Land area

309,500 sq km

Population

2.87m (2008 Ministry of National Economy mid-year estimate), including 900,000 expatriates

Main regions

Population (2008)

Muscat (capital): 834,760 Dhofar: 273,052

Al Batinah: 760,454 Al Dhahirah: 258,567

Al Sharqiyah: 367,966 Musandam: 35,473

Al Dakhiliyah: 308,730 Al Wusta: 28,426

Climate

Coastal areas, especially Batinah and Muscat: very hot and humid in summer; winters mild. Interior desert: summers hot and dry; winters cool. Dhofar receives monsoon rains in June-September

Weather in Muscat (altitude 5 metres)

Hottest month: June, 31-38°C (average daily minimum and maximum). Coldest month: January, 20-25°C. Driest months: July and August, 1 mm average rainfall. Wettest month: January, average rainfall 28 mm, but considerably higher on Hajar mountains in the interior

Languages

Arabic; English, Urdu, Baluchi and Swahili are also widely used

Measures

Metric system

Currency

Omani riyal (OR) = 1,000 baisa. The currency is pegged to the US dollar at OR0.3845:US$1

Time

4 hours ahead of GMT

Public holidays

The Islamic holidays-Eid al-Fitr (end of Ramadan, August 30th 2011), Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice, November 6th 2011), Islamic New Year (November 26th 2011) and Mawlid al-Nabi (the birthday of the Prophet, February 15th 2011)-are public holidays, the dates of which vary according to the lunar calendar and are therefore approximates. New Year's Day (January 1st), National Day and birthday of Sultan Qaboos (November 18th), and New Year's Eve (December 31st) are also public holidays