| Country name | conventional long form: Principality of Andorra conventional short form: Andorra local long form: Principat d'Andorra local short form: Andorra etymology: the origin of the country's name is obscure; the name may derive from the Arabic "ad-darra" meaning "the forest," a reference to its location as part of the Spanish March (defensive buffer zone) against the invading Moors in the 8th century |
| Government type | parliamentary democracy (since March 1993) that retains its chiefs of state in the form of a co-principality; the two princes are the President of France and Bishop of Seu d'Urgell, Spain |
| Capital | name: Andorra la Vella geographic coordinates: 42 30 N, 1 31 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October etymology: translates as "Andorra the Old" in Catalan |
| Administrative divisions | 7 parishes (parroquies, singular - parroquia); Andorra la Vella, Canillo, Encamp, Escaldes-Engordany, La Massana, Ordino, Sant Julia de Loria |
| Independence | 1278 (formed under the joint sovereignty of the French Count of Foix and the Spanish Bishop of Urgell) |
| National holiday | Our Lady of Meritxell Day, 8 September (1278) |
| Constitution | history: drafted 1991, approved by referendum 14 March 1993, effective 28 April 1993 amendments: proposed by the coprinces jointly or by the General Council; passage requires at least a two-thirds majority vote by the General Council, ratification in a referendum, and sanctioning by the coprinces |
| Legal system | mixed legal system of civil and customary law with the influence of canon (religious) law |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: the mother must be an Andorran citizen or the father must have been born in Andorra and both parents maintain permanent residence in Andorra dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 25 years |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Co-prince Emmanuel MACRON (since 14 May 2017); represented by Patrick STROZDA (since 14 May 2017); and Co-prince Archbishop Joan-Enric VIVES i Sicilia (since 12 May 2003); represented by Josep Maria MAURI (since 20 July 2012) head of government: Head of Government (or Cap de Govern) Xaviar Espot ZAMORA (since 16 May 2019) cabinet: Executive Council of 12 ministers designated by the head of government elections/appointments: head of government indirectly elected by the General Council (Andorran parliament), formally appointed by the coprinces for a 4-year term; election last held on 7 April 2019 (next to be held in April 2023); the leader of the majority party in the General Council is usually elected head of government election results: Xaviar Espot ZAMORA (DA) elected head of government; percent of General Council vote - 60.7% |
| Legislative branch | description: unicameral General Council of the Valleys or Consell General de les Valls (a minimum of 28 seats; 14 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies (parishes) by simple majority vote and 14 directly elected in a single national constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms); note - voters cast two separate ballots - one for a national list and one for a parish list elections: last held on 7 April 2019 (next to be held on April 2023) election results: percent of vote by party - DA 35.1%, PS 30.6%, L'A 12.5%, Third Way/Lauredian Union 10.4%, other 22.4%; seats by party - DA 11, PS 7, L'A 4, Third Way/Lauredian Union 4, other 2; composition - men 14, women 14, percent of women 50% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court of Justice of Andorra or Tribunal Superior de la Justicia d'Andorra (consists of the court president and 8 judges organized into civil, criminal, and administrative chambers); Constitutional Court or Tribunal Constitucional (consists of 4 magistrates) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court president and judges appointed by the Supreme Council of Justice, a 5-member judicial policy and administrative body appointed 1 each by the coprinces, 1 by the General Council, 1 by the executive council president, and 1 by the courts; judges serve 6-year renewable terms; Constitutional magistrates - 2 appointed by the coprinces and 2 by the General Council; magistrates' appointments limited to 2 consecutive 8-year terms subordinate courts: Tribunal of Judges or Tribunal de Batlles; Tribunal of the Courts or Tribunal de Corts |
| Political parties and leaders | Democrats for Andorra or DA [Xaviar ESPOT ZAMORA] Social Democratic Party or PS [Vicenc ALFY FERRER] Liberals of Andorra or L'A [Jordi GALLARDO FERNANDEZ] Third Way/Lauredian Union [Josep PINTAT FORNE] Social Democracy and Progress or SDP [Victor NAUDI ZAMORA] United for the Progress of Andorra or UPA [Alfons CLAVERA ARIZTI] note: Andorra has several smaller parties at the parish level (one is Lauredian Union) |
| International organization participation | CE, FAO, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICCt, ICRM, IFRCS, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, Union Latina, UNWTO, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WTO (observer) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Elisenda VIVES BALMANA (since 2 March 2016) chancery: 2 United Nations Plaza, 27th Floor, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 750-8064; [1] (212) 750-8065 FAX: [1] (212) 750-6630 email address and website: contact@andorraun.org |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | embassy: the US does not have an embassy in Andorra; the US ambassador to Spain is accredited to Andorra; US interests in Andorra are represented by the US Consulate General's office in Barcelona (Spain); mailing address: Paseo Reina Elisenda de Montcada, 23, 08034 Barcelona, Espana; telephone: [34] (93) 280-22-27; FAX: [34] (93) 280-61-75; email address: Barcelonaacs@state.gov |
| Flag description | three vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red, with the national coat of arms centered in the yellow band; the latter band is slightly wider than the other 2 so that the ratio of band widths is 8:9:8; the coat of arms features a quartered shield with the emblems of (starting in the upper left and proceeding clockwise): Urgell, Foix, Bearn, and Catalonia; the motto reads VIRTUS UNITA FORTIOR (Strength United is Stronger); the flag combines the blue and red French colors with the red and yellow of Spain to show Franco-Spanish protection note: similar to the flags of Chad and Romania, which do not have a national coat of arms in the center, and the flag of Moldova, which does bear a national emblem |
| National symbol(s) | red cow (breed unspecified); national colors: blue, yellow, red |
| National anthem | name: "El Gran Carlemany" (The Great Charlemagne) lyrics/music: Joan BENLLOCH i VIVO/Enric MARFANY BONS note: adopted 1921; the anthem provides a brief history of Andorra in a first person narrative |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
