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Timor-Leste Geography Profile

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Location
Southeastern Asia, northwest of Australia in the Lesser Sunda Islands at the eastern end of the Indonesian archipelago; note - Timor-Leste includes the eastern half of the island of Timor, the Oecussi (Ambeno) region on the northwest portion of the island of Timor, and the islands of Pulau Atauro and Pulau Jaco
Geographic coordinates
8 50 S, 125 55 E
Map references
Southeast Asia
Area
total: 14,874 sq km
land: 14,874 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative
slightly larger than Connecticut; almost half the size of Maryland
Land boundaries
total: 253 km
border countries (1): Indonesia 253 km
Coastline
706 km
Maritime claims
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Climate
tropical; hot, humid; distinct rainy and dry seasons
Terrain
mountainous
Elevation extremes
lowest point: Timor Sea, Savu Sea, and Banda Sea 0 m
highest point: Foho Tatamailau 2,963 m
Natural resources
gold, petroleum, natural gas, manganese, marble
Land use
agricultural land: 25.1% (2011 est.)
arable land: 10.1% (2011 est.) / permanent crops: 4.9% (2011 est.) / permanent pasture: 10.1% (2011 est.)
forest: 49.1% (2011 est.)
other: 25.8% (2011 est.)
Irrigated land
350 sq km (2012)
Population distribution
most of the population concentrated in the western third of the country, particularly around Dili
Natural hazards
floods and landslides are common; earthquakes; tsunamis; tropical cyclones
Environment - current issues
air pollution and deterioration of air quality; greenhouse gas emissions; water quality, scarcity, and access; land and soil degradation; forest depletion; widespread use of slash and burn agriculture has led to deforestation and soil erosion; loss of biodiversity
Environment - international agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note
Timor comes from the Malay word for "east"; the island of Timor is part of the Malay Archipelago and is the largest and easternmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands; the district of Oecussi is an exclave separated from Timor-Leste proper by Indonesia; Timor-Leste has the unique distinction of being the only Asian country located completely in the Southern Hemisphere

Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on Friday, November 27, 2020

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