Azores Azores The Azores ( or ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (""), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira ("Região Autónoma da Madeira"). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the North Atlantic Ocean about west of continental Portugal, about west of Lisbon, in continental Portugal, about northwest of Morocco, and about southeast of Newfoundland, Canada. Its main industries are agriculture, dairy farming, livestock, fishing, and tourism, which is becoming the major service activity in the region. In addition, the government of the Azores employs a large percentage
Island country Island country An island country is a country whose primary territory consists of one or more islands or parts of islands. As of 2011, 46 (approximately 24%) of the 193 UN member states are island countries. The percentage of island countries that are democratic is higher than that of continental countries. Historically they have been less prone to political instability than their continental counterparts. Island countries have often been the basis of maritime conquest and historical rivalry between other countries. Island countries are more susceptible to attack by large, continental countries due to their size and dependence on sea and