Exploring the 17 Spanish Regions: Maps, Flags, and GDP
Spain contains many different Spanish regions, each with their own cultural nuances.
Even though all of the Spanish regions fly under the same flag, each has its own identity that carries over even outside of Spain!
I was lucky enough to meet lots of Spaniards from different regions such as Andalucía, Madrid, and Murcia, and they each had different accents when they spoke.
To learn more about these regions, we’ll take a look at their flag, GDP, and location. Ready to discover interesting facts about the Spanish regions? ¡Vamos!
What is GDP?
Gross domestic product (GDP) in Spanish is Producto Interno Bruto (PIB).
Economists use it to describe the total monetary value of all the goods and services produced within the borders of a country—or in this case, Spanish regions—per year.
It works as a sort of economic health thermometer for a country. A factor that’s especially important when calculating GDP is foreign trade. If a country or region sells their products to other countries more than it buys from them, the GDP will be positively affected.
17 Spanish Regions
Without further ado, let’s take a look at the various Spanish Regions throughout the country.
1. Andalucía
Predominant Languages: Spanish, Andalusian
GDP: 165.9 million €
Andalucía contains the provinces of Almería, Cádiz, Córdoba, Granada, Huelva, Jaén, Málaga, and Sevilla—the last one being its capital. It’s the most populated Spanish region, and the second largest geographically.
Did you know that Andalucía has almost 400 castles? That’s a whole bunch of royalty and nobles squeezed into southern Spain.
2. Aragón
Predominant Languages: Spanish, Aragonese, Catalan
GDP: 38 million €
Aragón includes the provinces of Huesca, Teruel, and Zaragoza. Half of this region’s inhabitants live in its capital, Zaragoza. The joyful and energetic Spanish dance, la jota, is a favorite in this region. (To learn more about dancing in different Spanish regions, read our post on Spanish dances!)
3. Asturias
Predominant Languages: Spanish, Asturian, Eonavian
GDP: 23.8 million €
El Principado de Asturias is located in the northern part of Spain, its northern border adorned by the Cantabrian Sea. This autonomous community’s capital is Oviedo, with Gijón being its most populated city.
This is the rockiest region of the Spanish regions, with rough terrain that will challenge even experienced hikers. It also has the biggest untapped gold deposits in western Europe! I might just go there with my pan to try my luck.
4. Canarias
Predominant Languages: Spanish, Canary Dialect
GDP: 14.2 million €
Canarias is an archipelago located off the west coast of Africa. It’s composed of eight islands, five islets, and eight distinctive rocky formations.
This is the second region with the most foreign tourists in Spain. Its attractive paradise-like biodiversity makes it an alluring destination for adventurous travelers.
5. Cantabria
Predominant Languages: Spanish
GDP: 14.2 million €
Cantabria is located in the north of Spain, and this is where the Cantabrian Sea gets its name. Its capital is Santander, which suffered a historic fire in 1941. This fire destroyed many important buildings, the only two notable exceptions being the postal building and the Spanish Bank.
6. Castilla La Mancha
Predominant Languages: Spanish
GDP: 42.8 million €
En un lugar de La Mancha, de cuyo nombre no quiero acordarme…. This is the first line of text in one of the most famous works of Spanish literature, Don Quijote. This book by Miguel de Cervantes is the reason this is one of the universally known Spanish Regions.
Curiously enough, La Mancha is currently expanding its production of renewable energy through wind turbines. I’m sure El Quijote would try to fight them as he fought the giant windmills centuries ago. This central region has the provinces of Albacete, Ciudad Real, Cuenca, Guadalajara, and Toledo.
7. Cataluña
Predominant Languages: Catalan, Aranese, Spanish
GDP: 236.8 million €
Cataluña contains Barcelone, Gerona, Lérida, and Tarragona. Barcelona is the capital of this region, and it’s also known worldwide for its famous soccer team, F.C. Barcelona. This team is so famous, you will find fans all over the world, even in remote locations here in Guatemala!
Cataluña sees an impressive flow of tourists, including over 20 million visitors in 2019.
8. Madrid
Predominant Languages: Spanish
GDP: 240.1 million €
La Comunidad de Madrid is an autonomous community that’s also uniprovincial, which means that it’s composed of a single province, Madrid. It’s also the national capital of Spain, and home to F.C. Barcelona’s bitter rival, Real Madrid.
Madrid is the third most populated city in Europe, and it boasts the oldest restaurant in the world! Without a doubt, it’s a top tourist destination.
9. Comunidad Valenciana
Predominant Languages: Valencian, Spanish
GDP: 116.015M €
This region includes Alicante, Castellón, and Valencia. Can you guess which one is the capital? That’s right, Valencia! Valencia is the third largest city across all the Spanish regions, and it has the largest aquarium in Europe.
Its name originated around 200 B.C. when it was a Roman colony. Valencia in Spanish is Valentía, which translates to “valor” or “bravery.”
10. Extremadura
Predominant Languages: Spanish, Portuguese, Fala, Extremeño
GDP: 20.7 million €
Extremadura is located in the western part of the Spanish regions, sharing a border with {ortugal. It contains two of Spain’s largest provinces: Cáceres and Badajoz. Its capital is Mérida. This region is known for its exports of red pepper, tomato, tobacco, and rice.
11. Galicia
Predominant Languages: Galician and Spanish
GDP: 64.4 million €
Galicia is located in the northwest of the country. It’s comprised of the provinces of La Coruña, Lugo, Orense, and Pontevedra. The capital is the city of Santiago de Compostela, and Vigo is its most populous city.
Its western and northern borders meet with the Atlantic Ocean and the Cantabrian Sea, respectively—while sharing a border with Portugal to the south. This region has a history of strange architecture that’s worth a look if you’re into weird buildings!
12. Islas Baleares
Predominant Languages: Spanish, Catalán
GDP: 33.8 million €
This archipelago consists of two groups of islands and many islets. The Gimnesia islands are Mallorca, Menorca, and Cabrera—as well as some islets.
The Pitiusa islands are Ibiza and Formentera. The most famous of these islands is Ibiza, a popular tourist destination. However, all islands have natural beauty that mixes beautifully with old European architecture.
13. La Rioja
Predominant Languages: Spanish
GDP: 8.9 million €
La Rioja is a Spanish region north of the country that covers El Valle del Ebro and the Iberian System to its south. It’s geographically divided by seven rivers that descend from Ebro countain, which gives la Rioja the name La de los siete valles, or “seven valleys”
14. País Vasco
Predominant Languages: Spanish, Euskera
GDP: 74.5 million €
País Vasco’s most populated city is Bilbao, followed by Vitoria and San Sebastián.
While the origins of this region are uncertain, the language specific to this region, Euskera, is the oldest surviving language in Europe, which piques the interest of many language researchers worldwide. It’s the sixth oldest surviving language worldwide, and it doesn’t share common roots with any other language.
15. Murcia
Predominant Languages: Spanish, Murcian Dialect
GDP: 32.4 million €
Murcia is a Spanish region with a capital of the same name. It’s known for its famous orchard, La Huerta de Eurpoa.
This is one of the Spanish regions that exports products such as food, textiles, chemicals, distilled products, furniture, and construction materials. That’s a huge variety of export products for such a small part of the country!
16. Navarra
Predominant Languages: Spanish and Euskera
GDP: 20.9 million €
Navarra is a Spanish region located in the north of the country, sharing a border with France, Aragón, and La Rioja. Its capital city is Pamplona, a place famous for its bull runs.
This city was founded over 2,000 years ago. During the San Fermín Festival, its population multiplies tenfold! This town also has traditional garments that consist of white clothes with red accented scarves and belts.
17. Ceuta y Melilla
Predominant Languages: Spanish
GDP Ceuta: 1.766M €
GDP Melilla: 1.621M €
Ceuta and Melilla are two cities that form part of the Spanish regions—but they are located in Africa! These cities struggle with an overwhelming amount of immigrants every year, so much so that their walls have been reinforced.
Spain is Rich With Culture
Many different peoples and cultures exist across the Spanish regions, but they are all united by a generally joyful demeanor. Many accents and dialects within Spain are so different from each other that they might not be able to understand what the other says. Have you visited Spain? Are there any other fun facts you know that we should include in this post? Let us know by leaving a comment!
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