Poland - Geography
Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Poland. Historically, an area of conflict because of flat terrain and the lack of natural barriers on the North European Plain. Mother's mean age at first birth is 27.9 years (2020 est.) (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 2 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
Geographical data of Poland
| Location | Central Europe, east of Germany |
|---|---|
| Geographic coordinates | 52 00 N, 20 00 E |
| Map references | Europe |
| Tarrain | mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border |
| Natural Resources | coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt, amber, arable land |
| Natural Hazards | flooding |
| Irrigated Land | 760 sq km (2013) |
| Major rivers (by length in km) | Wisla (Vistula) river source and mouth (shared with Belarus and Ukraine) - 1,213 km note - longest river in Poland |
| Major aquifers | |
| Land Boundaries | 2,865 km |
| Border Countries | Belarus 375 km; Czechia 699 km; Germany 467 km; Lithuania 100 km, Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast) 209 km; Slovakia 517 km; Ukraine 498 km |
| Coastline | 440 km |
| Climate | temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers |
| Area | |
| Total Area | |
| Land Area | 304,255 sq km |
| Water Area | 8,430 sq km |
| comparative Area | about twice the size of Georgia; slightly smaller than New Mexico |
| Maritime Claims | |
| Territorial sea | 12 nm |
| Exclusive economic zone | defined by international treaties |
| Elevations | |
| Highest point | Rysy 2,499 m |
| Lowest point | near Raczki Elblaskie -2 m |
| Mean elevation | 173 m |
| Land Use | |
| Agricultural land | 48.2% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: arable land | arable land: 36.2% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent crops | permanent crops: 1.3% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent pasture | permanent pasture: 10.7% (2018 est.) |
| Forest | 30.6% (2018 est.) |
| Other | 21.2% (2018 est.) |
Population Distribution
Population concentrated in the southern area around Krakow and the central area around Warsaw and Lodz, with an extension to the northern coastal city of Gdansk
People and Society
In Poland, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Polish 96.9%, Silesian 1.1%, German 0.2%, Ukrainian 0.1%, other and unspecified 1.7% (2011 est.)
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Pop growth rate | -1% (2024 est.) |
| Birth rate | 8.4 births/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Death rate | 12.2 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Health expenditure | 6.5% of GDP (2020) |
| Physicians Density | |
| Hospital bed Density | 6.5 beds/1,000 population (2018) |
| Total fertility rate | 1.32 children born/woman (2024 est.) |
| Gross reproduction rate | 0.64 (2024 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 62.3% (2014) |
| Est married women (ages 15-49) | 56.6% (2023 est.) |
| Literacy | age 15 and over can read and write |
| Education expenditures | 5.2% of GDP (2020 est.) |
| Net Migration rate | -6.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Nationality | Polish | Pole(s) |
| Languages | |
| Religions | Catholic 84.6% (Roman Catholic 84.6% and other Catholic 0.3%), Orthodox 1.3% (almost all are Polish Autocephalous Orthodox), Protestant 0.4% (mainly Augsburg Evangelical and Pentecostal), other 0.3%, unspecified 13% (2022 est.) |
| Age Structure | |
| 0-14 years | 14.2% (male 2,830,048/female 2,676,300) |
| 15-64 years | 65.9% (male 12,513,402/female 13,036,977) |
| 65 years and over | 19.8% (2024 est.) (male 3,097,965/female 4,591,618) |
| Dependency Ratios | |
| Total dependency ratio | 51.4 |
| Youth dependency ratio | 23.4 |
| Elderly dependency ratio | 28.6 |
| Potential support ratio | 3.5 (2021 est.) |
| Median Age | |
| Total | 42.9 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 41.5 years |
| Female | 44.3 years |
| Urbanization | |
| Urban population | 60.2% of total population (2023) |
| Rate of urbanization | -0.16% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) |
| Major urban areas (Pop) | 1.798 million WARSAW (capital), 769,000 Krakow (2023). |
| Sex Ratio | |
| At birth | 1.06 male(s)/female |
| 0-14 years | 1.06 male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 0.96 male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.67 male(s)/female |
| Total population | 0.91 male(s)/female (2024 est.) |
| Infant Motality | |
| Total | 4.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.) |
| Male | 5.3 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Female | 4.4 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life Expectancy at birth | |
| Total population | 76.7 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 72.8 years |
| Female | 80.9 years |
| Drinking Water Sources | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 99.9% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 100% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 100% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 0.1% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 0% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 0% of population (2020 est.) |
| Sanitation facility acess | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 100% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 100% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 100% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 0% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 0% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 0% of population (2020 est.) |
| Major Infectious diseases | |
| Degree of risk | intermediate (2023) |
| Vectorborne diseases | tickborne encephalitis |
| Alcohol consumption per capita | |
| Total | 10.96 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Beer | 5.72 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Wine | 0.88 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Spirits | 4.36 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Other alcohols | 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Tobacco use | |
| Total | 24% (2020 est.) |
| Male | 27.9% (2020 est.) |
| Female | 20.1% (2020 est.) |
Demographic profile
All Important Facts about Poland
Want to know more about Poland? Check all different factbooks for Poland below.
