The Central African Republic, formerly known as Ubangi-Shari, or Central African Empire, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It borders Chad in the north, Sudan in the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo in the south, and Cameroon in the west. The CAR covers a land area of about 240,000 square miles (623,000 km²), and has an estimated population of about 4.4 million as of 2008. Bangui is the capital city.