Spain is an amazing country full of wild landscapes, great food and talented people. It’s had a big effect on world history, and is famous for a lot of really great stuff! And that’s before we’ve even mentioned football! So have a quick siesta and then read on to find out what makes Espana one of Europe’s coolest countries!

Looking for more fun geography facts? Check out these rainforest facts, these beach facts, or even have a go at this counties of Ireland quiz! Good luck!

1. Early History

Let’s start right from the start! Spain has had a really long history – and may have been one of the first “European” places that early humans reached when they moved from Africa about 1.5 million years ago! Since then it’s been home to tribal people, Celts, Romans, Arabs, and lots of lots of different groups that we know today!

2. The Moors

One of the biggest influences on Spain was from the Moors of North Africa, who brought maths, science, astronomy, Islam and many other amazing things to medieval Europe. You can see the influence of the Moors on the style of buildings in Spain, especially in the South. Moorish Spain is a really interesting part of history that often isn’t taught in schools!

3. Spain isn’t just one thing

Lots of different people live in Spain – there are Catalans, Basques, Andalucians, Valencians, Galicians and more! They each have the own traditions that often go back a long time! The Basques are a great example of this – their local language is one of the oldest in the world and is totally unique! It’s not related to any other language! Cool!

4. Spain is Pretty Arty

Spain has been home to many famous artists, including Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dalí who were huge figures in cubism and surrealism. Their work is known for being abstract and ground-breaking for the time, and their paintings are still celebrated in museums and galleries across the country.

5. The Sagrada Familia

One of the biggest and most obvious examples of Spanish art is the Sagrada Família in Barcelona. It’s a famous church designed by architect Antoni Gaudí. Its unique (and slightly weird) architecture is a mix of all sorts of styles. It’s a giant work of art – and it’s still not finished! They are still adding towers – which means when it’s done (hopefully soon) it will have taken almost 150 years to complete!

6. La Tomatina

Food fiiiiiiiiiight! The town of Buñol hosts the world’s largest tomato fight, where contestants throw overripe tomatoes at each other! It’s a wild and messy celebration, with squashy tomato getting EVERYWHERE! In fact, it’s important the tomatoes are very ripe as if they were hard people might hurt themselves. To stop this teams of people pre-squash the tomatoes!

7. Flamenco!

Another famous Spanish art form is Flamenco! Coming from the Andalusian region, flamenco is a passionate style of music, dance, and singing. It’s known for rhythmic handclaps and being a kind of improvised music that everyone can join in on. It’s got a long history and has influenced musical styles from around the world!

8. Spanish Football Champs!

One of Spain’s biggest exports has been football. You will definitely have heard of their biggest teams like Barcelona and Real Madrid – and many of the world’s top players are Spanish! Spain’s national team has also smashed records, winning the UEFA European Championship in 1964, 2008, and 2012, as well as the FIFA World Cup in 2010!

9. Delicious Food!

Spanish food is world-famous, and Spain’s rich food history reflects all the different influences and traditions in the country. There’s tapas, churros, paella, tortilla, gazpacho, amazing cheeses and wines… Spanish food has a lot to offer!

10. The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain?

Spain’s climate is famously nice and comfy – but it varies a lot. Much of the country enjoys a Mediterranean climate with mild winters and hot, dry summers. Some parts are much wetter though, and there are mountains and forests as well as deserts!

11. Spanish is the world’s 2nd language

After Mandarin Chinese, Spanish is the world’s 2nd biggest mother tongue. Why is this? It’s because Spain colonised (took over by force) big chunks of South and Central America. The Spanish invaders wiped out the Incas and Aztecs, and stole their gold and wealth – and often forced them to learn Spanish. Arrghh!

12. Difficult history

Spain is a really popular tourist destination, but like lots of places it had a hard time during the 20th Century. There was a brutal civil war in the 1930s, which was then followed by WW2 and a fascist dictatorship. For many years it was also quite a poor country, but has since turned it around!

13. Catalonia!

Modern Spain is made up of different smaller regions stuck together. And some of those regions would rather go it alone! In Catalonia (the richest part of Spain, that includes Barcelona) a lot of people want to leave Spain and start their own country. One of the other regions, the Basque country, would like to do the same!

14. The Spanish live a long time!

Spain has the second longest life-expectancy of any developed country – only Japanese people live longer! The Spanish live for an average 83 years, compared to 80 in the UK! Lots of people put this down to the Spanish diet, which is full of healthy things like olive oil, fruits and vegetables.

15. Nudity is legal!

Because of the warm climate and a more relaxed culture around people’s bodies, it’s legal to wander around Spain completely naked! There is a big naturist community (that’s people who like being naked) and naked people are a much more common sight in Spain than prudish countries like the UK. This doesn’t mean you can be naked all the time though – you’ll still get funny looks if you do your groceries in the buff!