Geography |
The Republic of Hungary, located in eastern Central Europe, is bounded on the north by Slovakia; on the north-east by Ukraine; on the east by Romania; on the south by Serbia and Montenegro, Croatia, and Slovenia; and on the west by Austria. The country has a total land area of 93 030 km2, and is about 500 km from east to west and 315 km from north to south.
Most of Hungary is flat and less than 200 m above sea level. The Matra Mountains, part of the Carpathians, lie to the south of the border with Slovakia and have Hungary's highest point, Mount Kékes, at 1 014 m. Most of the rest of the country east of the Danube River is a flat plain. Western Hungary consists mainly of rolling hills and the Transdanubian Highlands, which include the Bakony Mountains in the north-west. In the far west are the foothills of the Austrian Alps and the "Little Plain" in the north-west.
The Danube River flows through the country from north to south. Tributaries of the Danube include the Tisza, Raab (Rába) and Drava (Drau) rivers. Lake Balaton (596 km2), at the foot of the Bakony Mountains, is the largest lake in central Europe.
Hungary has a relatively dry continental climate, with cold winters and warm summers. The average daily temperature range in Budapest is -4° to 1° C in January and 16° to 28° in July. Budapest receives an average of about 600 mm of precipitation a year. Temperature varies little throughout the country, but rainfall is higher in the west. May, June, and July are the wettest months.
The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.