Country · Europe
North Macedonia
Republic of North Macedonia
North Macedonia is a country in Southeast Europe. About 2.1 million people live there, in an area of 25 713 square kilometres. Its capital city is Skopje.
Picture credit: Radosław Botev (CC BY 3.0 pl) · Aljabakphoto (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Aljabakphoto (CC BY-SA 4.0) · kallerna (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Sharon Hahn Darlin (CC BY 2.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is North Macedonia?
North Macedonia lies in Southeast Europe, on the continent of Europe.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 4 657 km from the equator.
North Macedonia is landlocked: it has no coast at all, so you cannot reach the sea without crossing another country.
It shares a border with 5 countries: Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Kosovo and Serbia.
How big is North Macedonia?
North Macedonia covers 25 713 square kilometres.
That is about 9.9 times the size of Luxembourg.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 145th largest.
If everybody spread out evenly, there would be about 81.1 people on every square kilometre.
That is close to the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in North Macedonia?
About 2.1 million people live in North Macedonia.
That is the 144th biggest population in the world.
People here speak Macedonian.
They pay with the denar (den).
On average, people born here can expect to live about 74 years.
The land of North Macedonia
The land of North Macedonia sits on average 741 metres above sea level.
Because it is landlocked, anything that comes by ship has to cross one of its 5 neighbours to get here.
It lies between the tropics and the poles, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes North Macedonia different?
A dish the country is known for: Tavče Gravče.
Websites from here often end in .mk.
North Macedonia and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about one lives in North Macedonia.
It takes up about 0.02 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Europe the country ranks 35th of 45 by size, and 32nd by population.
North Macedonia and its neighbours
Greece, its largest neighbour, is about 5.1 times bigger.
Greece has more people: 10.7 million against 2.1 million.
Nature and animals
The highest mountain in the country is Mount Korab, at 2 764 metres. The longest river in the country is the Vardar. The largest lake in the country is Lake Ohrid.
How big is North Macedonia compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 365 times as big as North Macedonia: 9 372 610 km² against 25 713 km².
- The United Kingdom is about 9.4 times as big as North Macedonia: 242 900 km² against 25 713 km².
Questions children ask
What is the capital of North Macedonia?
The capital of North Macedonia is Skopje. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in North Macedonia?
About 2.1 million people live in North Macedonia, which makes it the 144th most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border North Macedonia?
How big is North Macedonia?
North Macedonia covers 25 713 square kilometres, making it the 145th largest country in the world. That is about 9.9 times the size of Luxembourg.
What is the highest mountain in North Macedonia?
The highest mountain in North Macedonia is Mount Korab, 2 764 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in North Macedonia?
The longest river in North Macedonia is the Vardar. Of its 388 kilometres, about 312 run through the country.
What is the largest lake in North Macedonia?
The largest lake in North Macedonia is Lake Ohrid. The whole lake covers about 358 km², and part of it belongs to neighbouring countries.
Which continent is North Macedonia in?
North Macedonia is in Europe, in the part called Southeast Europe.
Where these numbers come from
Borders and outlines: Natural Earth. Names, capitals, areas, languages and currencies: ISO 3166 data (world-countries). Population: World Bank, 2018. Every derived figure on this page (ranks, density, distance from the equator) is calculated from those values.
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