title: 36th parallel north
text: # 36th parallel north
  
  The 36th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 36 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Africa, the Mediterranean Sea, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America and the Atlantic Ocean. In the ancient Mediterranean world, its role for navigation and geography was similar to that played by the Equator today.
  
  From 7 April 1991 to 31 December 1996, the parallel defined the limit of the northern no-fly zone in Iraq.
  
  At this latitude the sun is visible for 14 hours, 36 minutes during the summer solstice and 9 hours, 43 minutes during the winter solstice.
  
  ## Around the world
  
  Starting at the Prime Meridian and heading eastwards, the parallel 36° north passes through:
  
      Co-ordinates Country, territory or sea Notes 36°0′N 0°0′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 0.000°E﻿ / 36.000; 0.000﻿ (Prime Meridian) Mediterranean Sea 36°0′N 0°7′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 0.117°E﻿ / 36.000; 0.117﻿ (Algeria)  Algeria Passing through Mostaganem 36°0′N 8°18′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 8.300°E﻿ / 36.000; 8.300﻿ (Tunisia)  Tunisia 36°0′N 10°31′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 10.517°E﻿ / 36.000; 10.517﻿ (Mediterranean Sea) Mediterranean Sea Passing just north of the island of Linosa, Italy Passing between the islands of Comino and Malta, Malta 36°0′N 23°10′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 23.167°E﻿ / 36.000; 23.167﻿ (Aegean Sea) Aegean Sea Passing between the islands of Kythira and Antikythera, Greece Passing just north of Saria Island, Greece 36°0′N 27°45′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 27.750°E﻿ / 36.000; 27.750﻿ (Greece)  Greece Island of Rhodes 36°0′N 27°55′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 27.917°E﻿ / 36.000; 27.917﻿ (Mediterranean Sea) Mediterranean Sea 36°0′N 35°59′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 35.983°E﻿ / 36.000; 35.983﻿ (Turkey)  Turkey Hatay Province 36°0′N 36°22′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 36.367°E﻿ / 36.000; 36.367﻿ (Syria)  Syria Passing just north of Raqqa 36°0′N 41°17′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 41.283°E﻿ / 36.000; 41.283﻿ (Iraq)  Iraq 36°0′N 45°21′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 45.350°E﻿ / 36.000; 45.350﻿ (Iran)  Iran 36°0′N 61°10′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 61.167°E﻿ / 36.000; 61.167﻿ (Turkmenistan)  Turkmenistan 36°0′N 63°49′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 63.817°E﻿ / 36.000; 63.817﻿ (Afghanistan)  Afghanistan 36°0′N 71°15′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 71.250°E﻿ / 36.000; 71.250﻿ (Pakistan)  Pakistan Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Gilgit-Baltistan - claimed by India 36°0′N 76°6′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 76.100°E﻿ / 36.000; 76.100﻿ (Shaksgam Valley) Shaksgam Valley Area administered by People's Republic of China, claimed by India 36°0′N 76°48′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 76.800°E﻿ / 36.000; 76.800﻿ (China)  People's Republic of China Xinjiang Tibet Qinghai Gansu — passing just south of Lanzhou Ningxia Gansu Shaanxi Shanxi Henan Shandong Henan (for about 15 km (9.3 mi)) Shandong — passing just south of Qingdao 36°0′N 120°18′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 120.300°E﻿ / 36.000; 120.300﻿ (Yellow Sea) Yellow Sea 36°0′N 126°42′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 126.700°E﻿ / 36.000; 126.700﻿ (South Korea)  South Korea South Chungcheong Province - North Jeolla Province Border, Passing just north of Gunsan, Iksan North Jeolla Province-North Chungcheong Province-North Gyeongsang Province Border North Gyeongsang Province - Passing just south of Gumi passing just north of Daegu-Palgong Mountain North Gyeongsang Province- Passing through Pohang 36°0′N 129°35′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 129.583°E﻿ / 36.000; 129.583﻿ (Sea of Japan) Sea of Japan 36°0′N 133°1′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 133.017°E﻿ / 36.000; 133.017﻿ (Japan)  Japan Island of Chiburi-shima: — Shimane Prefecture 36°0′N 133°4′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 133.067°E﻿ / 36.000; 133.067﻿ (Sea of Japan) Sea of Japan 36°0′N 135°58′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 135.967°E﻿ / 36.000; 135.967﻿ (Japan)  Japan Island of Honshū: — Fukui Prefecture — Gifu Prefecture — Nagano Prefecture — Gunma Prefecture − for about 4 km (2.5 mi) — Saitama Prefecture — Chiba Prefecture − for about 6 km (3.7 mi) — Ibaraki Prefecture 36°0′N 140°40′E﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 140.667°E﻿ / 36.000; 140.667﻿ (Pacific Ocean) Pacific Ocean 36°0′N 121°30′W﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 121.500°W﻿ / 36.000; -121.500﻿ (United States)  United States California Nevada Arizona New Mexico Texas Oklahoma Arkansas Missouri / Arkansas border (approximate) Tennessee North Carolina (Madison County, for about 14 km (8.7 mi)) Tennessee (Unicoi County, for about 12 km (7.5 mi)) North Carolina 36°0′N 75°39′W﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 75.650°W﻿ / 36.000; -75.650﻿ (Atlantic Ocean) Atlantic Ocean 36°0′N 5°36′W﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 5.600°W﻿ / 36.000; -5.600﻿ (Strait of Gibraltar) Strait of Gibraltar Passing 2 m (6.6 ft) south of Punta de Tarifa, Spain - the most southerly point of the European mainland 36°0′N 5°25′W﻿ / ﻿36.000°N 5.417°W﻿ / 36.000; -5.417﻿ (Mediterranean Sea) Mediterranean Sea
  
  ## United States
  
  In the United States, the 36th parallel north is occasionally used as a rough northern boundary for the Sun Belt, a region spanning most Southern and Southwestern states and comprising most of the nation's warmest climates.
  
  Cities and landmarks close to the parallel include the following: Kettleman City, California; Henderson, Nevada; Hoover Dam; South Rim of the Grand Canyon; Los Alamos National Laboratory; Tulsa, Oklahoma (passing through the southern portion of the city); Nashville, Tennessee (passing through the southern portion of the city); Knoxville, Tennessee; Winston-Salem, North Carolina; High Point, North Carolina; Greensboro, North Carolina; Durham, North Carolina; Chapel Hill, North Carolina; and others. The parallel helped define the North Carolina–Tennessee–Virginia Corners.
  
  The sixth standard parallel south of Mount Diablo Range at 35°48′ north, 13.8344 miles south of the 36th parallel, forms a continuous boundary between the California counties of Monterey, Kings, Tulare, and Inyo on the north and the counties of San Luis Obispo, Kern, and San Bernardino on the south. It is sometimes taken as the boundary between Central California and Southern California.
  
  The parallel 36° north approximately forms the southernmost boundary of the Missouri Bootheel with the State of Arkansas.
  
  The 36th parallel passes through Duke University in several places. Its Campus Drive that connects the campuses crosses the parallel several times. The Duke Gardens has a "36th Parallel Club" although the garden itself is just north of the parallel.
  
  