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Israel Society & Culture: Annual Statistical Glimpse

(Updated May 2015)

Geography

Israel stands at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa. Geographically, it belongs to the Asian continent. Its western border is the Mediterranean Sea. To the north it is bound by Lebanon and Syria, to the east by Jordan and to the south by the Red Sea and Egypt. Long and narrow in shape, Israel is about 290 miles (470 km.) long and 85 miles (135 km.) across at its widest point. Its total area is 22,072 sq km, of which 21,643 sq km is land area (Sea of Galilee: 164 sq km; Dead Sea: 265 sq km). Israel’s total land border measures 857 km, its Mediterranean coastline 194 km, and 12 km on the Red Sea.

- The only river in Israel: The Jordan River, approximately 250 km.
- Main streams: Alexander, Besor, Hadera, Yarqon, Sa'ar, Qishon, and Soreq.

Geographical Regions

Arid zones 45%
Plains and valleys 25%
Mountains 16%
Rift valley 9%
Coastal strip 5%

Selected Elevations:

Mt. Hermon, Golan - highest point in Israel

7,300 ft.

2,224 m.

Mt. Meron, Upper Galilee

3,964 ft.

1,208 m.

Mt. Ramon, Negev

3,396 ft.

1,035 m.

Mt. of Olives, Jerusalem

2,739 ft.

835 m.

Mt. Tabor, Lower Galilee

1,930 ft.

588 m.

Mt. Carmel, Haifa

1,792 ft.

546 m.

Dead Sea - lowest point on earth

- 1,368 ft.

- 417 m.

Natural Resources:

Raw materials for construction of buildings and roads: gravel and stone, sand, kurkar, clay, limestone, gypsum, and tuff.
Raw materials for manufacturing: potash, bromine, magnesium, salt, phosphates, sand, clay, and limestone.
Energy sources: natural gas, oil shale.

Climate:

Israel is on a "climatic crossroad", which is a transitional area between a temperate and arid climate. The southern and eastern areas of Israel are characterized by an arid climate, while the other areas are characterized by a Mediterranean climate. Due to this climatic formation, there is high variability in the amount of precipitation from year to year, and in the different areas of the country.

- The highest temperature ever recorded in Israel was 54°C (Tirat Zvi on 21 June 1942)
- The lowest temperature ever recorded in Israel was -13.7°C (Bet Netofa Valley on 7 February 1950)

People

  1980 1990 2012 End of 2013
Population 3,921,700 4,821,700 8,018,000 8,309,400
Civilian Labor Force 1,318,100 1,649,900 3,204,200 3,677,800
Jews in Israel
(% of World Jewry)
25 30 43 43
Life expectancy:
            Females
            Males

75.7
72.1

78.4
75.7

83.6
80.0

83.9
80.3
Infant Mortality
(per 1000 live births)
15.6 9.9 3.7 3.1
School Population 1,200,700 1,451,300 1,564,700 2,167,250
% of Population with 13 years+ of schooling 19.2 25.3 44.4 46.8

Population, by Religion

Jews 75%
Muslims 17.5%
Christians 2.0%
Druze 1.6%
Not Classified 3.9%



Population Distribution

Urban 91.4%
Rural
   Moshavim
   Kibbutzim
8.6%
3.7%
1.9%

Largest Cities, by Population

Jerusalem 829,900
Tel Aviv-Yafo 418,600
Haifa 273,200
Rishon Lezion 237,600
Petah Tikva 219,300


Immigrants, by Decade

1948-1959

960,000

1960-1969

374,000

1970-1979

346,000

1980-1989

154,000

1990-1999

956,300

2000-2009

268,300

2010-2013

66,900

Today, 73.6 percent of Israel's Jewish population were born in Israel.

Economy

 

1980

1990

2011

2013

Gross Domestic Product (NIS mil.)

116

111,804

871,800

1,380,110

Net exports of goods (US$ bil.)

   Industrial products (excl. diamonds)
   Agricultural products

5,291.9

3,340.4
555.7

11,603.1

7,696.8
657.2

67,802.2

45,752.3
1,380.6

56,870.9

46,271.9
1,495.2

Net imports of goods (US$ bil.)

7,845.7

15,107.1

73,536.2

71,102.0

Tourists Arriving

1,065,800

1,131,700

2,820,200

3,539,700

Air Passengers

2,847,000

3,720,000

12,343,000

13,559,000

Air Freight Shipped (tons)

105,800

194,160

287,762

266,422

Electricity Production (mil of kw/hr)

12,400

20,900

57,145

60,469

Private cars

410,000

803,000

2,164,385

2,338,700


Education

Students in Universities & Colleges

1969/1970

35,374

1979/1980

53,355

1989/1990

75,487

1999/2000

170,953

2009/2010

243,858

2010/2011

251,000

2013/2014

264,844

University Students, by Field of Study
(Total 124,957 students in 9 universities) 

Social Sciences

22.5%

Humanities

22.0%

Science/Math

15.7%

Engineering/Architecture

15.0%

Medicine

11.5%

Business

7.6%

Law

4.2%

Agriculture

1.4%


Sources: “Israel at 67, a Statistical Glimpse,” Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, (March 24, 2015)