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( Spain)
Spain [spe?n]&_160;(help·info) (Spanish España?·i, Spanish pronunciation [es'pa?a]) or the Kingdom of Spain (Spanish Reino de España), is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.[note 6] Its mainland is bordered to the south and east by the Mediterranean Sea except for a small land boundary with Gibraltar; to the north by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay; and to the west by the Atlantic Ocean and Portugal. Spanish territory also includes the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean, the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean off the African coast, and two autonomous cities in North Africa, Ceuta and Melilla, that border Morocco. With an area of 504,030&_160;km², Spain is the second largest country in Western Europe after France. Because of its location, Spain has been subject to many external influences, often simultaneously, since prehistoric times. At times the country itself has been an important source of influence to other regions. Archaeological and genetic evidence strongly suggests that the Iberian Peninsula acted as one of three major refugia from which northern Europe was repopulated following the end of the last ice age. It has also played an important part in Europe and even the world at certain historic times; in the latter case when it was the seat of a global empire that has left a legacy of 400 million Spanish speakers today. The combination of external influences with the interactions of the culturally and politically differentiated regions of the rugged peninsula has produced a dramatic history, typified by alternating periods of unity and disunity under very different regimes. Spain is a democracy organised in the form of a parliamentary government under a constitutional monarchy. It is a developed country with the eighth largest economy in the world based on nominal GDP.[note 7] It is a member of the European Union and NATO. At 195,884 mi² (504,782&_160;km²), Spain is the world's 51st-largest country. It is some 47,000&_160;km² smaller than France and 81,000&_160;km² larger than the U.S. state of California.
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Spain Sparks The Skinny Ban by chester ku-lea
Ever tried on a size 8 in one store and felt pretty good that you were able to squeeze into it, only to go to another store to find out you can only fit into a size 12!? Sizes varying between stores can really throw you off, but Spain is working to c...
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