Land and Resources

The Czech Republic rests on elevated tablelands, known as the Bohemian Plateau, which stretch west to the German border and east to Slovakia. Mountains, including the Bohemian, Sudeten, and Carpathian ranges, rise along the plateau's edges, primarily to the north and east. The country's highest point is Snè"ka, which rises 1,602 m (5,256 ft) in the Sudeten Mountains. The lowest point is the River Elbe, which at the border with Germany is 117 m (384 ft) above sea level.

Physiographic Regions

The central part of the Czech Republic is made up of the Bohemian Basin and the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands; the Moravian Lowlands lie to the east. These regions contain the republic's most fertile soils. The central part of the plateau consists primarily of rolling hills, farmland, and fertile river valleys. The Bohemian Forest forms the southwestern border with Germany.

Rivers and Lakes

The republic's primary rivers include the Elbe, Vltava, Morava, Neisse, and Oder. Other important streams include the Jizera, Ohre, Beca, Sázava, Svratka, and Luznice. Lakes are mostly small, some of the largest being man-made reservoirs.

Climate

The interior plateau areas of the republic have a primarily continental temperate climate with warm summers and cold winters. The mountainous areas endure harsher winters and receive heavy rainfall. The southern areas of the republic near the border with Austria have hot summers and milder winters. The average temperature in Prague in January is -1.5° C (29.5° F), in July it is 19.4° C (67° F). The average annual precipitation is 483 mm (19.4 in) in Prague, and 525 mm (21 in) in Brno.

Plants and Animals

Spruce and fir trees are most common in the republic's forests, particularly at higher elevations, while mixed forests of oak, ash, and maple are characteristic in lower zones. The uncultivated lowlands are covered mostly with clover, reeds, and broom grass. Wildlife is becoming scarce because of pollution and deforestation, but wolf, brown bear, wild boar, wildcat, white eagle, chamois, and fox are found in the mountainous Carpathian region.

Mineral Resources

The Czech Republic is relatively poorly furnished with mineral resources. Coal is the most common and profitable natural resource, particularly brown coal and lignite. Increased excavation and use of coal have wreaked environmental havoc on air and water quality, which has subsequently affected the health of the populace. Magnesite, iron ore, and a few nonmetallic minerals are also common in parts of the republic. There are sizeable uranium deposits and smaller mercury, antimony, and tin deposits in the Ore Mountains (part of the Bohemian Mountains).

Population

 The population of the Czech Republic is predominantly Czech, or Bohemian. Indeed, the creation of the republic in 1992-1993 was partly justified by supposed ethnic tensions with the Czechs' eastern neighbours, the Slovaks, though there are few historical cases of severe ethnic disputes. (The Moravians are often classed as Czech, though they consider themselves an independent group.) The Czechs are descended from Slavic tribes who appeared in Bohemia and Moravia in the 5th century AD, and drove the Avars out of the region in the 7th century. Czechs constitute 81.2 per cent of the population of the Czech Republic. Moravians constitute 13.2 per cent, Slovaks 3.1 per cent, and 2.5 per cent of the population is made up by other ethnic groups, including Germans, Gypsies, Poles, and Hungarians. One formerly significant ethnic group now no longer in evidence is the once sizeable Jewish population of the region, who emigrated or were killed by occupying German forces prior to and during World War II.

 Population Characteristics

The Czech Republic has a population (1993 estimate) of 10,323,690. Average population density is 131 people per sq km (339 people per sq mi). Around 75 per cent of the republic's population is urban. Population is concentrated chiefly in the north and east, with the southwestern areas towards the southern German and Austrian borders being relatively sparsely settled.

 Political Divisions and Principal Cities

The country is divided into eight regions, including the separate capital district of Prague, and these are further divided into municipalities. The seven provincial regions are: Zapadocesky (West Bohemia), with a population (1990 estimate, provisional) of 869,188; Stredoceský (Central Bohemia), 1,114,098; Východoceský (East Bohemia), 1,239,804; Severoceský (North Bohemia), 1,189,592; Jihoceský (South Bohemia), 701,793; Jihomoravský (South Moravia), 2,059,394; and Severomoravský (North Moravia), 1,975,654. The capital city and administrative district of Prague has a population (1991 census) of 1,212,010. It is placed more or less centrally in the country, and is the nexus of most major transport routes. The second largest city, Brno (387,986) in southern Moravia, has a long tradition of cultural importance. Other major Czech cities and their populations include Ostrava (327,371), Plzeñ (173,129), Olomouc (105,690), Liberec (104,200), and Hradec Králové (101,300).

 Religion

Most Czechs (65 per cent) practise some form of Christian religion, primarily Roman Catholicism. Other religions practised include Protestantism and Eastern Orthodox Christianity. There is still a small residual Jewish community centred in Prague.

Language

The Czech Republic's official language is Czech, which is closely related to Slovak (both use the Roman rather than the Cyrillic alphabet) and belongs to the Western Slavic subgroup of the Indo-European language family. Moravian—a transitional language between Czech and Slovak and comprising a group of dialects—is also spoken, along with German, Hungarian, and Romany. Most speakers of minority languages also speak Czech.