World affairs annual 2010.IN THE 22 PAGES that follow, you'll find MAPS and the LATEST DATA on the world's 195 COUNTRIES--everything from languages and literacy rates to the percentage of young people in the population. To better understand the data, read the explanations accompanying the sample entry for Brazil, below. ON EACH MAP, you'll find photos and summaries of key news stories to watch this year. And in our SNAPSHOTS section, you'll learn, among other things, which countries have the most Internet users and which consume the most ice cream. We hope you'll keep this issue FOR YEAR-ROUND REFERENCE, and that it will help you make sense of what's going on in the world as we head into 2010.[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] WHERE THE OIL IS BIGGEST OIL PRODUCERS (millions of barrels per day) SAUDI ARABIA 10.2 RUSSIA 9.9 UNITED STATES 8.4 IRAN 4.0 CHINA 3.9 MEXICO 3.5 CANADA 3.4 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 2.9 VENEZUELA 2.7 KUWAIT 2.6 SOURCE: ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION; 2007 FIGURES Note: Table made from bar graph. GAS GUZZLERS BIGGEST OIL CONSUMERS (millions of barrels per day) UNITED STATES 20.7 CHINA 7.6 JAPAN 5.0 RUSSIA 2.8 INDIA 2.8 GERMANY 2.5 BRAZIL 2.4 CANADA 2.3 SOUTH KOREA 2.2 SAUDI ARABIA 2.2 SOURCE: ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION; 2007 FIGURES Note: Table made from bar graph. THE WEALTH OF NATIONS Per Capita GDP in U.S. Dollars WEALTHIEST 1. LIECHTENSTEIN $118,000 2. QATAR $103,500 3. LUXEMBOURG $81,100 4. KUWAIT $57,400 6. NORWAY $55,200 6. BRUNEI $53,100 7. SINGAPORE $52,000 8. UNITED STATES $47,000 9. IRELAND $46,200 10. ANDORRA $543 POOREST 1. ZIMBABWE $200 2. DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO $300 3. BURUNDI $400 4. LIBERIA $500 5. SOMALIA $600 6. GUINEA-BISSAU $600 7. CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC $700 8. SIERRA LEONE $700 9. NIGER $700 10. ERITREA $700 SOURCE: THE WORLD FACTBOOK 2009 (C.I.A.) NUMBERS ROUNDED upfront 2010 HOT SPOTS EUROPE [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Under Prime Minister (and former President) Vladimir Putin, RUSSIA has become increasingly autocratic at home and aggressive abroad, raising concerns in Europe, Asia, and the United States. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A Muslim country that straddles both Europe and Asia, TURKEY is struggling with how to balance the growing influence of Islam with its secular traditions and its hope of joining the European Union.
EUROPE
URBAN
AREA (SQ MI) POP. %
POP. RISE
COUNTRY POPULATION %/YEAR CAPITAL MAJOR LANGUAGES
ALBANIA 11,100 49 TIRANA ALBANIAN
3,200,000 0.6 GREEK
ANDORRA 174 90 ANDORRA CATALAN
100,000 0.7 LA VELLA FRENCH
CASTILIAN
AUSTRIA 32,378 67 VIENNA GERMAN
8,400,000 0
BELARUS 80,154 74 MINSK BELARUSIAN
4,700,000 -0.3 RUSSIAN
OTHERS
BELGIUM 11,787 97 BRUSSELS FLEMISH
10,800,000 0.2 FRENCH
GERMAN
BOSNIA & 19,741 46 SARAJEVO SERBO-CROATIAN
HERZEGOVINA 3,800,000 0
BULGARIA 42,822 71 SOFIA BULGARIAN
7,600,000 -0.4 OTHERS
CROATIA 21,830 56 ZAGREB SERBO-CROATIAN
4,400,000 -0.2
CZECH 30,448 74 PRAGUE CZECH
REPUBLIC 10,500,000 0.1 SLOVAK
DENMARK 16,637 72 COPENHAGEN DANISH
5,500,000 0.2 GREENLANDIC
FAROESE & GERMAN
ESTONIA 17,413 69 TALLINN ESTONIAN
1,300,000 0 UKRAINIAN
RUSSIAN & OTHERS
FINLAND 130,560 63 HELSINKI FINNISH
5,300,000 0.2 SWEDISH
LAPP & RUSSIAN
FRANCE 212,934 77 PARIS FRENCH
62,600,000 0.4 REGIONAL
DIALECTS
GERMANY 137,830 73 BERLIN GERMAN
82,000,000 -0.2
GREECE 50,950 60 ATHENS GREEK
11,300,000 0 ENGLISH
FRENCH
HUNGARY 35,919 66 BUDAPEST HUNGARIAN
10,000,000 -0.3 OTHERS
ICELAND 39,768 93 REYKJAVIK ICELANDIC
300,000 0.9
IRELAND 27,135 60 DUBLIN ENGLISH
4,500,000 1.0 GAELIC
ITALY 116,320 68 ROME ITALIAN
60,300,000 0 GERMAN
FRENCH & SLOVENE
KOSOVO (2) 4,203 NA PRISTINA ALBANIAN
2,200,000 1.4 SERBIAN
OTHERS
LATVIA 24,942 68 RIGA LETTISH
2,300,000 -0.3 LITHUANIAN
RUSSIAN & OTHERS
LIECHTENSTEIN 62 15 VADUZ GERMAN
40,000 0.4 ALEMANNIC
DIALECT
LITHUANIA 25,174 67 VILNIUS LITHUANIAN
3,300,000 -0.2 POLISH
RUSSIAN
LUXEMBOURG 999 83 LUXEMBOURG LUXEMBOURGISH
500,000 0.4 GERMAN
FRENCH & ENGLISH
MACEDONIA 9,927 65 SKOPJE MACEDONIAN
200,000 0.2 ALBANIAN
OTHERS
MALTA 124 94 VALLETTA MALTESE
400,000 0.2 ENGLISH
MOLDOVA 13,012 41 CHISINAU MOLDOVAN
4,100,000 -0.1 RUSSIAN
GAGAUZ
MONACO 1 100 MONACO FRENCH
40,000 0.9 ENGLISH
ITALIAN &
MONEGASQUE
MONTENEGRO 5,333 64 PODGORICA MONTENEGRIN
600,000 0.3 SERBIAN
BOSNIAK &
ALBANIAN
NETHERLANDS 15,768 66 AMSTERDAM DUTCH
16,500,000 0.3
NORWAY 125,050 80 OSLO NORWEGIAN
4,800,000 0.4 LAPP
FINNISH
POLAND 124,807 61 WARSAW POLISH
38,100,000 0.1
PORTUGAL 35,514 55 LISBON PORTUGUESE
10,600,000 0
ROMANIA 92,042 55 BUCHAREST ROMANIAN
21,500,000 -0.1 HUNGARIAN
GERMAN
RUSSIA 6,592,819 -0.3 MOSCOW RUSSIAN
141,800,000 84 OTHERS
SAN MARIN0 23 84 SAN ITALIAN
30,000 0.3 MARINO
SERBIA 34,115 56 BELGRADE SERBO-CROATIAN
7,300,000 -0.5 ALBANIAN
SLOVAKIA 18,923 56 BRATISLAVA SLOVAK
5,400,000 0.1 HUNGARIAN
SLOVENIA 7,819 48 LJUBLJANA SLOVENIAN
2,000,000 0.2 SERBO-CROATIAN
OTHERS
SPAIN 195,363 77 MADRID SPANISH
46,900 0.3 CATALAN
GALICIAN &
BASQUE
SWEDEN 173,730 84 STOCKHOLM SWEDISH
9,300,000 0.2 LAPP
FINNISH
SWITZERLAND 15,942 73 BERN GERMAN
7,800,000 0.2 FRENCH, ITALIAN
ROMANSCH &
OTHERS
UKRAINE 233,089 68 KIEV UKRAINIAN,
46,000,000 -0.5 RUSSIAN
ROMANIAN, POLISH
HUNGARIAN
UNITED 94,548 80 LONDON ENGLISH
KINGDOM 61,800,000 0.4 WELSH
(ENGLAND, GAELIC
SCOTLAND,
WALES &
N. IRELAND)
VATICAN CITY 109 ACRES NA VATICAN ITALIAN
824 0 CITY LATIN
OTHERS
POLITICAL SYSTEM &
COUNTRY HEAD OF GOVERNMENT
ALBANIA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister SALI BERISHA
ANDORRA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
Executive Council President
JAUME BARTUMEU CASSANY
AUSTRIA Parliamentary democracy
Chancellor WERNER FAYMANN
BELARUS Presidential dictatorship
president ALEKSANDR LUKASHENKO
BELGIUM Parliamentary democracy
Frime Minister HERMAN VAN ROMPUY
BOSNIA & Presidential-parliamentary (transitional)
HERZEGOVINA Rotating Chairman of the Presidency (1)
BULGARIA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister BOKIO BORISOV
CROATIA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President JADRANKA KOSOR
CZECH Parliamentary democracy
REPUBLIC Prime Minister JAN FISCHER
DENMARK Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister LARS LOKKE RASMUSSEN
ESTONIA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister ANDRUS ANSIP
FINLAND Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President TARJA HALONEN
FRANCE Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President NICOLAS SARKOZY
GERMANY Parliamentary democracy
Chancellor ANGELA MERKEL
GREECE Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister KOSTAS KARAMANLIS
HUNGARY Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister GORDON BAJNAI
ICELAND Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister JOHANNA SIGURDARDOT-
TIR
IRELAND Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister BRIAN COWEN
ITALY Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister SILVIO BERLUSCONI
KOSOVO (2) Presidential-parliamentary democracy
(transitional)
Prime Minister HASHIM THACI
LATVIA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister VALDIS DOMBROVSKIS
LIECHTENSTEIN Constitutional monarchy
Prince ALOIS
LITHUANIA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President DALIA GRYBAUSKAITE
LUXEMBOURG Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER
MACEDONIA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister NIKOLA GRUEVSKI
MALTA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister LAWRENCE GONZI
MOLDOVA Parliamentary democracy
Acting President MIHAI GHIMPU (3)
MONACO Constitutional monarchy
prince ALBERT II
MONTENEGRO Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President FILIP VUJANOYIC
NETHERLANDS Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister JAN PETER BALKENENDE
NORWAY Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister JENS STOLTENBERG
POLAND Presdential-Parliamentary democracy
President LECH KACZYNSKI
PORTUGAL Presidential-Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister JOSE SOCRATES
ROMANIA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
president TRAIAN BASESCU
RUSSIA Dominant party
President DMITRY MEDVEDEV
SAN MARIN0 Parliamentary democracy
Co-Captains Regent elected every six
months from the Great and General Council
SERBIA Presidential-Parliamentary democracy
(transitional)
President BORIS TADIC
SLOVAKIA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister ROBERT FICO
SLOVENIA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister BORUT PAHOR
SPAIN Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister
JOSE LUIS RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO
SWEDEN Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister FREDRIK REINFELDT
SWITZERLAND Parliamentary democracy
Rotating President from seven-member
Federal Council
UKRAINE Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President VIKTOR YUSHCHENKO
UNITED Parliamentary democracy
KINGDOM Prime Minister CORDON BROWN
(ENGLAND,
SCOTLAND,
WALES &
N. IRELAND)
VATICAN CITY Papal state
Pope BENEDICT XVI
DATE LITERACY PER CAPITA
OF ORIGIN RATE (%) GDP
% POP. LIFE
COUNTRY UNDER 15 EXPECTANCY HDI
ALBANIA 1912 99/98 $6,000
25 72/79 0.807
ANDORRA 1278 99/99 $42,500
15 NA NA
AUSTRIA 1156 98 $39,200
15 78/83 0.951
BELARUS 1991 99/99 $11,800
15 65/76 0.817
BELGIUM 1830 99/99 $37,500
17 77/82 0.948
BOSNIA & 1992 99/94 $6,500
HERZEGOVINA 16 72/77 0.802
BULGARIA 1908 99/98 $12,900
13 70/77 0.834
CROATIA 1991 99/97 $16,100
15 72/79 0.862
CZECH 1993 99/99 $26,100
REPUBLIC 14 74/80 0.897
DENMARK 900s 99/99 $37,400
19 76/81 0.952
ESTONIA 1991 99/99 $21,200
15 67/79 0.871
FINLAND 1917 99/99 $32,200
17 76/83 0.954
FRANCE 486 99/99 $32,700
18 78/84 0.955
GERMANY 1871 94/99 $34,800
14 77/82 0.940
GREECE 1829 98/94 $32,000
14 77/82 0.947
HUNGARY 1001 99/99 $19,800
15 69/77 0.877
ICELAND 1944 99/99 $39,900
21 80/83 0.968
IRELAND 1921 99/99 $46,200
21 77/82 0.960
ITALY 1861 99/98 $31,000
14 79/84 0.945
KOSOVO (2) 2008 97/88 $2,300
31 67/71 NA
LATVIA 1991 99/99 $17,800
14 66/77 0.863
LIECHTENSTEIN 1719 99/99 $118,000
17 79/82 NA
LITHUANIA 1991 99/99 $17,700
15 65/77 0.869
LUXEMBOURG 1839 99/99 $81,100
18 78/83 0.956
MACEDONIA 1991 98/44 $9,000
19 71/76 0.808
MALTA 1964 92/94 $24,200
16 77/82 0.894
MOLDOVA 1991 99/99 $2,500
18 65/73 0.719
MONACO 1419 99/99 $30,000
73 NA NA
MONTENEGRO 2006 NA $9,700
20 70/75 0.822
NETHERLANDS 1579 99/99 $40,300
18 78/82 0.958
NORWAY 1905 99/99 $55,200
19 78/83 0.968
POLAND 1918 99/99 $17,300
16 71/80 0.875
PORTUGAL 1140 96/91 $22,000
15 75/82 0.900
ROMANIA 1878 98/96 $12,200
15 69/76 0.825
RUSSIA 1991 99/99 $15,800
15 61/74 0.806
SAN MARIN0 301 97/95 $41,900
15 80/85 NA
SERBIA 1992 94/94 $10,900
15 71/76 0.821
SLOVAKIA 1993 99/99 $21,900
15 71/79 0.872
SLOVENIA 1941 99/94 $29,500
14 75/82 0.923
SPAIN 1492 99/97 $34,600
14 78/84 0.949
SWEDEN 1523 99/99 $38,500
15 79/83 0.958
SWITZERLAND 1291 99/99 $40,900
15 79/84 0.955
UKRAINE 1991 49/99 $7,400
14 63/74 0.786
UNITED CIRCA 900 99/99 $36,600
KINGDOM 18 77/82 0.942
(ENGLAND,
SCOTLAND,
WALES &
N. IRELAND)
VATICAN CITY 1929 100 NA
NA NA NA
(1) Bosnia & Herzegovina has a collective presidency that rotates
among three members (one Croat, one Muslim, and one Serb).
(2) Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia in 2008. It is
officially recognized by 62 countries, including the U.S.
(3) Pending new elections in 2010
AFRICA [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] SOMALIA has been without a real government since 1991. The chaotic situation has allowed pirates to flourish off the coast, threatening international shipping in the Gulf of Aden. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Ethnic conflict in the Darfur region of SUDAN, where Arab militias have been attacking black villages for six years, has left more than 300,000 dead and close to 3 million displaced.
AFRICA
ARE (SQ MI) URBAN
POP. %
Country POPULATION POP. RISE CAPITAL MAJOR LANGUAGES
% YEAR
ALGERIA 919,591 63 ALGIERS ARABIC
35,400,000 1.9 FRENCH
BERBER DIALECTS
ANGOLA 481,351 57 LUANDA PORTUGUESE
17,100,000 2.7 BANTU
OTHERS
BENIN 43,483 41 PORTO-NOVO FRENCH
8,900,000 3.2 FON
YORUBA & OTHERS
BOTSWANA 224,606 60
2,000,000 1.3 GABORONE ENGLISH
SETSWANA
BURKINA 105,792 16 OUAGADOUGOU FRENCH
FASO 15,800,000 3.2 SUDANIC
LANGUAGES
BURUNDI 10,745 10 BUJUMBURA KIRUNDI
8,300,000 2.1 FRENCH
SWAHILI
CAMEROON 183,568 57 YAOUNDE ENGLISH
18,900,000 2.3 FRENCH
AFRICAN
LANGUAGES
CAPE VERDE 1,556 59 PRAIA PORTUGUESE
500,000 2.1 CRIOULO
CENTRAL 240,533 38 BANGUI FRENCH
AFRICAN 4,500,000 1.9 SANGHO
REPUBLIC ARABIC
HUNSA & SWAHILI
CHAD 495,753 27 N'DJAMENA FRENCH
10,300,000 2.6 ARABIC
SARA & OTHERS
COMOROS 861 28 MORONI ARABIC
700,000 2.5 FRENCH
COMORAN
CONGO 905,351 33 KINSHASA FRENCH
DEMOCRATIC 68,700,000 3.1 LINGALA
REPUBLIC KINGWANA
OF THE KIKONGO &
TSHILUBA
CONGO 132,046 60 BRAZZAVILLE FRENCH
REPUBLIC OF 3,700,000 2.3 LINGALA
MONOKUTUBA
KIKONGO &
OTHERS
COTE 124,502 48 YAMOUSSOUKRO FRENCH
D'IVOIRE 21,400,000 2.4 DIOULA
(IVORY COAST) OTHERS
DJIBOUTI 8,958 87 DJIBOUTI FRENCH
900,000 1.9 ARABIC
SOMALI & AFAR
EGYPT (4) 386,660 43 CAIRO ARABIC
78,600,000 1.9 ENGLISH
FRENCH
EQUATORIAL 10,830 34 MALABO SPANISH
GUINEA 700,000 2.4 FRENCH
PIDGIN ENGLISH
FANG, BUBI &
IBO
ERITREA 45,405 21 ASMARA AMHARIC
5,100,000 2.9 ARABIC
AFAR, TIGRINYA
TIGRE & MANY
OTHERS
ETHIOPIA 426,371 16 ADDIS ABABA AMHARIC
82,800,000 2.7 TIGRINYA,
ARABIC
OROMINGA
ENGLISH &
OTHERS
GABON 103,347 84 LIBREVILLE FRENCH, FANG
1,500,000 1.8 MYENE, BATEKE
OTHERS
GAMBIA 4,363 54 BANJUL ENGLISH
1,600,000 2.8 MANDINKA
WOLOF, FULA
& OTHERS
GHANA 92,100 48 ACCRA ENGLISH
23,800,000 2.1 AKAN
OTHERS
GUINEA 94,927 33 CONAKRY FRENCH
10,100,000 2.7 VARIOUS AFRICAN
LANGUAGES
GUINEA- 13,446 30 BISSAU PORTUGUESE
BISSAU 1,600,000 2.6 CRIOULO
OTHERS
KENYA 224,081 19 NAIROBI ENGLISH
39,100,000 2.7 SWAHILI
MANY OTHERS
LESOTHO 11,718 24 MASERU SESOTHO
2,100,OO0 0.2 ENGLISH
ZULU & XHOSA
LIBERIA 43,000 58 MONROVIA ENGLISH
4,000,000 3.0 NIGER-CONGO
LANGUAGES
LIBYA 679,354 77 TRIPOLI ARABIC
6,300,000 2.0 ITALIAN
ENGLISH
MADAGASCAR 226,656 30 ANTANANARIVO FRENCH
19,500,000 2.9 MALAGASY
MALAWI 45,745 17 LILONGWE ENGLISH
14,200,000 3.1 CHICHEWA
OTHERS
478,838 31 BAMAKO FRENCH
MALI 13,000,000 2.8 BAMBARA
MANY OTHERS
MAURITANIA 395,954 40 NOUAKCHOTT HASANIYA ARABIC
3,300,000 2.5 PULAAR, SONINKE
WOLOF & FRENCH
788 42 PORT ENGLISH, CREOLE
MAURITIUS 1,300,000 0.7 LOUIS FRENCH, HINDI
URDU, HAKKA
BOJPOORI
MOROCCO 772,413 56 RABAT ARABIC
31,500,000 1.4 BERBER DIALECTS
FRENCH
MOZAMBIQUE 309,494 29 MAPUTO PORTUGUESE
22,000,000 2.4 AFRICAN
LANGUAGES
NAMIBIA 318,259 35 WINDHOEK AFRIKAANS
2,200,000 2.1 GERMAN, ENGLISH
LOCAL AFRICAN
LANGUAGES
NIGER 489,189 17 NIAMEY FRENCH
15,300,000 3.9 HAUSA
DJERMA
NIGERIA 356,668 47 ABUJA ENGLISH, HAUSA
152,600,000 2.6 YORUBA
IBO & FULANI
RWANDA 10,170 18 KIGALI KINYARWANDA
9,900,000 2.5 FRENCH
ENGLISH
KISWAHILI
SAO TOME 371 58 SAO TOME PORTUGUESE
& PRINCIPE 200,000 2.6
SENEGAL 75,954 41 DAKAR FRENCH, WOLOF
72,500,000 2.9 PULAAR, DIOLA
MANDINGO
SEYCHELLES 174 53 VICTORIA ENGLISH
100,000 1.0 FRENCH
CREOLE
SIERRA 27,699 37 FREETOWN ENGLISH
LEONE 5,700,000 2.0 MENDE
TEMNE & KRIO
SOMALIA 246,201 37 MOGADISHU SOMALI
9,100,000 3.0 ARABIC
ITALIAN &
ENGLISH
SOUTH 477,444 59 CAPE TOWN ENGLISH
AFRICA 50,700,000 0.8 PRETORIA & AFRIKAANS, ZULU
BLOEMPONTEIN XNOSA, SWAZI
SOTHO & OTHERS
SUDAN 967,494 38 KHARTOUM ARABIC, NUBIAN
42,300,000 2.2 TA BEDAWIE
ENGLISH &
OTHERS
SWAZILAND 6,703 24 MBABANE & ENGLISH
1,200,000 1.6 LOBAMBA SISWATI
TANZANIA 364,900 25 DAR ES KISWAHILI
43,700,000 2.3 SALAAM ENGLISH
ARABIC
MANY OTHERS
TOGO 21,927 40 LOME FRENCH, EWE
6,600,000 2.7 MINA, DAGOMBA
KABYE
TUNISIA 63,170 66 TUNIS ARABIC
10,400,D00 1.2 FRENCH
UGANDA 93,066 13 KAMPALA ENGLISH
30,700,000 3.4 LUGANDA
SWAHILI &
OTHERS
ZAMBIA 240,583 37 LUSAKA ENGLISH
12,600,000 2.9 BEMBA
TONGA & OTHERS
ZIMBABWE 150,873 37 HARARE ENGLISH
12,500,000 1.4 SHONA
SINDEBELE
OTHERS
POLITICAL SYSTEM &
Country HEAD OF GOVERNMENT
ALGERIA Dominant party
President ABDELAZIZ BOUTEFLIKA
ANGOLA Presidential-parliamentary
(transitional)
President JOSE EDUARDO DOS SANTOS
BENIN Presidential-legislative democracy
President YAYI BONI
BOTSWANA Parliamentary democracy and
traditional chiefs
President IAN KHAMA
BURKINA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
FASO (transitional)
President BLAISE COMPAORE
BURUNDI Presidential-legislative democracy
(transitional)
President PIERRE NKURUNZIZA
CAMEROON Dominant party
President PAUL BIYA
CAPE VERDE Presidential-parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister JOSE MARIA NEVES
CENTRAL Presidential-parliamentary democracy
AFRICAN (transitional)
REPUBLIC President FRANCOIS BOZIZE
CHAD Dominant party
President IDRISS DEBY
COMOROS Presidential-parliamentary
(military-influenced)
President ARMED ABDALLAH SAMBI
CONGO In transition from military to
DEMOCRATIC presidential-parliamentary
REPUBLIC President JOSEPH KABILA
OF THE
CONGO Military (transitional)
REPUBLIC OF President DENTS SASSOU-NGUESSO
COTE Presidential-parliamentary
D'IVOIRE (transitional)
(IVORY COAST) President LAURENT GBAGBO
DJIBOUTI Dominant party
President ISMAIL OMAR GUELLEH
EGYPT (4) Dominant party
President HOSNI MUBARAK
EQUATORIAL Presidential dictatorship
GUINEA President
TEODORO OBIANG NGUEMA MBAS0G0
ERITREA One-party dictatorship
President ISAIAS AFEWERKI
ETHIOPIA Dominant party
Prime Minister MELES ZENAWI
GABON Dominant party
President ALI BEN BONGO
GAMBIA Dominant party
President YAHYA JAMMEH
GHANA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President JOHN ATTA MILLS
GUINEA Military (transitional after coup);
President MOUSSA DADIS CAMARA
GUINEA- Presidential-legislative (transitional)
BISSAU President MALAM BACAI SANHA
KENYA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President MWAI KIBAKI
LESOTHO Parliamentary and traditional chiefs
(transitional)
Prime Minister PAKALITHA M0SISILI
LIBERIA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
(transitional)
President ELLEN JOHNSON-SIRLEAF
LIBYA Presidential dictatorship
Colonel MUAMMAR AL-QADOAFI
MADAGASCAR Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President ANDRY RAJOELINA
MALAWI Presidential-legislative democracy
President BINGU WA MUTHARIKA
MALI Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President AMADOU TOUMANI TOURS
MAURITANIA Military, in transition after coup
General MOHAMED OULD ABDEL AZIZ
MAURITIUS Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister NAVIN RAMGOOLAM
MOROCCO Constitutional monarchy
King MUNAMMAD VI
MOZAMBIQUE Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President ARMANDO GUEBUZA
NAMIBIA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President HIFIKEPUNYE POHAMBA
NIGER Presidential-parliamentary democracy
(transitional)
President MAMADOU TANDJA
NIGERIA Presidential-legislative democracy
(transitional)
President UMARU MUSA YAR'ADUA
RWANDA Dominant party
President PAUL KAGAME
SAO TOME Presidential-parliamentary democracy
& PRINCIPE President FRADIQUE DE MENEZES
SENEGAL Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President ABDOULAYE WADE
SEYCHELLES Presidential-legislative democracy
President JAMES MICHEL
SIERRA Presidential-legislative democracy
LEONE President ERNEST BAI KOROMA
SOMALIA Limited government disputed by factions
SOUTH Parliamentary democracy
AFRICA President JACOB ZUMA
SUDAN Presidential-legislative
(military-dominated)
President
OMAR HASSAN AHMAD AL-BASHIR
SWAZILAND Monarchy
King MSWATI III
TANZANIA Dominant party
President JAKAYA KIKWETE
TOGO Dominant party
President FAURE GNASSINGBE
TUNISIA Dominant party
President ZINE EL ABIDINE BEN ALI
UGANDA Dominant party
President YOWERI MUSEVENI
ZAMBIA Presidential-legislative democracy
(transitional)
President RUPIAH BANDA
ZIMBABWE Dominant party
(transitional)
President ROBERT MUGABE
DATE LITERACY PER CAPITA
OF ORIGIN RATE (%) GDP
% POP. LIFE HDI
Country UNDER 15 EXPECTANCY
ALGERIA 1962 80/60 $7,000
28 71/74 0.748
ANGOLA 1975 83/54 $8,800
46 44/48 0.484
BENIN 1960 48/23 $1,500
44 54/57 0.459
BOTSWANA 1966 80/82 $13,300
35 44/54 0.664
BURKINA 1960 29/15 $1,200
FASO 46 56/58 0.372
BURUNDI 1962 67/52 $400
41 48/51 0.382
CAMEROON 1960 77/60 $2,300
42 51/52 0.514
CAPE VERDE 1975 86/69 $3,800
38 68/73 0.705
CENTRAL 1960 65/34 $700
AFRICAN 41 45/45 0.352
REPUBLIC
CHAD 1960 41/13 $1,600
46 46/48 0.389
COMOROS 1975 64/49 $1,000
38 62/66 0.572
CONGO 1960 81/54 $300
DEMOCRATIC 47 49/55 0.361
REPUBLIC
OF THE
CONGO 1960 90/78 $4,000
REPUBLIC OF 42 52/54 0.619
COTE 1960 61/39 $1,700
D'IVOIRE 40 50/53 0.431
(IVORY COAST)
DJIBOUTI 1977 78158 $3,700
37 53/56 0.513
EGYPT (4) 1922 83/54 $5,400
33 70/74 0.716
EQUATORIAL 1968 93/81 NA
GUINEA 41 59/60 0.717
ERITREA 1993 70/48 $700
42 56/61 0.442
ETHIOPIA 1000 B.C. 50/35 $800
43 51/54 0.389
GABON 1960 74/53 $14,400
37 58/61 0.729
GAMBIA 1965 48/33 $1,300
42 54/57 0.471
GHANA 1957 66/50 $1,500
40 58/59 0.533
GUINEA 1958 43/18 $1,100
43 54/58 0.423
GUINEA- 1973 58/27 $600
BISSAU 43 45/48 0.383
KENYA 1963 91/80 $1,600
42 53/55 0.532
LESOTHO 1966 75/95 $1,600
39 40/39 0.496
LIBERIA 1847 73/42 $500
44 54/57 0.364
LIBYA 1951 92/72 $14,400
30 71/76 0.840
MADAGASCAR 1960 76/63 $1,000
44 57/61 0.533
MALAWI 1964 76/50 $800
46 45/47 0.457
MALI 1960 54/40 $1,200
45 47/48 0.391
MAURITANIA 1960 60/43 $2,100
40 55/59 0.557
MAURITIUS 1968 88/81 $12,100
23 69/76 0.802
MOROCCO 1956 66/40 $4,000
29 69/73 0.646
MOZAMBIQUE 1975 64/33 $900
43 42/44 0.366
NAMIBIA 1990 87/84 $5,400
38 58/61 0.634
NIGER 1960 43/15 $700
49 51/54 0.370
NIGERIA 1960 76/61 $2,300
45 47/48 0.449
RWANDA 1962 76/65 $900
44 46/50 0.435
SAO TOME 1975 92/78 $1,300
& PRINCIPE 41 63/67 0.643
SENEGAL 1960 51/29 $1,600
43 54/57 502
SEYCHELLES 1976 41/92 $17,000
23 68/79 836
SIERRA 1961 47/24 $700
LEONE 42 48/49 0.329
SOMALIA 1960 50/26 $600
45 48/51 NA
SOUTH 1910 87/86 $10,000
AFRICA 32 50/54 0.670
SUDAN 1956 72/51 $2,200
41 57/60 0.526
SWAZILAND 1968 83/81 $5,100
35 46/46 0.542
TANZANIA 1964 78/62 $1,300
45 53/55 0.503
TOGO 1960 75/47 $900
41 60/63 0.479
TUNISIA 1956 83/65 $7,900
25 72/76 0.762
UGANDA 1962 77/58 $1,100
49 50/51 0.493
ZAMBIA 1964 87/75 $1,500
46 43/44 0.453
ZIMBABWE 1980 94/87 $200
40 39/43 NA
(4) Egypt is partly in Africa and partly in Asia, and is considered
part of the Middle East. In this almanac, it is listed in both the
Middle East and Africa.
MIDDLE EAST [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] With the U.S. fighting two wars, President Obama say he'll withdraw combat forces from IRAQ by August 2010. More that 4,300 Americas have died in Iraq since 2003. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Difficult issues, including security, borders, and the status of Jerusalem, make prospects for peace between ISRAEL and the Palestinians Uncertain at best. Difficult issues, including security, borders, and the status of Jerusatem (left), make prospects for peace between ISRAEL and the Palestinians uncertain at best. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Massive protests and a government crackdown followed the disputed presidential election in IRAN, which the U.S. and the U.N. accuse of secretly trying to develop nuclear weapons. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] President Obama says he'll withdraw U.S. combat forces from IRAQ by August 2010. More than 4,200 Americans have died in Iraq since 2003, when the U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein.
MIDDLE EAST *
URBAN
AREA (SQ MI) POP. %
POP. RISE
COUNTRY POPULATION %/YEAR CAPITAL MAJOR LANGUAGES
BAHRAIN 266 100 MANAMA ARABIC
1,200,000 1.3 ENGLISH, FARSI
URDU
CYPRUS 3,591 62 NICOSIA GREEK
1,100,000 0.5 TURKISH
ENGLISH
EGYPT (5) 386,660 43 CAIRO ARABIC
78,600,000 1.9 ENGLISH
FRENCH
IRAN 630,575 67 TEHRAN FARSI, TURKIC
73,200,000 1.5 KURDISH
LURI & OTHERS
IRAQ 169,236 67 BAGHDAD ARABIC
30,000,000 2.3 KURDISH,
ASSYRIAN
ARMENIAN
ISRAEL (6) 8,131 92 JERUSALEM HEBREW
7,600,000 1.6 ARABIC
ENGLISH
JORDAN 34,444 83 AMMAN ARABIC
5,900,000 2.4 ENGLISH
KUWAIT 6,880 98 KUWAIT ARABIC
3,000,000 1.6 ENGLISH
LEBANON 4,075 87 BEIRUT ARABIC
3,900,000 1.5 FRENCH, ARMENIAN
ENGLISH
OMAN 82,031 71 MUSCAT ARABIC
3,100,000 2.2 ENGLISH, BALUCHI
URDU & OTHERS
QATAR 4,247 100 DOHA ARABIC
1,400,000 1.1 ENGLISH
SAUDI ARABIA 829,996 81 RIYADH ARABIC
28,700,000 2.6
SYRIA 71,498 54 DAMASCUS ARABIC, KURDISH
21,900,000 2.5 ARMENIAN
FRENCH & OTHERS
TURKEY 299,158 63 ANKARA TURKISH
7,400,000 1.2 KURDISH
ARABIC
UNITED ARAB 32,278 83 ABU DHABI ARABIC, FARSI
EMIRATES 5,100,000 1.4 ENGLISH
HINDI & URDU
YEMEN 203,849 29 SANAA ARABIC
22,900,000 3.0
POLITICAL SYSTEM &
COUNTRY HEAD OF GOVERNMENT
BAHRAIN Monarchy
King HAMAD BIN ISA AL-KHALIFAH
CYPRUS Presidential-parliamentary
Presidents DIMITRIS CHRISTOFIAS &
MEHMET ALI TALAT
EGYPT (5) Dominant party
President HOSNI MUBARAK
IRAN Presidential-parliamentary under Islamic
religious control
President MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD
IRAQ Transitioning to parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister NURI AL-MALIKI
ISRAEL (6) Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister BENJAMIN NETANYAHU
JORDAN Constitutional monarchy
King ABDULLAH II
KUWAIT Monarchy
Emir
SABBAH AL-AHMAD AL-JABIR AL-SARAH
LEBANON Presidental-parliamentary democracy
President MICHEL SULEIMAN
OMAN Monarchy
Prime Minister and Sultan
QABOOS BIN SAID AL-SAID
QATAR Monarchy
Emir Sheikh
HAMID BIN KHALIFAH AL-THANI
SAUDI ARABIA Monarchy
King and Prime Minister
ABDULLAH BIN ABD AL-AZIZ AL-BAUD
SYRIA Dominant party
President BASHAR AL-ASSAD
TURKEY Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN
UNITED ARAB Federation of traditional monarchies
EMIRATES President Sheikh
KHALIFA BIN ZAYID AL-NUHAYVAN
YEMEN Dominant party
President ALI ABDULLAH SALEH
DATE LITERACY PER CAPITA
OF ORIGIN RATE (%) GDP
% POP. LIFE
COUNTRY UNDER 15 EXPECTANCY HDI
BAHRAIN 1971 84/84 $37,200
21 73/77 0.902
CYPRUS 1960 99/96 $28,600
18 75/80 0.912
EGYPT (5) 1922 83/59 $5,400
33 70/74 0.716
IRAN 1502 84/70 $12,800
28 69/73 0.777
IRAQ 1932 84/b4 $4,000
41 64/72 NA
ISRAEL (6) 1948 49/96 $28,200
28 79/83 0.930
JORDAN 1946 95/85 $5,000
37 72/74 0.769
KUWAIT 1961 94/91 $57,400
23 76/80 0.912
LEBANON 1943 93/82 $11,100
26 70/74 0.796
OMAN 1650 87/74 $20,200
29 70/74 0.839
QATAR 1971 89/89 $103,500
17 75/77 0.899
SAUDI ARABIA 1932 85/71 $20,700
38 74/78 0.835
SYRIA 1946 86/74 $4,800
36 72/76 0.736
TURKEY 1923 95/80 $12,000
27 69/74 0.798
UNITED ARAB 1971 76/82 $40,000
EMIRATES 19 77/79 0.903
YEMEN 1990 71/30 $2,400
45 62/64 0.567
* All the countries of the Middle East are in Asia, with the exception
of Egypt (which is partly in Asia and partly in Turkey (which is partly
in Asia and partly in Europe).
(5) Egypt is partly in Africa and partly in Asia, and is considered
part of the Middle East. In this almanac, it is listed in both the
Middle East and Africa.
(6) Israel's area and population do not include the occupied territory
of the West Bank.
ALL MAPS ON ATLAS PAGES; MAPPING SPECIALISTS INC./JIM MCMAHON
ALMANAC SOURCES: Areas, population, urban population, annual
population rise, percent of population under 15 years, and life
expectancy: 2009 World Population Data Sheet (Population Reference
Bureau). Capital, major languages, date of origin, literacy rate, and
per capita GDP: The World Factbook 2009 (C.I.A.). Political systems:
Freedom in the World (Freedom House, a nonprofit human/rights
organization), and its Web site (freedomhouse.org), World Book
Encyclopedia, and the U.S. State Department and its Web site
(state.gov), BBC News country profiles. Heads of government: based on
information from GeoCities "Rulers" Web site (rulers.org), the U.S.
State Department, The World Factbook 2009 (C.I.A.), and news accounts.
H.D.I.: Human Development Report 2007/2008 (United Nations Development
Progman). Figures are the latest available from each source for each
country. Data compiled and edited by Bryan Brown, Kathy Wilmore, and
Suzanne Bilyeu. Information updated as of Sept. 24, 2009.
ASIA [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Taliban insurgents are threatening AFGHANISTAN and its neighbor, nuclear-armed PAKISTAN. President Obama has increased the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan and sent more aid to Pakistan. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The economies of CHINA and INDIA keep growing, if more slowly than before the recession. Americans benefit from buying their expensive exports, but worry about jobs moving to countries where labor is cheaper than in the U.S. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] With ailing leader Kim Jong Il still in control of this poor and isolated Communist nation, NORTH KOREA is continuing its development and testing of nuclear weapons, despite U.S. and U.N. sanctions.
ASIA
URBAN
AREA (SQ MI) POP. %
POP. RISE
COUNTRY POPULATION %/YEAR CAPITAL MAJOR LANGUAGES
AFGHANISTAN 251,772 22 KABUL PASHTU
28,400,000 2.1 AFGHAN PERSIAN
TURKIC & OTHERS
ARMENIA 11,506 64 YEREVAN ARMENIAN
3,100,000 0.5 RUSSIAN
OTHERS
AZERBAIJAN 33,436 52 BAKU AZERI
8,800,000 1.2 RUSSIAN
ARMENIAN &
OTHERS
BANGLADESH 55,598 25 DHAKA BENGALI
162,200,000 1.6 ENGLISH
BHUTAN 18,147 31 THIMPHU DZONGKHA
700,000 1.7 TIBETAN
NEPALESE
DIALECTS
BRUNEI 2,228 72 BANDAR MALAY
400,000 1.3 SERI ENGLISH
BEGAWAN CHINESE
CAMBODIA 69,900 15 PHNOM KHMER
14,800,000 1.7 PENH FRENCH
CHINA 3,696,100 46 BEIJING MANDARIN
1,331,400,000 0.5 CHINESE DIALECTS
OTHERS
EAST TIMOR 5,741 22 DILI TETUN
(TIMOR-LESTE) 1,100,000 3.1 PORTUGUESE
INDONESIAN,
ENGLISH
GEORGIA 26,911 53 TBILISI GEORGIAN,
4,600,000 0.2 RUSSIAN
ARMENIAN, AZERI
OSSETIAN &
OTHERS
INDIA 1,269,340 29 NEW HINDI
1,171,000,000 1.6 DELHI ENGLISH
MANY OTHERS
INDONESIA 735,355 43 JAKARTA BAHASA
243,300,000 1.5 INDONESIAN
ENGLISH
DUTCH & OTHERS
JAPAN 145,869 86 TOKYO JAPANESE
127,600,000 0
KAZAKHSTAN 1,049,151 53 ASTANA KAZAKH
15,900,000 1.3 RUSSIAN
UKRAINIAN &
OTHERS
KOREA, NORTH 46,541 60 PYONGYANG KOREAN
22,700,000 0.5
KOREA, SOUTH 38,324 82 SEOUL KOREAN
48,700,000 0.4 ENGLISH
KYRGYZSTAN 76,641 35 BISHKEK KIRGHIZ
5,300,000 1.6 RUSSIAN
LAOS 91,429 27 VIENTIANE LAO
6,300,000 2.1 FRENCH
ENGLISH & OTHERS
MALAYSIA 127,377 68 KUALA MALAY, ENGLISH
28,300,000 1.6 LUMPUR CHINESE DIALECTS
MANY OTHERS
MALDIVES 116 35 MALE MALDIVIAN DIVEHI
300,000 1.8 ENGLISH
MONGOLIA 604,826 60 ULAAN-BAATAR KHALKHA MONGOL
2,700,000 1.8 TURKIC
RUSSIAN &
CHINESE
MYANMAR 261,228 31 NAYPYIDAW BURMESE
(BURMA) 50,000,000 1.1 MYODAW OTHERS
NEPAL 56,026 17 KATHMANDU NEPALI
27,500,000 2.1 OTHERS
PAKISTAN 307,375 35 ISLAMABAD URDU, PUNJABI
180,800,000 2.3 SINDHI, SIRAIKI
ENGLISH & OTHERS
PHILIPPINES 115,830 63 MANILA FILIPINO
92,200,000 2.1 ENGLISH
SINGAPORE 239 100 SINGAPORE CHINESE
5,100,000 0.6 MALAY
TAMIL & ENGLISH
SRI LANKA 25,332 15 COLOMBO TAMIL
20,500,000 1.2 SINHALA
ENGLISH
TAIWAN 13,969 78 TAIPEI MANDARIN CHINESE
23,100,000 0.2 TAIWANESE
OTHERS
TAJIKISTAN 55,251 26 DUSHANBE TAJIK
7,500,000 2.3 RUSSIAN
THAILAND 198,116 36 BANGKOK THAI
67,800,000 0.6 ENGLISH
REGIONAL
DIALECTS
TURKMENISTAN 188,456 47 ASHGABAT TURKMEN
5,100,000 1.4 UZBEK
RUSSIAN & OTHERS
UZBEKISTAN 172,741 36 TASHKENT UZBEK
27,600,000 1.8 RUSSIAN
TAJIK & OTHERS
VIETNAM 128,066 28 HANOI VIETNAMESE,
87,300,000 1.2 FRENCE
CHINESE, ENGLISH
KHMER & OTHERS
OCEANIA
AUSTRALIA 2,988,888 83 CANBERRA ENGLISH
21,900,000 0.7 ABORIGINAL
LANGUAGES
FIJI 7,054 51 SUVA ENGLISH
800,000 1.7 FIJIAN
HINDUSTANI
KIRIBATI 282 44 TARAWA ENGLISH
100,000 1.8 GILBERTESE
MARSHALL 69 68 MAJURO ENGLISH
ISLANDS 100,000 2.9 MARSHALLESE
DIALECTS
JAPANESE
MICRONESIA 270 22 PALIKIR ENGLISH
100,000 1.9 TRUKESE,
POHNPEIN
YAPESE &
KOSRAEAN
NAURU 9 100 YAREN NAURUAN
10,000 2.1 DISTRICT ENGLISH
NEW ZEALAND 104,452 86 WELLINGTON ENGLISH
4,300,000 0.8 MAORI
PALAU 178 77 MELEKEOK ENGLISH
20,000 0.6 SONSOROL'ESE
PALAUAN & OTHERS
PAPUA 178,703 13 PORT ENGLISH
NEW GUINEA 6,600,000 2.2 MORESBY PIDGIN ENGLISH
MOTU & MANY
OTHERS
SAMOA 1,097 22 APIA SAMOAN
200,000 2.0 ENGLISH
SOLOMON 11,158 17 HONIARA MELANESIAN
ISLANDS 500,000 2.7 PIDGIN
ENGLISH
OTHERS
TONGA 290 24 NUKU'ALOFA TONGAN
100,000 2.1 ENGLISH
TUVALU 10 47 FUNAFUTI TUVALUAN
10,000 1.4 ENGLISH
VANUATU 4,707 2.1 PORT-VILA ENGLISH
200,000 2.5 FRENCH
BISLAMA
POLITICAL SYSTEM &
COUNTRY HEAD OF GOVERNMENT
AFGHANISTAN Transitional democracy;
territory disputed by factions
President HAMID KARZAI (7)
ARMENIA Presidential-parliamentary
democracy (transitional)
President SERZH SARKISYAN
AZERBAIJAN Dominant party
President ILHAM ALIYEV
BANGLADESH Presidential-parliamentary
democracy (transitonal)
Prime Minister SHEIKH HASINA
BHUTAN Parliamentary democracy
(in transition from monarchy)
Prime Minister JIGME THINLEY
BRUNEI Monarchy
Sultan HASSANAL BOLKIAH
CAMBODIA Dominant party
Prime Minister HUN SEN
CHINA Communist one-party state
President HU JINTAO
EAST TIMOR Presidential-parliamentary democracy
(TIMOR-LESTE) (transitional)
President XANANA GUSMAO
GEORGIA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President MIKHEIL SAAKASHVILI
INDIA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister MANMOHAN SINGH
INDONESIA Parliamentary democracy
President SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO
JAPAN Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister YUKIO HATOYAMA
KAZAKHSTAN Dominant party
President NURSULTAN NAZARBAYEV
KOREA, NORTH Communist dictatorship
General Secretary KIM JONG IL
KOREA, SOUTH Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President LEE MYUNG-BAK
KYRGYZSTAN Presidential-parliamentary
(transitional)
President KURMANBEK BAKIYEV
LAOS Communist one-party state
President CHOUMMALY SAYASONE
MALAYSIA Dominant party
Prime Minister NAJIB TUN RAZAKI
MALDIVES Presidential-parliamentary democracy
(transitional)
President MOHAMED NASHEED
MONGOLIA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister SANJ BAYAR
MYANMAR Military rule
(BURMA) General THAN SHWE
NEPAL Parliamentary democracy
(in transition from monarchy)
Prime Minister MADHAV KUMAR NEPAL
PAKISTAN Presidential-parliamentary
(in transition from military)
President ASIF ALI ZARDARI
PHILIPPINES Presidential-legislative democracy
President GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO
SINGAPORE Dominant party
Prime Minister LEE HSIEN LOONG
SRI LANKA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President MAHINDA RAJAPAKSE
TAIWAN Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President MA YING-JEOU
TAJIKISTAN Dominant party
President EMOMALII RAKHMON
THAILAND In transition following military coup
Prime Minister ABHISIT VEJJAJIVAT
TURKMENISTAN Presidential dictatorship
President GURBANGULY BERDYMUKHAMMEDOV
UZBEKISTAN Presidential dictatorship
President ISLAM KARIMOV
VIETNAM Communist one-party state
Prime Minister NGUYEN TAN DUNG
OCEANIA
AUSTRALIA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister KEVIN RUDD
FIJI Military
Prime Minister Commodore
JOSAIA VOREQE BAINIMARAMA
KIRIBATI Presidential-legislative democracy
President ANOTE TONG
MARSHALL Parliamentary democracy and
ISLANDS traditional chiefs
President LITOKWA TOMEING
MICRONESIA Parliamentary democracy
President EMANUEL MORI
NAURU Parliamentary democracy
President MARCUS STEPHEN
NEW ZEALAND Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister JOHN KEY
PALAU Presidential democracy and traditional chiefs
President JOHNSON TORIBIONG
PAPUA Parliamentary democracy
NEW GUINEA Prime Minister SIR MICHAEL SOMARE
SAMOA Parliamentary democracy & traditional chiefs
Prime Minister TUILAEPA SAILELE MALIELEGAOI
SOLOMON Parliamentary democracy
ISLANDS Prime Minister DEREK SIKUA
TONGA Monarchy
King GEORGE TUPOU V
TUVALU Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister APISAI IELEMIA
VANUATU Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister EDWARD NATAPEI
DATE LITERACY PER CAPITA
OF ORIGIN RATE (%) GDP
% POP. LIFE
COUNTRY UNDER 15 EXPECTANCY HDI
AFGHANISTAN 1919 43/13 $800
44 44/44 NA
ARMENIA 1991 99/99 $6,400
20 68/75 0.777
AZERBAIJAN 1991 99/98 $9,000
23 70/75 0.758
BANGLADESH 1971 54/41 $1,500
32 64/66 0.524
BHUTAN 1949 60/34 $5,600
32 67/68 0.613
BRUNEI 1984 95/90 $53,100
26 75/80 0.919
CAMBODIA 1949 85/64 $2,000
35 59/63 0.575
CHINA 1912 95/87 $6,000
19 71/75 0.762
EAST TIMOR 2002 59 $2,400
(TIMOR-LESTE) 45 60/62 0.483
GEORGIA 1991 99/99 $4,700
17 71/79 0.763
INDIA 1947 73/48 $2,800
32 63/65 0.609
INDONESIA 1945 94/87 $3,900
29 69/73 0.726
JAPAN 660 B.C. 99/99 $34,200
13 79/86 0.956
KAZAKHSTAN 1991 99/99 $11,500
24 62/72 0.807
KOREA, NORTH 1945 99/99 $1,700
22 61/66 NA
KOREA, SOUTH 1945 99/97 $26,000
17 76/83 0.928
KYRGYZSTAN 1991 99/98 $2,100
30 64/72 0.694
LAOS 1949 77/61 $2,100
39 63/66 0.608
MALAYSIA 1957 92/85 $75,300
32 72/77 0.823
MALDIVES 1965 96/96 $5,000
30 72/T4 0.749
MONGOLIA 1921 98/98 $3,200
33 62/69 0.720
MYANMAR 1948 94/86 $1,200
(BURMA) 27 59/63 0.585
NEPAL 1768 63/35 $1,100
37 63/64 0.530
PAKISTAN 1947 63/36 $2,600
38 66/67 0.562
PHILIPPINES 1898 93/93 $3,300
35 66/72 0.745
SINGAPORE 1965 97/89 $52,000
18 78/83 0.918
SRI LANKA 1948 92/89 $4,300
26 67/75 0.742
TAIWAN 1949 96 $31,900
17 75/82 NA
TAJIKISTAN 1991 99/99 $2,100
38 64/69 0.684
THAILAND 1238 95/91 $8,500
22 66/72 0.786
TURKMENISTAN 1991 99/98 $6,100
31 61/69 0.728
UZBEKISTAN 1991 99/99 $2,600
33 65/77 0.701
VIETNAM 1945 94/87 $2,800
26 72/76 0.718
OCEANIA
AUSTRALIA 1901 99/99 $38,100
19 79/84 0.965
FIJI 1970 96/92 $3,900
29 66/71 0.743
KIRIBATI 1979 NA $3,200
36 59/63 NA
MARSHALL 1986 94/94 $2,500
ISLANDS 41 64/67 NA
MICRONESIA 1986 91/88 $2,200
37 67/68 NA
NAURU 1968 NA $5,000
39 55/57 NA
NEW ZEALAND 1907 99/99 $27,900
21 78/82 0.944
PALAU 1994 93/90 $8,100
24 66/72 NA
PAPUA 1975 63/51 $2,200
NEW GUINEA 40 57/62 0.516
SAMOA 1962 99/99 $4,900
40 72/74 0.760
SOLOMON 1978 NA $1,900
ISLANDS 41 62/63 0.591
TONGA 1970 99/99 $4,600
38 70/72 0.774
TUVALU 1978 NA $1,600
32 62/65 NA
VANUATU 1980 74 $4,600
41 66/69 0.686
(7) Election results disputed at press time.
NORTH AMERICA [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Illegal immigration from MEXICO to the UNITED STATES has been a thorny issue for decades. The two countries share a 2,0000-mile-long border, and there are about 7 million Mexicans in the U.S. illegally. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Since 2006, when Raul Castro took over from his brother, Fidel as CUBA'S President, the prospects for better relations with the U.S. have improved. The American trade embargo against Cuba has been in place for almost five decades. SOUTH AMERICA [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] President Hugo Chavez has pushed oil-rich VENEZUELA down an increasingly socialist and anti-American path. Will lower oil prices and recent overtures from the U.S. change his tune? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Its democratic government and booming economy have made BRAZIL a rising global power. A major exporter of agricultural Products, Brazil is feeling the sting of the global recession.
NORTH AMERICA
URBAN
AREA (SQ MI) POP. %
POP. RISE
COUNTRY POPULATION %/YEAR CAPITAL MAJOR LANGUAGES
ANTIGUA 170 31 ST. JOHN'S ENGLISH
& BARBUDA 100,000 1.0 ENGLISH PATOIS
BAHAMAS 5,359 83 NASSAU ENGLISH
300,000 1.1 ENGLISH PATOIS
CREOLE
BARBADOS 166 38 BRIDGETOWN ENGLISH
300,000 0.5 BAJAN
BELIZE 8,865 51 BELMOPAN ENGLISH
300,000 2.3 SPANISH
MAYAN & GARIFUNA
CANADA 3,849,670 81 OTTAWA ENGLISH
33,700,000 0.4 FRENCH
COSTA RICA 19,730 59 SAN JOSE SPANISH
4,500,000 1.3 ENGLISH
CUBA 42,803 76 HAVANA SPANISH
11,200,000 0.3
DOMINICA 290 73 ROSEAU ENGLISH
100,000 0.7 FRENCH PATOIS
DOMINICAN 18,815 64 SANTO SPANISH
REPUBLIC 10,100,000 1.8 DOMINGO
EL SALVADOR 8,124 60 SAN SPANISH
7,300,000 1.4 SALVADOR NAHUA
GRENADA 131 31 ST. ENGLISH
100,000 1.2 GEORGE'S FRENCH PATOIS
GUATEMALA 42,042 47 GUATEMALA SPANISH
14,000,000 2.8 CITY AMERINDIAN
DIALECTS
HAITI 10,714 43 PORT-AU- CREOLE
9,200,000 2.1 PRINCE FRENCH
HONDURAS 43,278 49 TEGUCIGALPA SPANISH
7,500,000 2.2 AMERINDIAN
DIALECTS
JAMAICA 4.243 52 KINGSTON ENGLISH
2,700,000 1.1 ENGLISH PATOIS
MEXICO 756,062 77 MEXICO SPANISH
109,600,000 1.6 CITY MAYAN
OTHER INDIGENOUS
LANGUAGES
NICARAGUA 50,193 58 MANAGUA SPANISH
5,700,000 2.1 ENGLISH
AMERINDIAN
DIALECTS
PANAMA 29,158 64 PAHAMA SPANISH
3,500,000 1.6 CITY ENGLISH
SAINT KITTS 139 32 BASSETERRE ENGLISH
& NEVIS 50,000 1.0 ENGLISH PATOIS
SAINT LUCIA 239 28 CASTRIES FRENCH PATOIS
200,000 0.8 ENGLISH
SAINT VINCENT 151 40 KINGSTOWN ENGLISH
& THE 100,000 0.9 ENGLISH PATOIS
GRENADINES
TRINIDAD 1,981 12 PORT-OF- ENGLISH
& TOBAGO 1,300,000 0.6 SPAIN HINDI
FRENCH PATOIS
SPANISH
UNITED STATES 3,777,796 79 WASHINGTON, ENGLISH
306,800,000 0.6 D.C. SPANISH
OTHERS
POLITICAL SYSTEM &
COUNTRY HEAD OF GOVERNMENT
ANTIGUA Parliamentary democracy
& BARBUDA Prime Minister BALDWIN SPENCER
BAHAMAS Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister HUBERT INGRAHAM
BARBADOS Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister DAVID THOMPSON
BELIZE Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister DEAN BARROW
CANADA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister STEPHEN HARPER
COSTA RICA Presidential-legislative democracy
President OSCAR ARIAS SANCHEZ
CUBA Communist one-party state
President RAUL CASTRO
DOMINICA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister ROOSEVELT SKERRIT
DOMINICAN Presidential-legislative democracy
REPUBLIC President LEONEL FERNANDEZ
EL SALVADOR Presidential-legislative democracy
President MAURICIO FUNES
GRENADA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister TILLMAN THOMAS
GUATEMALA Presidential-legislative democracy
President ALVARO COLOM
HAITI Presidential-legislative democracy
(transitional)
President RENE PREVAL
HONDURAS Presidential-legislative democracy
Acting President ROBERTO MICHELETTI
JAMAICA Parliamentary democracy
prime Minister BRUCE GOLDING
MEXICO Presidential-legislative democracy
President FELIPE CALDERON
NICARAGUA Presidential-legislative democracy
President DANIEL ORTEGA
PANAMA Presidential-legislative democracy
President RICARDO MARTINELLI
SAINT KITTS Parliamentary democracy
& NEVIS Prime Minister DENZIL DOUGLAS
SAINT LUCIA Parliamentary democracy
Prime Minister STEPHENSON KING
SAINT VINCENT Parliamentary democracy
& THE Prime Minister RALPH GONSALVES
GRENADINES
TRINIDAD Parliamentary democracy
& TOBAGO Prime Minister PATRICK MANNING
UNITED STATES Presidential-legislative democracy
President BARACK OBAMA
DATE LITERACY PER CAPITA
OF ORIGIN RATE (%) GDP
% POP. LIFE
COUNTRY UNDER 15 EXPECTANCY HDI
ANTIGUA 1981 86 $19,000
& BARBUDA 28 71/75 0.830
BAHAMAS 1973 95/97 $28,600
28 70/75 0.854
BARBADOS 1966 99/99 $19,300
22 73/79 0.889
BELIZE 1981 77/77 $8,600
39 71/74 0.771
CANADA 1867 99/99 $39,300
17 78/83 0.967
COSTA RICA 1821 95/95 $11,600
27 77/82 0.847
CUBA 1902 99/99 $9,500
18 76/80 0.855
DOMINICA 1978 94/94 $9,900
29 72/77 0.797
DOMINICAN 1844 87/87 $8,100
REPUBLIC 33 69/75 0.768
EL SALVADOR 1821 83/78 $6,200
34 66/76 0.747
GRENADA 1974 96 $13,400
29 73/76 0.774
GUATEMALA 1821 75/63 $5,200
43 66/73 0.696
HAITI 1804 55/51 $1,300
38 57/60 0.521
HONDURAS 1821 80/80 $4,400
38 69/74 0.714
JAMAICA 1962 84/92 $7,400
30 68/75 0.771
MEXICO 1810 92/90 $14,200
32 73/78 0.842
NICARAGUA 1821 67/68 $2,900
38 68/74 0.699
PANAMA 1903 93/91 $11,600
30 73/78 0.832
SAINT KITTS 1983 98 $19,700
& NEVIS 28 68/72 0.830
SAINT LUCIA 1979 90/91 $11,300
28 71/76 0.821
SAINT VINCENT 1979 96/96 $10,500
& THE 29 70/74 0.766
GRENADINES
TRINIDAD 1962 99/98 $18,600
& TOBAGO 24 67/71 0.833
UNITED STATES 1776 99/99 $47,000
20 75/80 0.950
SOUTH AMERICA
URBAN
AREA (SQ MI) POP. %
POP. RISE
COUNTRY POPULATION %/YEAR CAPITAL MAJOR LANGUAGES
ARGENTINA 1,073,514 91 BUENOS SPANISH
40,300,000 1.0 AIRES ENGLISH
ITALIAN
GERMAN & FRENCH
BOLIVIA 424,162 65 LA PAZ SPANISH
9,900,000 2.1 & SUCRE QUECHUA
AYMARA
BRAZIL 3,300,154 84 BRASILIA PORTUGUESE
191,500,000 1.0 AMERINDIAN
DIALECTS
CHILE 292,135 87 SANTIAGO SPANISH
17,000,000 1.0
COLOMBIA 439,734 72 BOGOTA SPANISH
45,100,000 1.4
ECUADOR 109,483 62 QUITO SPANISH
13,600,000 1.8 QUECHUA
AMERINDIAN
DIALECTS
GUYANA 83,000 28 GEORGETOWN ENGLISH
800,000 1.2 AMERINDIAN
DIALECTS
PARAGUAY 157,046 57 ASUNCION SPANISH
6,300,000 2.1 GUARANI
PERU 496,224 76 LIMA SPANISH
29,200,000 1.5 QUECHUA
AYMARA
SURINAME 63,039 67 PARAMARIBO DUTCH, ENGLISH
500,000 1.1 SRANANG, TONGO
HINDUSTANI
JAVANESE
URUGUAY 68,448 94 MONTEVIDEO SPANISH
3,400,000 0.5 PORTUNOL
VENEZUELA 352,143 88 CARACAS SPANISH
28,400,000 2.0 AMERINDIAN
POLITICAL SYSTEM &
COUNTRY HEAD OF GOVERNMENT
ARGENTINA Presidential-legislative democracy
President
CRISTINA FERNANDEZ DE KIRCHNER
BOLIVIA Presidential-legislative democracy
President EVO MORALES
BRAZIL Presidential-legislative democracy
President LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA
CHILE Presidential-legislative democracy
President MICHELLE BACHELET
COLOMBIA Presidential-legislative democracy
President ALVARO URIBE VELEZ
ECUADOR Presidential-legislative democracy
President RAFAEL CORREA
GUYANA Presidential-parliamentary democracy
President BHARRAT JAGDEO
PARAGUAY Presidential-legislative democracy
President FERNANDO LUGO
PERU Presidential-legislative democracy
President ALAN GARCIA
SURINAME Parliamentary democracy
President RONALD VENETIAAN
URUGUAY Presidential-legislative democracy
President TABARE VAZQUEZ
VENEZUELA Presidential-legislative democracy
President HUGO CHAVEZ
DATE LITERACY PER CAPITA
OF ORIGIN RATE (%) GDP
% POP. LIFE
COUNTRY UNDER 15 EXPECTANCY HDI
ARGENTINA 1816 97/97 $14,200
26 71/79 0.860
BOLIVIA 1825 93/81 $4,500
38 63/67 0.723
BRAZIL 1822 88/89 $10,100
28 69/77 0.807
CHILE 1810 96/96 $14,400
25 75/81 0.874
COLOMBIA 1810 90/41 $8,900
30 69/76 0.787
ECUADOR 1822 92/90 $7,500
33 72/78 0.807
GUYANA 1966 99/99 $3,900
32 63/69 0.725
PARAGUAY 1811 95/93 $4,200
36 69/73 0.752
PERU 1821 96/89 $8,400
32 70/75 0.788
SURINAME 1975 92/87 $8,900
30 66/73 0.770
URUGUAY 1825 98/98 $12,200
24 72/79 0.859
VENEZUELA 1811 93/93 $13,500
31 70/76 0.826
SNAPSHOTS
THE AIR WE BREATHE
COUNTRIES
WITH THE BEST AIR QUALITY
(100 is the best possible score ...
UGANDA 98
GABON 96
RWANDA 91
BURUNDI 87
GHANA 87
KENYA 87
LIBERIA 86
TANZANIA 84
NEW ZEALAND 82
DEM. REP. OF
CONGO/TOGO
Note: Table made from bar graph.
SOURCE: PILOT 2006 ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE INDEX
COUNTRIES
WITH THE WORST AIR QUALITY
... 1 is worst possible score)
BANGLADESH 7
PAKISTAN 8
ALBANIA 14
EGYPT 15
MALI 21
CHINA 22
NIGER 23
CHAD 24
SUDAN 25
INDONESIA 25
UNITED STATES 45
Note: Table made from bar graph.
SOURCE: PILOT 2006 ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE INDEX
ON THE WAY OUT?
COUNTRIES WITH THE GREATEST NUMBER OF
THREATENED ANIMAL SPECIES
UNITED STATES 948
AUSTRALIA 733
INDONESIA 701
MEXICO 636
MALAYSIA 455
COLOMBIA 429
PHILIPPINES 425
INDIA 413
CHINA 370
ECUADOR 369
Note: Table made from bar graph.
SOURCE: INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
WHO LIVES LONGEST?
HIGH LIFE EXPECTANCY
1. MACAU 84 YRS
2. ANDORRA 83
3. JAPAN 82
4. SINGAPORE 82
5. SAN MARINO 82
6. AUSTRALIA 82
7. CANADA 81
8. FRANCE 81
9. SWITZERLAND 81
10. SWEDEN 81
47. UNITED STATES 78
LOWEST LIFE EXPECTANCY
1. SWAZILAND 32 YRS
2. ANGOLA 38
3. ZAMBIA 39
4. LESOTHO 40
5. SIERRA LEONE 41
6. MOZAMBIQUE 41
7. LIBERIA 41
8. DJIBOUTI 43
9. MALAWI 43
10. AFGHANISTAN 44
SOURCE: NATIONMASTER.COM
NUMBERS ROUNDED
WHO'S ONLINE?
MOST INTERNET USERS
per 1,000 people
1. NETHERLANDS 905
2. ANTIGUA & BARBUDA 864
3. CANADA 839
4. NORWAY 821
5. ANDORRA 820
6. NEW ZEALAND 816
7. SWEDEN 775
8. SOUTH KOREA 726
9. BERMUDA 725
10. LUXEMBOURG 718
13. UNITED STATES 696
SOURCE: NATIONALMASTER.COM
MAJOR RELIGIONS
Number of adherents
1 CHRISTIANITY 2.2 BILLION
2 ISLAM 1.4 BILLION
3 HINDUISM 913 MILLION
4 BUDDHISM 384 MILLION
5 SIKHISM 24 MILLION
6 JUDAISM 15 MILLION
7 BAHA'ISM 7.8 MILLION
8 CONFUCIANISM 6.4 MILLION
9 JAINISM 5.5 MILLION
10 SHINTOISM 2.8 MILLION
SOURCE: ENCYLOPEDIA BRITANNICA 2009 BOOK OF THE YEAR
DANGEROUS PLACES
MOST MURDERS
per 1 million people
1. COLOMBIA 618
2. SOUTH AFRICA 496
3. JAMAICA 324
4. VENEZUELA 316
5. RUSSIA 202
6. MEXICO 130
7. ESTONIA 107
8. LATVIA 104
9. LITHUANIA 103
10. BELARUS 98
24. UNITED STATES 43
FEWER MURDERS
per 1 million people
1. QATAR 1
2. SAUDI ARABIA 4
3. JAPAN 5
4. GREECE 8
5. INDONESIA 9
6. SWITZERLAND 9
7. IRELAND 9
8. NORWAY 11
9. DENMARK 11
10. NEW ZEALAND 11
CHEERING THEM ON
MOST POPULAR
SPORTS WORLDWIDE
Factors include most watched,
most played, and most
revenue-generating
1. SOCCER
2. CRICKET
3. TENNIS
4. HOCKEY
5. BASEBALL
6. BASKETBALL
7. VOLLEYBALL
8. TABLE TENNIS
9. RUGBY
10. GOLF
SOURCE: ASK ME ANYTHING (DK PUBLISHING)
EARNING A BIG MAC
Average number of minutes a person needs to work to pay
for a Big Mac in selected cities
TOKYO, JAPAN 12
NEW YORK, U.S.A. 14
PARIS, FRANCE 20
TEL AVIV, ISRAEL 24
DOHA, QATAR 34
BEIJING, CHINA 44
MUMBAI, INDIA 61
CARACAS, VENEZUELA 126
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO 129
NAIROBI, KENYA 158
GLOBAL AVERAGE 37
SOURCE: UBS
Note: Table made from bar graph.
LOOK WHO'S TALKING
TOP LANGUAGES
Number of native speakers
in millions
1. MANDARIN CHINESE 845
2. SPANISH 329
3. ENGLISH 328
4. ARABIC 221
5. HINDI 182
6. BENGALI 181
7. PORTUGUESE 178
8. RUSSIAN 144
9. JAPANESE 122
10. GERMAN 90
SOURCE: ETHNOLOGUE, 16TH EDITION
ENGLISH-SPEAKING POPULATION
Number of speakers *
in millions
1. UNITED STATES 280
2. INDIA 100
3. UNITED KINGDOM 55
4. CANADA 17
5. AUSTRALIA 16
6. SOUTH AFRICA 4
7. NEW ZEALAND 3
8. IRELAND 3
9. ZIMBABWE .4
10. SINGAPORE .2
* INCLUDES NATIVE AND OTHER SPEAKERS
SOURCE: NATIONMASTER.COM
ELBOW ROOM
MOST LAND PER PERSON
(square miles per 100,000 people)
1. MONGOLIA 20,200
2. NAMIBIA 15,300
3. AUSTRALIA 14,100
4. SURINAME 13,200
5. ICELAND 13,100
6. BOTSWANA 12,600
7. MAURITANIA 11,800
8. CANADA 11,600
9. LIBYA 11,000
10. GUYANA 10,800
63. UNITED STATES 1,200
LEAST LAND PER PERSON
(square miles per 100,000 people)
1. MACAO 2
2. MONACO 2
3. SINGAPORE 6
4. VATICAN CITY 20
5. MALDIVES 30
6. MALTA 30
7. BERMUDA 30
8. BAHRAIN 40
9. BANGLADESH 40
10. NAURU 60
SOURCE: NATIONMASTER.COM
NUMBERS ROUNDED
PAYING THE TAXMAN
HIGHEST PERSONAL INCOME TAX RATES
(percentage of income)
NETHERLANDS 52%
AUSTRIA 50
BELGIUM 50
CHINA 45
GERMANY 45
FRANCE 40
UNITED KINGDOM 40
ITALY 39
JAPAN 37
TURKEY 35
UNITED STATES 35
INDIA 30
SOURCE: SNAPSHOT THE VISUAL ALMANAC FOR OUR
WORLD TODAY (MITCHELL BEAZLEY)
Note: Table made from bar graph.
TAKING THEIR LICKS
(annual pints per capita)
AUSTRALIA 32
UNITED STATES 26
NAURU 25
NEW ZEALAND 23
CANADA 23
NORWAY 22
FINLAND 21
SWEDEN 20
ICELAND 19
ITALY 19
GLOBAL AVERAGE 5
SOURCE: TOP 10 OF EVERYTHING 2010 (HAMLYN)
NUMBERS ROUNDED
Note: Table made from bar graph.
WORLD AFFAIRS: ATLAS CRITICAL THINKING Display several types of maps for students to examine: a globe, a topographical, map, a local street map, a subway or bus map, the Upfront atlas, etc. * What different purposes do each of these maps serve? * Who might use each of them? * What similar features are found on several of these maps (e.g., Latitude and longitude, compass, key)? Why are these features important on maps? * What insights can each of these maps give us into how people live? WRITING PROMPT Choose the article in this issue that most interests you, and find the related map in the atlas. What geographic information on the map can provide insights into the article? Similarly, examine the economic map and the almanac information for this country. Write a follow-up essay analyzing how maps and statistics can be used to study current events. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS Look at the map of Europe. Near what geographical features do almost all of the identified cities sit? (Waterways.) Why might this be? (Answers may include that they were built there because of fertile Land, natural passages for trade, and using water for power.) Now took at the map of Africa. Does the same pattern occur? Why might that be? Look at the map of South America and identify which countries' capital cities are Located along the Andes Mountains. Why might major cities be Located there? Look at the economic map on page 16. How does it differ from the other maps in this atlas? What patterns do you see on different continents? How might economics be connected to geography? FAST FACT Two mythical Atlases are associated with mapmaking--King Atlas of Mauretania, who, according to Roman legend, made the first celestial globe, and the Greek figure Atlas, who was punished by Zeus to bear the weight of the heavens. WEB WATCH www.infoptease.com/atlas Infoplease's World Atlas and Map Library offers printable maps, country profiles, geographic tools, crossword puzzles and quizzes, and more. QUIZ 3 * INTERNATIONAL WORLD AFFAIRS: ATLAS (1) More than half of the world's vanilla is grown in --, the Large island nation due east of Mozambique. (2) Only three countries are not members of the U.N.: Kosovo, Vatican City, and --, which is Located at 23[degrees] N, 121[degrees] E. (3) The smallest nation in the Middle East, --, is an archipelago of 33 islands. (4) Five capital cities are Located in the Andes Mountains: --, --, --, --, and --. (5) The Largest iceberg ever sighted was seen in the South Pacific in 1956. At 208 miles tong and 60 miles wide, it was about the size of --, which is Located between France and the Netherlands. (6) This Asian capital city is situated between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers:-- (7) If you win a Nobel Prize, you would receive it in the capital city Located at 59 [degrees] N, 18 o E (--), unless it's the Nobel Peace Prize, which is awarded in the capital city 258 miles west (--). (8) The--is the Line of Latitude Located at 66 1/2 degrees north of the Equator. (9) The deepest Location on the Earth's crust--at 36,201 feet deep--is the Marianas Trench in the Pacific Ocean, near the U.S. territories of the Northern Mariana Islands and --in Oceania. (10) The African country of --, Located on the Gulf of Aden at the southern entrance to the Red Sea, is virtually all desert, with less than one square mite of farmland. IN-DEPTH QUESTIONS (1) When might you use maps Like the ones in this atlas? Who else might use these maps, and why? What benefits does using an atlas have over using a flat Mercator projection map or a globe? What advantages might these other kinds of maps have over an atlas? (2) How can maps help in the study of history, anthropology, economics, and the law? (3) What skills would a cartographer (mapmaker) need to have in order to create accurate maps? Answer (1) Madagascar (2) Taiwan (3) Bahrain (4) Lima, La Paz, Sucre, Santiago, Quito (5) Belgium (6) Baghdad (7) Stockholm, Oslo (8) Arctic Circle (9) Guam (10) Djibouti WORLD AFFAIRS: ALMANAC CRITICAL THINKING Almanacs are publications, generally updated annually, that compile statistics, data, and general information. * Review the introduction to the almanac on page 15. What do each of the categories tell us about a country? How are some of the categories related to each other? * Which categories do you think change most often? Which do you think have the fewest changes over time? * Turn to page 34 and look at the almanac entry for the U.S. What do the statistics tell you about how the U.S. is similar to or different from other countries? WRITING PROMPT Choose two countries in the almanac and write a comparative essay assessing the similarities and differences of rife in each nation--politically, economically, and socially. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1960 was known as the Year of Africa. Using the almanac, what happened in 1960, and in which African countries? (They gained their independence. I What other information in the almanac do you think changed around that same time? Which five Asian countries have the lowest percentages of people under age 15? How do their rates of population growth compare to those in other Asian countries? What might this reveal about those countries and cultures? Look at the literacy rates in the Middle East. In which countries are there large disparities between men and women? What might this indicate about these countries? How do the literacy rates in the Middle East compare to those elsewhere in the world? FAST FACT The first almanac printed in colonial North America, An Almanac for New England for the Year 1639, is considered the first substantial work printed in the English colonies. WEB WATCH www.nationmaster.com NationMaster arrows you to compare countries' statistics easily through its vast database of sources. QUIZ 4 * INTERNATIONAL WORLD AFFAIRS: ALMANAC (1)--is the only country in the Americas that is not a democracy. (2) The newest nation in Africa,--, declared its independence from neighboring --, the oldest country in Africa, in 1993. (3) Which Language is considered a major Language in the most countries in Asia? -- (4) The European country with the Lowest Human Development Index (HDI),--, has the second-Lowest--in Europe. (5) The Lowest literacy rate in the world for women is--percent, in the Asian country of--and in the African country of--. (6) The biggest country in South America also has the Largest--. (7) The only Asian country where the Literacy rate for women is higher than that for men is --. (8) In every country in the Middle East, women have a--than men. (9) is the head of the government of the most populous country in Europe. (10) --and --, both in Africa, have the highest percentage of the population under age 15 in the world, at --percent. (11) The smallest Asian country,- also has the highest population density, with about--people per square mile, all living--. (12) Uruguay has the lowest--and --, and the highest percentage of --, of any South American country. IN-DEPTH QUESTIONS (1) Look at the explanation for HDI on the page 15. Why would life expectancy, purchasing power, and Literacy be used as measures of well-being? What other factors might give additional perspective to "economic and social well-being"? How does the article about Bhutan relate to this? (2) Why do you think the Upfront almanac includes the languages spoken in each country? What does language usage within a continent tell us about its culture and history? Answer (1) Cuba (2) Eritrea, Ethiopia (3) Russian (4) Moldova, per capita GDP (5) 13, Afghanistan, Chad (6) population (7) Brunei (8) higher rife expectancy (9) Dmitry Medvedev (10) Niger, Uganda, 49 (11) Singapore, 21,339, in urban areas (12) population under age 15, yearly population increase, people living in urban areas |
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