Majorca (Mallorca in Catalan and Spanish -- the spelling "Mallorca" is also frequently encountered in present-day English -- from Latin insula maior, later Maiorica "major island") is one of the Balearic Islands (Illes Balears Catalan official name), which are located in the Mediterranean Sea and are a part of Spain. Like the other Balearic Islands Eivissa (Ibiza Spanish) and Minorca (Menorca Catalan official name), the island is a popular tourist destination, also for birdwatchers.

The capital of the island is Palma de Mallorca, which is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Cabrera archipelago is administratively grouped with Majorca (in the municipality of Palma).

Typical dishes of Majorca are ensaïmada, a pastry made with pork lard (saïm) and sobrassada, sausage with lard and paprika.

History

The island was conquered by James I of Aragon in 1229; prior to that, it was under Moorish or Arab domination.

Language

The local language is Catalan (in the local dialect Balearic). Spanish also has the status of an official language, strongly introduced by the emigration in the 20th century. There are also a lot of English and German because of the tourists.

Click here for the full Wikipedia article.