This central European country is the size of Indiana. Most of Hungary is a fertile, rolling plain lying east of the Danube River and drained by the Danube and Tisza rivers. In the extreme northwest is the Little Hungarian Plain. South of that area is Lake Balaton (250 sq mi; 648 sq km).
Country lead by President: László Sólyom (2005)
Prime Minister: Ferenc Gyurcsány (2004)
Population
9,981,334 (growth rate: –0.3%); birth rate: 9.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 8.4/1000; life expectancy: 72.7; density per sq mi: 280
Land Area
35,653 sq mi (92,341 sq km); total area: 35,919 sq mi (93,030 sq km)
Monetary unit
Forint Language
Magyar (Hungarian) 94%, other 6%
Ethnicity Hungarian 92.3%, Roma 1.9%, other or unknown 5.8% (2001)
Religion Roman Catholic 52%, Calvinist 16%, Lutheran 3%, Greek Catholic 3%, other Christian 1%, unaffiliated 15% (2001)
Transportation Railways: total: 7,875 km (2004). Highways: total: 159,568 km; paved: 70,050 km (including 533 km of expressways); unpaved: 89,518 km (2002). Waterways: 1,622 km (most on Danube River) (2004). Ports and harbors: Budapest, Dunaujvaros, Gyor-Gonyu, Csepel, Baja, Mohacs (2003). Airports: 44 (2004 est.).
