Location: Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras
Comparative Area: slightly smaller than Massachusetts
Capital: San Salvador
Climate: tropical – rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands
Terrain: mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau
Geography Note: smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea
Population: 6,090,646 (July 2012 est.)
Ethnic Groups: Mestizo 90%, White 9%, Amerindian 1%
Languages: Spanish (official), Nahua (among some Amerindians)
Religions: Roman Catholic 57.1%, Protestant 21.2%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.9%, Mormon 0.7%, other religions 2.3%, none 16.8% (2003 est.)
Life Expectancy at Birth: total population – 73.69 years
Male – 70.41 years
Female – 77.12 years (2012 est.)
Children Under the Age of 5 Years Underweight: 6.1% (2003)
Literacy: definition – age 15 and over can read and write
total population – 81.1%
male – 82.8%
female – 79.6% (2007 census)
Unemployment Rate: 7% (2011 est.); 7.2% (2010 est.)
note: data are official rates; but the economy has much underemployment
Unemployment, Youth Ages 15-24: total – 11.4%
Male – 13%
Female – 8.3% (2007)
Population Below Poverty Line: 36.5% (2010 est.)
*All information is from the CIA World Factbook
B. El Salvador
