Population: 16,728,808

Languages: Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood

Background: Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976, Syrian troops have been stationed in...

Currency: Syrian pound (SYP, No information)

Data from CIA World Factbook. Click on CIA link for more. Click on map or flag for larger images.