Kyrgyzstan officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states (along with Turkey, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan). Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east. Its capital and largest city is Bishkek. Kyrgyzstan is officially a democratic parliamentary republic. The national language, Kyrgyz, is also closely related to the other Turkic languages, with which it shares strong cultural and historical ties. Additionally, Kyrgyzstan is a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Eurasian Economic Community, the Non-aligned movement and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Provinces and districts Kyrgyzstan is divided into seven provinces, administered by appointed governors. The capital, Bishkek, and the second largest city Osh are administratively independent cities with a status equal to a province.

Geography
Kyrgyzstan is a landlocked country in Central Asia, bordering Kazakhstan, China, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It lies between latitudes 39° and 44° N, and longitudes 69° and 81° E. It is farther from an ocean than any other country in the world although it does not contain the absolute farthest point from any ocean. That spot lies in the Xinjiang region of Northwestern China. The mountainous region of the Tian Shan covers over 80% of the country (Kyrgyzstan is occasionally referred to as "the Switzerland of Central Asia", as a result), with the remainder made up of

Climate
The climate varies regionally. The south-western Fergana Valley is subtropical and extremely hot in summer, with temperatures reaching 40 °C (104 °F) The northern foothills are temperate and the Tian Shan varies from dry continental to polar climate, depending on elevation. In the coldest areas temperatures are sub-zero for around 40 days in winter, and even some desert areas experience constant snowfall in this period.

Demographics
Kyrgyzstan's population is estimated at over 5.2 million. Of those, 34.4% are under the age of 15 and 6.2% are over 65. The country is rural: only about one-third of population lives in urban areas. The average population density is 25 people per km². The nation's largest ethnic groups are the Kyrgyz, a Turkic people, who comprise 69% of the population (2007 estimate). Other ethnic groups include Russians (9.0%) concentrated in the north and Uzbeks (14.5%) living in the south. Small but noticeable minorities include Tatars (1.9%), Uyghurs (1.1%), Tajiks (1.1%), Kazakhs (0.7%), and Ukrainians (0.5%) and other smaller ethnic minorities (1.7%). Kyrgyzstan has over 80 distinct ethnic groups in the country.

Religion
Islam is the dominant religion of Kyrgyzstan: 80% of the population is Muslim while 17% follow Russian Orthodoxy and 3% other religions.

Public holidays
January 1 - New Year's Day
January 7 - Russian Orthodox Christmas
February 23 - Fatherland Defender's Day
March 8 - Women's Day
March 21 - Nooruz, Muslim spring festival
March 24 - Day of National Revolution
May 1 - Labor Day
May 5 - Constitution Day
May 8 - Remembrance Day
May 9 - Victory Day (end of World War II)
August 31 - Independence Day
November 7 - Day of the Great October Socialist Revolution