Country · Africa
South Sudan
Republic of South Sudan
South Sudan is a country in Middle Africa. Its capital city is Juba. About 11 million people live there, in an area of 619 745 square kilometres.
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Where is South Sudan?
South Sudan lies in Middle Africa, on the continent of Africa.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 779 km from the equator.
South Sudan is landlocked: it has no coast at all, so you cannot reach the sea without crossing another country.
It shares a border with 6 countries: Central African Republic, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda.
How big is South Sudan?
South Sudan covers 619 745 square kilometres.
That is about 6 times the size of Iceland.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 43rd largest.
If everybody spread out evenly, there would be about 17.7 people on every square kilometre.
Who lives in South Sudan?
About 11 million people live in South Sudan.
That is the 83rd biggest population in the world.
People here speak English.
They pay with the South Sudanese pound (£).
The land of South Sudan
Because it is landlocked, everything that arrives by ship has to cross one of its 6 neighbours first.
It lies inside the tropics, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes South Sudan different?
Websites from here often end in .ss.
South Sudan and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about 1 live in South Sudan.
It takes up about 0.46 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Africa it is the 20th largest of 54 countries, and the 32nd most populated.
That is emptier than the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
South Sudan and its neighbours
DR Congo, its largest neighbour, is about 3.8 times bigger.
DR Congo has more people: 84.1 million against 11 million.
Nature and animals
The longest river is the Nile, running 6 650 km from source to mouth.
Where this country lands in the record lists
Questions children ask
What is the capital of South Sudan?
The capital of South Sudan is Juba. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in South Sudan?
About 11 million people live in South Sudan, which makes it the 83rd most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border South Sudan?
South Sudan borders Central African Republic, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda — 6 neighbours in total.
How big is South Sudan?
South Sudan covers 619 745 square kilometres, making it the 43rd largest country in the world. That is about 6 times the size of Iceland.
Which continent is South Sudan in?
South Sudan is in Africa, in the part called Middle Africa.
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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