Portugal
-
Where is Portugal located?
Portugal is located on the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe. It occupies one-sixth of the peninsula and is bordered to the north and east by Spain, while the Atlantic Ocean lies to the south and west. The Azores and Madeira Islands, which are part of Portugal, are located to the west and southwest. The capital of Portugal is Lisbon.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What is the capital city of Portugal?
The capital of Portugal is Lisbon. Situated on the Tagus River estuary in western Portugal, it stands as continental Europe's westernmost capital city. Lisbon is Portugal's chief port, largest city, and a vibrant hub for commerce, politics, and tourism.
Lisbon's historical importance is largely due to its natural harbor. By the 15th century, Lisbon became a center for Portuguese exploration. Today, Lisbon balances its historical charm with modern infrastructure, earning recognition as a European City of Culture in 1994 and hosting the World’s Fair (Expo ’98).
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What language do people speak in Portugal?
In Portugal, the official and national language is Portuguese. This Romance language is also spoken in Brazil, as well as in other Portuguese colonial and formerly colonial territories. There are more than 10 million speakers in Portugal. Portuguese literature is a distinct expression of national language and temperament.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What are some important historical events in Portugal’s history?
Portugal's history is marked by several significant events:
- Exploration and Expansion: Beginning with the conquest of Ceuta in 1415, Portugal expanded into Africa, driven by the desire to explore, trade, and spread Christianity. Prince Henry the Navigator supported expeditions that led to the discovery of Madeira, the Azores, and the exploration of the African coast.
- Revolution of the Carnations: On April 25, 1974, a coup led by the Armed Forces Movement (MFA) overthrew the dictatorship, leading to a transition to democracy. This revolution ended Portugal's colonial involvement in Africa.
- Joining the EEC/EU: Portugal was admitted to the European Economic Community (EEC) on January 1, 1986, marking a significant step toward European integration. In 1999, the government adopted the euro, fully replacing the escudo in 2002.
4 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What is Portugal known for in terms of food and culture?
Portugal's culture and cuisine reflect a rich history with influences from Roman and Moorish rule. The Portuguese have conserved architecture and art, and the city centers of Évora, Sintra, and Porto are UNESCO World Heritage sites.
Portugal's cuisine features fish, vegetables, and fruit. While fresh fish is abundant, bacalhau, or dried salted cod, is the national dish. Cataplana, a seafood stew cooked in a copper vessel, is also very common. The cuisine incorporates spices such as cumin and coriander, with regional specialties including the pork of Alentejo and cured meats from Trás-os-Montes.
Fado, a melancholic type of Portuguese singing associated with pubs and cafes, is known for its expressive character.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How has Portugal influenced the world through its explorers and discoveries?
Portugal's global influence stems from its explorers and their discoveries, which significantly impacted world trade and navigation. Prince Henry the Navigator's support of exploration led to the colonization of Madeira and the Azores and the traversal of the African coast to Sierra Leone.
Vasco da Gama's voyage to India in 1497-99 opened a sea route from Western Europe to the East. This disrupted existing trade routes and broke the commercial supremacy of Italian cities.
The Treaty of Tordesillas divided the non-European world between Portugal and Spain, giving Portugal a claim to Brazil and the sea route to India. Portugal's discoveries and trade routes led to a global exchange of goods, ideas, and cultures, leaving a lasting impact.
8 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
News •
Portugal, country lying along the Atlantic coast of the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe. Once continental Europe’s greatest power, Portugal shares commonalities—geographic and cultural—with the countries of both northern Europe and the Mediterranean. Its cold, rocky northern coast and mountainous interior are sparsely settled, scenic, and wild, while the country’s south, the Algarve, is warm and fertile. The rugged Estrela Mountains (Serra da Estrela, or “Star Mountain Range”), which lie between the Tagus and Mondego rivers, contain the highest point of mainland Portugal.
In the 1st millennium bce the Celtic Lusitani entered the Iberian Peninsula and settled the land, and many traces of their influence remain. According to national legend, though, Lisbon, the national capital, was founded not by Celts but by the ancient Greek warrior Odysseus, who was said to have arrived at a rocky headland near what is the present-day city after leaving his homeland to wander the world and who, liking what he saw, stayed there for a while; his departure was said to have broken the heart of the nymph Calypso, who, the legend goes, turned herself into a snake, her coils becoming the seven hills of Lisbon. Of course, had Odysseus actually come to Portugal, he would have found the land already well settled by the Lusitani.
- Head Of Government:
- Prime Minister: Luís Montenegro
- Capital:
- Lisbon
- Population:
- (2026 est.) 10,916,000
- Currency Exchange Rate:
- 1 USD equals 0.891 euro
- Head Of State:
- President: Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa
- Form Of Government:
- republic with one legislative house (Assembly of the Republic [230])
- Official Language:
- Portuguese
- Official Religion:
- none1
- Official Name:
- República Portuguesa (Portuguese Republic)
- Total Area (Sq Km):
- 92,225
- Total Area (Sq Mi):
- 35,608
- Monetary Unit:
- euro (€)
- Population Rank:
- (2026) 89
- Population Projection 2030:
- 9,848,000
- Density: Persons Per Sq Mi:
- (2026) 306.6
- Density: Persons Per Sq Km:
- (2026) 118.4
- Urban-Rural Population:
- Urban: (2021) 61.2%
- Rural: (2021) 38.8%
- Life Expectancy At Birth:
- Male: (2022–2024) 78.7 years
- Female: (2022–2024) 84 years
- Gni (U.S.$ ’000,000):
- (2024) 287,747
- Gni Per Capita (U.S.$):
- (2024) 26,910
- Officially:
- Portuguese Republic
- Portuguese:
- República Portuguesa
- A 2004 concordat with the Vatican acknowledges the special role of the Roman Catholic Church in Portugal.
Lusitani tribes battled the Romans for generations before acceding to empire, whereupon Rome established several important towns and ports; the Roman presence can be seen in the very name of the country, which derives from Portus Cale, a settlement near the mouth of the Douro River and the present-day city of Porto. Later, the descendants of Romans and the Lusitani would live under Moorish rule for several centuries until an independent kingdom was established.
In constant battle and rivalry with Spain, its eastern neighbour, Portugal then turned to the sea and, after Henry the Navigator’s establishment of a school of navigation at Sagres, in time founded a vast overseas empire that would become Europe’s largest and richest. Much of that empire was quickly lost, but even then Portugal retained sizable holdings along the African coast, in southern and eastern Asia, and in South America. Portugal remained a colonial power until the mid-1970s, when a peaceful revolution transformed the country from a dictatorship into a democratic republic. Long among the poorest countries of Europe, Portugal modernized in the last decades of the 20th century, expanding its economy from one based primarily on textile manufacture and livestock raising to include a range of manufactures and services.
Lisbon is Portugal’s capital and economic and cultural centre. The city clings to low but steep hills situated on the right bank of the Tagus and is a popular tourist destination. Lisbon is rather more tranquil and reserved than Madrid in neighbouring Spain, but it shares with it a reputation for great food, melancholy and romantic music, dance, and sport. Portuguese traditionally have prized a simple and unostentatious life, favouring the rural over the urban and the traditional to the modern, where a fine meal might consist of carne de porco à Alentejana (lean pork stuffed with clams), thick-crusted bread, and dark wine. Portuguese delight in the countryside, where they gather to hold family picnics, tend to their gardens and orchards, and relax. It is from the countryside that the fado, a form of romantic ballad, is thought to have come (though it is now clearly associated with the cities of Lisbon and Coimbra), and it is in the countryside that the country’s traditional sport of bullfighting takes its finest form, though in Portuguese bullfighting the bull is not killed but rather is retired to the countryside for the rest of its life.
Lisbon was designated a European City of Culture in 1994, and in 1998 it hosted the World’s Fair (Expo ’98). Both events raised Portugal’s profile worldwide. The latter event sparked the city’s biggest renewal project since the rebuilding that followed the 1755 earthquake, including the construction of the six-lane Vasco da Gama Bridge over the Tagus River estuary, then the longest bridge in Europe.