Euromonitor International ranks Lisbon in 62nd place among the world’s most tourist-visited cities for 2015 far behind Hong Kong, second place Bangkok, third place London and fifth place Paris. Lisbon has several nicknames including “The City of Seven Hills” and “The City of Tolerance”.
Portugal placed among the top 50 exporting nations in global trade during 2017, shipping US$62.2 billion worth of goods according to the latest estimates from the International Trade Centre. Portugal’s highest-value exports are processed petroleum oils, automotive parts and accessories, cars, footwear, paper, new rubber tires, T-shirts, medicines and wine.
Capital Facts for Lisbon, Portugal: Quick Reference
Geography
Capital landmarks: Jeronimos Monastery, Belem Tower (Torre de Belem), St. George’s Castle (Castelo de S. Jorge) and the National Museum of Ancient Art (Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga)
Famous People
Below, you will find 10 of the most famous people born in Lisbon, Portugal:
- António Costa, prime minister (born Jul. 17, 1961)
- António Guterres, former UN Secretary-General (born Apr. 30, 1949)
- Joaquim de Almeida, actor (born Nov. 15, 1957)
- Jorge Sampaio, former Lisbon mayor (born Sep. 18, 1939)
- Mafalda Arnauth, classical singer (born Oct. 4, 1974)
- Sara Tavares, singer, guitarist & composer (born Feb. 1, 1978)
- Pedro G. Ferreira, astrophysics professor (born Mar. 18, 1968)
- Valete, hip hop artist (born Nov. 14, 1981)
- Fernando Pessoa, poet, writer & philosopher (born Jun. 13, 1888)
- Cesário Verde, poet (born Feb. 25, 1855)
Note: Data for our Famous People tab was sourced from Google searches mostly targeting published Wikipedia articles specific to each person’s name.
Population
Demonym for a Lisbon resident: Alfacinha
Population: 547,631 (Lisbon city)
Density: 16,726 people per square mile (6,458 per square kilometer)
Population: 3,035,000 (Lisbon Metropolitan Area)
Density: 8,205 people per square mile (3,168 per square kilometer)
Population: 10,833,816 (Portugal)
Density: 307 people per square mile (118 per square kilometer)
Financial
GDP: US$96.3 billion in 2014 (Lisbon Metropolitan Area)
GDP per person: $32,434
Note: The above GDP metrics are on a Purchasing Power Parity basis and are in U.S. dollars.
Official currency used in Lisbon: euros
Research
Research Sources:
Brookings Institution, Global Metro Monitor Report (includes GDP data). Accessed on November 30, 2016
Central Intelligence Agency, World Factbook, Europe: Portugal. Accessed on February 7, 2017
Central Intelligence Agency, World Factbook, Field Listing: Major Urban Areas. Accessed on November 30, 2016
CityMetric, Where are largest cities in the world? 2015 edition. Accessed on November 30, 2016
Demographia, World Urban Area, 12th Annual Edition. Accessed on November 30, 2016
Euromonitor International, Top 100 City Destinations Rankings 2017. Accessed on February 7, 2017
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on February 7, 2017
Official Government Website, Lisboa. Accessed on November 30, 2016
Wikimedia Commons, City Flags. Accessed on November 30, 2016
Note: Some city flags were unavailable. If so, attribution belongs to Wikimedia Commons for pertinent country flags.
Wikipedia, Lisbon. Accessed on November 30, 2016
Wikipedia, Lisbon metropolitan area. Accessed on November 30, 2016
Wikipedia, Portugal. Accessed on February 7, 2017
Renew 2016, 2nd International Conference on Renewable Energies Offshore (Lisbon, Portugal)–October 2016. Accessed on November 30, 2016
Lisbon’s municipal city limits contain an area measuring 39 square miles (100 square kilometers), within which there were 547,631 inhabitants in 2016.
Including the municipality of Lisbon, the larger Lisbon Metropolitan Area is an administrative division encompassing 17 other Portuguese municipalities. The Lisbon Metropolitan Area’s land surface extends over a total 370 square miles (958 square kilometers) serving as home to 3 million people.
At the country level, Portugal’s land area covers 35,317 square miles (91,470 square kilometers). The national population count was 10.8 million inhabitants as of July 2016.
Portuguese celebrate Portugal Day as a public holiday each June 10.
Population density is higher within the municipal area of Portugal’s capital city with an average 14,100 residents per square mile (5,500 per square kilometer).
Over the more extensive Lisbon Metropolitan Area, density diminishes to an average 8,200 people per square mile (3,200 per square kilometer).
For Portugal overall, population density drops to an average 310 inhabitants per square mile (120 per square kilometer).