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Official Name: Great Socialist People´s Libyan Arab Republic
Location: Libya consists mostly of huge areas of desert. Libya shares borders with
Tunisia and Algeria in the west, and Egypt in the east,
while the Sahara extends across the southern frontiers with Niger, Chad and the Sudan. |
| Capital: Tripoli
Area: The area of Libya, one of the largest countries in Africa, is 1,757,000 sq km (678,400 sq mi).
Language: Arabic is the official language, although Berber is sometimes
spoken and English and Italian are used in trade. Arabic must be used for all official purposes.
Religion: Islam is the state religion, and about 97 percent of all Libyans are Sunni Muslim. A small number are Roman Catholic.
Population:At the 1984 census, Libya had a population of 3,637,488. The 1997 estimated population was 5,484,202,
giving the country an overall population density of 3 persons per sq km (8 per sq mi). The population,
however, is unevenly distributed; more than two-thirds live in the more densely settled coastal areas.
The indigenous population of Libya is mostly Berber and Arab
in origin; about 17 percent of the population consists of foreign workers and their families. Some 86 percent of
the people live in urban areas, although some Libyans still live in nomadic or seminomadic groups.
Membership: Libya is a member of the UN, OAU, Arab
League , OPEC, Union of the Arab Maghreb
and Organization of the Islamic Conference.
Currency: Libyan Dinar (LD) = 1000 dirhams
Libya Time Difference: GMT + 1 (GMT + 2 in summer)
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