238,391 sq km (92,043 sq miles).

22,545,925 (1997).

94.8 per sq km.

Bucharest

2,037,278 (1996).

Romania is bordered to the north and east by Moldova and Ukraine, the southeast by the Black Sea, the south by Bulgaria, the southwest by Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) and in the west by Hungary. The country is divided into four geographical areas. Transylvania (a belt of Alpine massifs and forests) and Moldavia compose the northern half of the country, which is divided down the middle by the north–south strip of the Carpathian Mountains. South of the east–west line of the Carpathians lies the flat Danube plain of Walachia with the capital Bucharest, its border with Bulgaria being defined by the course of the Danube. Romania's coastline is along the Black Sea, incorporating the Black Sea port of Constanta and the Danube Delta.

Republic since 1991. Head of State: President Emil Constantinescu since 1996. Head of Government: Prime Minister Radu Vasile since 1998.

Romanian is the official language. Some Hungarian and German are spoken in border areas, while mainly French and some English are spoken by those connected with the tourist industry.

83% Romanian Orthodox, with Roman Catholic, Reformed/Lutheran, Unitarian, Muslim and Jewish minorities.

GMT + 2 (GMT + 3 from last Sunday in March to Saturday before last Sunday in September).

220 volts AC, 50Hz. Plugs are of the 2-pin type.