republic under an authoritarian military-dominated regime
Independence date
1238 (traditional founding date; never colonized)
17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
Religions
Buddhist 94.6%, Muslim 4.6%, Christian 0.7%, other 0.1% (2000 census)
Sunni Muslim 74%, other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%, Christian (various denominations) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)
Languages
Thai, English (secondary language of the elite), ethnic and regional dialects
textiles and footwear, fishery products, rice, rubber, jewelry, automobiles, computers and electrical appliances
crude oil, minerals, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, textiles, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat
External Debt
$126,400,000,000 $
$8,818,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
baht per US dollar - 33.37 (2008 est.), 34.52 (2007), 37.882 (2006), 40.22 (2005), 40.222 (2004)
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
1.800%
3.600%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
4
0
Location
Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Burma
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey
Area
513,120 km sq
185,180 km sq
Coastline
3,219 km
193 km
Climate
tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-May to September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March); southern isthmus always hot and humid
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
