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RRG GIS Database


Region boundaries, admninistrative boundaries - Country boundaries (NUTS-0 level)





General information

This layer represents the country boundaries of all European countries. The coverage covers arc and polygon feature classed. Information associated with the polygons include country names, ISO country codes and country area. The country codes can be used to link additional (statistical) information to the layer, if required. The main features of the NUTS1 coverage are:

Layer name: NUTS0
Feature classes: Arcs, polygons (*.AAT, *.PAT)
No of arc features:
No of polygon features:
User attributes associated with AAT: 1
User attributes associated with PAT: 11



Detailed description of the arc attribute table

The AAT of the NUTS0 coverage contains only one user-defined attribute. The classification of the BOUNDARY attribute can be used to select and draw different types of boundaries, if required. The attribute differentiates between shorelines and country boundaries.

Attribute Width Output Type Dec. Contents
BOUNDARY 4 4 I --- Boundary classification
1 = Shores
2 = Country boundary





Detailed description of the polygon attribute table

The PAT of the NUTS0 coverage contains the following user-defined attributes:

Attribute Width Output Type Dec. Contents
COUNTRY 4 6 C --- ISO country code
COUNTRY_NAME 25 25 C --- Name of the country
EUACCESSION 5 5 I --- Year of EU accession
0 = Country is not a EU Member State
EU_EXIT 5 5 I --- Year of Brexit
EU_MEMBER 5 5 C --- EU membership flag
NO = Country is not a EU Member State
YES = Country is EU Member State
EURO 5 5 I --- Year when country joined the Euro area
0 = Country does not use Euro as currency
SCHENGEN 5 5 C --- Schengen area membership flag
NO = Country is not part of Schengen area
YES = Schengen country
COOP = No Schengen country but cooperation agreement
SCHENGEN_Y 5 5 I --- Year when country joined the Schengen area
0 = Country is not part of Schengen area
NATO 5 5 I --- Year when country joined the NATO/OTAN
0 = Country is not a NATO member
POLY_FLAG 2 2 I --- Polygon flag
1 = Mainland / main country polygon
2 = Island
3 = Main island polygon
4 = Enclave
5 = Inland waters, sea, big lake
COUNTRYTOTAREA 8 18 F 6 Total country area (in sqkm)


The attribute COUNTRY represents the official ISO codes as defined and used by Eurostat. These codes can be used both to join statistical data to the layer.

COUNTRY_NAME gives the official country name, whereas COUNTRYTOTAREA represents the total country area. This attribute should not be confused with the internal area attribute, which represents the area of the individual polygon in question. In contrast, COUNTRYTOTAREA represents the total country area, i.e. if the country consists of several polygons, the areas of all polygons are summed up in this attribute.

The field EUACCESSION indicates the year when the country accessed the European Union – if it is a EU Member States or an candidate country. In case of candidate countries the prospective accession years are indicated. EU_EXIT indicates the year of the Brexit. EU_MEMBER then indicates whether today the country is an EU Member State.

EURO, SCHENGEN, SCHENGEN_Y and NATO provide further information as to specific country memberships, i.e. whether the country uses the Euro as currency (EURO), is part of the Schengen area (SCHENGEN, SCHENGEN_Y) or when it joined the NATO organisation (NATO).

The country polygon feature class furthermore contains a POLY_FLAG field which characterises each polygon according to its type, i.e. whether it is the main country polygon, an island or an enclave. If a country is only represented by one polygon (like Hungary, Czech Republic, etc.), this polygon represents the main country polygon, thus has a POLY_FLAG=1. If a country consists of several polygons (like Germany, Italy, Greece etc.), there is one polygon tagged as the main country polygon, whereas the other polygons represent islands (POLY_FLAG=2; if they are surrounded by the sea), or enclaves (POLY_FLAG=4; if the polygon is fully surrounded by another polygon of the neighbouring country). If a country is fully constituted by islands (like Ireland, the UK, Cyprus, Malta), all polygons are tagged with POLY_FLAG=2 except for the main polygon (main island of the country), which is tagged with POLY_FLAG=3. Big inland lakes, which are integral part of a country, are tagged with POLY_FLAG=5.



 More on this topic
Related documents:ISO Country Codes



RRG GIS Database contents:

General information
Transport networks
Region boundaries, admninistrative boundaries

Introduction to boundary layers
Country boundaries (NUTS-0 level)
NUTS-1 level
NUTS-2 level
NUTS-3 level
INTERREG IIIB (2000-2006) Cooperation Areas
National capital cities
NUTS-1 centroids
NUTS-2 centroids
Regional cities (NUTS-3 centroids)

Geography
Interaction data and regional data
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