Gibraltar
Updated: Oct 1, 2022
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Country Name
Gibraltar.
Location
Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula. Gibraltar shares a border with Spain to the north and with Morocco through a maritime border.
Since the 18th century, Gibraltar has been a symbol of British naval strength, and it is commonly known in that context as “the Rock.”
Capital
Gibraltar.
Flag
The flag was adopted on 8 November 1982. The flag is composed of a white background (two-thirds); the bottom third is red. A castle is set in the center of the upper white field. A golden key hangs from the center door of the castle by a chain into the lower red field of the flag. The castle has three towers with each of these having a black door and window. The central tower has additional ornamentation in the form of three vertical slits above its window. The castle has a strong and fortress-like appearance. The hanging key is an old-fashioned skeleton key that represents Gibraltar’s place as the key to the Mediterranean in terms of naval strategy.
Language
The official language of Gibraltar is English which is used by the government and in schools.
Most locals are bilingual, also speaking Spanish. However, because of the varied mix of ethnic groups that reside there, other languages are also spoken.
Minority languages in Gibraltar are Berber and Arabic spoken by the Moroccan community, as are Hindi and Sindhi by the Indian community. Maltese is spoken by some families of Maltese descent.
Gibraltarians often speak in Llanito which is based on Andalusian Spanish with a strong mixture of British English and elements from languages such as Maltese, Portuguese, Genoese Italian, and Haketia (a Judaeo-Spanish dialect). Llanito also often involves code-switching to English and Spanish.
Religion
The majority of the population are Roman Catholics. Other Christian denominations include the Church of England, the Gibraltar Methodist Church, the Church of Scotland, various Pentecostal and independent churches mostly influenced by the House Church and Charismatic movements, as well as a Plymouth Brethren congregation.
There is also a department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and two congregations of Jehovah's Witnesses.
7.1% advised that they have no religion. The third religion is Islam.
Other Minorities are Hindu, members of the Baháʼí Faith, and the Jewish community.
As a share of the total population, this is the second-largest Jewish population in the world, trailing only Israel. There are four functioning Orthodox synagogues in Gibraltar and several kosher establishments.
Currency
Gibraltar pound (£) (GIP).
