Land area

10,452 sq km

Population

4.2m (IMF estimate, mid-2008), excluding around 216,000 Palestinians living in refugee camps

Population in '000 by governorate administration (National Survey of Household Living Conditions, 2004)

Beirut (capital): 391

Mount Lebanon (Beirut environs): 1,502

North Lebanon: 769

The Beqaa: 471

South Lebanon: 401

Nabatiyeh: 221

Climate

Subtropical; cool in highlands

Weather in Beirut (altitude 34 metres)

Hottest month, August, 23-32°C; coldest month, January, 11-17°C (average daily minimum and maximum); driest months, July and August, 1 mm average rainfall; wettest month, January, 190 mm average rainfall

Languages

Arabic. English and French are widely spoken

Measures

Metric system

Currency

Lebanese pound (L£). Average exchange rate in 2008: L£1,507.5:US$1

Time

Two hours ahead of GMT (Lebanese summer time is three hours ahead)

Fiscal year

January 1st-December 31st

Public holidays

The dates of Islamic holidays are based on the lunar calendar and are therefore approximate. New Year's Day (January 1st 2011); Orthodox Armenian Christmas (January 6th); St Maroun's Day (February 9th); Prophet's birthday (February 15th); Easter (April 22nd-24th); Labour Day (May 1st); Martyrs' Day (May 6th); Resistance and Liberation Day (May 25th); Assumption Day (August 15th); Eid al-Fitr (August 30th); All Saints Day (November 1st); Eid al-Adha (November 6th); Independence Day (November 22nd); Islamic New Year (November 26th); Ashoura (December 5th); Christmas Day (December 25th)