Continental Portugal

Continental Portugal, also called mainland Portugal, is the large part of the Portuguese Republic that lies on the Iberian Peninsula in continental Europe. It makes up about 95% of the country's people and 96.6% of its land. Because of this, people from the Azores and Madeira islands often refer to this area simply as "the continent."

Before 1975, Portugal also included many lands in Africa, which are now independent countries. At that time, people called Continental Portugal the metropole, meaning the main part of the country. Today, Lisbon, the capital city, plays a big role in leading the whole nation, including some special rules that connect all parts together.

Context

The term mainland Portugal is used to talk about the part of Portugal that is on the big land called the Iberian Peninsula. This is different from the islands of Madeira and the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean. The Azores and Madeira are called the autonomous regions.

Mainland Portugal is split into 18 districts. The islands of Madeira and the Azores are separate and are called the Autonomous Regions of Portugal.

Continental Portugal covers 89,015 square kilometres (34,369 mi²), which is 96.6% of all Portuguese land. It is home to 10,248,477 people, about 95.34% of Portugal’s total population.

Districts

Main article: Districts of Portugal

EU Statistical Regions (NUTS II)

Main article: NUTS statistical regions of Portugal

See also: Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics