Suriname

Suriname^[4] (Dutch: Suriname; Sarnami: Sarnam, Sranan Tongo: Sranan), officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America.

Suriname is situated between French Guiana to the east and Guyana to the west. The southern border is shared with Brazil and the northern border is the Atlantic coast. The southernmost borders with French Guiana and Guyana are disputed along the Marowijne and Corantijn rivers, respectively; while a part of the disputed maritime boundary with Guyana was arbitrated by the United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea on September 20, 2007.

Suriname is the smallest sovereign state in terms of area and population in South America. The country is the only Dutch-speaking region in the Western Hemisphere which is not a part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Suriname is extremely diverse ethnically, linguistically, and religiously. By percentage, Muslims constitute 20% of Suriname, the highest percentage of Muslims in any country in the Americas. Suriname's geographical size is just under 165,000 km², which is four times the size of the Netherlands, and it has an estimated population of about 470,000 people. About a quarter of the population live on less than US$ 2 a day.

Contents

• 1 Etymology
• 2 Geography
  • 2.1 Districts and resorts
  • 2.2 Climate
  • 2.3 Nature reserves
  • 2.4 Landmarks
• 3 History
• 4 Economy
• 5 Demographics
  • 5.1 Languages
• 6 Politics
• 7 Culture
  • 7.1 National celebrations
  • 7.2 New Year's Eve
  • 7.3 Sports
• 8 Media
• 9 Tourism
• 10 Airlines
• 11 See also
• 12 References
• 13 External links

Republic of Suriname Republiek Suriname
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Justitia - Pietas - Fides (Latin) "Justice - Duty - Loyalty"
Anthem: God zij met ons Suriname (Dutch) ('God be with our Suriname')
Capital (and largest city)		Paramaribo 5°50′N 55°10′W / 5.833°N 55.167°W / 5.833; -55.167
Official languages		Dutch
Recognised regional languages		Sranan Tongo, Hindi, English, Sarnami, Javanese, Bahasa Indonesia, Bhojpuri, Hakka, Cantonese, Saramaccan, Paramakan, Ndyuka, Kwinti, Matawai, Cariban, Arawakan Kalina[citation needed]
Demonym		Surinamese
Government		Constitutional democracy
-	President	Ronald Venetiaan
Independence		From the Netherlands
-	Date	November 25, 1975
Area
-	Total	163,821 km2 (91st) 63,251 sq mi
-	Water (%)	1.1
Population
-	2009 estimate	472,000[1] (167th)
-	2004 census	456,829[2]
-	Density	3.0/km2 (231st) 7.8/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2008 estimate
-	Total	$4.436 billion[3]
-	Per capita	$8,323[3]
GDP (nominal)		2008 estimate
-	Total	$2.984 billion[3]
-	Per capita	$5,598[3]
HDI (2006)		▲ 0.770 (medium) (89th)
Currency		Surinamese dollar (SRD)
Time zone		ART (UTC-3)
-	Summer (DST)	not observed (UTC-3)
Drives on the		left
Internet TLD		.sr