Southern Europe
to print

Name: ______________________________________  Subject: _______________________ Date: _______


Portugal

Population: 10,661,632 inhabitants
Land surface: 92,391 km2
Currency: Euro
GDP per capita: US$ 20,410
Language: Portuguese
Official name: República Portuguesa.
Administrative division: 18 districts y 2 autonomous regions (Azores and Madeira).
Capital: Lisbon 1,962,000 inhabitants
Other cities (inhabitants – 2000): Porto 1,206,800; Amadora 123,400; Vila Nova de Gaia 74,800; Setúbal 99,100.
Religion: Catholics (94.5%); Protestants (0.6%); other Christians, predominantly Catholic and Apostolic Jehovah's Witnesses (0.9%); Jewish (0.1%); Muslim (0.1%).

Geography. Two parts can be distinguished in Portugal: continental, Iberian and insular, which comprises the archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira. The Tagus river its greatest river, divides the continental part into two different regions. The northern mountainous are has abundant rainfall and intensive agriculture of wheat, corn, grapes and olives. The vineyards, which are cultivated in terraces, stretch throughout the valley of the Douro, the country's main wine region. The city of Porto is the center of economic life in the north. The south, or Alentejo, has extensive plateaus, low and dry weather and crops of grapes, olives and sheep. The forests of oak that make the country a major producer of cork are located there. The fishing industry and shipbuilding are important in the national economy. It has various mineral resources: pyrite, tungsten, coal and iron.


Spain

Population: 46,063,511 inhabitants
Land surface: 505,990 km2
Currency: Euro
GDP per capita: US$ 27,169
Language: Spanish
Official name: Reino de España
División administrativa: España está dividida en 17 comunidades autónomas
Capital: Madrid 5,103,000 inhabitants (2003).
Other cities (inhabitants – 2000): Barcelona 3,855,300; Valencia 1,406,600; Seville 1,130,600; Zaragoza 605,900.
Gobierno: monarquía hereditaria
Religion: Catholics 95%; Muslim 1.2 %.

Geography. Spain forms the Iberian Peninsula together with Portugal. The Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands and the cities of Ceuta and Melilla, in the north of Africa, are also part of Spain. The center of the country is a plateau, the Pyrenees are in the north, which make up the natural border with France. The Betic Chains stretch to the south. The Central System is located in the interior of the peninsula that splits the Castilian plateau in two. In the Ebro basin, in the northeast, there are the plains of Catalonia, Valencia and Murcia. And in the Guadalquivir basin, in the south, there is the plain of Andalusia. Spain has a humid and moderate climate, with forests in the north and northeast. The climate is dry in the interior, south and west. About 40% of the land is arable. Approximately 5% of the total land surface is protected area. Natural resources include: coal, iron, uranium and mercury. Industry, which is growing fast, is mainly located in Catalonia and the Basque Country. The State has launched a reforestation plan to increase production and stop erosion.


Italy

Population: 58,945,700 inhabitants

Land surface: 301,340 km2

Currency: Euro

GDP per capita: US$ 28,529

Language: Italian

Official name: Repubblica Italiana.

Capital: Rome 2,665,003 inhabitants (2003).

Other cities (inhabitants – 2000): Milan (Milano) 4,047,500; Naples (Napoli) 3,620,300; Turin (Torino) 1,619,400; Palermo 947,300 (2000).

Government: Giorgio Napolitano, president since May 2006.

Religion: majority of the population is Catholic (more than 90%).

Geography. The country borders France, Switzerland and Austria to the north. In the north, there is the watershed of the Po River. This area has the most economic activity of the region, especially due to the industrial and agricultural concentration of the country. On the peninsula, which is divided longitudinally by the Apennines Mountains, livestock farming and agriculture are the predominant activity, especially the cultivation of olive trees and vineyards, which also occupy the coastal strip of the extreme south. Insular Italy includes Sicily and Sardinia and smaller islands.


   1. Answer by indicating which country the statement refers to: Portugal, Spain or Italy

The most populated country

 

It has industry in Catalonia and the Basque Country

 

The capital is Rome

 

It has the archipelago of Azores

 

It is the largest country

 

It has the Po River

 

The capital is Madrid

 

It is a great producer of cork

 

The Pyrenees are in the north

 

The capital is Lisbon

 

It has the Apennines Mountains

 

It has the highest GDP per capita

 

Slovenia

Population: 2,001,578 inhabitants
Land surface: 20.270 km2
Currency: Tolar
GDP per capita: US$ 22,273
Language: Slovenian
Official name: Republika Slovenija.
Capital: Ljubljana 256,000 inhabitants (2003).
Other cities (inhabitants – 2000): Maribor 97,800; Celje 38,300; Kranj 35,500; Velenje 26,400.
Government: Borut Pahor, president since December 2012
Religión: los cristianos-católicos son mayoritarios (83,6%), incluyendo a los adherentes a la tradicional Iglesia Católica de Eslovenia; cristianos de la Iglesia Ortodoxa del Este, 16,4%.

Geography. Slovenia borders Italy, Austria, Hungary and Croatia. In 1991, it proclaimed itself independent from Yugoslavia. Mountains and forests with fertile and deep valleys characterize the Slovenian territory. From the Julian Alps (maximum altitude: Mount Triglay, 2,864 meters) to the northeast of the country, the Sava River flows towards the southeast, crossing through the region that has the coalmines. The Karavanke Mountains are located in the northern border. This region, which has the Mura, Drava, Savinja and Sava rivers, is known for its wine production. To the west and southwest of Ljubljana, along the rapids of the Soca River (the Isonzo, on the Italian side), the climate of the country is less continental and more Mediterranean. The capital has an average annual temperature of 9 degrees Celsius. The main wealth of the Slovenian subsoil is based on coal, mercury and uranium, which have favored a high level of industrialization in the country.


Serbia

Population: 10,150,265 inhabitants
Land surface: 88,361 km2
Currency: Serbian Dinar
GDP per capita: US$ 5,189 (2012)
Language: Serbian
Official name: Republika Srbija
Capital: Belgrade 1,119,642 inhabitants
Other cities (inhabitants – 2006): Novi Sad 1,576,124; Priština 200,000; Kragujevac 146,373
Government: Tomislav Nikolić, president since May 2012
Religion: Orthodox; Islamic, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish minorities and others.

Geography. This country was part of the former Yugoslavia. It is composed of three provinces: the province of Kosovo and Metohija Vojvodina and Central Serbia. The northern province of Vojvodina is the most developed part of the country in economic terms. Serbia is landlocked; the Danube dominates the north and provides navigation within Europe and the Black Sea. The land of Serbia stretches out through rich and fertile plains of the northern Vojvodina region, limestone areas and basins in the east, and in the ancient southeastern mountains and hills.


Greece

Population: 11,171,744 inhabitants
Land surface: 131,960 km2
Currency: Euro
GDP per capita: US$ 23,381
Language: Greek
Religion: Greek Orthodox. There is a Muslim minority.
Official name: Helleniké Demokratía.
Capital: Athens/Piraeus 3,215,000 inhabitants (2003).
Other cities (inhabitants – 2000): Patras 172,100; Salónica (Thessaloniki) 793,900.
Government: parliamentary republic.

Geography. Five hundred years before Christ, the country developed an important civilization with great philosophers and artists. Greece lies at the southeastern tip of the Balkan region in the eastern Mediterranean. The country comprises a peninsula located between the Aegean and the Ionian Sea and numerous islands, among which is that of Rhodes. The terrain is mountainous and has a Mediterranean climate with hot dry summers. It is essentially an agricultural country (vines, olive trees, tobacco, wheat, barley). In the mountains, where there is poor soil, sheep and goats are raised. The breeding of saltwater fish is being developed. It produces lignite, bauxite, nickel and asbestos. Its traditional manufacturing industries are of food, beverages, clothing, leather and paper. Other important industries include cement, chemical, petrochemical and metallurgy.


   2. Answer by indicating to which country the statement refers to: Slovenia, Serbia or Greece.

It does not have access to the sea

 

It is the most populated country

 

83% of its population is catholic

 

The capital is Athens

 

It became independent in 1991

 

It is the largest country

 

The capital is Belgrade

 

It is located between the Aegean and Ionian Sea

 

It has the Julian Alps

 

It developed a great civilization

 

It has the highest GDP per capita

 

   3. Indicate the capital of each of the following countries:

Portugal

 

Greece

 

Italy

 

Serbia

 

Spain

 

Slovenia

 

    4. Otros países de Europa occidental:

Country Population Extension, km2 Capital Currency Language
Albania 3.207.639 28.750 Tirana Lek Albanian, Tosk
Andorra 74.725 468 Andorra la Vella Euro Catalan
Bosnia Herzegovina 3.940 51.210 Sarajevo Convertible mark Bosnian, Serbian, Croatian
Croatia 4.550.273 56.540 Zagreb Croatian Kuna Serbian-Croatian
Macedonia 2.039.960 25.710 Skopje Denar Macedonian, Albanian
Malta 400.212 320 Valleta Euro Maltese, English
Montenegro 597.851 14.026 Podgorica Euro Serbian
San Marino 31.126 60 San Marino Euro Italian
Vatican 784 0,44 Vatican City Euro Italian, Latin


 
If you are registered, please enter your data
 
Name:

Password:

 

Registration Information

 | Educational applications | Geography |
  In Spanish  |   Interactive | Google Map |

®Arturo Ramo García.-Record of intellectual property of Teruel (Spain) No 141, of 29-IX-1999
Plaza Playa de Aro, 3, 1º DO 44002-TERUEL