The 2008 CIA World Factbook

Concise descriptions of the major religions mentioned in the Factbook have been added to the Notes and Definitions. France 's redesignation of some of its overseas possessions caused the five former Indian Ocean island possessions making up Iles Eparses to be incorporated into the French Southern and Antarctic Lands, while two new Caribbean entities, St. Barthelemy and St. Martin, were created.

Revision of some individual country maps, first introduced in the 2001 edition, is continued in this edition. The revised maps include elevation extremes and a partial geographic grid. Several regional maps have also been updated to reflect boundary changes and place name spelling changes.

Abbreviations: This information is included in Appendix A: Abbreviations, which includes all abbreviations and acronyms used in the Factbook, with their expansions.

Acronyms: An acronym is an abbreviation coined from the initial letter of each