Bosnia and Herzegovina Geography - 2024

Location

Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Croatia

Geographic coordinates

44 00 N, 18 00 E

Map references

Europe

Area

total: 51,197 sq km

land: 51,187 sq km

water: 10 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly smaller than West Virginia

Area comparison map:

Land boundaries

total: 1,543 km

border countries (3): Croatia 956 km; Montenegro 242 km; Serbia 345 km

Coastline

20 km

Maritime claims

N/A

Climate

hot summers and cold winters; areas of high elevation have short, cool summers and long, severe winters; mild, rainy winters along coast

Terrain

mountains and valleys

Elevation

highest point: Maglic 2,386 m

lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m

mean elevation: 500 m

Natural resources

coal, iron ore, antimony, bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, cobalt, manganese, nickel, clay, gypsum, salt, sand, timber, hydropower

Land use

agricultural land: 42.2% (2018 est.)

arable land: 19.7% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 2% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 20.5% (2018 est.)

forest: 42.8% (2018 est.)

other: 15% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

30 sq km (2012)

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Atlantic Ocean drainage: (Black Sea) Danube (795,656 sq km)

Population distribution

the northern and central areas of the country are the most densely populated

Natural hazards

destructive earthquakes

Geography - note

within Bosnia and Herzegovina's recognized borders, the country is divided into a joint Bosniak/Croat Federation (about 51% of the territory) and the Bosnian Serb-led Republika Srpska or RS (about 49% of the territory); the region called Herzegovina is contiguous to Croatia and Montenegro, and traditionally has been settled by an ethnic Croat majority in the west and an ethnic Serb majority in the east