Ireland
|
| Basic Facts |
| Country name |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Ireland local long form: none local short form: Eire |
| Gevernment type | republic, parliamentary democracy |
| Capital |
name: Dublin
geographic coordinates: 53 20 N, 6 15 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
| Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and orange; similar to the flag of Cote d'Ivoire, which is shorter and has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green; also similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter and has colors of green (hoist side), white, and red |
| Currency | euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
| Internet country code | .ie |
| Ports and terminals | Cork, Dublin, New Ross, Shannon Foynes, Waterford |
| Agriculture products | turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, wheat; beef, dairy products |
| Industries | steel, lead, zinc, silver, aluminum, barite, and gypsum mining processing; food products, brewing, textiles, clothing; chemicals, pharmaceuticals; machinery, rail transportation equipment, passenger and commercial vehicles, ship construction and refurbishment; glass and crystal; software, tourism |
| Geography |
| Location | Western Europe, occupying five-sixths of the island of Ireland in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Great Britain |
| Coordinates | 53 00 N, 8 00 W |
| Continent | Europe |
| Area |
total: 70,280 sq km
land: 68,890 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
| Boundaries |
total: 360 km
border countries: UK 360 km |
| Coastline | 1,448 km |
| Climate | temperate maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current; mild winters, cool summers; consistently humid; overcast about half the time |
| Terrain | mostly level to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged hills and low mountains; sea cliffs on west coast |
| Natural resources | natural gas, peat, copper, lead, zinc, silver, barite, gypsum, limestone, dolomite |
| Natural hazards | NA |
| People |
| Population | 4,062,235 (July 2006 est.) |
| Ethnic groups | Celtic, English |
| Religions | Roman Catholic 88.4%, Church of Ireland 3%, other Christian 1.6%, other 1.5%, unspecified 2%, none 3.5% (2002 census) |
| Languages | English (official) is the language generally used, Irish (official) (Gaelic or Gaeilge) spoken mainly in areas located along the western seaboard |
