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Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (in Portuguese, República
Portuguesa) is located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula,
and is the westernmost country in continental Europe. Portugal is
bordered by Spain to the north and east and by the Atlantic Ocean to the
west and south. In addition, Portugal includes two archipelagos in the
Atlantic, Azores (Açores) and Madeira Islands.
Portugal has witnessed a constant flow of different civilizations during the
past 3,100 years. Iberian, Tartessian, Celtic, Phoenician and Carthaginian,
Greek, Roman, Germanic (Suevi and Visigoth), Semitic (Arabic, Jewish, etc.),
Moorish and other cultures have all made an imprint on the country's culture,
history, language and ethnic make up. The naming of Portugal itself reveals
most of the country's early history, stemming from the Roman name Portus
Cale, possibly a Latin name Portus mixed with ancient Greek Kale ,
meaning "Beautiful Port". During the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal was
a major economic, political, and cultural power, its empire stretching from
Brazil to the Indies.
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