Syria

Syria (Arabic: سورية‎ sūriyya or سوريا sūryā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic (Arabic: الجمهورية العربية السورية‎), is an Arab country in Southwest Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Palestine to the southwest, Jordan to the south, Iraq to the east, and Turkey to the north.
The name Syria, formerly comprised the entire region of the Levant, while the modern state encompasses the site of several ancient kingdoms and empires, including the Eblan civilization of the third millennium BC. In the Islamic era, its capital city, Damascus, was the seat of the Umayyad Empire and a provincial capital of the Mamluk Empire. Damascus is widely regarded as one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world.[2]
Modern Syria was created as a French mandate and attained independence in April 1946, as a parliamentary republic. The post-independence period was rocky, and a large number of military coups and coup attempts shook the country in the period 1949-1970. Syria has been under Emergency Law since 1962, effectively suspending most constitutional protections for citizens. The country has been governed by the Baath Party since 1963, although actual power is concentrated to the presidency and a narrow grouping of military and political strongmen. Syria's current president is Bashar al-Assad, son of Hafez al-Assad, who held office from 1970 until his death in 2000.[3][4] Syria has played a major regional role, particularly through its central role in the Arab conflict with Israel, which since 1967 has occupied the Golan Heights, and by active involvement in Lebanese and Palestinian affairs.
The population is mainly Sunni Muslim, but with significant Alawi, Shia, Druze and Christian minorities. Since the 1960s, Alawite military officers have tended to dominate the country's politics. Ethnically, some 90% of the population is Arab, and the state is ruled by the Baath Party according to Arab nationalist principles, while approximately 10% belong to the Kurdish,Armenian,Turkmen,Assyrian and Circassians minorities.

Capital(and largest city)
Damascus33°30′N 36°18′E / 33.5°N 36.3°E / 33.5; 36.3
Official languages
Arabic
Other common languages
Aramaic, Armenian, Kurdish, Turkmen
Demonym
Syrian
Government
Presidential single party republic under Emergency Law since 1963
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President
Bashar al-Assad
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Prime Minister
Muhammad Naji al-Otari
Independence
from France
-
First declaration
September 19361
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Second declaration
1 January 1944
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Recognized
17 April 1946
Area
-
Total
185,180 km2 (88th)71,479 sq mi
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Water (%)
0.06
Population
-
2007 estimate
19,405,000 (54th)
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Density
103/km2 (101st)267/sq mi
GDP (PPP)
2008 estimate
-
Total
$94.408 billion[1]
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Per capita
$4,749[1]
GDP (nominal)
2008 estimate
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Total
$54.803 billion[1]
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Per capita
$2,756[1]
HDI (2007)
▲ 0.724 (medium) (109th)
Currency
Syrian pound (SYP)
Time zone
EET (UTC+2)
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Summer (DST)
EEST (UTC+3)
Drives on the
right
Internet TLD
.sy
Calling code
963

1 Etymology
2 History
2.1 Eblan civilization
2.2 Antiquity and early Christian era
2.3 Islamic era
2.4 Ottoman era
2.5 French Mandate
2.6 Instability and foreign relations: independence to 1967
2.7 Six Day War and Aftermath
2.8 Baath Party rule under Hafez al-Assad, 1970–2000
2.9 21st century
3 Politics
3.1 Constitution and Government
3.2 Emergency Law
4 Administrative divisions
5 Geography
6 Syrian territorial problems
6.1 Turkish-Syrian dispute over Iskandaron (Hatay) Province
6.2 Israeli occupation of the Golan Heights
7 Economy
7.1 Foreign Trade
7.2 Transport
8 Demographics
8.1 Ethnic groups
8.2 Religion
8.3 Languages
8.4 Education in Syria
9 Military
10 Culture
10.1 Music of Syria
10.2 Syrian literature
10.3 Fairs and festivals
11 See also
12 References
13 Footnotes
14 External links