Silêncio que se vai cantar o Fado!

Silence for Fado will be sung!

Today I proudly bring to you, the most special country to me -- my own: Portugal. I've been planning this for some months and gave a lot of thought to it. I hope you enjoy reading it as much I will enjoy telling you about my country. I'm very patriotic and might shed a tear or two while writting about my culture because to me, it's simply so beautiful and unique.

Portugal, comes from the latin Portus Cale and it means Cale's Port (which is now the region of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia), which was named by the Romans when they conquered the Iberian Peninsula possibily around the 2nd Century, BC.

Portugal was occupied by several people before it was officially Portugal, Phoenicians, Ancient Greeks and Romans, Carthaginians, Suevi, Celts and Arabs all lived there.

Portugal, then part of Spain, (at this time, it wasn't united so it had various kingdoms such as Catille and León) was called Condado Portucalense (Portugalense County) and given to the Earl of Portucale, Conde D. Henrique. He died in 1112 and was buried in the Cathedral of Braga, where I live, which already existed 55 years prior to the country's existence. His son Afonso inherited the county and fought against his mother, Teresa of León, to have possesion over it, and, in 1139, he won. 

Portugal was born, but its independence from Catille and León was only confirmed in 1143, with a Treaty signed in Zamora, roughly 55 kilometers away from our border. Portugal was now officialy a country and Afonso Henriques became our first king.

D. Afonso (by the way D stands for Dão, a title unique to Iberian monarchies) proceded to counquer the country all the way to the south, where Arabians took over on the very south, calling it Gharb Al-Andalus, which originated the region's name Algarve.

We often call the city of Guimarães the Crib of Portugal, because it is where the King lived and from where the country expanded that it is today through decisive battles, such as the Battle of São Mamede in 1128.

So now, 900 years later, Portugal officially a republic since 1910 (more on that later...), is a country in the Southwestern Europe, sorrounded by Spain on the north and east and by the vast Atlantic Ocean on the west, where our two autonomous regions, the Archipelagos of Azores and Madeira are, comprising 9 and 7 islands respecfully.

To be continued...