Geography

Near Mukjar, Sudan in the dry season

Photo: David Broska

Please note that we have been advised that the place names on the map do not seem to follow any consistent system of representing Arabic names in a Roman type script.

The Republic of Sudan is the largest country in Africa with a land area of over 2.5 million km2 and an estimated population of 39 million. It is dominated by the River Nile and borders the Central African Republic, Chad, Libya, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The capital, Khartoum is situated at the confluence of the White Nile and Blue Nile. Its land borders total 7,687 km with a coastline on the Red Sea of 853 km. The enormous range of latitude means that there is great variation in climate. The north of the country is desert with little rainfall and high daily temperatures. The Red Sea coastal plain receives winter rain whilst the southern parts of the country receive rain from March to November. The terrain is generally flat and featureless with mountains in the far south, north-east and west. The land elevation is from sea level to the highest point Kinyeti at 3,187 m close to the Uganda border. The official language is Arabic and some English is spoken. More details can be found at CIA Factbook.

Last page update 28th May 2007