The Basque country at a glance

The Basque country at a glance

The Basque Country: This region of northern Spain became semiautonomous in 1979 after a new Spanish Constitution was adopted following the death of dictator Gen. Francisco Franco. Its capital is Vitoria, its biggest city is Bilbao.

— Population: Around 2.1 million.

— History: An ancient European people of mysterious origin, Basques preserved their customs and language despite suppression during the 37-year Franco dictatorship. An armed group, ETA, has waged a 41-year separatist campaign of bombings and assassinations.

— Industry: Once a steel and shipbuilding powerhouse, the Basque region today hosts important services and new technologies industries centered on banking, energy and aeronautics.

— Geography: The region is a roughly 7,200 square kilometer (2,800 square mile) elbow of land in the western Pyrenees on the Bay of Biscay, an area of picturesque high meadows, steep mountainsides and rugged Atlantic coastline.

— Language: The Basque language, Europe’s oldest, is nothing like Spanish. Both are official languages of the Basque Country. Some 25 percent speak fluent Basque.

— Self-government: Basques have their own TV channels, health and education systems and police, but travel on Spanish passports.

— Landmarks: In contrast to the Basque-only soccer policy, Bilbao is famous for inviting foreign architects to give it a modern makeover. Most notable: the titanium whirl of American Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum and Briton Norman Foster’s subway stations.