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Iberian peninsula

Iberian Peninsula
España y Portugal.jpg
Satellite image of the Iberian Peninsula.
Iberia (orthographic projection).svg
Geography
Location Southwest Europe
Coordinates 40°N 4°W / 40°N 4°W / 40; -4Coordinates: 40°N 4°W / 40°N 4°W / 40; -4
Area 582,000 km2 (225,000 sq mi)
Highest elevation 3,478 m (11,411 ft)
Highest point Mulhacén
Administration
Largest settlement Andorra la Vella
Area covered 468 km2 (181 sq mi; 0.1%)
Largest settlement Lisbon
Area covered 89,000 km2 (34,000 sq mi; 15.3%)
Largest settlement Madrid
Area covered 492,000 km2 (190,000 sq mi; 84.5%)
Largest settlement Gibraltar
Area covered 7 km2 (2.7 sq mi; 0%)
Largest settlement Font-Romeu-Odeillo-Via (Pyrenees boundary)
Area covered Undetermined
Demographics
Demonym Iberian
Population Over 53 million
List of cities in the Iberian Peninsula by population
City/Town Region & Country Population (2011–12) City/Town Region & Country Population (2011–12)
1 Madrid Madrid, Spain 3,233,527   11 Córdoba Andalusia, Spain 328,841
2 Barcelona Catalonia, Spain 1,620,943   12 Valladolid Castile and León, Spain 311,501
3 Valencia Valencia, Spain 797,028   13 Vigo Galicia, Spain 297,733
4 Seville Andalusia, Spain 702,355   14 Vila Nova de Gaia Norte, Portugal 288,749
5 Zaragoza Aragon, Spain 679,624   15 Gijón Asturias, Spain 277,554
6 Málaga Andalusia, Spain 567,433   16 L'Hospitalet Catalonia, Spain 257,057
7 Lisbon Lisboa, Portugal 547,631   17 A Coruña Galicia, Spain 246,146
8 Murcia Murcia, Spain 441,354   18 Vitoria-Gasteiz Basque Country, Spain 242,223
9 Bilbao Basque Country, Spain 351,629   19 Porto Norte, Portugal 237,591
10 Alicante Valencia, Spain 334,678   20 Granada Andalusia, Spain 237,540

The Iberian Peninsula /ˈbɪəriən pəˈnɪnsjᵿlə/, also known as Iberia /ˈbɪəriə/, is located in the southwest corner of Europe. The peninsula is principally divided between Portugal and Spain, comprising most of their territory. It also includes Andorra and a small part of France along the peninsula's northeastern edge, as well as Gibraltar on its south coast, a small peninsula which forms an overseas territory of the United Kingdom. With an area of approximately 582,000 km2 (225,000 sq mi), it is the third largest European peninsula, after the Scandinavian and Balkan peninsulas.

The English word Iberia was adapted from the use of the Ancient Greek word Ἰβηρία (Ibēría) by Greek geographers under the rule of the Roman Empire to refer to what is known today in English as the Iberian Peninsula. At that time, the name did not describe a single political entity or a distinct population of people. Strabo's Iberia was delineated from Keltikē (Gaul) by the Pyrenees and included the entire land mass southwest (he says "west") of there.


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