25 December 1000 (crowning of King STEPHEN I, traditional founding date)
Religions
Hindu 48%, Roman Catholic 23.6%, Muslim 16.6%, other Christian 8.6%, other 2.5%, unspecified 0.3%, none 0.4% (2000 census)
Roman Catholic 51.9%, Calvinist 15.9%, Lutheran 3%, Greek Catholic 2.6%, other Christian 1%, other or unspecified 11.1%, unaffiliated 14.5% (2001 census)
Languages
Creole 80.5%, Bhojpuri 12.1%, French 3.4%, English (official; spoken by less than 1% of the population), other 3.7%, unspecified 0.3% (2000 census)
Hungarian 93.6%, other or unspecified 6.4% (2001 census)
Exports
clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses, fish
machinery and equipment 61.1%, other manufactures 28.7%, food products 6.5%, raw materials 2%, fuels and electricity 1.6% (2003)
External Debt
$5,205,000,000 $
$184,500,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
Mauritian rupees (MUR) per US dollar - 27.973 (2008 est.), 31.798 (2007), 31.656 (2006), 29.496 (2005), 27.499 (2004)
forints (HUF) per US dollar - 171.8 (2008), 183.83 (2007), 210.39 (2006), 199.58 (2005), 202.75 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
0.300%
1.750%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
1
10
Location
Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Central Europe, northwest of Romania
Area
2,040 km sq
93,028 km sq
Coastline
177 km
0 km
Climate
tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)
