Location:
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey

Geographic coordinates:
35 00 N, 38 00 E

Map references:
Middle East

Area:
total: 185,180 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 183,630 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 1,550 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory
country comparison to the world: 90

Area - comparative:
slightly more than 1.5 times the size of Pennsylvania
Area comparison map: slightly more than 1.5 times the size of Pennsylvania

Land boundaries:
total: 2,363 km
[see also: Land boundaries - total country ranks ]
border countries (5): Iraq 599 km, Israel 83 km, Jordan 379 km, Lebanon 403 km, Turkey 899 km

Coastline:
193 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]
contiguous zone: 24 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - contiguous zone country ranks ]

Climate:
mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus
More Climate Details

Terrain:
primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west

Elevation:
mean elevation: 514 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes: lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -208 m highest point: Mount Hermon (Jabal a-Shayk) 2,814 m

Natural resources:
petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower

Land use:
agricultural land: 75.8% arable land 25.4%; permanent crops 5.8%; permanent pasture 44.6%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 2.7%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 21.5% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
14,280 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Population - distribution:
significant population density along the Mediterranean coast; larger concentrations found in the major cities of Damascus, Aleppo (the country's largest city), and Hims (Homs); more than half of the population lives in the coastal plain, the province of Halab, and the Euphrates River valley
note: the ongoing civil war has altered the population distribution

Natural hazards:
dust storms, sandstorms
volcanism: Syria's two historically active volcanoes, Es Safa and an unnamed volcano near the Turkish border have not erupted in centuries

Environment - current issues:
deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification

Geography - note:
the capital of Damascus - located at an oasis fed by the Barada River - is thought to be one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities; there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (2017)