Page last updated on January 27, 2020
Location:
Western Europe, occupying five-sixths of the island of Ireland in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Great Britain
Geographic coordinates:
53 00 N, 8 00 W
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 70,273 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 68,883 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 1,390 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
121
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than West Virginia
Area comparison map:
slightly larger than West Virginia
Land boundaries:
total: 490 km
[see also: Land boundaries - total country ranks ]
border countries (1):
UK 490 km
Coastline:
1,448 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12
nm
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]
exclusive fishing zone: 200
nm
[see also: Maritime claims - exclusive fishing zone country ranks ]
Climate:
temperate maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current; mild winters, cool summers; consistently humid; overcast about half the time
Terrain:
mostly flat to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged hills and low mountains; sea cliffs on west coast
Elevation:
mean elevation: 118 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point:
Carrauntoohil 1,041 m
Natural resources:
natural gas, peat, copper, lead, zinc, silver, barite, gypsum, limestone, dolomite
Land use:
agricultural land: 66.1%
(2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
arable land: 15.4%
(2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - arable land country ranks ]
permanent crops: 0%
(2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - permanent crops country ranks ]
permanent pasture: 50.7%
(2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - permanent pasture country ranks ]
forest: 10.9%
(2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 23%
(2011 est.)
[see also: Land use country ranks ]
Irrigated land:
0 sq km
(2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]
Population distribution:
population distribution is weighted to the eastern side of the island, with the largest concentration being in and around Dublin; populations in the west are small due to mountainous land, poorer soil, lack of good transport routes, and fewer job opportunities
Natural hazards:
rare extreme weather events
Environment - current issues:
water pollution, especially of lakes, from agricultural runoff; acid rain kills plants, destroys soil fertility, and contributes to deforestation
Environment - international agreements:
party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified:
Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Marine Life Conservation
Geography - note:
strategic location on major air and sea routes between North America and northern Europe; over 40% of the population resides within 100 km of Dublin
NOTE: 1) The information regarding Ireland on this page is re-published from the 2020 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Ireland Geography 2020 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Ireland Geography 2020 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
2) The rank that you see is the CIA reported rank, which may have the following issues:
a) They assign increasing rank number, alphabetically for countries with the same value of the ranked item, whereas we assign them the same rank.
b) The CIA sometimes assigns counterintuitive ranks. For example, it assigns unemployment rates in increasing order, whereas we rank them in decreasing order.
This page was last modified 27-Jan-20
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