Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by a governor-general. Prime minister : Freundel Stuart
Population
79,749,461
287,733
Life Expectancy
72.770 years
74.520 years
Capital City
Ankara
Bridgetown
Largest city
Istanbul (population: 11,174,300)
Bridgetown (population: 98,511)
Human Development Index
0.798
0.889
GDP per capita
$14,700 US
$23,700 US
Literacy Rate
87.4%
99.7%
Corruption Perception Index
4.6
7
Percentage of Women in Parliament
9.1%
13.7%
Wealthiest Citizens
Husnu Ozyegin ($2.9bn US)
NA
Unemployment Rate
9.800%
12.000%
Death Penalty
Abolished
Legal
Political System
republican parliamentary democracy
parliamentary democracy
Independence date
29 October 1923 (successor state to the Ottoman Empire)
30 November 1966 (from UK)
Religions
Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (mostly Christians and Jews)
Protestant 63.4% (Anglican 28.3%, Pentecostal 18.7%, Methodist 5.1%, other 11.3%), Roman Catholic 4.2%, other Christian 7%, other 4.8%, none or unspecified 20.6% (2008 est.)
Languages
Turkish (official), Kurdish, Dimli (or Zaza), Azeri, Kabardian note: there is also a substantial Gagauz population in the European part of Turkey
English
Exports
apparel, foodstuffs, textiles, metal manufactures, transport equipment
manufactures, sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components
External Debt
$306,600,000,000 $
$668,000,000 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
Barbadian dollars (BBD) per US dollar - NA (2007), 2 (2006), 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
5.300%
0.800%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
8
0
Location
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
Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela
Area
783,562 km sq
430 km sq
Coastline
7,200 km
97 km
Climate
temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior
