Afghanistan, landlocked multiethnic country located in the heart of south-central Asia. Lying along important trade routes connecting southern and eastern Asia to Europe and the Middle East, Afghanistan has long been a prize sought by empire builders, and for millennia great armies have attempted to subdue it, leaving traces of their efforts in great monuments now fallen to ruin. The country’s forbidding landscape of deserts and mountains has laid many imperial ambitions to rest, as has the tireless resistance of its fiercely independent peoples—so independent that the country has failed to coalesce into a nation but has instead long endured ... (100 of 20,548 words)
1From promulgation of new constitution on Jan. 26, 2004. 2Thirty-four members are appointed by the president, while the remainder are indirectly elected. 3Three seats are reserved for Kuchis, Aghan Pashtun nomads. 4Six additional locally official languages per the 2004 constitution are Uzbek, Turkmen, Balochi, Kafiri (Nuristani), Pashai, and Pamiri. |
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Official name | Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (Jomhūrī-ye Eslāmī-ye Afghānestān [Dari]); Da Afghanestan Eslami Jamhuriyat (Pashto)1 |
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Form of government | Islamic republic1 with two legislative bodies (House of Elders [1022]; House of the People [2493]) |
Head of state and government | President: Ashraf Ghani |
Capital | Kabul |
Official languages | Dari; Pashto4 |
Official religion | Islam |
Monetary unit | afghani (Af) |
Population | (2014 est.) 27,933,000 |
Total area (sq mi) | 252,072 |
Total area (sq km) | 652,864 |
Urban-rural population | Urban: (2011) 23.5% Rural: (2011) 76.5% |
Life expectancy at birth | Male: (2012) 48.5 years Female: (2012) 51.1 years |
Literacy: percentage of population age 15 and over literate | Male: (2006) 43.1% Female: (2006) 12.6% |
GNI per capita (U.S.$) | (2013) 700 |