Latin Europe is a region in western and southern Europe where, generally speaking, Romance languages and Roman Catholic Christianity are endemic, through the heritage of the Roman Empire. The region contains Portugal, Spain, France, Italy and Malta as well as some of Europe's smallest countries: Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, and the Vatican City. These countries have around 180 million inhabitants together.

Latin Europe's cultural attractions, including archaeological sites, architecture and art museums, are among the most visited in the world. The countries are also famous for their beaches, their cuisine, and their wine.

Map of Southwestern Europe

• 41.3872.1691 Barcelona — Capital of Catalonia and home to Gaudí's famous Sagrada Família this place is much more than "Spain's second city".
• 43.78311.252 Florence (Italian: Firenze) — the Renaissance city known for its architecture and art that had a major impact throughout the world
• 38.707-9.1353 Lisbon (Portuguese: Lisboa) - Portugal's capital with a natural harbour and white limestone buildings
• 40.383-3.7164 Madrid — the vibrant capital, with fantastic museums, interesting architecture, great food and nightlife
• 43.29645.375 Marseille – one of France's oldest cities, and its largest port
• 48.8562.35086 Paris — the "City of Lights", famous for the Louvre and several other art museums, overlooked by the Eiffel Tower.
• 41.912.57 Rome (Italian: Roma) — the Eternal City has shrugged off sackings and fascists, urban planning disasters and traffic snarls and is as impressive to the visitor now as two thousand years ago
• 37.377-5.9868 Seville (Spanish: Sevilla) — a beautiful, verdant city, and home to the world's third largest cathedral
• 45.437512.33589 Venice (Italian: Venezia) — the city of Renaissance merchant palaces, where canals function as streets

• 37.014444-7.9352781 Algarve — long beaches at the southwestern edge of Europe
• 38.5-282 Azores — out in the Atlantic half-way to North America, these beautiful volcanic islands have a lovely climate year-round
• 44.1269449.7094443 Cinque Terre — a gorgeous national park, which connects five picturesque villages
• 42.159.0833334 Corsica — the birthplace of Napoleon, a unique island with a distinct culture and language.
• 43.3656.8497225 French Riviera (French: Côte d'Azur "Azure Coast") — Glamorous Mediterranean coastline with upper class seaside resorts, yachts and sunbathing celebrities.
• 27.9667-15.66 Gran Canaria — the most populated of the Canary Islands is also the most diverse, with verdant forests and sun-washed deserts
• 39.623672.966317 Mallorca — a Spanish island famous for seaside resorts, nightlife, and spectacular landscapes
• 48.636-1.51148 Mont Saint Michel — a monastery and town built on a tiny outcrop of rock in the sand, which is cut off from the mainland at high tide.
• 40.81666714.4333339 Vesuvius (Italian: Monte Vesuvio) — the famous dormant volcano with a stunning view of the Bay of Naples, and the ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum

Latin Europe owes much of its common identity to the Roman Empire. Today they make up much of the European Union.

History

See also: Roman Empire, Christianity, Napoleonic Wars, European Union

Homo Sapiens reached Europe from Africa through the Middle East roughly 40 000 years ago, and displaced the Homo Neanderthalensis, which died out around 30 000 years ago.

Rome was originally a city-state; the Roman Republic seized the Italian peninsula during the 4th century BC. The Romans first invaded the Iberian peninsula (Hispania) in 218 BC; though it took them 200 years to capture it all. The Gauls, who resided in present-day France, were rivals of Rome, until Julius Caesar (who had yet to become Roman dictator) conquered them in a ten-year campaign, ending in 50 BC.

These western provinces were quickly Romanized, and Latin soon became the dominant language. Christianity spread across the Empire in the first centuries AD. The Empire's northern border, limes, was parallel to the Rhine and Danube rivers. Up to modern times, the Rhine has remained a cultural divide between Latin and Germanic Europe.

From the 3rd century, the Roman Empire was effectively divided between the Western Roman Empire, ruled by Rome, and the Eastern Roman Empire, ruled by Constantinople (today's Istanbul).

The western Roman Empire fell to Germanic invaders of the 4th and 5th centuries, with the Eastern Roman Empire (later known as the Byzantine Empire) surviving until the 15th century, While Roman scholarship and administration were lost, Christianity remained a unifying force. Many later monarchs tried to claim the glory of Rome; Charlemagne was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 800, ruling most of Western and Central Europe.

Much of eastern Europe became orthodox in the Great Schism of the 11th century, and many northern European congregations broke with the Holy See in the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. The Latin European nations remained largely Catholic, loyal to the Roman Pope. The Protestant congregations which arose in Latin Europe, including the French Huguenots, have been expelled or suppressed.

The Renaissance was an intellectual movement which began in the Italian city-states, with promotion of European art. It preceded the Age of Discovery, when European explorers found their way around the world. While Christopher Columbus was a Genoese Italian sailing for the Spanish Crown, Vasco da Gama (who found the Cape Route to India) and Fernão de Magalhães (who led the first expedition around the world) were Portuguese.

Spain, Portugal and France began colonizing the New World. The Italian peninsula came to be dominated by foreign powers; especially Spain and France, but remained a cultural hotspot, and the main destination of the Grand Tour of Europe's young elite.

Spain united with Portugal in 1580, creating the largest empire in its time, until its decline through the Thirty Years War, and the War of the Spanish Succession. In its place, France came to dominate Europe, with the French House of Bourbon remaining on the Spanish throne until today.

The 1789 French Revolution was the beginning of the end of feudal monarchies in Europe, and led to a series of wars, where the Napoleonic Empire ruled France, Spain, and the Italian peninsula for a few years before its dissolution in 1815. The 19th century saw the gradual fall of empires and city-states to nation-states, united by a common language and historical identity; Italy was unified only in 1871.

Scarred by two world wars, France and Italy became founding members of the European Community through the 1957 Rome Treaty. As the dictatorships in Spain and Portugal ended in the 1970s, they joined the European Community in 1986, which in 1993 became the European Union. Malta joined the EU in 2004, and the smaller countries are EU associates. While the violent insurgencies and Basque Country and Corsica have ended, the region has secessionist movements, especially in Catalonia.

Most EU institutions are seated in Brussels. The EU Parliament holds some sessions in Strasbourg and other institutions are to be found throughout the Union.

The Schengen Area includes France, Italy, Malta, Spain (with the Canary Islands), and Portugal (with Madeira and the Azores). Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican are not signatories of the Schengen agreement, but they have no border controls, and a Schengen visa is still acceptable for entering them. Andorra has border controls, and accepts Schengen visas for entry.

All land neighbours of these countries are part of the Schengen area.

Latin Europe is well served by international aviation; France, Spain and Portugal have extensive service to former colonies in Africa and Latin America. Major international airports are Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport, and Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport. Paris Orly Airport has a number of flights to Francophone countries and territories.

Flying is also the most practical route to the islands. Resort islands such as Mallorca and Gran Canaria have flights from many European countries.

The Channel Tunnel connects France to England.

See also: Driving in Europe, Rail travel in Europe

All countries have a great rail network; especially France and Spain, where many cities are connected by high-speed rail. In most cases, the train is the fastest and most convenient option between major cities in the same country. There are some international rail lines.

On large distances (more than 500 km), flying is usually the fastest option. The business has become more competitive over the 2000s, and budget airlines, and occasionally flag carriers, can offer bargains.

Intercity buses have expanded service in the 2010s, and are now the cheapest option on many routes. Flixbus is active in Italy and France and serves some international routes into Spain but has not yet expanded into Portugal or any of Europe's island nations.

Driving is the most practical method to get around the countryside, but is usually costly. Fuel costs around €1,20 per litre. Cities are not built for the car, and cars are prohibited to enter some old towns; most cities however have good public transportation. All countries, including Gibraltar, have right-hand traffic.

Tour cycling as well as long-distance walking can be considered for moderate distances, by those who like the slower pace and more intimate experience of the countryside that those means provide.

There are many legendary pilgrim routes, including Way of St. James to Santiago de Compostela.

The main languages in this region are descended from Latin and are often termed 'Romance languages', with French (France, Monaco), Italian (Italy, San Marino, Vatican City), Castilian Spanish, Catalan and Portuguese, with a number of dialects in each country as well. There is a level of intelligibility between these with speakers of one language likely to understand and communicate the basics in another.

The Romance languages originated in Latin, which remained a European lingua franca until the 17th century, and is still the nominally official language of the Vatican City and the Catholic church. Today, Latin is taught in some schools as part of a classic education and some scholars need the language, but otherwise only clerics and language enthusiasts tend to be conversant in it. The language is still used in inscriptions and other special contexts. Latin language literary production has actually been higher by several orders of magnitude since the "death" of the language, in part due to the wider spread of literacy and the Latin language being adopted by educated people outside the original Roman Empire. The Finnish YLE had the weekly news broadcast Nuntii Latini in Latin for 30 years, now partly substituted by a number of more locally focused podcasts around the world.

The Basque language spoken in Basque Country and southern Aquitania is not related to any known languages.

English is the official language in Gibraltar, and also on Malta, together with Maltese, a Semitic language.

Whilst schools in all countries teach English, proficiency and the desire to speak varies. As anywhere else, younger people, business people and those employed in the tourist industry will likely speak some English.

Italy, Spain and France are in first, third and fourth place respectively on the table of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. In total, there are more than 160 such sites in Latin Europe.

The sights are from prehistoric Europe, Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, Medieval and Renaissance Italy and other epochs.

The most famous sites can get extremely crowded during summer and major holidays, and have long lines or waiting time.

While much of Latin Europe's land area is used for farming, each country has impressive natural attractions with Eurasian wildlife, including mighty mountain ranges such as the Pyrenees, the Alps and the Apennines. The islands are good for birdwatching. Spain and Italy have some of the Beech forests of Europe.

Spectator sports draw huge crowds, domestic and foreign.

Many of Europe's greatest association football clubs can be found here; Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus, Roma, Benfica and Paris Saint-Germain, to mention a few.

The Formula One circus visits Latin Europe every year, with the classical Monaco Grand Prix; the only remaining street race in the circuit.

Latin Europe is also the home of the Grand Tour of cycling; Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España.

All major countries have opportunities for outdoor life. Winter sport is the main attraction of the mountains, with the Alps being the birthplace of Alpine skiing. The Pyrenees and Portugal's mountains also have ski resorts.

Millions of visitors flock to the Mediterranean beaches. The Atlantic can be a bit cold at winter, but is great for bathing at summer.

All countries use the euro. Gibraltar uses the Gibraltar pound which is pegged 1:1 to the British pound. Bank of England notes are usually accepted without issue in Gibraltar but the reverse is not necessarily true.

While prices in France tend to be on par with western Europe as a whole, they get lower the further south you go; especially for services such as dining and hairdressing.

While customs for tipping differ between countries, it is usually appreciated but not mandatory.

See also: French cuisine, Italian cuisine, Spanish cuisine

Dining, including fine dining, has been a cornerstone of Latin European culture since Roman times. While foreigners might have an impression of French, Italian and Spanish cuisine, many regions have their specialties. Most Italians would even say that there is no such thing as an Italian cusisine.

While fast food and ethnic restaurants are less ubiquitous than in English-speaking countries, they can be found in large cities.

Latin Europe is great for agritourism.

Tap water is chlorinated and usually safe to drink in major cities, though bottled water is preferred for taste.

See also: Wine

France, Italy, Spain and Portugal are famous for their wines. Each country also has a great selection of beers and distilled beverages.

Drinking laws are generally liberal, and especially Spain and Portugal are famous for their bustling nightlife. While a glass of beer or wine for weekday lunch or dinner is common, excessive drunkenness is frowned on.

Latin Europe has a wide variety of accommodation. The resort towns are dominated by tourist hotels, which are practical, but far from genuine. Hotel star ratings are not universal; check out online reviews. Hospitality exchange services such as Airbnb are widespread, especially in the more touristed cities.

While all countries are relatively safe, they are not devoid of crime. Visitors should use common sense, and be wary of pickpockets. At summer, heatstroke and sunburn can be issues.

In all countries, the emergency phone number is 112.

Separation of church and state is a cornerstone in each country (except the Vatican, obviously). While devout Catholics can be found in all countries, most (especially young city-dwellers) are not actively religious. Attitudes towards the LGBT community are generally liberal.

Romance languages have the T-V distinction, where the pronoun "you" has an informal and a formal variant (French has tu and vous, etc). While pronoun etiquette has been relaxed in recent decades, it is a challenge for language learners.

Regional patriotism is strong, especially in Italy, and minority-language regions of Spain (not least Catalonia).

While dress code has become more informal over the last decades, dressing too casual is a common mistake among visitors. Local adults wear beach clothing only at the beach, and athletic clothes (including baseball caps, sweatshirts and sneakers) only when they do or watch sport. Full-covered clothes are recommended in religious buildings.

Cheek kissing is a common greeting between friends in all countries, though male friends usually don't cheek-kiss each other.

While tobacco smoking has been prevalent in these countries up to the 2000s, it is now prohibited at most indoor premises.