Administrative divisions of Libya
Libya is divided into 22 first-level administrative divisions:
Largest cities in Libya
| # | City | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | TripoliCapital | 2,189,000 |
| 2 | Banghazi | 1,180,000 |
| 3 | Misrata | 386,120 |
| 4 | Tubruq | 263,527 |
| 5 | Al Khums | 201,943 |
| 6 | Az Zawiyah | 200,000 |
| 7 | Zuwara | 180,310 |
| 8 | Al Marj | 169,540 |
| 9 | Gharyan | 146,810 |
| 10 | Ajdabiya | 143,833 |
Tripoli is the largest urban area in Libya with about 2,189,000 people.
Terrain, rivers & lakes
Highest terrain in Libya: ≈ 2,255 m — read from the global elevation model, so summit heights are approximate. The physical map paints elevation bands from green lowlands to brown highlands.
No major named rivers or lakes are mapped for Libya at this map scale.
Ethnic groups in Libya
Amazigh and Arab 97%, other 3% (includes Egyptian, Greek, Indian, Italian, Maltese, Pakistani, Tunisian, and Turkish)
Regionally, Amazigh and Arab is the most common ethnic group across most of the 22 divisions.
Source: CIA World Factbook · regional dominance compiled by Glostats from censuses and surveys
Religions in Libya
Muslim (official; virtually all Sunni) 96.6%, Christian 2.7%, Buddhist <1%, Hindu <1%, Jewish <1%, folk religion <1%, other <1%, unaffiliated <1% (2020 est.)
Regionally, Muslim is the most common religious group across most of the 22 divisions.
Source: CIA World Factbook (2020 est.) · regional dominance compiled by Glostats from censuses and surveys
Languages in Libya
Arabic (official), Italian, English (all widely understood in the major cities); Tamazight (Nafusi, Ghadamis, Suknah, Awjilah, Tamasheq)
Regionally, Arabic is the most common language group across most of the 22 divisions, while Tamazight predominates in 2 divisions (Ghat, Ghadamis).
Source: CIA World Factbook · regional dominance compiled by Glostats from censuses and surveys
Explore more
Nigeria
Ethiopia
Egypt
DR Congo
Tanzania
South Africa
Kenya
SudanSources: boundaries, cities, rivers and lakes from Natural Earth (public domain, 1:10m); elevation from the AWS Open Data terrain tiles (SRTM/GMTED); ethnic, religious and language shares from the CIA World Factbook; regional dominance compiled by Glostats from national censuses and surveys. Page generated 2026-10-19. More about our data.