along Spain's entire Mediterranean coast, broken by occasional hills.
The Meseta Central is a huge, dry plateau that covers most of central Spain. It slopes downward gradually from north to south and from east to west, and has an average elevation of about 600 m. It is broken by hills and low mountains, including the Sierra de Guadarrama, the Sierra de Gredos, and the Montes de Toledo. Higher mountains rise on the north, east, and south. Mainland Spain's highest peak, 3,478-meter Mulhacen, stands in the Sierra Nevada range on the southern edge of the region. Most of Spain's major rivers originate in the Meseta. The Tagus (Tajo) flows 1,007 km through Portugal to the Atlantic Ocean while the Guadalquivir flows 640 km to the Atlantic Ocean. Other rivers include the Duero (Douro), Miño and Guadiana, all of which flow to the west through Portugal. The Guadalquivir Basin lies in south-western Spain along the Guadalquivir River.
The Balearic Islands lie from about 80 to 240 km east of mainland Spain in the Mediterranean Sea. Five major islands and many smaller ones make up the group. The three largest islands, in order of size, are Majorca, Minorca, and Ibiza. Majorca is a fertile island with a low mountain range along its north-west coast. Plains stretch from the mountains to hills on the south-east coast. Minorca is mostly flat, with wooded hills in the centre. Ibiza is hilly. Both smaller islands are much less fertile than Majorca.
The Canary Islands lie in the Atlantic Ocean about 96 to 432 km off the north-west coast of Africa. They include seven major islands. The largest are, in order of size, Tenerife, Fuerteventura, and Gran Canaria. Pico de Teide, Spain's highest mountain, rises 3 718 meters in the centre of Tenerife. Gran Canaria has central mountains and rich valleys. Fuerteventura is flatter, drier, and less populated than Tenerife and Gran Canaria.
The climate of Spain is marked by extremes of temperature and, except in the north, generally low rainfall. The Meseta and other inland regions have dry, sunny weather throughout the year with hot summers and cold winters. The average temperature for some areas rises above 27° C in July, the hottest month and may fall below -1° C in January, the coldest. Precipitation averages about 600 mm, occurring as snow on the higher peaks during the winter.
The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.