Page last updated on January 31, 2014
At the close of World War I, the Czechs and Slovaks of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire merged to form Czechoslovakia. During the interwar years, having rejected a federal system, the new country's predominantly Czech leaders were frequently preoccupied with meeting the increasingly strident demands of other ethnic minorities within the republic, most notably the Slovaks, the Sudeten Germans, and the Ruthenians (Ukrainians). On the eve of World War II, Nazi Germany occupied the Czech part of the country and Slovakia became an independent state allied with Germany. After the war, a reunited but truncated Czechoslovakia (less Ruthenia) fell within the Soviet sphere of influence. In 1968, an invasion by Warsaw Pact troops ended the efforts of the country's leaders to liberalize communist rule and create "socialism with a human face," ushering in a period of repression known as "normalization." The peaceful "Velvet Revolution" swept the Communist Party from power at the end of 1989 and inaugurated a return to democratic rule and a market economy. On 1 January 1993, the country underwent a nonviolent "velvet divorce" into its two national components, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004.
Central Europe, between Germany, Poland, Slovakia, and Austria
total: 78,867 sq km
country comparison to the world: 116
land: 77,247 sq km
water: 1,620 sq km
slightly smaller than South Carolina
total: 1,989 km
border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 815 km, Poland 615 km, Slovakia 197 km
temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters
Bohemia in the west consists of rolling plains, hills, and plateaus surrounded by low mountains; Moravia in the east consists of very hilly country
lowest point: Labe (Elbe) River 115 m
highest point: Snezka 1,602 m
hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber
arable land: 40.12%
permanent crops: 0.96%
other: 58.92% (2011)
total: 1.7 cu km/yr (41%/56%/2%)
per capita: 164.7 cu m/yr (2009)
air and water pollution in areas of northwest Bohemia and in northern Moravia around Ostrava present health risks; acid rain damaging forests; efforts to bring industry up to EU code should improve domestic pollution
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
landlocked; strategically located astride some of oldest and most significant land routes in Europe; Moravian Gate is a traditional military corridor between the North European Plain and the Danube in central Europe
noun: Czech(s)
adjective: Czech
Czech 64.3%, Moravian 5%, Slovak 1.4%, other 1.8%, unspecified 27.5% (2011 est.)
Czech 95.4%, Slovak 1.6%, other 3% (2011 census)
Roman Catholic 10.4%, Protestant (includes Czech Brethren and Hussite) 1.1%, other and unspecified 54%, none 34.5% (2011 est.)
10,609,762 (July 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 82
0-14 years: 13.4% (male 701,936/female 663,571)
15-24 years: 11.1% (male 575,726/female 548,800)
25-54 years: 43.6% (male 2,255,899/female 2,179,195)
55-64 years: 14.2% (male 699,149/female 748,529)
65 years and over: 17.6% (male 723,059/female 1,067,057) (2013 est.)
total dependency ratio: 46.1 %
youth dependency ratio: 21.7 %
elderly dependency ratio: 24.4 %
potential support ratio: 4.1 (2013)
total: 41.4 years
male: 40 years
female: 43.1 years (2013 est.)
-0.15% (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 210
8.55 births/1,000 population (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 217
11.01 deaths/1,000 population (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 39
0.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 57
urban population: 73.4% of total population (2011)
rate of urbanization: 0.24% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
PRAGUE (capital) 1.276 million (2011)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2013 est.)
5 deaths/100,000 live births (2010)
country comparison to the world: 174
total: 3.67 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 207
male: 4 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 3.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2013 est.)
total population: 77.56 years
country comparison to the world: 64
male: 74.29 years
female: 81.01 years (2013 est.)
1.29 children born/woman (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 214
86.3%
note: percent of women aged 18-49 (2008)
7.4% of GDP (2011)
country comparison to the world: 75
3.71 physicians/1,000 population (2010)
7 beds/1,000 population (2010)
less than 0.1% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 121
2,000 (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 135
fewer than 100 (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 149
32.7% (2008)
country comparison to the world: 21
2% (2007)
country comparison to the world: 117
4.4% of GDP (2009)
country comparison to the world: 95
definition: NA
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (2011 est.)
total: 16 years
male: 16 years
female: 16 years (2011)
total: 19.5%
country comparison to the world: 62
male: 19.9%
female: 19% (2012)
conventional long form: Czech Republic
conventional short form: Czech Republic
local long form: Ceska republika
local short form: Cesko
name: Prague
geographic coordinates: 50 05 N, 14 28 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
13 regions (kraje, singular - kraj) and 1 capital city* (hlavni mesto); Jihocesky (South Bohemia), Jihomoravsky (South Moravia), Karlovarsky (Karlovy Vary), Kralovehradecky (Hradec Kralove), Liberecky (Liberec), Moravskoslezsky (Moravia-Silesia), Olomoucky (Olomouc), Pardubicky (Pardubice), Plzensky (Pilsen), Praha (Prague)*, Stredocesky (Central Bohemia), Ustecky (Usti), Vysocina (Highlands), Zlinsky (Zlin)
1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia); note - although 1 January is the day the Czech Republic came into being, the Czechs commemorate 28 October 1918, the day the former Czechoslovakia declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, as their independence day
Czechoslovak Founding Day, 28 October (1918)
previous 1960; latest ratified 16 December 1992, effective 1 January 1993; amended several times, last in 2013 (2013)
in 2014, a new civil code will replace the existing civil law system, which is based on former Austro-Hungarian civil codes and socialist theory and has been amended 40 times since the Communist regime fell in 1989
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
18 years of age; universal
chief of state: President Milos ZEMAN (since 8 March 2013)
head of government: Prime Minister Bohuslav SOBOTKA (since 29 January 2014); First Deputy Prime Minister Andrej BABIS and Deputy Prime Minister Pavel BELOBRADEK (both since 29 January 2014)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister
elections: constitutional amendment passed in 2012 introduced presidential election by popular vote instead of by Parliament; president elected for a five-year term (may not serve more than two consecutive terms); elections last held on 11-12 January 2013 with a runoff on 25-26 January 2013 (next to be held in January 2018); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: Milos ZEMAN elected president; percent of popular vote - Milos ZEMAN 54.8%, Karel SCHWARZENBERG 45.2%
bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (81 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies or Poslanecka Snemovna (200 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held in two rounds on 12-13 and 19-20 October 2012 (next to be held in October 2014); Chamber of Deputies - last held on 25-26 October 2013 (next to be held in 2017)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - CSSD 48, ODS 15, KDU-CSL 4, TOP 09 4, North Bohemians 2, KSCM 2, Green 1, Ostravak 1, Pirate 1, independent 3; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - CSSD 20.5%, ANO 2011 18.7%, KSCM 14.9%, TOP 09 12%, ODS 7.7%%, Usvit 6.9%, KDU-CSL 6.8% other 12.5%; seats by party - CSSD 50, ANO 2011 47, KSCM 33, TOP 09 26, ODS 16, Usvit 14, KDU-CSL 14
highest court(s): Supreme Court (organized into Civil Law and Commercial Division, and Criminal Division each with a court chief justice, vice justice, and several judges); Constitutional Court (consists of 15 justices); Supreme Administrative Court (consists of 28 judges)
judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges proposed by the Chamber of Deputies and appointed by the president; judges appointed for life; Constitutional Court judges appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate; judges appointed for 10-year, renewable terms; Supreme Administrative Court judges selected by the president of the Court; judge term NA
subordinate courts: High Court; superior, regional, and district courts
Association of Independent Candidates-European Democrats or SNK-ED [Zdenka MARKOVA]
Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions or CMKOS [Jaroslav ZAVADIL]
Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CD, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MONUSCO, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, SELEC (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
chief of mission: Ambassador Petr GANDALOVIC (since 23 May 2011)
chancery: 3900 Spring of Freedom Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 274-9100
FAX: [1] (202) 966-8540
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
chief of mission: Ambassador Norman L. EISEN (since 14 January 2011)
embassy: Trziste 15, 118 01 Prague 1 - Mala Strana
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [420] 257 022 000
FAX: [420] 257 022 809
two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side
note: is identical to the flag of the former Czechoslovakia
name: "Kde domov muj?" (Where is My Home?)
lyrics/music: Josef Kajetan TYL/Frantisek Jan SKROUP
note: adopted 1993; the anthem is a verse from the former Czechoslovak anthem originally written as part of the opera "Fidlovacka"
The Czech Republic is a stable and prosperous market economy closely integrated with the EU, especially since the country's EU accession in 2004. While the conservative, inward-looking Czech financial system has remained relatively healthy, the small, open, export-driven Czech economy remains sensitive to changes in the economic performance of its main export markets, especially Germany. When Western Europe and Germany fell into recession in late 2008, demand for Czech goods plunged, leading to double digit drops in industrial production and exports. As a result, real GDP fell 4.7% in 2009, with most of the decline occurring during the first quarter. Real GDP, however, slowly recovered with positive quarter-on-quarter growth starting in the second half of 2009 and continuing throughout 2011. In 2012, however, the economy fell into a recession due to a slump in external demand. The auto industry remains the largest single industry, and, together with its upstream suppliers, accounts for nearly 24% of Czech manufacturing. The Czech Republic produced more than a million cars for the first time in 2010, over 80% of which were exported. Foreign and domestic businesses alike voice concerns about corruption especially in public procurement. Other long term challenges include dealing with a rapidly aging population, funding an unsustainable pension and health care system, and diversifying away from manufacturing and toward a more high-tech, services-based, knowledge economy.
$283.6 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 45
note: data are in 2012 US dollars
-1.2% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 197
$27,000 (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 55
note: data are in 2012 US dollars
21.1% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 69
household consumption: 49.6%
government consumption: 20.8%
investment in fixed capital: 23.6%
investment in inventories: 0.8%
exports of goods and services: 78%
imports of goods and services: -72.7%
agriculture: 2.3%
industry: 38%
services: 59.7% (2012 est.)
wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry
motor vehicles, metallurgy, machinery and equipment, glass, armaments
0.2% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 133
5.404 million (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 70
agriculture: 3.1%
industry: 38.6%
services: 58.3% (2009)
6.8% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 71
lowest 10%: 1.5%
highest 10%: NA% (2009)
31 (2009)
country comparison to the world: 109
revenues: $80.93 billion
expenditures: $89.59 billion (2012 est.)
41.9% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 34
-4.5% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 159
45.7% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 74
3.3% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 102
0.75% (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 134
note: this is the two-week repo, the main rate CNB uses
5.41% (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 147
$122.6 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 29
$151.7 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 47
$138.1 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 47
$53.2 billion (31 December 2011)
country comparison to the world: 47
$-4.727 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 162
$131.7 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 34
machinery and transport equipment, raw materials and fuel, chemicals
Germany 31.8%, Slovakia 9.1%, Poland 6.1%, France 5.1%, UK 4.9%, Austria 4.7% (2012)
$124.2 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 32
machinery and transport equipment, raw materials and fuels, chemicals
Germany 29.5%, Poland 7.7%, Slovakia 7.4%, China 6.3%, Netherlands 5.8%, Russia 5.3%, Austria 4.3% (2012)
$44.88 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43
$101 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 47
$136.4 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
$15.18 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 49
koruny (CZK) per US dollar -
82.19 billion kWh (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
61.19 billion kWh (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
28.71 billion kWh (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7
11.59 billion kWh (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 19
18.3 million kW (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 41
62.1% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 130
21.3% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7
5.7% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 123
4.6% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 45
10,010 bbl/day (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 91
403.8 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 72
154,000 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
15 million bbl (1 January 2013 es)
country comparison to the world: 87
178,900 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 59
199,000 bbl/day (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 59
35,720 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 67
54,240 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 67
200 million cu m (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 79
9.28 billion cu m (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 49
25.23 billion cu m (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 17
32.63 billion cu m (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 18
3.964 billion cu m (1 January 2013 es)
country comparison to the world: 96
92.4 million Mt (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 41
2.1 million (2012)
country comparison to the world: 56
12.973 million (2012)
country comparison to the world: 65
general assessment: privatization and modernization of the Czech telecommunication system got a late start but is advancing steadily; virtually all exchanges now digital; existing copper subscriber systems enhanced with Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) equipment to accommodate Internet and other digital signals; trunk systems include fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay
domestic: access to the fixed-line telephone network expanded throughout the 1990s but the number of fixed line connections has been dropping since then; mobile telephone usage increased sharply beginning in the mid-1990s and the number of cellular telephone subscriptions now greatly exceeds the population
international: country code - 420; satellite earth stations - 6 (2 Intersputnik - Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions, 1 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat, 1 Globalstar) (2011)
roughly 130 TV broadcasters operating some 350 channels with 4 publicly operated and the remainder in private hands; 16 TV stations have national coverage with 4 being publicly operated; cable and satellite TV subscription services are available; 63 radio broadcasters are registered operating roughly 80 radio stations with 15 stations publicly operated; 10 radio stations provide national coverage with the remainder local or regional (2008)
4.148 million (2012)
country comparison to the world: 27
6.681 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 40
128 (2013)
country comparison to the world: 46
total: 41
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 16 (2013)
total: 87
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 25
under 914 m:
gas 7,160 km; oil 536 km; refined products 94 km (2013)
total: 9,469 km
country comparison to the world: 23
standard gauge: 9,449 km 1.435-m gauge (3,165 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 20 km 0.750-m gauge (2008)
total: 130,671 km (includes urban roads)
country comparison to the world: 38
paved: 130,671 km (includes 730 km of expressways) (2010)
664 km (principally on Elbe, Vltava, Oder, and other navigable rivers, lakes, and canals) (2010)
country comparison to the world: 77
registered in other countries: 1 (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1) (2010)
country comparison to the world: 147
river port(s): Prague (Vltava); Decin, Usti nad Labem (Elbe)
Army of the Czech Republic (Armada Ceske Republiky): Joint Forces Command (Spolocene Sily; includes Land Forces (Pozemni Sily) and Air Forces (Vzdusne Sily)) (2013)
18-28 years of age for male and female voluntary military service; no conscription (2012)
males age 16-49: 2,506,826
females age 16-49: 2,407,634 (2010 est.)
males age 16-49: 2,072,267
females age 16-49: 1,988,839 (2010 est.)
male: 49,999
female: 47,501 (2010 est.)
1.13% of GDP (2012)
country comparison to the world: 271
while threats of international legal action never materialized in 2007, 915,220 Austrians, with the support of the popular Freedom Party, signed a petition in January 2008, demanding that Austria block the Czech Republic's accession to the EU unless Prague closes its controversial Soviet-style nuclear plant in Temelin, bordering Austria
stateless persons: 1,502 (2012)
