Lebanon - Geography
Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Lebanon. Smallest country in continental Asia; Nahr el Litani is the only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity. Mother's mean age at first birth is (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 21 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
Geographical data of Lebanon
| Location | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria |
|---|---|
| Geographic coordinates | 33 50 N, 35 50 E |
| Map references | Middle East |
| Tarrain | narrow coastal plain; El Beqaa (Bekaa Valley) separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains |
| Natural Resources | limestone, iron ore, salt, water-surplus state in a water-deficit region, arable land |
| Natural Hazards | earthquakes; dust storms, sandstorms |
| Irrigated Land | 1,040 sq km (2012) |
| Major rivers (by length in km) | |
| Major aquifers | |
| Land Boundaries | 484 km |
| Border Countries | Israel 81 km; Syria 403 km |
| Coastline | 225 km |
| Climate | Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers; the Lebanon Mountains experience heavy winter snows |
| Area | |
| Total Area | |
| Land Area | 10,230 sq km |
| Water Area | 170 sq km |
| comparative Area | about one-third the size of Maryland |
| Maritime Claims | |
| Territorial sea | 12 nm |
| Elevations | |
| Highest point | Qornet es Saouda 3,088 m |
| Lowest point | Mediterranean Sea 0 m |
| Mean elevation | 1,250 m |
| Land Use | |
| Agricultural land | 63.3% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: arable land | arable land: 11.9% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent crops | permanent crops: 12.3% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent pasture | permanent pasture: 39.1% (2018 est.) |
| Forest | 13.4% (2018 est.) |
| Other | 23.3% (2018 est.) |
Population Distribution
The majority of the people live on or near the Mediterranean coast, and of these most live in and around the capital, Beirut; favorable growing conditions in the Bekaa Valley, on the southeastern side of the Lebanon Mountains, have attracted farmers and thus the area exhibits a smaller population density
People and Society
In Lebanon, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 1%
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Pop growth rate | 0.61% (2024 est.) |
| Birth rate | 12.6 births/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Death rate | 5.6 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Health expenditure | 8% of GDP (2020) |
| Physicians Density | |
| Hospital bed Density | 2.7 beds/1,000 population (2017) |
| Total fertility rate | 1.71 children born/woman (2024 est.) |
| Gross reproduction rate | 0.83 (2024 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | NA |
| Est married women (ages 15-49) | 51.4% (2023 est.) |
| Literacy | age 15 and over can read and write |
| Education expenditures | 1.7% of GDP (2020 est.) |
| Net Migration rate | -0.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Nationality | Lebanese | Lebanese (singular and plural) |
| Languages | |
| Religions | Muslim 67.8% (31.9% Sunni, 31.2% Shia, smaller percentages of Alawites and Ismailis), Christian 32.4% (Maronite Catholics are the largest Christian group), Druze 4.5%, very small numbers of Jews, Baha'is, Buddhists, and Hindus (2020 est.) |
| Age Structure | |
| 0-14 years | 18.9% (male 519,352/female 495,591) |
| 15-64 years | 71.6% (male 1,939,311/female 1,900,574) |
| 65 years and over | 9.5% (2024 est.) (male 219,880/female 289,774) |
| Dependency Ratios | |
| Total dependency ratio | 59.3 |
| Youth dependency ratio | 44 |
| Elderly dependency ratio | 15.3 |
| Potential support ratio | 6.5 (2021 est.) |
| Median Age | |
| Total | 36.3 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 35.6 years |
| Female | 36.9 years |
| Urbanization | |
| Urban population | 89.4% of total population (2023) |
| Rate of urbanization | -1.23% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) |
| Major urban areas (Pop) | 2.421 million BEIRUT (capital) (2023). |
| Sex Ratio | |
| At birth | 1.05 male(s)/female |
| 0-14 years | 1.05 male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 1.02 male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.76 male(s)/female |
| Total population | 1 male(s)/female (2024 est.) |
| Infant Motality | |
| Total | 6.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.) |
| Male | 7.3 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Female | 6.2 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life Expectancy at birth | |
| Total population | 79.2 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 77.8 years |
| Female | 80.7 years |
| Drinking Water Sources | |
| Improved: urban | urban: NA |
| Improved: rural | rural: NA |
| Improved: total | total: 100% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: NA |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: NA |
| Unimproved: total | total: 0% of population (2020 est.) |
| Sanitation facility acess | |
| Improved: urban | urban: NA |
| Improved: rural | rural: NA |
| Improved: total | total: 100% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: NA |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: NA |
| Unimproved: total | total: 0% of population (2020 est.) |
| Alcohol consumption per capita | |
| Total | 1.14 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Beer | 0.38 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Wine | 0.21 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Spirits | 0.53 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Other alcohols | 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Tobacco use | |
| Total | 38.2% (2020 est.) |
| Male | 47.5% (2020 est.) |
| Female | 28.9% (2020 est.) |
| Child marriage | |
| Women married by age 15 | 1.4% |
| Women married by age 18 | 6% (2016 est.) |
Demographic profile
All Important Facts about Lebanon
Want to know more about Lebanon? Check all different factbooks for Lebanon below.
