Basque Country (autonomous community)

Euskal Autonomia Erkidegoa /
Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco

Missing image Basque_Country_Flag.png Image:Basque Country Flag.png Flag of Basque Country
Missing image Locator_map_of_Basque_Country.png Image:Locator map of Basque Country.png
Capital	Vitoria-Gasteiz
Official languages	Basque and Spanish
Area  – Total  – % of Spain	Ranked 14th  7 234 km²  1,4%
Population  – Total (2003)  – % of Spain  – Density	Ranked 7th  2 108 281  5,0%  291,44/km²
Demonym  – English  – Basque  – Spanish	Basque  euskal herritar, euskaldun  vasco/a, vascongado/a
Statute of Autonomy	December 22, 1979
ISO 3166-2	PV
Parliamentary representation  – Congress seats  – Senate seats	19  3
President	Juan José Ibarretxe Markuartu (PNV)
Eusko Jaurlaritza/Gobierno Vasco

Basque Country (Basque Euskadi, Spanish País Vasco) is an autonomous community within Spain whose capital is Vitoria (Basque Gasteiz). It is part of the larger Basque native lands, which are also called the “Basque Country.”

The following Spanish provinces make up Basque Country:

Álava	(Basque Araba)	capital Vitoria	(Basque Gasteiz)
Vizcaya	(Basque Bizkaia)	capital Bilbao	(Basque Bilbo)
Guipúzcoa	(Basque Gipuzkoa)	capital San Sebastián	(Basque Donostia)

Before the Spanish Constitution of 1978 and its system of autonomous communities, these three provinces were known in Spanish as the Provincias Vascongadas, a term still used by some nostalgics of the Franco era and by independentists who despise the current autonomy and reserve "Basque Country" for the union of the seven territories.

Economy

The economy of the Basque Country is one of the most developed in Spain. In 2003, it's GDP (PPP) per capita was at 107.4% of the EU average [1]

See also: Basque Country (autonomous community), 1979, 1 E9 m2, Andalusia, Aragon, Area, Asturias, Autonomous communities in Spain