republic under an authoritarian military-dominated regime
Independence date
11 November 1918 (republic proclaimed)
17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
Religions
Roman Catholic 89.8% (about 75% practicing), Eastern Orthodox 1.3%, Protestant 0.3%, other 0.3%, unspecified 8.3% (2002)
Sunni Muslim 74%, other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%, Christian (various denominations) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)
Languages
Polish 97.8%, other and unspecified 2.2% (2002 census)
machinery and transport equipment 37.8%, intermediate manufactured goods 23.7%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 17.1%, food and live animals 7.6% (2003)
crude oil, minerals, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, textiles, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat
External Debt
$320,000,000,000 $
$7,074,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
zlotych (PLN) per US dollar - 2.3 (2008 est.), 2.81 (2007), 3.1032 (2006), 3.2355 (2005), 3.6576 (2004) note: zlotych is the plural form of zloty
Syrian pounds (SYP) per US dollar - 46.5281 (2008 est.), 50.0085 (2007), 51.689 (2006), 50 (2005), 48.5 (2004) note: data for 2004-06 are the public sector rate; data for 2002-03 are the parallel market rate in 'Amman and Beirut; the official rate for repaying loans was 11.25 Syrian pounds per US dollars during 2004-06,
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
1.900%
5.900%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
10
0
Location
Central Europe, east of Germany
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey
Area
312,685 km sq
185,180 km sq
Coastline
440 km
193 km
Climate
temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers
mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus
