The Balearic Islands ( /ˌbæliˈærɨk ˈaɪləndz/; Catalan: Illes Balears ; Spanish: Islas Baleares ) are an archipelago of Spain in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.
The four largest islands are: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain, with Palma as the capital city. The co-official languages in the Balearic Islands are Catalan and Castilian Spanish. The current Statute of Autonomy declares the Balearic Islands as one nationality of Spain.
Read more about Balearic Islands: Etymology, Geography and Hydrography, Administration
Famous quotes containing the word islands:
“Consider the islands bearing the names of all the saints, bristling with forts like chestnut-burs, or Echinidæ, yet the police will not let a couple of Irishmen have a private sparring- match on one of them, as it is a government monopoly; all the great seaports are in a boxing attitude, and you must sail prudently between two tiers of stony knuckles before you come to feel the warmth of their breasts.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)