The Federal Republic of Catalonia is a Western European country. Comprising the Eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands, it borders Spain and Aragon to the West and France and Andorra to the North. Its name, which dates about the 11th century BC, means "Land of Castles". Once a divided between several Spanish provinces, is a sovereign country since 1927 and a federal republic comprising several Vegueries since 1947. Its territory has been populated since the Paleolithic.