FACTS

Location: Central Europe, south of Poland

Area (only Total) total: 48,845 sq km

Climate: temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters

Terrain: rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in the south

Population: 5,455,407 (July 2008 est.)

Main Language (only first): Slovak

Government type: parliamentary democracy

Capital (Name): Bratislava

Capital (Time Difference): UTC+1

Independence: 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia)

National holiday: Constitution Day, 1 September (1992)