Comida, cultura, lengua y viajes — Food, culture, language, and travel!

I can remember before I first came to Spain in 2010, it was difficult to wrap my head around the intimidating geography of a foreign country. The idea of autonomous communities, exclaves, and territorial disputes were completely unfamiliar to me. However, after spending time traveling through Spain, learning more about its people and watching the news, I became more aware of the uniqueness of the Spanish landscape, and what's behind it.

Here's a brief overview with some pictures in plain English about Spain's geography:

The Kingdom of Spain (above in dark green) is located on the Iberian Peninsula, which it shares with Portugal and Andorra. It is physically separated from the south of France and Andorra by the Pyrenees Mountains.

Off of the Peninsula, Spain has two primary sets of islands: the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands. The Canary Islands mark the southwestern boundary of the European Union, and are composed of seventeen islands. The largest island, Tenerife, is home to Spain's tallest mountain, El Teide (~12,200 ft./ 3,718 m.). The Baleric Islands, Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza, and Formentera, are very popular tourist destinations, and are known for their caribbean-like beaches, and an electric summer nightlife (Ibiza in particular).

Along the northern coast of Morocco, Spain has two exclave cities, Ceuta and Melilla, a small rock-fortress named Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera, and several small islands dotted along the coast [noted as "(Esp.)" in the following image]. Below is a short blurb about Ceuta and Melilla, and the dispute over their possession between Spain and Morocco (it makes mention of Gibraltar, which I will touch upon later):

"Since 1995, Ceuta is, along with Melilla, one of the two autonomous cities of Spain. The government of Morocco has repeatedly called for Spain to transfer the sovereignty of Ceuta and Melilla, along with uninhabited islets such as the islands of Alhucemas, Velez and the Perejil island, drawing comparisons with Spain's territorial claim to Gibraltar. In both cases, the national governments and local populations of the disputed territories reject these claims by a large majority. The Spanish position states that both Ceuta and Melilla are integral parts of the Spanish state, and have been since the 16th century, centuries prior to Morocco's independence from France in 1956, whereas Gibraltar, being a British Overseas Territory, is not and never has been part of the United Kingdom. Furthermore, Ceuta has been under Christian rule (Spanish or Portuguese) for a longer period than major cities in peninsular Spain such as Málaga, Granada or Almería, and has been so since before the creation of the Spanish state in 1475. Morocco denies these claims and maintains that the Spanish presence in Ceuta and the other 'presidios' on its coast is a remnant of the colonial past which should be ended. However, the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories do not consider those Spanish territories to be colonies, whereas it does declare Gibraltar as a non-decolonized territory."2

The following is a view of the Strait of Gibraltar facing east, which is the geographical divide between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. Tarifa, the city that is home to the southernmost point of continental Europe (and peninsular Spain) is a mere 8 miles (13 kilometers) from the coast of Africa (Morocco).


Both Gibraltar and Ceuta have their international borders drawn loosely on the map. Well, we already covered Ceuta, but what about Gibraltar? To make a long story short, Gibraltar was once a part of Spanish territory, however "an Anglo-Dutch force captured Gibraltar from the Kingdom of Castile in 1704 during the War of the Spanish Succession [...] The territory was subsequently ceded to Britain 'in perpetuity' under the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. [...] The sovereignty of Gibraltar is a major point of contention in Anglo-Spanish relations as Spain asserts a claim to the territory. Gibraltarians rejected proposals for Spanish sovereignty in a 1967 referendum and again in 2002. Under the Gibraltar constitution of 2006, Gibraltar governs its own affairs, though some powers, such as defense and foreign relations, remain the responsibility of the UK Government."5  So, Gibraltar is to Spain as Ceuta and Melilla are to Morocco: cities separated by international borders, and whose possession is disputed by sovereign nations... a far cry from the type of geography lessons some of us are accustomed to!

Back to the Iberian Peninsula, the autonomous communities of Spain (seen below) are the second level of government under the Spanish Constitution, and are best analogized as the states within the United States. These communities were created in 1978 with the goal of guaranteeing the autonomy of the different nationalities and regions within the country. There are currently seventeen autonomous communities and two autonomous cities (do you remember which two?).

Spain is further divided into fifty provinces (below), which today serve as electoral districts for national elections and as geographical references (mailing addresses, telephone codes, etc.) These can be thought of as the counties within states in the U.S.

There remains one final — and important — topic that has helped shape Spain historically, and continues to be a major sense of identity for the Spanish people today. Below is a map of the linguistic regions and sub-regions of the distinct varieties of Castellano, and many unofficial languages inbetween that one may come across in Spain, including the "Silb Gomero" language, which is whistled in the mountains and valleys of the Canary Islands:

"Silbo Gomero (Spanish for 'Gomeran Whistle'), also known as "el silbo" ('the whistle'), is a whistled language spoken by inhabitants of La Gomera in the Canary Islands to communicate across the deep ravines and narrow valleys (gullies) that radiate through the island. A speaker of Silbo Gomero is sometimes referred to in Spanish as a "silbador" ('whistler'). It was declared as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2009."10

As you can see, Spain has many linguistic regions based on the languages spoken in distinct areas of the country. While Castilian (Castellano) is the de facto language, there are a multitude of linguistic varieties all over the Peninsula. There are even different accents within the "standard" Castellano (Seseo/Ceceo). Furthermore, due to the strong correlation between language and cultural identity, many people who speak more than one dialect or linguistic variety may consider being Spanish as a secondary identity. Such differences in cultural identification have taken the forefront in certain areas of Spain, for example, in Catalonia (Cataluña). So strong is their cultural identity, that a "relatively large sector of the population supports the ideas and policies of Catalan nationalism, a political movement which defends the notion that Catalonia is a separate nation and advocates for either further political autonomy or full independence of Catalonia."8 The Basque region of Spain is another well-known region that is culturally unique enough that some wish to seek independence from the Spanish state. There is, however, a darker side associated with the movement, propagated by few and not condoned by many, which, up until a 2011 ceasefire, sought to achieve independence from Spain through domestic terrorism through an armed Basque nationalist and separatist organization called ETA. One can only hope that the ceasefire remains a permanent end to violence, and that political separatist movements remain constructive and peaceful in their efforts to raise awareness for their cause.

I hope you have enjoyed learning more about the fascinating geography of Spain, as much as I have enjoyed recounting the many reasons that make Spain one of the most interesting and most diverse countries in Europe.

¡Hasta Luego! — Until next time!

Patrick

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