Total area

198,500 sq km

Population

5.42m (end-2009 official estimate)

Main towns

Population in '000 (end-2004 estimates)

Bishkek (capital): 804

Osh: 228

Jalalabad: 78

Kara Kul: 63

Climate

Continental high mountain

Languages

Kyrgyz and Russian are the official languages

Weights and measures

Metric system

Currency

The som was introduced on May 10th 1993. The average exchange rate in 2010 was Som45.97:US$1

Time

Five hours ahead of GMT

Fiscal year

Calendar year

Public holidays

January 1st (New Year); January 7th (Orthodox Christmas); February 23rd (Defenders' Day); March 8th (International Women's Day); March 21st (Noruz); March 24th (National Revolution Day); May 1st (Labour Day); May 5th (Constitution Day); May 9th (Victory Day); August 31st (Independence Day; end of Ramadan); November 7th (Feast of Sacrifice)