Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between French Guiana and Guyana

tropical; moderated by trade winds

mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps

Surinamese dollars per US dollar - 2.7317 (2005), Surinamese guilders per US dollar - 2.7336 (2004), 2.6013 (2003), 2.3468 (2002), note, during 1998, the exchange rate splintered into four distinct rates; in January 1999 the government floated the guilder, but subsequently fixed it when the black-market rate plunged; in January 2004, the government introduced the Surinamese dollar as replacement for the guilder, tied to a US dollar-dominated currency basket

Hindu 27.4%, Protestant 25.2% (predominantly Moravian), Roman Catholic 22.8%, Muslim 19.6%, indigenous beliefs 5%

Dutch (official), English (widely spoken), Sranang Tongo (Surinamese, sometimes called Taki-Taki, is native language of Creoles and much of the younger population and is lingua franca among others), Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), Javanese

25 November 1975 (from Netherlands)