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Portugal

Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is located in

the west and southwest parts of the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern
Europe, and is the westernmost country in continental Europe. Portugal is
bordered by Spain to the north and east and by the Atlantic Ocean to the
west and south. In addition, Portugal includes two archipelagos in the
Atlantic, Azores (Açores) and Madeira Islands.
Portugal has witnessed a constant flow of different civilizations during
the past 3,100 years. Iberian, Tartessian, Celtic, Phoenician and
Carthaginian, Greek, Roman, Germanic (Suevi and Visigoth), Semitic
(Arabic, Jewish, etc.), Moorish and other cultures have all made an
imprint on the country's culture, history, language and ethnic make up.
The naming of Portugal itself reveals most of the country's early history,
stemming from the Roman name Portus Cale, possibly a Latin name mixed with
other influences, meaning "Beautiful Port". During the 15th and 16th
centuries, Portugal was a major economic, political, and cultural power,
its empire stretching from Brazil to the Indies.

History

Lusitania

In the early first millennium BC, several waves of Celts invaded Portugal
from Central Europe and intermarried with local peoples, the Iberians,
forming the Celt-Iberians. Early Greek explorers named the region
"Ophiussa" (Greek for "land of serpents") because the natives worshipped
serpents. In 238 BC, the Carthaginians occupied the Iberian coasts. In
this period several small tribes occupied the territory, the main tribes
were the Lusitanians, who lived between the Douro and Tagus rivers, and
the Callaeci who lived north of the Douro river among some other tribes.
The Cynetes or Conii, influenced by Tartessos, were long established in
Algarve. The Celtici, a later wave of Celts, settled in Alentejo.
In 219 BC, the first Roman troops invaded the Iberian Peninsula, driving
the Carthaginians out in the Punic Wars. The Roman conquest of Portugal
started from the south, where they found friendly natives, the Conii. Over
decades, the Romans increased their sphere of control. But in 194 BC a
rebellion began in the north, the Lusitanians successfully held off the
Romans, took back land and ransacked Conistorgis, the Conii capital,
because of their alliance with Rome. Viriathus, the Lusitanian leader,
drove the Roman forces out.Viriathus was born in Lorica,todays Loriga,in
Portugal. Rome sent numerous legions, but success was only achieved by
bribing Lusitanian officials to kill their own leader. During this period,
a process of Romanization was carried out.

The kingdom

In the 5th century, Germanic tribes, most notably the Suevi and the
Visigoths, invaded the Iberian peninsula, set up kingdoms, and became
assimilated in the Roman culture of the peninsula.
An Islamic invasion took place in 711. Many of the ousted nobles took
refuge in the unconquered north Asturian highlands. From there they aimed
to reconquer their lands from the Moors. In 868, Count Vímara Peres
reconquered and governed the region between the Minho and Douro rivers.
The county became known as Portucale (i.e. Portugal), due to its most
important city, Portucale (today's Porto) and founded a villa with his
name - Vimaranes (today's Guimarães) where he chose to live.
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While a dependency of the Kingdom of León, Portugal occasionally gained de
facto independence during weak Leonese reigns, but it lost its autonomy in
1071 due to one of these attempts, ending the rule of the counts of the
House of Vímara Peres. Then 20 years later, Count Henry from Burgundy was
appointed Count of Portugal as a payment for military services to León,
and with the purpose of expanding the territory southwards. The Portuguese
territory included only what is now northern Portugal, with its capital in
Guimarães.
Henry died and his son, Afonso Henriques took control of the county. The
city of Braga, the Catholic centre of the Iberian Peninsula, faced new
competition from other regions. The lords of the cities of Coimbra and
Porto, together with the clergy of Braga, demanded the independence of the
county.
Portugal traces its emergence as a nation to 24 June 1128, with the Battle
of São Mamede by Afonso I of the House of Burgundy. On 5 October 1143
Portugal was formally recognized. Afonso, aided by the Templar Knights,
continued to conquer southern lands from the Moors. In 1250 the Portuguese
Reconquista ended when it reached the southern coast of Algarve.
In an era of several wars when Portugal and Castile tried to control one
another, King Ferdinand was dying with no male heirs. His only child, a
single daughter, married King John I of Castile who would therefore be the
King of Portugal after Fernando's death. However, the impending loss of
independence to Castile was not accepted by the majority of the Portuguese
nobility, which led to the 1383-1385 Crisis. A faction led by John of Aviz
(later John I), with the help of Nuno Álvares Pereira, finally defeated
the Castilians and their Portuguese supporters in the most historic battle
of Portugal, the Battle of Aljubarrota. The victorious John was then
acclaimed as king by the Portuguese people.
The black death reached Portugal at that time

The Portuguese discoveries

In the following decades, Portugal created the conditions that would make
it the pioneer in the exploration of the world. The Portuguese middle
class who had supported and helped the victorious King suddenly rose up in
the social ranks of Portugal, creating a new dynamic generation which
allowed the discoveries to proceed. On 25 July 1415, the Portuguese Empire
began when a Portuguese fleet led by King John I departed to besiege and
conquer Ceuta in North Africa, a rich Islamic trade centre. On 21 August
the city fell.
In 1418 two captains of Prince Henry the Navigator, were driven by a storm
to an island which they called Porto Santo, or Holy Port, in gratitude for
their rescue from the shipwreck. Also in early 15th century, Madeira
Island and the Azorean islands were discovered. Henry the Navigator's
interest in exploration, together with some technological developments in
navigation made Portugal's expansion possible and led to great advances in
geographic knowledge.
In 1434, Gil Eanes rounded Cape Bojador, south of Morocco. The trip marked
the beginning of the Portuguese exploration of Africa. At the end of the
13th and the beginning of the 14th centuries, those who tried to venture
there became lost, giving birth to legends of sea monsters. Fourteen years
later, on a small island known as Arguim off the coast of Mauritania a
castle was built, working as a a trading post for commerce with inland
Africa. Some time later, the caravels, a ship that the Portuguese invented
to help with the explorations, explored the Gulf of Guinea, leading to the
discovery of several uninhabited islands and reaching the Congo River.
After the Portuguese reached India, they made many discoveries, leading to
economic prosperity. However, the Portuguese population in the entire
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kingdom numbered only about one million. Hence, many discoveries were
being made, but there were not enough people to settle the colonies. So,
to protect the colonies and the trade routes Portugal kept a high level of
secrecy. This policy has proven frustrating for historians, as some areas
may have been discovered before the commonly held dates. It has even been
alleged that the Portuguese may have known of the Americas before the
voyage of Columbus. Some experts claim that Colombus was in fact
Portuguese, while others forward the hypothesis that he was not only
Portuguese but a "double agent" trying to keep the Spanish out of the
Indian trade routes.
A remarkable achievement was the rounding of the Cape of Good Hope by
Bartholomeu Dias in 1487. By then the spices of India were nearby, hence
the name of the cape. In the last decade of the 15th century, Pêro de
Barcelos and João Fernandes Lavrador explored North America , Pêro da
Covilhã reached Ethiopia, searching for the mythical kingdom of Prester
John, and Vasco da Gama sailed to India. In 1500, Pedro Álvares Cabral
landed on the Brazilian coast. Ten years later, Afonso de Albuquerque
conquered Goa,Damão and Diu, in India, Adem in the Persian Straight, and
Melaka in modern day Malaysia as to ensure Portuguese dominion of the
commerce in the Indian Ocean.
In 1578, the young King Sebastian decided to enlarge Portuguese
possessions in northern Africa and, despite having no son and heir to the
throne, decided to go into battle personally, where he was slain. Because
Philip II of Spain was the son of a Portuguese princess, he became Philip
I of Portugal in 1581. Portugal formally maintained its independent law,
currency, colonies, and government, under a personal union between
Portugal and Spain. New empires had emerged and started to assault the
Portuguese Empire. The third Habsburg king, Philip III tried to further
enforce integration, openly attacking the Portuguese nobility that was not
in his favour. In 1 December 1640, the Duke of Bragança, of the Portuguese
Royal Family, John IV, was acclaimed after a revolutionary turmoil, and a
Restoration War was fought for a few more years.

Bragança Dynasty

The 1755 Lisbon earthquake and tsunami, which killed more than a third of
the capital's population and devastated the Algarve as well, had a
profound effect on domestic politics and on European philosophical
thought. From 1801, the country was occupied during the Napoleonic Wars.
In 1807, the Portuguese Court fled to Brazil. Shortly after, Brazil
proclaimed its independence, under the rule of the Portuguese King Pedro
IV (Emperor Pedro I of Brazil), who abdicated from the Portuguese Crown
and left his daughter D. Maria II as Queen in a liberal regime.
Portuguese 19th Century is marked by the Liberalism. The divisions between
king Pedro IV - liberal - and his brother, King Miguel, a conservative who
overthrew Queen Maria II, led to the civil war between 1832 and 1834 and
the signing of the new constitution in 1836. The political and social
evolution in the late 19th century was marked by instability.

The republics

In 1910 a republican revolution deposed the Portuguese monarchy starting

the First Republic. Political chaos, strikes, harsh relations with the
Catholic Church, and considerable economic problems aggravated by a
disastrous military intervention in the First World War led to a military
coup d'état on May 28 of 1926, later, the military administration changed
into the New State in 1933, led by António de Oliveira Salazar, a
right-wing dictatorship. The regime dominated the country during the
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following decades, helped by a strong political police, the PIDE. In the
early 1960s, independence movements became active in the colonies of
Angola, Mozambique and Portuguese Guinea, starting the colonial wars.
The burden of the many colonial overseas wars and the lack of political
and civil freedoms led to the end of the regime after the Carnation
Revolution in April 25 of 1974, a bloodless left-wing military coup that
created a democratic regime. In 1975, Portugal had its first free
elections since 1926 and granted independence to its colonies in Africa.
During the post-revolutionary period, the left-wing promoted several
changes, such as the nationalisation of the key sectors of the economy and
the creation of a social welfare net. In 1976, a democratic Constitution,
that remains until today, was approved.
Immediately after the revolution, the EEC membership became an objective
of the governments, this was achieved in 1986, since then, Portugal
started a process of economic convergence, nonetheless, the country
remains one of the least developed in the EU.
In 1999, the Asian dependency of Macau, was returned to Chinese
sovereignty, a process considered a success by China and Portugal, marking
the end of the Portuguese colonial rule.

Government and politics

Portugal is a democratic republic. The four main organs of Portuguese

politics are the President of the Republic, the Assembly of the Republic,
the Government, and the Courts. The Constitution grants the complete
separation between these powers.
The President of the Republic, elected to a 5-year term by universal
suffrage is also commander in chief of the armed forces. Presidential
powers include appointing the Prime Minister, as advised by the Parliament
which elects the Prime Minister, and the Council of Ministers, named by
the Prime Minister. Some other major powers include dismissing the
Government, dissolving the Parliament, and declaring war or peace. These
have several constitutional restrictions, namely the need to consult the
presidential advisory body. This is the Council of State, composed of six
senior civilian officers, all former presidents elected since 1976, and
ten citizens, five chosen by the President and the other five by the
Parliament. The most commonly used power is that of approving or vetoing
any legislation.
The Parliament, or Assembly of the Republic (Assembleia da República in
Portuguese) is a unicameral body composed of 230 deputies. It is elected
by universal suffrage, and the seats are allocated using the d'Hondt
method in 22 constituencies that elect a number of deputies proportional
to the respective population, 18 for each District, 1 for Madeira, 1 for
Azores and 2 for the diaspora, on Europe and outside Europe. Deputies
serve terms of office of 4 years.
The Assembly of the Republic, along with the government, holds the
legislative power and the government support lies upon it. The General
Budget and the Program of the Government must be approved by a majority of
the deputies, otherwise the government falls. The Assembly may also let
the government fall by approving a motion of no confidence. The President
of Parliament substitutes for the President of the Republic in the event
of his absence.
The Government is headed by the Prime Minister, who names the Council of
Ministers.
The Courts have several categories, including judicial, administrative and
fiscal. The national Supreme Court is the court of last appeal. A
nine-member Constitutional Court reviews the constitutionality of
legislation.
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The national and regional governments are dominated by two political
parties, the PS, a Social Democratic party, that resembles the British
Labour or the German SPD, and the PSD, a conservative party, member of the
European People's Party, both with similar base politics: pro-European,
and focusing on market economy. Other parties with seats in the parliament
are the Portuguese Communist Party, the People's Party, the Leftwing Bloc
and the Green Party. The Communists and the Greens are in coalition as the
Unitarian Democratic Coalition. As of 2005, José Sócrates is the prime
minister for the Socialists, and the party also has an absolute majority
in the parliament with 121 MPs, the Social Democratic Party holds 75 MPs,
the Communist Party 12 MPs, the People's Party 12 MPs, the Leftwing Bloc 8
MPs and the Green party 2 MPs.
Portuguese public opinion and media tend to be Europhile. In the
EuroBarometer's 2004 Spring survey, 60% of the Portuguese said they
trusted the European Union.
Abortion law is restrictive, allowing for legal abortion under some
circumstances, such as rape or a life-threatening situation for the mother
or the fetus. In a referendum held in 1998 proposing almost free abortion
until 12 weeks of gestation, the results were 51% against, 49% in favour.
However, the turnout of this election was a scant 31% of the population. A
new referendum is promised to be held soon. Possessing small doses of
drugs for personal use is not a crime in Portugal, but it can be seen as a
cause for civil disorder. Handing out or producing drugs is considered a
crime. Gay rights are also upcoming as the sexual orientation is now
protected by the Portuguese Constitution following EU's directives, and
gay couples can form civil unions.

Foreign relations and military

Foreign relations are essential to Portugal. The Anglo-Portuguese

Alliance, an alliance dating from 1294, has been retained throughout its
history, making it the oldest alliance still in force in the world. This
English–Portuguese alliance was renewed in 1386 with the Treaty of
Windsor. The treaty established a pact of mutual support between the
countries. This alliance was used in the successive expulsion of the
Spanish kings and broke England's isolation from continental Europe during
Napoleon's era. The alliance is kept through NATO, a military organization
in which both countries are founders along with 10 other countries
including the United States of America. Beyond the EU, the country has
established a community with its former colonies, the CPLP, and today has
very close and prosperous relations with all of them, including close
relations with Cape Verde and East Timor. It has a friendship alliance and
a dual citizenship treaty with Brazil. The new government has also
prioritized relations with neighbouring Spain. It also has very good
relations with China, due to Macau, a meeting-point of both nations, and
century-old diplomatic ties with Morocco.
Portugal considers Olivença (Olivenza in Spanish, administrated by Spain)
Portuguese territory de jure, based on agreements of both nations in the
Vienna Treaty of 1815 , but there are not strong diplomatic actions to
take it back. Yet, this issue has been discussed at the Portuguese
Parliament as recently as 2004.
The Portuguese Armed Forces are divided into three branches: Army, Navy,
and Air Force. In the 20th century, Portugal engaged in two major military
interventions, namely the 1st World War and the colonial wars between 1961
and 1974.This colonial war was harsh and lead to civil society of the time
to dislike even more of the Estado Novo, in fact, the discontent with this
war can be traced as one of the major causes of the regime´s fall in 1974
with the Carnation Revolution, initiated by militars. Portugal has
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participated in several peacekeeping missions abroad, namely in East
Timor, Bosnia, and Kosovo. During the Durão Barroso government the Armed
Forces were fully professionalized and obligatory military service was
abolished in 2003. There were and still are small elite units of
Portuguese armed forces involved in Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts.
Involvement in the war in Iraq is not seen positively by many Portuguese.

Subdivisions

Portugal has an administrative structure based on 308 municipalities

(concelho - singular, concelhos - plural), which are subdivided into more
than 4,000 parishes (freguesias, singular - freguesia). Municipalities are
grouped for administrative purposes into superior units, the most
significant being the classification since 1976, into either mainland
(Portugal continental) or insular (Portugal insular) territory. The later
enjoy a specific administrative and fiscal framework as Autonomous Regions
(regiões autónomas, singular - região autónoma), the Azores and Madeira
Islands.
There are five regions (regiões, singular - região) in mainland Portugal,
and 28 subregions (subregiões, singular - subregião). This are the modern
official territorial units in accordance with the Nomenclature of
Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS), in use today by the Instituto
Nacional de Estatística and Eurostat, and officially recognised by the
European Union. The regions are:
Alentejo
Algarve
Centro
Lisboa, Region
Norte
The districts (distritos, singular - distrito), are obsolescent
administrative subdivisions that however remain in use for very many
purposes, from electoral circles to public education and health care,
welfare and even league sports.
A referendum held in 1997 to institute higher-level regional
administrative units but failed to achieve the needed majority.
Notwithstanding, larger territorial units have been created by the
initiative of groups of municipalities to answer the need for
supra-municipal coordination especially in heavily urbanised areas.
Portugal
There are three types of Urban areas:
Grandes Áreas Metropolitanas - Greater Metropolitan Areas (more than
350,000 inhabitants)
Lisbon - 2,547,665
Porto - 1,509,958
Braga, Minho - 754,830
Aveiro - 460,157
Coimbra - 430,845
Faro, Algarve - 391,819
Viseu - 354,162
Comunidades Urbanas - Urban Communities (more than 150,000 inhabitants)
Oeste, Vale do Sousa, Leiria, Lezíria do Tejo, Baixo Alentejo,
Trás-os-Montes, Centro Alentejo, Baixo Tâmega, Douro, Médio Tejo, Beiras,
Beira Interior Sul, and Alto Alentejo;
Comunidades Intermunicipais - Intermunicipal Communities (less than
150,000 inhabitants)
Pinhal and Vale do Minho.
Ad hoc geographic amalgamations also exist to answer the needs of specific
economic sectors (e.g. tourist regions) or branches of the state (e.g.
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judicial areas), while historical or cultural subdivisions continue to be
informally referenced such as the provinces (províncias, singular -
província): Alentejo, Algarve, Beira, Douro Litoral, Estremadura, Minho,
Ribatejo, and Trás-os-Montes.

Geography and climate

Continental Portugal is split in two by its main river, the Tagus (Tejo).
Northern landscape is mountainous in the interior areas with plateaus, cut
by four breaking lines that allow the development of relevant agricultural
areas. The South area between the Tejo and the Algarve (the Alentejo)
features mostly rolling plains with a climate somewhat warmer and drier
than the cooler and rainier north. The Algarve, separated from the
Alentejo by mountains, enjoys a Mediterranean climate comparable with
Morocco or Southern Spain, and is the southwesternmost tip of Europe
(Sagres). Other major rivers include the Douro, the Minho and the
Guadiana, similar to the Tagus in that all originate in Spain.
Another important river, the Mondego, originates in the Serra da Estrela
(the highest mountains in mainland Portugal - 1,993 m / 6,532 ft).
The islands of the Azores and Madeira are located in the Mid-Atlantic
Ridge, some of the islands have had recent volcanic activity. Originally
two islands, São Miguel Island was joined by a volcanic eruption in 1563.
The last volcano to erupt was the Vulcão dos Capelinhos (Capelinhos
Volcano) in 1957, in the Western part of Faial Island, increasing the size
of that island. Dom João de Castro Bank is a large submarine volcano that
lies midway between the islands of Terceira and São Miguel and rises to 14
metres (46 ft) under the sea surface. It last erupted in 1720 and formed
an island that remained over the water for several years. A new island may
be formed in a not so distant future. Portugal's highest point is Mount
Pico in Pico Island, an ancient volcano, at 2,351 metres (7,713 ft).
The Portuguese coast is extensive, it has 943 kilometres (586 mi) for
continental Portugal, 667 kilometres (414 mi) for the Azores, 250
kilometres (155 mi) for Madeira and the Savage Islands . The coast has
fine beaches, the Algarve ones being world famous. In Porto Santo Island,
a dune formation appeals to many tourists. An important feature on its
coast is the Ria de Aveiro (near Aveiro), a delta 45 kilometres (28 mi) in
length and a maximum of 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) in width, rich in fish and
sea birds. There are four main channels, between them several islands and
islets, and it is where four rivers meet the ocean. A sort of narrow
headlands formed a lagoon, seen as one of the most remarkable hydrographic
features of the Portuguese coast. Portugal possesses one of the largest
exclusive economic zones (EEZ) in Europe, covering 1,727,408 square
kilometres (666,956 sq mi).
Portugal is one of the warmest European countries. In mainland Portugal,
yearly temperature averages are about 15ºC (55°F) in the north and 18ºC
(64°F) in the south. Madeira and Azores have a narrower temperature range
as expected given their insularity, with the former having low
precipitation in most of the archipelago and the latter being wet and
rainy. Spring and Summer months are usually sunny and temperature maximum
are very high during July and August, with maximums averaging between 35°C
and 40°C (86°F - 95°F) in the interior of the country, 30ºC and 35ºC in
the north, and occasionally reaching 45°C (113°F) in the south. Autumn and
Winter are typically rainy and windy, yet sunny days are not rare either.
Temperatures rarely fall below 5°C (41°F) nearer to the sea, averaging
10°C (50°F), but can reach several degrees below 0°C (32°F) further
inland. Snow is common in the mountainous areas of the north, especially
in Serra da Estrela. Portugal's climate can be classified as Mediterranean
(particularly the Algarve and Alentejo, though technically on Atlantic
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shore).

Flora and fauna

Human activity, diversity of climate, and geographical diversity have

shaped the Portuguese flora. There are almost 2,800 autochthonous species.
For economic reasons, pine trees (especially the Pinus pinaster and Pinus
pinea species), the chestnut tree and the eucalyptus are very widespread.
The Peneda-Gerês National Park (mostly known as Gerês) is located in the
extreme north-west of Portugal. The park has a wide variety of oaken and
mixed forests, groves, peat bogs, and diverse bushes, including
autochthonous and rare species. It is one of the last Iberian harbours of
wolves, garranos, golden eagles, vultures and honey buzzards amongst many
others. The iberian lynx, an endemic specie, once common is almost extinct
in Portuguese terrority and only few survive in Spain. Boars are common in
Alentejo and Trás-os-Montes. The Natural parks of Serra da Estrela, with
its broad valleys and turf soils and the Arrábida with its Mediterranean
character and the sand varieties of its beaches unveil the ecological
variety of Portugal.
The Tapada Nacional de Mafra is conspicuous, due to its rich flora and
fauna.
The Tapada was created in the reign of King John V for royal delight, in
an area of 8 square kilometres with deer, wild boars, foxes, birds of prey
and several other species. Today, the Tapada is classified as an area of
national hunting (Zona de Caça Nacional).
A large part of Portugal is covered by forest. In the last years, during
the hot and dry Summer months, large areas of forest are destroyed by
fires, many of which (an estimated 40% in 2004) caused by arson. In 2005
this problem was aggravated by a severe drought affecting Mainland
Portugal. In the year to September 2005, three quarters of Mainland
Portugal saw less than half the normal rainfall, and the remaining quarter
less than 60%.
Mixing of cold and warm ocean streams has attracted a wide variety of
fish, also allowing development of a great number of seaweeds. These were
a focus of famous research by french phycologist Françoise Ardré.
Economy
Portugal is a market economy with its per capita output now standing at
72% of the European Union average. It is a country with a relatively wide
income distribution and a large low-wage sector. Comparing with other EU
Member States, there is a high incidence of working poverty, especially
among single-earner couples. As of May 2006, over 429,000 people were
unemployed in Portugal, that means an unemployment rate of 7,7%.
Portugal's minimum wage per year is 5,592 US dollars, when in neighbouring
Spain is 8,072, in Brazil 1,725 and in the USA 10,712 .
Industrialisation boomed in the 1950s with Salazar's regime, leading to an
average of 6% annual growth of the GDP between 1959 and 1963, 7% between
1965 and 1967, after dropping to 5.2% in 1964. Due to international
crisis, the growth largely stopped. Since 1985, the country started its
modernization in a very stable environment (1985 - to the present day) and
it joined the European Economic Community in 1986. Successive governments
have implemented various reforms and privatised many state-controlled
firms and liberalised key areas of the economy, including the financial
and telecommunications sectors.
Portugal developed an increasingly service-based economy and it was one of
the eleven founding countries of the Euro in 1999, with very restrictive
criteria, and began circulating the new currency on January 1, 2002 along
with eleven other EU members.
A Labour Law published in December 2003 increased the flexibility of
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working arrangements, although it has yet to prove its role in decreasing
unemployment, especially among the youngest and the oldest of working-age
population. The current administration is committed to expand market
liberalisation, privatisation, and deregulation of the economy and
simplifying the admistrative burden on companies. It is also committed to
promote investment in research and information technologies to improve
productivity and competitiveness.
A considerable part of continental Portugal is dedicated to agriculture,
although it does not represent most of the economy. The south has
developed an extensive monoculture of cereals and olive trees and the
Douro Valley in vineyards. Olive trees (4,000 km²; 1,545 sq mi), vineyards
(3,750 km²; 1,450 sq mi), wheat (3,000 km²; 1,160 sq mi) and maize (2,680
km²; 1,035 sq mi) are produced in vast areas. Portuguese wine and olive
oil are especially praised by nationals for their quality, thus external
competition (even at much lower prices) has had little effect on consumer
demand, a situation that does not occur with other products. Portugal is a
traditional wine grower, and has exported its wines since the dawn of
western civilization; Port Wine and Vinho Verde (Green Wine) are the
leading exporters. Portugal is also a quality producer of fruits, namely
the Algarve oranges and Oeste region's Pera Rocha (a type of pear). Other
exports are horticulture, floriculture, beet sugar, sunflower oil, and
tobacco.
Natural resources such as copses cover about 34% of the country, namely
pine trees (13,500 km²; 5,200 sq mi), cork oak (6,800 km²; 2,625 sq mi),
holm oak (5,340 km²; 2,060 sq mi), and eucalyptus (2,430 km²; 940 sq mi).
The large-scale growing of eucalyptus for the paper and woodchip
industries has been controversial, as eucalyptus trees have very deep
roots, and lead to a lowering of the water table. This has been a
contributory factor in the high rate of arson, as failing farmers vent
their frustrations. Cork is a major export, Portugal produces half of the
world's cork. Significant mining resources are tungsten, tin, and uranium.
The major industries are the textile, footwear, leather, furniture,
ceramics, and cork. Modern industries have developed significantly,
including: oil refineries, petrochemistry, cement production, automotive
and ship industries, electrical and electronics industries, machinery and
paper industries. Portugal has an ambitious and well-planned complex of
petrochemical industries in Sines where the biggest oil refinery of the
Iberian peninsula will be built. Automotive and other mechanical
industries are located in Setúbal, Porto, Aveiro, Braga, Santarém, and
Azambuja.
Portugal's balance of trade is negative. It buys mostly in the European
Union from: Spain, Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom. It also
sells most of its products within the union to: Germany, Spain, and France
mostly.
Portugal is trying to develop a cultural and rustic tourism, rather than
only beach tourism, in order to attract more affluent tourists often
concerned in getting to know the real Portugal. The interior of the nation
has a decreasing population, but exceptional touristic potential. The
Algarve, with its different beaches has been the primary attraction for
decades, but it has suffered from mass tourism, and the authorities have
been working to recover the 1960's Algarve, namely recovering the coast
and demolishing illegal urbanizations. Mass tourism has caused some
ecological damage in the Algarve, for example water shortages. The Lisbon
area has recently become a very popular destination, mostly due to the
city of Lisbon urban historical attractions, but also due to Sintra's
fabled palaces and castles located in very romantic and exotic scenery.
The island territories of Madeira and the Azores also have a growing
potential.
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Energy, transportation and communications

As of 2006, 55% of Portuguese energy production is made by coal and fuel

powerplants. The other 40% is produced by hydroelectrics and 5% by wind
energy (an increasing focus over the last few years). Portugal is still
highly dependent on oil production and it´s inconstant prices. Debate on
nuclear energy use has recently been brought to the public but has brought
little enthusiasm. Although, like other EU countries Portugal is involved
in the Joint European Torus project. Recently, the construction of a new
high-capacity oil refinery has also been announced.
Transportation was seen as a priority in the 1990s, pushed by the growing
use of automobiles and industrialization. The country has a 68,732
kilometres (42,708 mi) network of highways. Almost 2,000 kilometres (1,240
mi) is the total length of 44 freeways that connect most of the country.
Seaports are important due to Portugal's large coastline, and its
strategic position in Europe and in the Atlantic ocean. The main seaports
are Lisbon in the centre, Leixões (Porto) in the North, Setúbal and Sines
in the south, Funchal and Ponta Delgada in the Atlantic. The most
important airports are those of Lisbon, Faro and Porto, these last two had
extensive development recently. There are also important airports in the
islands, such as the intercontinental airport of Madeira (Funchal, Madeira
Island), Porto Santo (Porto Santo Island), and Ponta Delgada (Azores).
The two principal metropolitan areas have subway systems: Lisbon Metro and
Porto Metro, both with more than 35 kilometres (22 mi) of commercial
lines. Both systems are linked by sharing stations with High-speed
Pendolino trains, known as Alfa Pendular, that link both cities. The South
Tagus Metro system is in construction and will connect the urban areas
south of Lisbon. Another metro system for Coimbra is intended.
The Pendolino lines (Alfa pendular) of Comboios de Portugal (CP) links
Braga, Porto, Coimbra, Lisbon and Faro, linking the country in a vertical
way. Intercity and regional trains link these cities with many other
cities throughout the country. Construction of a high-speed TGV line
connecting Porto and Lisbon, and Lisbon with Madrid will begin in 2008.
The line between Porto and Lisbon will have five stations (Porto, Aveiro,
Coimbra, Leiria, Ota New Airport and Lisbon), but the trains in rarely
stop in the intermediary stations. The New Airport for Lisbon will be
built at the same time in Ota.
In the technology area, Portugal has one of the highest mobile phone
possession rates in the world. There have been more mobile phone
subscribers than main line subscribers for several years now. Nowadays,
there are more than 11 million mobile subscribers. Third generation mobile
phones, UMTS, have been largely commercialized by operators since early
2004. The main telecom company is Portugal Telecom (PT), a
telecommunications multinational, it dominates some markets, among them
the national one. In the mobile section, the market is split between three
operators: TMN (PT group), Vodafone, and Optimus (SONAE group).
Strangely, while having such a high mobile phone rate, Portugal has one of
the lowest Internet penetration rates in the EU. More than 8% (4th
quarter, 2004) of the population use high-speed internet services, almost
twice as much as the previous year. 41% of households in Portugal had a
computer in the first quarter of 2004, only 26% of the population had
Internet; an additional 4% also used it. 78% of companies with more than
10 employees had Internet access. Competition between the major broadband
Internet providers of the PT and Clix groups has recently caused large
increases in the available bandwidth provided to home users (from 512
kbit/s and 1 Mbit/s to 2 and 4 Mbit/s), speeds go up to 16 Mbit/s in Clix
(SONAE group) lines and 8 Mbit/s in other companies, most notably PT Group
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cable and ADSL companies, where a 20Mbit/s service is expected to be
launched in late 2005, to compete with the much lower-priced services of
Clix, although PT group is the leader of the market. Main television
broadcasters are the state-run RTP1 and "a 2:" (meaning "the 2:" in port)
and the privately owned SIC and TVI. Most Portuguese see television
through cable (by June 2004: 73.6% of households), where the major
broadcasters have thematic channels.
The main cable company TV Cabo (PT group) is trying to shift all of its
customer's services to digital after an unsuccessful experience with
Interactive TV.
DemographicsPortugal is a fairly homogeneous country linguistically and
religiously. Ethnically, the Portuguese people are a combination of
several ethnicities: pre-Roman Iberian and Celtic tribes with Romans and
Germanic tribes. Moors became a reduced influence, as essentially they
were expelled during the Reconquista. Jews comprised 10% of the population
in the 16th Century until they were forced to move abroad or convert to
Catholicism.
Between 1960 and 1970, more than one million Portuguese emigrated, mostly
to other European countries, resulting in a negative population growth.
Previously, Brazil had been the destination of many, especially since the
18th century. Since mid 1970s major changes started to influence the
country's demographics, the life expectancy went up, the infant mortality
rate and the fertility rate broadly declined and, with the decolonisation,
many Portuguese returned from Africa.
In the 2001 Census, Portugal had 10,356,117 inhabitants (51.7% female).
Currently, there are almost 10.6 million inhabitants. By the end of 2003,
legal immigrants represented 4.2% of the population, and the largest
communities were: Ukrainians (15%), Brazilians (14.8%), Cape Verdeans
(14.4%), and Angolans (7.9%). There are also a significant number of
illegal immigrants, the treatment of those being now becoming increasingly
problematic. Portugal still has 5 million emigrants abroad.
The great majority of the Portuguese population adheres to the Roman
Catholic Church. Religious minorities include a little over 300,000
Protestants. There are also about 50,000 Muslims and 10,000 Hindus (most
of whom came from Goa, a former Portuguese colony). There are also about
1,000 Jews. There are upwards of 34,000 members of The Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Atheists and agnostics are increasing in
number.
Portugal's biggest metropolitan cities are Lisbon, Porto, Braga, Coimbra
and Aveiro. The country is characterized by municipal cultural
differentiation and there is little to no regional differentiation, unlike
what happens in other European countries, resulting from the Roman
municipalism, but mainly from the concelho de vizinhos created possibly
during the Moorish rule as the lands were freed from the Visigothic
nobles, leading the people of a land to organize itself in concelhos.
Portuguese is spoken throughout the country, some of Terra de Miranda's
Mirandese speaking villages being the only linguistic minority.

Education

Portugal's education system is divided into Pré-Escolar (children less

than 6 years old), Ensino Básico (three phases in a total of 9 years),
Ensino Secundário (three years, several areas) and Ensino Superior
(Universities and Colleges grouped into Polytechnic Institutes). Education
is free and compulsory for 9 years of study. A newly undertaken scheme
will make education compulsory until the student becomes an adult (18
years old). The country still has a 6.7% illiteracy rate, almost
exclusively among the elderly.
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The first Portuguese university – The Estudo Geral (General studies,
Today's University of Coimbra) - was created on March 1st, 1290 in Lisbon
with the document Scientiae thesaurus mirabilis by King Denis. The
university was transferred to Coimbra in 1308, though the university moved
several times between the two cities until 1537. In 1559, the University
of Évora was founded in Portugal by Cardinal Henry, future king of
Portugal and Pope Paul IV and it was delivered to the Society of Jesus. In
the 18th century, Sebastião de Melo, Marquis of Pombal closed the
University of Évora, because he wanted to exterminate the Jesuit power in
Portugal and in its empire. He also reformed the University of Coimbra, as
it was divorced from the true exact sciences. The 19th century - the
industrialization era - created the need for new education institutions in
the country, the "industrial studies". In 1837, the Escola Politécnica
(Polytechnic School) in Lisbon and the Academia Politécnica opens. The
rhetorical behaviour of these new institutions led the Prime-Minister of
the Kingdom Fontes Pereira de Melo in 1852 to create the Instituto
Industrial de Lisboa (Institute of Industry, today's IST and ISEL) in
Lisbon and the Escola Industral (School of Industry, today's ISEP) in
Porto. In 1825, the Lisbon Royal School of Surgery and Porto Royal School
of Surgery had also opened.
With the advent of the republic, the polytechnic and surgery schools were
incorporated as faculties into the newly created University of Lisbon and
the University of Porto. The Lisbon Institute of Industry led to the
creation of IST (the Institute of Technology) which was grouped with other
colleges in the Technical University of Lisbon in the 1930s. In the 1960s
the first non-governmental institution opened, the Portuguese Catholic
University.
The 1970s marked a new era in Portugal's higher education with many
universities and polytechnics opening in many cities, such as the
University of Aveiro and the University of Minho in the universitary
subsector, and the Lisbon Polytechnic and Porto Polytechnic in the
polytechnic subsector. Subsequently, several private universities opened.
The Bologna process is in debate to be adopted in near future.

Law

The Portuguese legal system is part of the civil law or continental family
of legal systems. Up to the end of the 19th century French law was the
main influence, but 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). Portuguese law
applied in the former colonies and territories and continues to be the
major influence. This includes for example the legal system of Macau.
CulturePortugal is an ancient nation and through more than 1000 years it
has developed a specific culture while being influenced by the various
civilizations that crossed the Mediterranean world. Thus, it has absorbed
traditions from early civilizations and from regions discovered throughout
the world during the 500 year long Portuguese empire.
An explicit instance of this absorption and adaptation of previous culture
is seen in the countless festivals to pagan local and Roman deities which
were transformed into festivals to Christian saints; only some pagan
festivals have changed little over 2,000 years, due the religious passion
of the Middle Ages and the inquisition.
Portuguese music has a wide variety of genres. The most renowned
Portuguese music is Fado, a melancholic urban music. Fado is usually
associated to the Portuguese guitar and to saudade, a feeling that occurs
when one is in love with someone or something yet apart from him, her, or
it. The style conveys a distinct mixture of sadness, pain, nostalgia,
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happiness and love. Though dilettanti claim that Fado origins are a
mixture of African slave rhythms, traditional music of Portuguese sailors
and Arabic influence, the early written records about fado connect it to
Brazilian modinha in the 19th century. Some of its most internationally
notable performers are Amália Rodrigues, Mariza, Ana Moura, Mísia, Dulce
Pontes, Madredeus, and Cristina Branco.
Currently, mainstream music in Portugal is in a rural and urban duality
where the Portuguese pop-rock and Portuguese hip hop are popular with the
younger and urban population, while pimba (a simple and cheery variety of
pop music) and folklore are more popular in the rural areas.
Portuguese literature is one of the earliest Western literatures, and it
developed as the 13th century arrived, through texts and songs. Until
1350, the Portuguese-Galician troubadours spread their literary influence
to most of the Iberian Peninsula . King Dinis favoured Occitan-inspired
cantigas. Gil Vicente was the author to some transition theatrical pieces
known as autos and is considered as one of the main founders of both
Portuguese and Spanish dramatic traditions. Bernardim Ribeiro and Sá de
Miranda rank among the most eminent Renaissance writers. Adventurer and
poet Luís de Camões (c.1524 - 1580) wrote the epic poem The Lusiads, a
work that he developed during his journeys in Africa and Asia and that has
Virgil's Aeneid as main model.
According to his own account, he was shipwrecked in Cambodia, and saved
himself and his work by floating on a board. Modern Portuguese poetry,
since the 19th century, is essentially rooted in a handful of relevant
poets, ranging from neo-classicism to contemporary styles. One such famous
poet is Fernando Pessoa (1888 – 1935), who wrote poetry in the voice,
style and manner of many fictional poets under a large number of
heteronyms. Modern literature also became internationally known, mostly
through the works of Almeida Garrett, Alexandre Herculano, Camilo Castelo
Branco, Eça de Queirós, Fernando Pessoa, Ferreira de Castro, Sophia de
Mello Breyner Andresen, Herberto Helder, António Lobo Antunes and the 1998
Nobel Prize for literature winner, José Saramago.
Portuguese traditional architecture is distinct precisely due to the
variety of influences it features, with several examples throughout the
world, some of which are classified as world heritage sites. Modern
Portugal has one of the best architecture schools in the world, known as
"Escola do Porto" or School of Porto, renowned by the names of Souto Moura
and Alvaro Siza. Prominent figures in visual arts, known internationally
are the painters Vieira da Silva and Paula Rego.
Since the 90´s Portugal increased the number of cultural facitilies where
art and culture can be apreciatted by a wider public. These include the
Centro Cultural de Belém (CCB) in Lisbon, Fundação Serralves (Serralves
Foundation) and Casa da Música (House of Music) both in Porto. Recently
the announcement that Portuguese state will take care and exhibit
permanently one of the greatest modern and contemporary art collections in
Europe owned by Joe Berardo,a tycoon natural from Madeira, was received
with enthusiasm by artists and cultural agents.
Portugal

Cuisine

Portuguese cuisine is particularly diverse; various recipes of rice,

potatoes, bread, meat, sea-food, and fish are the staple foods in the
country. The Portuguese have a reputation for loving cod dishes (bacalhau
in Portuguese), for which it is said that there are 365 ways (one for each
day of the year) of cooking it: Pastéis de Bacalhau, Bacalhau à Brás and
Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá are some of the most popular ones. The art of
pastry, having its origins in old and rich conventual pastry recipes, is
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very popular across the entire country. Desserts and cakes, such as
Lisbon's Pastéis de Nata (best eaten with a strong coffee), Aveiro's
Ovos-Moles, and many other, are very appreciated. Portugal has its own
adaptation of fast-food; one of the most popular is Porto's Francesinha.
Other recipes include the Feijoada, made with pieces of meat, sausages and
beans served with white and dry rice, the Cozido à Portuguesa, made with
various kinds of meat, rice, potatoes and other vegetables, all boiled,
and the Espetadas.
Portuguese wines have been exported since Roman times. The Romans
associated Portugal with Bacchus, their god of Winery and Feast. Today the
country is known by wine lovers, and its wines had won several
international prizes. Many famous Portuguese wines are known as some of
the world's best: 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 Moscatels of Setúbal and Favaios (Douro). Porto Wine
is widely exported, followed by Vinho Verde. Exports of Vinho Verde are
increasing rapidly, in response to the growing international demand.

Sports and games

Football is the most popular and practised sport in Portugal. As of May

2006, the country was ranked 7th out of 205 countries by FIFA. The
legendary Eusébio is still a symbol of Portuguese football. Luís Figo was
voted 2001 Player of the Year by FIFA, after finishing 2nd in 2000. Rui
Costa and Cristiano Ronaldo are also noteworthy and Vítor Baía is the
player in history with most titles won, including all European club cups.
Moreover, José Mourinho is regarded as one of the most successful and
well-paid football managers in football's history. The main domestic
football competition is the Superliga where the dominating teams are SL
Benfica, FC Porto and Sporting CP. Portugal hosted and nearly won EURO
2004, getting defeated in the final by surprise winner Greece. Many other
professional and well organized sport competitions take place every season
in Portugal, including basketball, futsal, rink hockey, team handball,
volleyball, and rugby championships. Cycling, with Volta a Portugal being
the most important race, and athletics competitions are also popular. In
rink hockey Portugal is the country with most world titles. Golf is also
worth mentioning, since its greatest players play in the sunny region of
the Algarve during the "Algarve Open". The Autódromo Fernanda Pires da
Silva in the Estoril, near Lisbon, is the main Portuguese race track where
many motorsport competitions are held, including the World Motorcycling
Championship and A1 Grand Prix. Rallying (with the Rally of Portugal and
Rally Madeira) and off-road (with the Baja Portugal 1000) events also have
international recognition.
The country has an ancient martial art known as "Jogo do Pau" (Portuguese
Stick Fencing), used for self-protection and for duels between young men
in disputes over young women. Having its origin in the Middle Ages, Jogo
do Pau uses wooden staves as a combat weapon. Other sports are the "Jogos
Populares", a wide variety of traditional sports played for fun.

Festivals and holidays

Festivals play a major role in Portugal's summers. Every city and town has
its own festivals. The June Festivities are very popular. These
festivities are dedicated to three saints known as Santos Populares
(popular saints) and take place all over Portugal. Why the populace
associated the saints with these pagan festivities is not known. The
practice is possibly related to Roman or local deities before Christianity
spread into the region. The three saints are Saint Anthony, Saint John and
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Saint Peter. A common denominator in these festivities are the wine and
água-pé (a watered kind of wine), traditional bread along with sardines,
marriages, traditional street dances, fire, fireworks and celebration.
Saint Anthony is celebrated on the 13th, mainly in Lisbon and Saint John
on the 24th, especially in Porto and Braga, where the sardines, Caldo
Verde (traditional soup in entire Portugal) and plastic hammers to hammer
on other peoples' heads for luck are indispensable. The final saint is
Saint Peter, celebrated on the nights of 28th and 29th, especially in
Póvoa de Varzim and Barcelos, festivities are similar to the others, but
mostly dedicated to the sea and extensive use of fire (fogueiras). In
Póvoa de Varzim, there is the Rusgas in the night, another sort of street
carnival. Each festivity is a municipal holiday in the cities and towns
where it occurs.
Carnival is also widely celebrated in Portugal, some traditional carnivals
date back several centuries. Loulé, Alcobaça, Mealhada and above all Ovar
hold several days of festivities, with parades where social and political
criticism abound, music, dancing in an environment of euphorya. On January
6, Epiphany is celebrated by some families, especially in the North, where
the family gathers to eat "Bolo-Rei" (literally, King Cake, a cake made
with crystalized fruits); this is also the time for the traditional street
songs - "As Janeiras" (The January ones). Saint Martin Day, is celebrated
on November 11. This day is the peak of three days, often with very good
weather, it is known as Verão de São Martinho ("Saint Martin summer"), the
Portuguese celebrate it with jerupiga (a sweet liqueur wine) and roasted
Portuguese chestnuts (castanhas assadas), and it is called Magusto.