Portugal is a country on the Atlantic coast of the Iberian Peninsula, the westernmost nation of mainland Europe. With one of the oldest fixed borders on the continent, it is a land of golden coastlines, river valleys, and historic cities. In the great age of seafaring it launched explorers who opened sea routes around the world and built a global empire, leaving the Portuguese language spoken across continents. Today it is a relaxed, increasingly popular country known for its coast, its wine, and its melancholy music.
The land was Roman Lusitania and later came under Moorish rule, before the Kingdom of Portugal emerged in the twelfth century under its first king, Afonso, establishing borders that have changed little since. In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries Portugal led the European Age of Discovery: its navigators, sponsored by figures such as Prince Henry, sailed down the coast of Africa, around to India, and across to Brazil, creating a vast maritime empire. The country later declined, endured a long dictatorship, and returned to democracy in 1974.
Portugal is a land of contrasts within a compact space. The north is green, hilly, and rainy, cut by river valleys such as the Douro with its terraced vineyards, while the south, including the Algarve, is warmer and drier, with famous beaches along the Atlantic. The Tagus River divides the country, reaching the sea at the capital, Lisbon. Portugal also includes two Atlantic island groups, the Azores and Madeira, of volcanic origin and striking beauty.
The flag of Portugal is divided into green and red, with the national coat of arms set over an armillary sphere where the colours meet. The armillary sphere, an old navigational instrument, recalls the country's great age of seafaring and discovery. The shield bears symbols from Portugal's medieval history, including small shields said to represent victories over Moorish kings. The colours are often taken to stand for hope and for the blood of those who served the nation.
Portugal is a predominantly Roman Catholic country, and the faith has shaped its culture, calendar, and identity for many centuries, expressed in countless churches and in great pilgrimages, above all to the shrine of Fatima, one of the most important Catholic pilgrimage sites in the world. As elsewhere in Europe, regular religious practice has declined, but Catholic tradition remains a strong presence in Portuguese life, festivals, and family customs.
Portuguese cuisine is rooted in the sea and the land, simple but full of flavour. Its most iconic ingredient is bacalhau, salted cod, said to be prepared in hundreds of different ways, a legacy of the long fishing voyages of the past. Fresh seafood, grilled sardines, and rich stews are staples, and the country is famous for its custard tarts, the pasteis de nata. Portugal is also a celebrated wine country, the home of port and of many fine table wines.
Portugal's mild climate supports a varied agriculture. Wine is central, from the port produced in the Douro valley to the wines of many other regions, and the country is renowned for its olive oil. Above all, Portugal is the world's leading producer of cork, harvested from the bark of cork oak trees that dot the southern landscape, supplying stoppers and other products globally. Tomatoes, fruit, and, along the coast, a major fishing industry round out the sector.
Portugal's defining contribution to world history was the Age of Discovery, when its navigators, including Vasco da Gama, who reached India by sea, opened maritime routes that connected the world and built an empire spanning Africa, Asia, and the Americas, including Brazil. A catastrophic earthquake destroyed much of Lisbon in 1755. In modern times the country endured a long authoritarian regime before the peaceful Carnation Revolution of 1974 restored democracy and led to decolonisation.
Portugal has a population of around 10 million people, ethnically and linguistically homogeneous, sharing a strong national identity and the Portuguese language, which their explorers carried to become one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. The population is concentrated along the coast, especially around Lisbon and the northern city of Porto. Portugal has a long tradition of emigration, and an ageing population, though in recent years it has also become a popular destination for new arrivals.
