Armenia

Map of Armenia

Country Name	Conventional long form: Republic of Armenia
Capital	Yerevan
National Holiday	Independence Day, 21 September (1991)
Independence	21 September 1991 (from the Soviet Union)
Nationality	Armenian(s)
Population	2,970,495 (July 2012 est.)
Sex ratio	1.12 male(s)/female Under 15 years: 1.15 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.88 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.59 male(s)/female Total population: 0.89 male(s)/female (2011 est.)
Religions	Armenian Apostolic 94.7%, other Christian 4%, Yezidi (monotheist with elements of nature worship) 1.3%
Languages	Armenian (official) 97.7%, Yezidi 1%, Russian 0.9%, other 0.4% (2001 census)
Literacy: definition	Age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.6% Male: 99.7% Female: 99.4% (2010 est.)
Location	Southwestern Asia, between Turkey (to the west) and Azerbaijan
Geographic coordinates	40 00 N, 45 00 E
Map references	Asia
Area	Total: 29,743 sq km Land: 28,203 sq km Water: 1,540 sq km
Area - comparative	Slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries	Total: 1,254 km Border countries: Azerbaijan-proper 566 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 221 km, Georgia 164 km, Iran 35 km, Turkey 268 km
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims	None (landlocked)
Climate	Highland continental, hot summers, cold winters
Terrain	Armenian Highland with mountains; little forest land; fast flowing rivers; good soil in Aras River valley
Elevation extremes	Lowest point: Debed River 400 m Highest point: Aragats Lerrnagagat' 4,090 m
Natural resources	Small deposits of gold, copper, molybdenum, zinc, bauxite
Exports - commodities	Pig iron, unwrought copper, nonferrous metals, diamonds, mineral products, foodstuffs, energy
Imports - commodities	Natural gas, petroleum, tobacco products, foodstuffs, diamonds
Land use	Arable land: 16.78% Permanent crops: 2.01% Other: 81.21% (2005)
Irrigated land	2,740 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources	10.5 cu km (1997)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)	Total: 2.95 cu km/yr (30%/4%/66%) Per capita: 977 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards	Occasionally severe earthquakes; droughts
Environment - current issues	Soil pollution from toxic chemicals such as DDT; the energy crisis of the 1990s led to deforestation when citizens scavenged for firewood; pollution of Hrazdan (Razdan) and Aras Rivers; the draining of Sevana Lich (Lake Sevan), a result of its use as a source for hydropower, threatens drinking water supplies; restart of Metsamor nuclear power plant in spite of its location in a seismically active zone
Environment - international agreements	Party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Geography - note	Landlocked in the Lesser Caucasus Mountains; Sevana Lich (Lake Sevan) is the largest lake in this mountain range