Iberian Lynx
One of the rarest wild cats on Earth, the Iberian lynx lives in the forests and scrublands of Portugal and Spain, hunting rabbits with remarkable patience.
Flag of Portugal
Field Report
Portugal is a small country on the far western edge of Europe, sitting right where the continent meets the wide Atlantic Ocean — if you stood on its shore and looked west, the next land you would reach by sailing straight ahead would be North America. About 10 million people live there, speaking Portuguese, a language that explorers once carried to nearly every corner of the globe. Portugal has ancient castles, beautiful tile-covered buildings, and a long history, but like every country, its greatest need is for people to know Jesus.
From the Field Notebook
Iberian Lynx
One of the rarest wild cats on Earth, the Iberian lynx lives in the forests and scrublands of Portugal and Spain, hunting rabbits with remarkable patience.
European Bee-eater
This brilliantly colored bird, with feathers of green, orange, and blue, migrates through Portugal each summer and catches bees in mid-flight by rubbing out their stingers on a branch before eating them.
Bottlenose Dolphin
The waters off Portugal's long Atlantic coastline are home to bottlenose dolphins, which Portuguese fishermen have watched leaping alongside their boats for centuries.
Pastel de Nata
These small custard tarts with a flaky, golden crust were first made by monks in Lisbon centuries ago and are still eaten warm with a dusting of cinnamon at breakfast or as a snack.
Bacalhau
Salt-dried codfish called bacalhau is so central to Portuguese cooking that people say there are over three hundred ways to prepare it, and nearly every family has a favorite recipe.
Caldo Verde
This hearty green soup made from thinly sliced kale, potatoes, olive oil, and slices of smoky sausage is the kind of simple, filling meal Portuguese families have eaten together on cold evenings for generations.
Portugal is the oldest nation-state in Europe, with borders that have remained almost unchanged since 1139 — making it older than most European countries by hundreds of years.
The Portuguese language is spoken by over 250 million people worldwide, making it one of the most widely spoken languages on Earth, largely because of Portugal's age of exploration in the 1400s and 1500s.
Portugal's coastline stretches for about 1,794 kilometers along the Atlantic Ocean, and the country once ruled one of the longest-lasting empires in world history, reaching across Africa, South America, and Asia for nearly six centuries.
The city of Lisbon sits on seven hills, and its oldest neighborhoods are connected by historic yellow trams that climb steep, narrow streets where cars can barely fit.
Cork — the soft bark used to seal wine bottles and make flooring — comes mostly from Portugal, which produces more than half of the world's cork supply from forests of cork oak trees whose bark is carefully harvested without harming the tree.
Daily Life
82
Years life expectancy
94%
Can read and write
98%
Kids go to school
Missions Field Report
Portugal is home to 35 distinct people groups — 5 of them haven’t yet heard about Jesus.
Most Portugal's people follow Christianity (92.6%). Evangelical Christians make up about 3.5% of the population.
What People Believe
Unreached People Groups
These are communities of people who haven’t had the chance to hear about Jesus yet. They need missionaries — and they need kids like you to pray for them.
South Asian, general
81,000 people
Gujarati
21,000 people
Deaf
10,000 people
Arab, Moroccan
6,000 people
Jewish, Portuguese
3,500 people
Prayer Journal
Tick each one as you pray. God hears every word.