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The Baleares – Autonomous Community of the Balearic Islands
By m.p. - Nov 20, 2007 - 4:44 PM
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The Balearic Islands are another of the regions of Spain made up by a single province
The Balearic Islands cover an area of 4,992 square kilometres and has one province: the Islas Baleares. Palma de Mallorca, on the island of Mallorca, is both the regional and the provincial capital.

The archipelago is formed of two groupings of islands: Las Gimnesias, the ancient name in Greek for the Gymnesiae, referring to Menorca, Mallorca and Cabrera and other islets (the original meaning is naked, with legends that the local people went unclothed, or were clothed only in sheepskins), and Las Pitiusas: Ibiza and Formentera, and their surrounding islets.

With an overall population of 1,001,062, this group of Mediterranean islands comprises the main islands of Mallorca (pop. 790.763), Menorca (pop. 88,434), Ibiza (113,908), and Formentera (pop. 7,957). Other islands include Cabrera (part of the Archipiélago de Cabrera National Park), Aire, Aucanada, Botafoch, Conejora – or Conillera – Dragonera, Espalmador, Lazerto, Plana, and Del Rey.

A census dating from 2005 showed 15.75% of the islands’ registered population to be foreign nationals, putting it the first amongst Spain’s autonomous communities as regards the foreign population, and the second only to Alicante province, in the Valencia Region.
39.66% of the foreign nationals were from countries within Europe, with Germans making up 14.59%, and the British in second place with 9.58%.
South Americans made up 34.34% of the total figure of foreign nationals.

Mallorca is the largest island, with a surface area of 3,624.08 kms, followed by Menorca with 694.79. kms. Ibiza comes next, with 569.59 kms, and Formentera with 81.32. There are 11.86 kms of surface area on Cabrera.

The total coastal area, according to the Geographical Institute, is 1,428 kms.

Catalan is recognised as the co-official language of the Balearic Islands. It is known locally as mallorquí, menorquí and eivessenc.

The Balearic Islands Autonomous Statutes came into force on 1st March 1983, following approval on 22nd February that year. There have been a number of reforms of the text since then, the latest in a reform of the regional statutes in 2007

The Partido Popular, led by Jaume Matas, was returned as the most voted party in the 2007 regional election, but came out just one seat away from reaching an absolute majority, and Matas announced that he was leaving politics after his party failed to reach agreement for a governing pact with the Unió Mallorquina party.

The Socialist candidate, Francesc Antich, announced just a few days later that an agreement had been signed with the Bloc per Mallorca-Unió Mallorquina coalition, and took possession of his duties as the new President of the Islas Baleares on 6th July 2007.


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