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Canary Islands

Canary Islands
Islas Canarias  (Spanish)
Autonomous community of Spain
Flag of Canary Islands
Flag
Canary Islands CoA.svg
Coat of arms
Map of the Canary Islands
Location of the Canary Islands within Spain
Coordinates: 28°06′N 15°24′W / 28.100°N 15.400°W / 28.100; -15.400Coordinates: 28°06′N 15°24′W / 28.100°N 15.400°W / 28.100; -15.400
Country Spain
Capital Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Government
 • President Fernando Clavijo Batlle (CC)
Area
 • Total 7,493 km2 (2,893 sq mi)
Area rank 1.5% of Spain; Ranked 13th
Population (2011)
 • Total 2,117,519
 • Rank 8th
 • Density 280/km2 (730/sq mi)
 • Percent 4.51% of Spain
Demonym(s) Canarian
canario, canaria (Spanish)
Ethnic groups
 • Spanish 85.7%
 • Foreign nationals 14.3% (mainly German, Italian, British, and Latin American)
Time zone WET (UTC)
 • Summer (DST) WEST (UTC+1)
ISO 3166 code ES-CN
Anthem Hymn of the Canaries
Official language Spanish
Statute of Autonomy 16 August 1982
Parliament Cortes Generales
Congress seats 15 (of 350)
Senate seats 13 (of 264)
Website www.gobcan.es

The Canary Islands (/kəˈnɛəri ˈləndz/; Spanish: Islas Canarias [ˈizlas kaˈnaɾjas], locally: [ˈiʱlːaʰ kaˈnaːɾjaʰ]), also known as the Canaries (Spanish: Canarias), are an archipelago and autonomous community of Spain located on the Atlantic Ocean, 100 kilometres (62 miles) west of Morocco. The Canaries are among the outermost regions (OMR) of the European Union proper. It is also one of the eight regions with special consideration of historical nationality recognized as such by the Spanish Government.

The main islands are (from largest to smallest) Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro. The archipelago also includes a number of islands and islets: La Graciosa, Alegranza, Isla de Lobos, Montaña Clara, Roque del Oeste and Roque del Este. In ancient times, the island chain was often referred to as "the Fortunate Isles". The Canary Islands is the most southerly region of Spain. The Canary Islands is the largest and most populated archipelago of the Macaronesia region.


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