The fictional world in which the A Song of Ice and Fire novels by George R. R. Martin take place is divided into several continents, known collectively as The Known World.
The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Point Penmarc'h to the Spanish border, and along the northern coast of Spain, extending westward to Cape Ortegal. The southern area of the Bay of Biscay that washes over the northern coast of Spain is known locally as the Cantabrian Sea.
Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the province of Biscay and in the Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the tenth largest city in Spain, with a population of more than 347,000 as of 2023. The Bilbao metropolitan area has 1,037,847 inhabitants, making it the most populous metropolitan area in northern Spain; with a population of 875,552, the comarca of Greater Bilbao is the fifth-largest urban area in Spain. Bilbao is also the main urban area in what is defined as the Greater Basque region.
Gernikako Arbola is an oak tree that symbolizes traditional freedoms for the Biscayan people, and by extension for the Basque people as a whole. It is located in Guernica, Biscay, Basque Country, Spain. The Lords of Biscay swore to respect the Biscayan liberties under it, and the modern Lehendakari of the Basque Country swears his charge there.
Amorebieta-Etxano, also known as Zornotza, is a town and municipality located in Biscay in the Basque Country, an Autonomous Community in northern Spain.
Bakio is a municipality in the province of Biscay, Basque Country, Spain.
Bermeo is a town and municipality in the comarca of Busturialdea. It is in the province of Biscay, which is part of the autonomous region of the Basque Country in northern Spain.
Mundaka is a town and municipality located in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country, in northern Spain. Mundaka is internationally renowned for the surfing community that takes advantage of its coast and unique oceanic conditions.
Santurtzi is a port town in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country, Spain. It is located in the Bilbao Abra bay, near the mouth of the Nervión river, on its left bank, 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) downriver from Bilbao and forms part of the Greater Bilbao agglomeration. It has a population of 45,853 (2019) and a land area of 6.77 square kilometres (2.61 sq mi).
The Urdaibai estuary is a natural region and a Biosphere Reserve of Biscay, Basque Country, Spain. It is also referred as Mundaka or Gernika estuary.
The Kontxako Bandera (Basque) or Bandera de la Concha is one of the oldest and most famous estropada race along the Bay of Biscay, held annually in the Kontxa, the main bay of San Sebastián, Spain. It takes place on the first two weekends in September and regularly draws crowds of more than 100,000 people and around 20 rowing teams. It was first held in 1879 and has been held most years since with the main exception of the war years.
Txakoli de Bizkaia – Bizkaiko Txakolina is a Spanish Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP) for wines, located in the province of Bizkaia, Basque Country, Spain. The DOP includes vineyards from 82 different municipalities.
Íñigo López was the first Lord of Biscay. Although the date is not known precisely, Íñigo's government of Biscay began between 1040 and 1043 at the latest. He was appointed by the king, García Sánchez III of Navarre, and did not govern Biscay by hereditary right. At some point during the 1040s he received or inherited the rank of count. Around the end of his life he began using the style "by the grace of God", recorded for the first time written in legal documents after 1072. This style indicated a new claim to govern Biscay through the agency of God and not merely at the king's will.
The Lordship of Biscay was a region under feudal rule in the region of Biscay in the Iberian Peninsula between c.1040 and 1876, ruled by a political figure known as the Lord of Biscay. One of the Basque señoríos, it was a territory with its own political organization, with its own naval ensign, consulate in Bruges and customs offices in Balmaseda and Urduña, from the 11th century until 1876, when the Juntas Generales were abolished. Since 1379, when John I of Castile became the Lord of Biscay, the lordship was integrated into the Crown of Castile, and eventually the Kingdom of Spain.
The physical geography of the Basque Country is very diverse despite the small size of the region. The territory hosts a blend of green and brown to yellowish tones, featuring hilly terrain altogether. The Basque Country spreads from the rough coastal landscape to the semi-desert of the Bardenas on the south-eastern fringes of Navarre.
Tourism in the Basque Autonomous Community has increased considerably in recent years, and is a popular destination for tourists from Spain and France. According to data from the Eustat the number of tourists entering the region in the year 2009 was 1,991,790, with the final result still pending. 71% of the yearly visitors come from the rest of Spain; the greatest number from Madrid Autonomous Community (14.2%), and Catalonia (11.1%). International visitors make up the remaining 29% - the largest percent come from France (7.2%). 62% of the people who come to the Basque Autonomous Community visit one of the three capitals, 27% visit inland and 11% visit the coast. The average stay of the visitors is 2 days.
The Basques were among the first people to catch whales commercially rather than purely for subsistence and dominated the trade for five centuries, spreading to the far corners of the North Atlantic and even reaching the South Atlantic. The French explorer Samuel de Champlain, when writing about Basque whaling in Terranova, described them as "the cleverest men at this fishing". By the early 17th century, other nations entered the trade in earnest, seeking the Basques as tutors, "for [they] were then the only people who understand whaling", lamented the English explorer Jonas Poole.
Mouro Island, originally Mogro Island, is a small uninhabited island in the Bay of Biscay, located off the Magdalena Peninsula. It lies close to the entrance to the Bay of Santander near the city of Santander, Cantabria along the north coast of Spain. The island is approximately 2 hectares (0.02km²) and lies about .75 km from the entrance to the harbor.
Presunto culpable is a Spanish mystery thriller television series starring Miguel Ángel Muñoz. Produced by Atresmedia Televisión in collaboration with Boomerang TV, it aired on Antena 3 in 2018.
The hijacking of the Playa de Bakio was an incident that occurred between April 20 and 26, 2008. During those days the crew of the Spanish boat Playa de Bakio was held by pirates off the coast of Somalia.
