The World Factbook is prepared by the CIA for the use of U.S. government officials, and its style, format, coverage and content are primarily designed to meet their requirements.[4] However, it is frequently used as a resource for student papers, web sites and non-governmental publications.[5] As a work of the U.S. government, it is in the public domain.[6]
The World Factbook website as it appeared in January 2008.
Because the Factbook is in the public domain, people are free to redistribute and modify it in any way that they like, without permission of the CIA.[4] However, the CIA requests that it be cited when the Factbook is used.[6] The official seal of the CIA, however, may not be copied without permission as required by the CIA Act of 1949 (50 U.S.C. section 403m). Misuse of the official seal of the CIA could result in civil and criminal penalties.[7]
Frequency of updates and availability
Before November 2001, The World Factbook website was updated yearly.[8] Since then, the Factbook website is updated every two weeks; the print edition is still updated annually.[8] Generally, information currently available as of January 1 of the current year[9] is used in preparing the printed Factbook, which is released around the middle of each year.[8]
The World Factbook 2008 (Skyhorse Publishing reprint edition) cover.
The World Factbook 2008 (Potomac Books reprint edition) cover.
Many Internet sites use information and images from the CIA World Factbook.[16] Several publishers, including Grand River Books,[17] Potomac Books (formerly known as Brassy's Inc.),[18] and Skyhorse Publishing[19] have re-published the factbook in recent years.
As of February 2008, The World Factbook consists of 266 entities.[3] These entities can be divided into categories.[3] They are:
Independent countries
This category has independent countries, which the CIA defines as people "politically organized into a sovereign state with a definite territory".[3] In this category, there are 194 entities.
Others
The Other category is a list of other places set apart from the list of independent countries. Currently there are two: Taiwan and the European Union.
Dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty
This category is a list of places affiliated with another country. They may be subdivided into categories using the country they are affiliated with:
This category is for Antarctica and places in dispute. There are six entities.
Other entities
This category is for the World and the oceans. There are five oceans and the World (the World entry is intended as a summary of the other 265 entries).[5]
Oddities and controversies
Political
Areas not covered
Specific regions within a country or areas in dispute among countries, such as Kashmir, are not covered,[20] but other areas of the world whose status is disputed, such as the Spratly Islands, have entries.[21] Subnational areas of countries (such as US States or the Canadian provinces and territories) are not included in the Factbook. Instead, users looking for information about subnational areas are referred to "a good encyclopedia" for their reference needs.[22] This criterion was invoked in the 2007 edition with the decision to drop the entries for French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Reunion. They were dropped because besides being overseas departments, they were now overseas regions, and an integral part of France.[23]
Northern Cyprus is not given a separate entry or listed as part of Turkey because "territorial occupations/annexations not recognized by the United States Government are not shown on U.S. Government maps."[25]
The U.S. does not recognize the renaming of Burma by its ruling military junta to Myanmar and thus keeps its entry for the country under "Burma". This is done because the name change "was not approved by any sitting legislature in Burma". As a result, the US government has never adopted the name Myanmar.[30]
Macedonia
The Republic of Macedonia is entered under Macedonia.[31] This is despite the fact that no international organizations such as the United Nations,[32] the European Union,[33]NATO,[34] the European Broadcasting Union,[35] and the International Olympic Committee[36] use this short form (they all use the phrase The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia). The history of the name used for the entry is a bit complex. In the 1992 edition of The World Factbook, the entry for the nation was listed under the former[37] (at the same time, new entries were added for the then 20 nations that were formed out of the former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia; the latter two being dropped.) In the 1994 edition, the name of the entry was changed to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.[38] For the next decade, this was the name the nation was listed under. Finally, in the 2004 edition of the Factbook, the name of the entry was changed back to Macedonia.[39] This came after a November 2004 US decision to refer to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia as the Republic of Macedonia.[40] (See alsoMacedonia naming dispute.)
A map of Yugoslavia from the 2000 edition of The World Factbook.[41] Notice how the disclaimer is printed in the upper right hand corner. One can see how the capital cities of both republics are individually labeled on the map.
European Union
On December 16, 2004, the CIA added an entry for the European Union (EU).[42] (Before this date, the EU was excluded from the Factbook.[43]) According to the CIA, the European Union was added because the EU "continues to accrue more nation-like characteristics for itself".[28]
United States Pacific Island Wildlife Refuges and Iles Eparses
Yugoslavia has had a confusing history in the Factbook. Before 1992, the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY) was included in the Factbook.[49] In 1992, the entry was dropped[37] and entries were added for all of the former republics.[37] In doing this, the CIA listed the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) as Serbia and Montenegro.[50] This was done in accordance with a May 21, 1992 decision[51] by the US Government not to recognize the FRY (or any of the other republics)[52] as successor states to the recently dissolved SFRY. The US Government also decided not recognize the FRY itself as a state.[53]
These views were made clear in a disclaimer printed in the Factbook:[54]
Besides the disclaimer, the republics of Serbia and Montenegro were treated separately in the data, as can be seen in the map to the right.[55] In October 2000, Slobodan Milošević resigned after a disputed election held the previous month.[56] This event caused a change in the 2001 edition of the Factbook, with the Serbia and Montenegro entity being renamed Yugoslavia.[57] On March 14, 2002, an agreement was signed to transform the FRY into a loose state union called Serbia and Montenegro;[58] it took effect on February 4, 2003.[59] The name of the Yugoslavia entity was changed in the Factbook the month after the change.[60]
East Timor/Timor-Leste
On July 19, 2007 the entry for East Timor was renamed Timor-Leste following a decision of the US Board on Geographic Names (BGN).[61]
Before 1998, the United Kingdom profile contained a sentence that asserted the UK had gained independence on 1 January 1801.[65] This terse, confusing description in reference to the Act of Union 1801 has since been greatly expanded.[66]
ISBN numbers
This is a list of International Standard Book Numbers (ISBNs) for the Government edition[67] of The World Factbook. ISBNs for the Potomac Books and Skyhorse Publishing reprints of the Factbook are noted as well. For the reprint editions, the year of the data is in parentheses.
This article contains material from the CIA World Factbook which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain.
^ Central Intelligence Agency. "Central Intelligence Agency Publications". Retrieved on 2008-01-02. “The World Factbook is produced by CIA's Directorate of Intelligence. The Factbook is a comprehensive resource of facts and statistics on more than 250 countries and other entities.”
^ abcd Directorate of Intelligence. "The World Factbook - Notes and Definitions: Entities". Retrieved on 2008-02-29. “"Independent state" refers to a people politically organized into a sovereign state with a definite territory. * * * There are a total of 266 separate geographic entities in The World Factbook that may be categorized as follows...”
^ abc Directorate of Intelligence. "The World Factbook - Contributors and Copyright Information". Retrieved on 2006-09-23. “The World Factbook is prepared by the Central Intelligence Agency for the use of US Government officials, and the style, format, coverage, and content are designed to meet their specific requirements. Information is provided by ... other public and private sources. The Factbook is in the public domain. Accordingly, it may be copied freely without permission of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).”
^ abc Central Intelligence Agency (2006-04-05). "CIA World Factbook 2006 Now Available". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-01-11. “The World Factbook remains the CIA's most widely disseminated and most popular product, now averaging almost 6 million visits each month. In addition, tens of thousands of government, commercial, academic, and other Web sites link to or replicate the online version of the Factbook. * * * Included among the 271 geographic entries is one for the "World," which incorporates data and other information summarized where possible from the other 270 country listings.”
^ Central Intelligence Agency. "Use of the Central Intelligence Agency Seal". Retrieved on 2006-09-23. “Federal law prohibits use of the words "Central Intelligence Agency," the initials "CIA," the seal of the Central Intelligence Agency, or any colorable imitation of such words, initials, or seal in connection with any merchandise, impersonation, solicitation, or commercial activity in a manner reasonably calculated to convey the impression that such use is approved, endorsed, or authorized by the Central Intelligence Agency.”
^ abc Directorate of Intelligence. "The World Factbook - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): How often is The World Factbook updated?". Retrieved on 2008-01-02. “Formerly our Web site (and the published Factbook) were only updated annually. Beginning in November 2001 we instituted a new system of more frequent online updates. The World Factbook is currently updated every two weeks. The annual printed version of the Factbook is usually released about midyear.”
^ ab Directorate of Intelligence. "The World Factbook -- History". Retrieved on 2007-03-03. “The first classified Factbook was published in August 1962, and the first unclassified version was published in June 1971.”
^ Miller, Jill Young. "CIA puts data on the internet." Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel 12 December 1994.
^ Directorate of Intelligence. "The World Factbook - Purchasing Information". Retrieved on 2006-09-23. “Other users may obtain sales information about printed copies from the following: Superintendent of Documents...National Technical Information Service”
^ Directorate of Intelligence (2006-09-19). "The World Factbook - Burma". Retrieved on 2006-09-23. “since 1989 the military authorities in Burma have promoted the name Myanmar as a conventional name for their state; this decision was not approved by any sitting legislature in Burma, and the US Government did not adopt the name, which is a derivative of the Burmese short-form name Myanma Naingngandaw”
^ United Nations General Assembly. "Admission of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to membership in the United Nations". Retrieved on 2008-02-08. “Decides to admit the State whose application is contained in document A/47/876-S/25147 to membership in the United Nations, this State being provisionally referred to for all purposes within the United Nations as "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" pending settlement of the difference that has arisen over the name of the State.”
^ Staff reporter (2004-11-04). "US snubs Greece over Macedonia", BBC News. Retrieved on 2006-09-23. "Greece has protested strongly at a decision by the US to refer to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) simply as "Macedonia"."
^ For an example of a redirect, see what happens with the profile for Juan de Nova Island (mirror).
^ Directorate of Intelligence (2007-07-19). "CIA - The World Factbook 2007: What's New". Retrieved on 2007-07-20. “The five former entities of Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, and Tromelin Island, previously grouped as Iles Eparses (Scattered Islands), now constitute a district of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.”
^ Department of State. "Chiefs of Mission by Country, 1778-2005: Serbia and Montenegro". Retrieved on 2006-10-30. “On May 21, 1992, the United States announced that it did not recognize the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which was composed of the Republics of Serbia and Montenegro, as a successor state of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.”
^ Department of State (August 1999). "Serbia and Montenegro (08/99) (See Yugoslavia)". Retrieved on 2007-02-03. “(Serbia and Montenegro have asserted the formation of a joint independent state, but this entity has not been recognized as a state by the United States.)”
^ Directorate of Intelligence (1999). "CIA -- The World Factbook 1999 -- Serbia and Montenegro (mirror)". Retrieved on 2006-10-30. “Serbia and Montenegro have asserted the formation of a joint independent state, but this entity has not been formally recognized as a state by the US. The US view is that the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY) has dissolved and that none of the successor republics represents its continuation.”
^ Staff reporter (2002-03-14). "Yugoslav partners sign historic deal", BBC News. Retrieved on 2006-10-30. "Serbia and Montenegro have signed an accord which will consign the name Yugoslavia to history and shelve any immediate plans for Montenegrin independence."
^ Staff reporter (2003-02-04). "Yugoslavia consigned to history", BBC News. Retrieved on 2006-11-17. "From now on it will be called just Serbia and Montenegro - the two remaining republics joined in a loose union."
On stephansmap.org: The CIA World Factbook accessible by location and date range; covers the years 2001 -- 2007. All Factbook entries are tagged with "cia". Requires graphical browser with javascript.