INTRODUCTION
Main Facts:
Geography
Area: 78,864 sq. kilometers; about the size of Virginia.
Cities: Capital--Prague (pop. 1.21 million). Other cities--Brno (367,000), Ostrava (310,000), Plzen (163,000).
Terrain: Low mountains to the north and south, hills in the west.
Climate: Temperate.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Czech(s).
Population (2009 est.): 10.5 million.
Annual population growth rate: 0.1%.
Ethnic groups: Czech (94% or 9.6 million); Slovak (193,000); Roma (200,000); Silesian (11,000); Polish (52,000); German (39,000); Ukrainian (22,000); and Vietnamese (40,000).
Religions: Roman Catholic, Protestant.
Language: Czech.
Education: Literacy--99.8%.
Health: Life expectancy--males 73.34 yrs., females 79.7 yrs.
Work force (5.23 million, International Monetary Fund est.): Industry, construction, and commerce--40%; government and other services--56%; agriculture--4%.
Government
Type: Parliamentary republic.
Independence: The Czech Republic was established January 1, 1993 (former Czechoslovak state established 1918).
Constitution: Signed December 16, 1992.
Branches: Executive--president (chief of state), prime minister (head of government), cabinet. Legislative--Chamber of Deputies, Senate. Judicial--Supreme Court, Constitutional Court.
Political parties (May 2010 election): Civic Democratic Party (ODS), 53 seats; Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD), 56 seats; Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSCM), 26 seats; Public Affairs (VV), 24 seats; TOP 09, 41 seats.
Suffrage: Universal at 18.
Administrative subdivisions: Two regions--Bohemia and Moravia; 13 administrative districts and Prague.
Economy
Nominal GDP (2009 est.): $194.8 billion.
GDP per capita: $18,557.
Annual GDP growth rate (2009): -4.3%.
Natural resources: Coal, coke, timber, lignite, uranium, magnesite.
Agriculture: Products--wheat, rye, oats, corn, barley, hops, potatoes, sugar beets, fruit, hogs, cattle, horses, poultry.
Industry: Types--motor vehicles, machinery and equipment, iron, steel, cement, sheet glass, armaments, chemicals, ceramics, wood, paper products, and footwear.
Trade (2009): Exports--$136.7 billion: motor vehicles, machinery, iron, steel, chemicals, raw materials, consumer goods. Imports--$141.6 billion (est.). Trading partners--Germany (32%), Slovakia, Poland, France, Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia, U.K., China, United States.
PEOPLE
The majority of the 10.5 million inhabitants of the Czech Republic are ethnically and linguistically Czech (94%). Other ethnic groups include Germans, Roma, Japanese, and Poles. Laws establishing religious freedom were passed shortly after the revolution of 1989, lifting oppressive regulations enacted by the former communist regime. Major denominations and their estimated percentage populations are Roman Catholic (39%) and Protestant (3%). A large percentage of the Czech population claim to be atheists (40%), and 16% describe themselves as uncertain. The Jewish community numbers a few thousand today; a synagogue in Prague memorializes the names of more than 80,000 Czechoslovak Jews who perished in World War II.
