The World Factbook (1990)/Notes, Definitions, and Abbreviations
Notes, Definitions, and Abbreviations
There have been some significant changes in this edition. In the Goverment section the former Branches entry has been replaced by three entries—Executive branch, Legislative branch, and Judicial branch. The Leaders entry now has subentries for Chief of State, Head of Government, and their deputies. The Elections entry has been completely redone with information for each branch of the national government, including the date for the last election, the date for the next election, results (percent of vote by candidate or party), and current distribution of seats by party. In the Economy section there is a new entry on Illicit drugs.
Abbreviations: (see Appendix B for international organizations)
| avdp. | avoirdupois |
| c.i.f. | cost, insurance, and freight |
| CY | calendar year |
| DWT | deadweight ton |
| est. | estimate |
| Ex-Im | Export-Import Bank of the United States |
| f.o.b. | free on board |
| FRG | Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) |
| FY | fiscal year |
| GDP | gross domestic product |
| GDR | German Democratic Republic (East Germany) |
| GNP | gross national product |
| GRT | gross register ton |
| km | kilometer |
| km² | square kilometer |
| kW | kilowatt |
| kWh | kilowatt-hour |
| m | meter |
| NA | not available |
| NEGL | negligible |
| nm | nautical mile |
| NZ | New Zealand |
| ODA | official development assistance |
| OOF | other official flows |
| PDRY | People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen] |
| UAE | United Arab Emirates |
| UK | United Kingdom |
| US | United States |
| USSR | Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Soviet Union) |
| YAR | Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] |
Administrative divisions: The numbers, designatory terms, and first-order administrative divisions are generally those approved by the United States Board on Geographic Names (BGN) as of 5 April 1990. Changes that have been reported but not yet acted upon by BGN are noted.
Area: Total area is the sum of all land and water areas delimited by international boundaries and/or coastlines. Land area is the aggregate of all surfaces delimited by international boundaries and/or coastlines, excluding inland water bodies (lakes, reservoirs, rivers). Comparative areas are based on total area equivalents. Most entities are compared with the entire US or one of the 50 states. The smaller entities are compared with Washington, DC (178 km², 69 miles²) or The Mall in Washington, DC (0.59 km², 0.23 miles², 146 acres).
Birth rate: The average annual number of births during a year per 1,000 population at midyear. Also known as crude birth rate.
Contributors: Information was provided by the Bureau of the Census (Department of Commerce), Central Intelligence Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency, Defense Nuclear Agency, Department of State, Foreign Broadcast Information Service, Navy Operational Intelligence Center and Maritime Administration (merchant marine data), Office of Territorial and International Affairs (Department of the Interior), United States Board on Geographic Names, United States Coast Guard, and others.
Dates of information: In general, information available as of 1 January 1990 was used in the preparation of this edition. Population figures are estimates for 1 July 1990, with population growth rates estimated for mid-1990 through mid-1991. Major political events have been updated through 30 March 1990. Military age figures are average annual estimates for 1990–94.
Death rate: The average annual number of deaths during a year per 1,000 population at midyear. Also known as crude death rate.
Diplomatic representation: The US Government has diplomatic relations with 162 nations. There are only 144 US embassies, since some nations have US ambassadors accredited to them, but no physical US mission exists. The US has diplomatic relations with 149 of the 159 UN members—the exceptions are Albania, Angola, Byelorussia (constituent republic of the Soviet Union), Cambodia, Cuba, Iran, Vietnam, People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen], Ukraine (constituent republic of the Soviet Union), and, obviously, the US itself. In addition, the US has diplomatic relations with 13 nations that are not in the UN—Andorra, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Liechtenstein, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Nauru, San Marino, South Korea, Switzerland, Tonga, Tuvalu, and the Vatican City. North Korea is not in the UN and the US does not have diplomatic relations with that nation. The US has not recognized the incorporation of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania into the Soviet Union and continues to accredit the diplomatic representatives of their last free governments.
Disputes: This category includes a wide variety of situations that range from traditional bilateral boundary disputes to unilateral claims of one sort or another. Every international land boundary dispute in the “Guide to International Boundaries,” a map published by the Department of State, is included. References to other situations may also be included that are border- or frontier-relevant, such as maritime disputes, geopolitical questions, or irredentist issues. However, inclusion does not necessarily constitute official acceptance or recognition by the US Government.
Entities: Some of the nations, dependent areas, areas of special sovereignty, and governments included in this publication are not independent, and others are not officially recognized by the US Government. Nation refers to a people politically organized into a sovereign state with a definite territory. Dependent area refers to a broad category of political entities that are associated in some way with a nation. Names used for page headings are usually the short-form names as approved by the US Board on Geographic Names. The long-form name is included in the Government section and an entry of “none” indicates a long-form name does not exist. In some instances, no short-form name exists—then the long-form name must serve for all usages.
There are 249 entities in the Factbook that may be categorized as follows:
| NATIONS | |
| 157 | UN members (There are 159 members in the UN, but only 157 are included in The World Factbook because Byelorussia and Ukraine are constituent republics of the Soviet Union.) |
| 15 | nations that are not members of the UN Andorra, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Liechtenstein, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Namibia, Nauru, North Korea, San Marino, South Korea, Switzerland, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vatican City |
| OTHER | |
| 1 | Taiwan |
| DEPENDENT AREAS | |
| 6 | Australia—Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald
Islands, Norfolk Island |
| 2 | Denmark—Faroe Islands, Greenland |
| 16 | France—Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island, French Guiana, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Glorioso Islands, Guadeloupe, Juan de Nova Island, Martinique, Mayotte, New Caledonia, Reunion, St. Pierre and Miquelon, Tromelin Island, Wallis and Futuna |
| 2 | Netherlands—Aruba, Netherlands Antilles |
| 3 | New Zealand—Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau |
| 3 | Norway—Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard |
| 1 | Portugal—Macau |
| 16 | United Kingdom—Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Isle of Man, Jersey, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, St. Helena, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands |
| 15 | United States—American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll, Puerto Rico, Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (Palau), Virgin Islands, Wake Island |
| MISCELLANEOUS | |
| 7 | Antarctica, Gaza Strip, Iraq-Saudi Arabia Neutral Zone, Paracel Islands, Spratly Islands, West Bank, Western Sahara |
| OTHER ENTITIES | |
| 4 | oceans—Arctic Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean |
| 1 | World |
| 249 | total |
Notes: The US Government has not recognized the incorporation of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania into the Soviet Union as constituent republics during World War II. Those Baltic states are not members of the UN and are not included in the list of nations. The US Government does not recognize the four so-called “independent” homelands of Bophuthatswana, Ciskei, Transkei, and Venda in South Africa.
Gross domestic product (GDP): The value of all goods and services produced domestically.
Gross national product (GNP): The value of all goods and services produced domestically, plus income earned abroad, minus income earned by foreigners from domestic production.
GNP/GDP methodology: GNP/GDP dollar estimates for the OECD countries, the USSR, Eastern Europe, and a portion of the developing countries, are derived from purchasing power parity (PPP) calculations rather than from conversions at official currency exchange rates. The PPP methods involve the use of average price weights, which lie between the weights of the domestic and foreign price systems; using these weights US $100 converted into German marks by a PPP method will buy an equal amount of goods and services in both the US and Germany. One caution: the proportion of, say, military expenditures as a percent of GNP/GDP in local currency accounts may differ substantially from the proportion when GNP/GDP is expressed in PPP dollar terms, as, for example, when an observer estimates the dollar level of Soviet or Japanese military expenditures. Similarly, dollar figures for exports and imports reflect the price patterns of international markets rather than PPP price patterns.
Growth rate (population): The annual percent change in the population, resulting from a surplus (or deficit) of births over deaths and the balance of migrants entering and leaving a country. The rate may be positive or negative.
Illicit drugs: There are five categories of illicit drugs narcotics, stimulants, depressants (sedatives), hallucinogens, and cannabis. These categories include many drugs legally produced and prescribed by doctors as well as those illegally produced and sold outside medical channels.
Cannabis (Cannabis sativa) is the common hemp plant, provides hallucinogens with some sedative properties, and includes marijuana (pot, Acapulco gold, grass, reefer), tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, Marinol), hashish (hash), and hashish oil (hash oil).
Coca (Erythroxylon coca) is a bush and the leaves contain the stimulant cocaine. Coca is not to be confused with cocoa which comes from cacao seeds and is used in making chocolate, cocoa, and cocoa butter.
Cocaine is a stimulant derived from the leaves of the coca bush.
Depressants (sedatives) are drugs that reduce tension and anxiety and include chloral hydrate, barbiturates (Amytal, Nembutal, Seconal, phenobarbital), benzodiazepines (Librium, Valium), methaqualone (Quaalude), glutethimide (Doriden), and others (Equanil, Placidyl, Valmid).
Drugs are any chemical substances that effect a physical, mental, emotional, or behavioral change in an individual.
Drug abuse is the use of any licit or illicit chemical substance that results in physical, mental, emotional, or behavioral impairment in an individual.
Hallucinogens are drugs that affect sensation, thinking, self-awareness, and emotion. Hallucinogens include LSD (acid, microdot), mescaline and peyote (mexc, buttons, cactus), amphetamine variants (PMA, STP, DOB), phencyclidine (PCP, angel dust, hog), phencyclidine analogues (PCE, PCPy, TCP), and others (psilocybin, psilocyn).
Hashish is the resinous exudate of the cannabis or hemp plant (Cannabis sativa).
Heroin is a semisynthetic derivative of morphine.
Marijuana is the dried leaves of the cannabis or hemp plant (Cannabis sativa).
Narcotics are drugs that relieve pain, often induce sleep, and refer to opium, opium derivatives, and synthetic substitutes. Natural narcotics include opium (paregoric, parepectolin), morphine (MS-Contin, Roxanol), codeine (Tylenol w/codeine, Empirin w/codeine, Robitussan A-C), and thebaine. Semisynthetic narcotics include heroin (horse, smack) and hydromorphone (Dilaudid). Synthetic narcotics include meperidine or Pethidine (Demerol, Mepergan), methadone (Dolophine, Methadose), and others (Darvon, Lomotil).
Opium is the milky exudate of the incised, unripe seedpod of the opium poppy.
Opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) is the source for many natural and semisynthetic narcotics.
Poppy straw concentrate is the alkaloid derived from the mature dried opium poppy.
Qat (kat, khat) is a stimulant from the buds or leaves of Catha edulis and is chewed or drunk as tea.
Stimulants are drugs that relieve mild depression, increase energy and activity, and include cocaine (coke, snow, crack), amphetamines (Desoxyn, Dexedrine), phenmetrazine (Preludin), methylphenidate (Ritalin), and others (Cylert, Sanorex, Tenuate).
Infant mortality rate: The number of deaths to infants under one year of age in a given year per 1,000 live births occurring in the same year.
Land use: Human use of the land surface is categorized as arable land—land cultivated for crops that are replanted after each harvest (wheat, maize, rice); permanent crops—land cultivated for crops that are not replanted after each harvest (citrus, coffee, rubber); meadows and pastures—land permanently used for herbaceous forage crops; forest and woodland—land under dense or open stands of trees; and other—any land type not specifically mentioned above (urban areas, roads, desert). The percentage figure for irrigated refers to the portion of the entire amount of land area that is artificially supplied with water.
Leaders: The chief of state is the titular leader of the country who represents the state at official and ceremonial functions but is not involved with the day-to-day activities of the government. The head of government is the administrative leader who manages the day-to-day activities of the government. In the UK, the monarch is the chief of state and the prime minister is the head of government. In the US, the President is both the chief of state and the head of government.
Life expectancy at birth: The average number of years to be lived by a group of people all born in the same year, if mortality at each age remains constant in the future.
Maritime claims: The proximity of neighboring states may prevent some national claims from being fully extended.
Merchant marine: All ships engaged in the carriage of goods. All commercial vessels (as opposed to all nonmilitary ships), which excludes tugs, fishing vessels, offshore oil rigs, etc. Also, a grouping of merchant ships by nationality or register.
Captive register—A register of ships maintained by a territory, possession, or colony primarily or exclusively for the use of ships owned in the parent country. Also referred to as an offshore register, the offshore equivalent of an internal register. Ships on a captive register will fly the same flag as the parent country, or a local variant of it, but will be subject to the maritime laws and taxation rules of the offshore territory. Although the nature of a captive register makes it especially desirable for ships owned in the parent country, just as in the internal register, the ships may also be owned abroad. The captive register then acts as a flag of convenience register, except that it is not the register of an independent state.
Flag of convenience register— A national register offering registration to a merchant ship not owned in the flag state. The major flags of convenience (FOC) attract ships to their register by virtue of low fees, low or nonexistent taxation of profits, and liberal manning requirements. True FOC registers are characterized by having relatively few of the ships registered actually owned in the flag state. Thus, while virtually any flag can be used for ships under a given set of circumstances, an FOC register is one where the majority of the merchant fleet is owned abroad. It is also referred to as an open register.
Flag state—The nation in which a ship is registered and which holds legal jurisdiction over operation of the ship, whether at home or abroad. Differences in flag state maritime legislation determine how a ship is manned and taxed and whether a foreign-owned ship may be placed on the register.
Internal register—A register of ships maintained as a subset of a national register. Ships on the internal register fly the national flag and have that nationality but are subject to a separate set of maritime rules from those on the main national register. These differences usually include lower taxation of profits, manning by foreign nationals, and, usually, ownership outside the flag state (when it functions as an FOC register). The Norwegian International Ship Register and Danish International Ship Register are the most notable examples of an internal register. Both have been instrumental in stemming flight from the national flag to flags of convenience and in attracting foreign-owned ships to the Norwegian and Danish flags.
Merchant ship—A vessel that carries goods against payment of freight. Commonly used to denote any nonmilitary ship but accurately restricted to commercial vessels only.
Register—The record of a ship's ownership and nationality as listed with the maritime authorities of a country. Also, the compendium of such individual ships' registrations. Registration of a ship provides it with a nationality and makes it subject to the laws of the country in which registered (the flag state) regardless of the nationality of the ship's ultimate owner.
Money figures: All are expressed in contemporaneous US dollars unless otherwise indicated.
Net migration rate: The balance between the number of persons entering and leaving a country during the year per 1,000 persons (based on midyear population). An excess of persons entering the country is referred to as net immigration (3.56 migrants/1,000 population); an excess of persons leaving the country as net emigration (-9.26 migrants/1,000 population).
Population: Figures are estimates from the Bureau of the Census based on statistics from population censuses, vital registration systems, or sample surveys pertaining to the recent past, and on assumptions about future trends.
Total fertility rate: The average number of children that would be born per woman if all women lived to the end of their childbearing years and bore children according to a given fertility rate at each age.
Years: All year references are for the calendar year (CY) unless indicated as fiscal year (FY).