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Background:
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Once the center of power for the large Austro-Hungarian Empire, Austria was reduced to a small republic after its defeat in World War I. Following annexation by Nazi Germany in 1938 and subsequent occupation by the victorious Allies in 1945, Austria's status remained unclear for a decade. A State Treaty signed in 1955 ended the occupation, recognized Austria's independence, and forbade unification with Germany. A constitutional law that same year declared the country's "perpetual neutrality" as a condition for Soviet military withdrawal. The Soviet Union's collapse in 1991 and Austria's entry into the European Union in 1995 have altered the meaning of this neutrality. A prosperous, democratic country, Austria entered the EU Economic Monetary Union in 1999.
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Location:
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Central Europe, north of Italy and Slovenia
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Geographic coordinates:
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47 20 N, 13 20 E
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Map references:
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Area:
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total: 83,870 sq km
land: 82,444 sq km
water: 1,426 sq km
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Area - comparative:
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slightly smaller than Maine
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Land boundaries:
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total: 2,562 km
border countries: Czech Republic 362 km, Germany 784 km, Hungary 366 km, Italy 430 km, Liechtenstein 35 km, Slovakia 91 km, Slovenia 330 km, Switzerland 164 km
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Coastline:
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0 km (landlocked)
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Maritime claims:
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none (landlocked)
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Climate:
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temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain and some snow in lowlands and snow in mountains; moderate summers with occasional showers
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Terrain:
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in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Neusiedler See 115 m
highest point: Grossglockner 3,798 m
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Natural resources:
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oil, coal, lignite, timber, iron ore, copper, zinc, antimony, magnesite, tungsten, graphite, salt, hydropower
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Land use:
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arable land: 16.59%
permanent crops: 0.85%
other: 82.56% (2005)
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Irrigated land:
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40 sq km (2003)
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Total renewable water resources:
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84 cu km (2005)
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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Total: 3.67 cu km/yr (35%/64%/1%)
Per capita: 448 cu m/yr (1999)
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Natural hazards:
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landslides; avalanches; earthquakes
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Environment - current issues:
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some forest degradation caused by air and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of agricultural chemicals; air pollution results from emissions by coal- and oil-fired power stations and industrial plants and from trucks transiting Austria between northern and southern Europe
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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Geography - note:
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landlocked; strategic location at the crossroads of central Europe with many easily traversable Alpine passes and valleys; major river is the Danube; population is concentrated on eastern lowlands because of steep slopes, poor soils, and low temperatures elsewhere
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Population:
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8,199,783 (July 2007 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 15.1% (male 633,375/female 603,459)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 2,781,291/female 2,749,539)
65 years and over: 17.5% (male 585,747/female 846,372) (2007 est.)
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Median age:
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total: 41.3 years
male: 40.2 years
female: 42.4 years (2007 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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0.077% (2007 est.)
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Birth rate:
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8.69 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Death rate:
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9.84 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Net migration rate:
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1.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.012 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.692 male(s)/female
total population: 0.953 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 4.54 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.56 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 3.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 79.21 years
male: 76.32 years
female: 82.26 years (2007 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
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1.37 children born/woman (2007 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.3% (2003 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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10,000 (2003 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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less than 100 (2003 est.)
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Nationality:
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noun: Austrian(s)
adjective: Austrian
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Ethnic groups:
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Austrians 91.1%, former Yugoslavs 4% (includes Croatians, Slovenes, Serbs, and Bosniaks), Turks 1.6%, German 0.9%, other or unspecified 2.4% (2001 census)
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Religions:
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Roman Catholic 73.6%, Protestant 4.7%, Muslim 4.2%, other 3.5%, unspecified 2%, none 12% (2001 census)
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Languages:
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German (official nationwide) 88.6%, Turkish 2.3%, Serbian 2.2%, Croatian (official in Burgenland) 1.6%, other (includes Slovene,official in Carinthia, and Hungarian, official in Burgenland) 5.3% (2001 census)
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: NA
female: NA
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This page was last updated on 24 January, 2008
- The Central Intelligence Agency's World Factbook - |
