29 October 1923 (successor state to the Ottoman Empire)
Religions
Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other (includes syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs) 10%
Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (mostly Christians and Jews)
Languages
French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba
Turkish (official), Kurdish, Dimli (or Zaza), Azeri, Kabardian note: there is also a substantial Gagauz population in the European part of Turkey
Exports
apparel, foodstuffs, textiles, metal manufactures, transport equipment
External Debt
$306,600,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
Turkish liras (TRY) per US dollar - 1.3179 (2008 est.), 1.319 (2007), 1.4286 (2006), 1.3436 (2005), 1.4255 (2004) note: on 1 January 2005 the old Turkish lira (TRL) was converted to new Turkish lira (TRY) at a rate of 1,000,000 old to 1 new Turkish lira; on 1 January 2009 the Turkish government dropped the word "new" and the currency is now called simply the Turkish lira
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
5.300%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
0
8
Location
Central Africa, northeast of Angola
Southeastern Europe and Southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria
Area
2,344,858 km sq
783,562 km sq
Coastline
37 km
7,200 km
Climate
tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of Equator - wet season (April to October), dry season (December to February); south of Equator - wet season (November to March), dry season (April to October)
temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior
