Israel - Geography
Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Israel. note 1: Lake Tiberias (Sea of Galilee) is an important freshwater source; the Dead Sea is the second saltiest body of water in the world (after Lake Assal in Djibouti)
note 2: the Malham Cave in Mount Sodom is the world's longest salt cave at 10 km (6 mi); its survey is not complete and its length will undoubtedly increase; Mount Sodom is actually a hill some 220 m (722 ft) high that is 80% salt (multiple salt layers covered by a veneer of rock)
note 3: in March 2019, there were 380 Israeli settlements,to include 213 settlements and 132 outposts in the West Bank, and 35 settlements in East Jerusalem; there are no Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip, as all were evacuated in 2005 (2019). Mother's mean age at first birth is 27.7 years (2019 est.) (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 3 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
Geographical data of Israel
| Location | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon |
|---|---|
| Geographic coordinates | 31 30 N, 34 45 E |
| Map references | Middle East |
| Tarrain | Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central mountains; Jordan Rift Valley |
| Natural Resources | timber, potash, copper ore, natural gas, phosphate rock, magnesium bromide, clays, sand |
| Natural Hazards | sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; droughts; periodic earthquakes |
| Irrigated Land | 2,159 sq km (2020) |
| Major rivers (by length in km) | |
| Major aquifers | |
| Land Boundaries | 1,068 km |
| Border Countries | Egypt 208 km; Gaza Strip 59 km; Jordan 327 km (20 km are within the Dead Sea); Lebanon 81 km; Syria 83 km; West Bank 330 km |
| Coastline | 273 km |
| Climate | temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas |
| Area | |
| Total Area | 21,937 sq km |
| Land Area | 21,497 sq km |
| Water Area | 440 sq km |
| comparative Area | slightly larger than New Jersey |
| Maritime Claims | |
| Territorial sea | 12 nm |
| Continental shelf | to depth of exploitation |
| Elevations | |
| Highest point | Mitspe Shlagim 2,224 m; note - this is the highest named point, the actual highest point is an unnamed dome slightly to the west of Mitspe Shlagim at 2,236 m; both points are on the northeastern border of Israel, along the southern end of the Anti-Lebanon mountain range |
| Lowest point | Dead Sea -431 m |
| Mean elevation | 508 m |
| Land Use | |
| Agricultural land | 23.8% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: arable land | arable land: 13.7% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent crops | permanent crops: 3.8% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent pasture | permanent pasture: 6.3% (2018 est.) |
| Forest | 7.1% (2018 est.) |
| Other | 69.1% (2018 est.) |
Population Distribution
Population concentrated in and around Tel-Aviv, as well as around the Sea of Galilee; the south remains sparsely populated with the exception of the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba
People and Society
In Israel, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Jewish 73.5% (of which Israel-born 79.7%, Europe/America/Oceania-born 14.3%, Africa-born 3.9%, Asia-born 2.1%), Arab 21.1%, other 5.4% (2022 est.)
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Pop growth rate | 1.58% (2024 est.) |
| Birth rate | 19.1 births/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Death rate | 5.2 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Health expenditure | 8.3% of GDP (2020) |
| Physicians Density | 3.63 physicians/1,000 population (2020) |
| Hospital bed Density | 3 beds/1,000 population (2018) |
| Total fertility rate | 2.92 children born/woman (2024 est.) |
| Gross reproduction rate | 1.42 (2024 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | NA |
| Est married women (ages 15-49) | 51.7% (2023 est.) |
| Literacy | age 15 and over can read and write |
| Education expenditures | 7.1% of GDP (2020 est.) |
| Net Migration rate | 1.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Nationality | Israeli | Israeli(s) |
| Languages | |
| Religions | Jewish 73.5%, Muslim 18.1%, Christian 1.9%, Druze 1.6%, other 4.9% (2022 est.) |
| Age Structure | |
| 0-14 years | 27.5% (male 1,320,629/female 1,260,977) |
| 15-64 years | 60.3% (male 2,885,485/female 2,781,777) |
| 65 years and over | 12.3% (2024 est.) (male 525,161/female 628,588) |
| Dependency Ratios | |
| Total dependency ratio | 66.9 |
| Youth dependency ratio | 47 |
| Elderly dependency ratio | 19.9 |
| Potential support ratio | 5 (2021 est.) |
| Median Age | |
| Total | 30.1 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 29.6 years |
| Female | 30.7 years |
| Urbanization | |
| Urban population | 92.9% of total population (2023) |
| Rate of urbanization | 1.51% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) |
| Major urban areas (Pop) | 4.421 million Tel Aviv-Yafo, 1.174 million Haifa, 970,000 JERUSALEM (capital) (2023). |
| Sex Ratio | |
| At birth | 1.05 male(s)/female |
| 0-14 years | 1.05 male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 1.04 male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.84 male(s)/female |
| Total population | 1.01 male(s)/female (2024 est.) |
| Infant Motality | |
| Total | 2.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.) |
| Male | 3.3 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Female | 2.3 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life Expectancy at birth | |
| Total population | 83.1 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 81.1 years |
| Female | 85.1 years |
| Drinking Water Sources | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 100% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 100% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 100% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 0% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 0% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 0% of population (2020 est.) |
| Sanitation facility acess | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 100% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 99.3% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 99.9% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 0% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 0.7% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 0.1% of population (2020 est.) |
| Major Infectious diseases | |
| Alcohol consumption per capita | |
| Total | 3.07 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Beer | 1.78 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Wine | 0.08 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Spirits | 1.16 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Other alcohols | 0.04 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Tobacco use | |
| Total | 21.2% (2020 est.) |
| Male | 28.9% (2020 est.) |
| Female | 13.5% (2020 est.) |
Demographic profile
All Important Facts about Israel
Want to know more about Israel? Check all different factbooks for Israel below.
