Countries

Countries of the World

A complete table of the 249 countries and territories of the world by continent.


Europe and the Mediterranean

59 countries and territories

Name Date Previous Names Capital Government Languages
Aland Islands 1921   Mariehamn Dependency (Finland) Swedish
Albania 1912   Tirane Republic Albanian
Andorra 1278   Andorra La Vella Republic Catalan
Armenia 190BC
1991
  Yerevan Republic Armenian
Azeri
Austria 1919 Austria-Hungary Vienna Federal Republic German
Azerbaijan 1991   Baku Republic Azeri
Belarus 1991 Byelorussia Minsk One Party State Belarussian
Belgium 1830 Spanish Netherlands Brussels Constitutional Monarchy French
Flemish
Bosnia-Hercegovina 1994 Yugoslavia
Austria-Hungary
Ottoman Empire
Sarajevo Republic Croatian
Serbian
Bulgaria 681   Sofia Republic Bulgarian
Turkish
Croatia   Yugoslavia
Austria-Hungary
Zagreb Republic Croatian
Cyprus 1960   Nicosia Republic Greek
Turkish
Czech Republic 1993 Czechoslovakia
Austia-Hungary
Prague Republic Czech
Denmark c950   Copenhagan Constitutional Monarchy Danish
Estonia 1918   Tallinn Republic Estonian
Russian
Faeroe Islands     Torshavn Dependency (Denmark) Faeroes
Finland 1917   Helsinki Republic Finnish
Swedish
France 486 Frankish Kingdom
West Frankish Kingdom
Paris Republic French
Provencial
Breton
Basque
German
Georgia c500BC   Tbilisi Republic Georgian
Germany 1871 Frankish Kingdom
East Frankish Kingdom
Holy Roman Empire
Berlin Federal Republic German
Sorbian
Danish
Gibraltar 1713   Gibraltar Colony (UK) English
Spanish
Greece c1000BC
1830
  Athens Republic Greek
Turkish
Greenland     Nuuk Dependency (Denmark)  
Guernsey     St Peter Port Dependency (UK)  
Hungary c1000 Austria-Hungary Budapest Republic Hungarian
Iceland 930   Reykjavik Republic Icelandic
Ireland 1921   Dublin Republic English
Gaelic
Isle of Man     Douglas Dependency (UK)  
Italy 1861   Rome Republic Italian
Sardinian
Jan Mayen       Colony (Norway)  
Jersey     St Helier Dependency (UK)  
Kosova 2008 Serbia and Montenegro
Yugoslavia
Pristina Republic Albanian
Serbian
Latvia 1920   Riga Republic Latvian
Lichtenstein     Vaduz Principality German
Lithuania 1009
1918
Prussia Vilnius Republic Lithuanian
Luxembourg 1815   Luxembourg City Dutchy German
Macedonia   Yugoslavia
Ottoman Empire
Skopje Republic Macedonian
Malta 1964   Valletta Republic Maltese
English
Moldova 1991 Moldavia
Bessarabia
Chisinau Republic Moldavian
Monaco 1215   Monaco Principality French
Montenegro 2006 Serbia and Montenegro
Yugoslavia
Ottoman Empire
Podgorica Republic Serbian
Netherlands 1579   Amsterdam Constitutional Monarchy Dutch
Frisian
Norway c800
1905
  Oslo Constitutional Monarchy Norwegian
Poland 966   Warsaw Republic Polish
Kashubian
Portugal 1143   Lisbon Republic Portuguese
Romania 1878 Wallachia
Moldavia
Bucharest Republic Romanian
Hungarian
Russia 862 Soviet Union Moscow Federal Republic Russian
many others
San Marino 301   San Marino Republic Italian
Serbia 2006 Serbia and Montenegro
Yugoslavia
Ottoman Empire
Belgrade Republic Serbian
Slovakia 1993 Czechoslovakia
Austia-Hungary
Bratislava Republic Slovak
Hungarian
Slovenia 1990 Yugoslavia
Austria-Hungary
Ljubljana Republic Slovene
Spain 1492 Castille
Aragon
Navarre
Madrid Constitutional Monarchy Spanish
Catalan
Basque
Galician
Svalbard     Longyearbyen Dependency (Norway)  
Sweden c1050   Stockholm Constitutional Monarchy Swedish
Switzerland 1291   Bern Federal Republic German
French
Italian
Romansh
Turkey 1923 Ottoman Empire
Byzantine Empire
Ankara Republic Turkish
Kurdish
Arabic
Ukraine 1991 Soviet Union Kiev Republic Ukrainian
Russian
United Kingdom 1801 England
Scotland
Wales
London Constitutional Monarchy English
Welsh
Gaelic
Vatican City c330
1927
Papal States Vatican City Theocracy Italian


Asia and the Indian Ocean

45 countries and territories

Name Date Previous Names Capital Government Languages
Afghanistan 1747   Kabul No effective government Farsi
Pashto
Uzbek
Bahrain 1971   Manama Absolute Monarchy Arabic
Bangladesh 1971 East Pakistan Dhaka Republic Bengali
Urdu
Bhutan     Thimphu Theocratic Monarchy Jonkha
British Indian Ocean Territory     Diego Garcia Colony (UK)  
Brunei c650   Bandar Seri Begawan Absolute Monarchy Malay
Burma (Myanmar) 1948   Rangoon Military Dictatorship Burmese
Karen
Shan
Cambodia c800 Kampuchea Phnom Penh Republic Khmer
French
Vietnamese
China c1500BC Carthay Beijing One Party State Mandarin
Cantonese
Fukien
Wu
Tibetan
Uigur
East Timor 2002   Dili Republic Portuguese
India c2500BC
1948
Moghul Empire New Delhi Federal Republic Hindi
Urdu
Punjabi
Kashmiri
Gujarati
Bengali
Assamese
Oriya
Marathi
Kannada
Telugu
Tamil
Malayalam
English
many others
Indonesia c400 East Indes Jakarta Republic Indonesian
Javanese
Sundanese
Madurese
Minagkabau
Achinese
Batak
Buginese
many others
Iran c6000BC Persia Tehran Theocratic Republic Farsi
Baluchi
Kurdish
Azeri
Armenian
Iraq 1922 Mesopotamia
Babylonia
Assyria
Baghdad No effective government Arabic
Kurdish
Israel c800BC
1948
Palestine
Ottoman Empire
Judea
Tel Aviv Republic Hebrew
Arabic
English
Russian
Japan c600BC   Tokyo Constitutional Monarchy Japanese
Ainu
Jordan 1922 Transjordan
Ottoman Empire
Moab
Amman Monarchy Arabic
Kazakhstan 1991   Astana One Party State Kazakh
Kuwait 1922 Ottoman Empire
Arabia
Kuwait City Absolute Monarchy Arabic
Kyrgyzstan 1991   Bishtek One Party State Kirgiz
Uzbek
Laos 1353   Vientiane One Party State Lao
Lebanon 1920 Ottoman Empire
Phoenicia
Beirut One Party State Arabic
French
Armenian
Malaysia 1957 Malaya Kuala Lumpur Federal Monarchy Malay
Maldives 1965   Male   Maldivian
Mongolia 1203   Ulaan Baatar Republic Mongolian
Kazakh
Nepal c1770 Gorkha Kingdom Kathmandu Monarchy Nepalese
Bihari
Newari
Tibetan
Murmi
North Korea c2330BC
1945
Korea Pyongyang One Party State Korean
Oman 1970 Muscat and Oman
Arabia
Muscat Absolute Monarchy Arabic
Pakistan 1948 West Pakistan Islamabad Republic Urdu
Kashmiri
Pashto
Baluchi
Sindhi
Papua New Guinea 1949   Port Moresby Republic Pidgin English
many others
Philippines 1521   Manila Republic Tagalog
English
Cebuano
Hiligaynon
Samaran
Ilocano
many others
Qatar 1971 Arabia Doha Monarchy Arabic
Saudi Arabia c1750 Ottoman Empire
Hejaz
Arabia
Riyadh Theocratic Monarchy Arabic
South Korea c2300BC
1945
Korea Seoul Republic Korean
Singapore 1965 Malaya Singapore Republic Mandarin
Malay
Tamil
English
Sri Lanka 1948 Ceylon Colombo Republic Sinhalese
Tamil
Syria c2500BC
1920
United Arab Republic Damascus One Party State Arabic
Kurdish
Armenian
Taiwan 1945 Formosa Taipei   Mandarin
Tajikistan 1991   Dushanbe One Party State Tadzhik
Kyrgyz
Thailand c1200 Siam Bangkok Monarchy Thai
Mandarin
Malay
Khmer
Turkmenistan 1991   Ashgabat One Party State Turkmen
United Arab Emirates 1971 Trucial States Abu Dhabi Federal Monarchy Arabic
Uzbekistan c1300
1991
  Tashkent One Party State Uzbek
Tajik
Vietnam 1945
1975
North Vietnam
South Vietnam
Hanoi One Party State Vietnamese
Yemen 1918 Aden
North Yemen
South Yemen
Sanaa One Party State Arabic


Africa

56 countries and territories

Name Date Previous Names Capital Government Languages
Algeria 1962 Maghreb Algiers Military Dictatorship Arabic
French
Kabyle
Angola 1975   Luanda One Party State Mbundu
Portuguese
Kongo
Benin   Dahomey Porto-Novo Republic Fon
French
Botswana 1966 Bechuanaland Gaborone Republic Tswana
English
Bushmen
Burkina Faso 1919 Upper Volta Ouagadougou   More
French
Burundi     Bujumbura One Party State Rundi
French
Cameroon 1960   Yaounde Military Dictatorship Fang
Bulu
Yaunde
Fulani
English
French
Cape Verde     Praia Republic Portuguese
Central African Republic     Bangui Republic Sango
French
Gbaya
Banda
Chad 1920   N'Djamena One Party State Sara
Arabic
French
Comoros     Moroni One Party State Comoran
French
Arabic
Congo (Brazzaville)     Brazzaville One Party State Lingala
Kongo
French
Congo   Zaire Kinshasa No effective government Kingwana
Luba
Kongo
Lingala
French
many others
Djibouti 1977 Afars and Issas Djibouti Republic Arabic
Afar
Somali
French
Egypt c3000BC United Arab Republic Cairo One Party State Arabic
Equatorial Guinea     Malabo Military Dictatorship Fang
Spanish
Eritrea 1993   Asmara One Party State Tigrinya
Tigre
Ethiopia c500BC Abassynia Addis Ababa Republic Amharic
Tigrinya
Galla
Sidamo
Somali
English
many others
Gabon 1839   Libreville One Party State Fang
French
many others
Gambia     Banjul Military Dictatorship Wolof
Malinke
English
Ghana 1957 Gold Coast Accra Republic Twi
Fanti
Ewe
English
Guinea     Conakry One Party State Fulani
Malinke
French
Guinea-Bissaau 1446   Bissau Republic Balante
Fulani
Portuguese
Ivory Coast     Abidjan One Party State Dyula
French
many others
Kenya 1885 East Africa Nairobi Republic Swahili
English
Kikuyu
Kamba
Luo
Lesotho 1818 Basutoland Maseru Republic Sotho
English
Liberia     Monrovia No effective government Kpelle
English
Libya 1934   Tripoli One Party State Arabic
Tamashek
Malagasy Republic 1958 Madagascar Antananarivo Republic Malagasay
Malawi   Nyasaland Lilongwe Republic Nyanja
English
Yao
Mali 1960 Soudan Bamako Republic Bambara
Fulani
Soninke
Malinke
French
many others
Mauritania     Nouakchott Military Dictatorship Arabic
French
Mauritius     Port Louis Republic French
English
Mayotte     Mamoudzou Colony (France)  
Morocco 1649 Maghreb Rabat Monarchy Arabic
Shluh
Tamazight
Riffian
French
Mozambique     Maputo Republic Makua
Tsonga
Portuguese
Namibia 1989 South West Africa Windhoek Republic Ambo
English
Afrikaans
German
many others
Niger 1922   Niamey Republic Hausa
DjermaFulani
French
Nigeria     Abuja Republic Hausa
Yoruba
Ibo
Fulani
Kanuri
Efik
English
many others
Reunion     Saint-Denis Colony (France) French
Rwanda 1915   Kigali One Party State Ruanda
French
Swahili
Sao Tome and Principe     Sao Tome Republic Portuguese
Senegal 1959   Dakar Republic Wolof
French
Fulani
Seychelles     Victoria Republic French
English
Sierra Leone 1787   Freetown Republic Mende
Temne
English
Somalia 1886 Somaliland Mogadishu No effective government Somali
South Africa 1910   Pretoria Republic English
Afrikaans
Xhosa
Zulu
Tswana
Sotho
Pedi
Swazi
many others
South Sudan 2011   Juba Federal Republic Nuer
Bari
Zande
Dinka
Sudan 1899   Khartoum No effective government Arabic
Nubian
Beja
Dinka
Swaziland 1968   Mbabana Monarchy Swazi
English
Tanzania 1961 Tanganyka Dar es Salaam   Swahili
English
many others
Togo 1884 Togoland Lome One Party State Ewe
French
Tunisia 1881 Carthage
Maghreb
Tunis   Arabic
French
Uganda 1961   Kampala   Luganda
English
many others
Zambia 1888 Northern Rhodesia Lusaka One Party State Bemba
English
Zimbabwe 1890 Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Harare One Party State Shona
Matebele
English


Oceana and the Pacific Ocean

36 countries and territories

Name Date Previous Names Capital Government Languages
American Samoa     Pago Pago Colony (USA)  
Ashmore and Cartier Islands       Colony (Australia)  
Australia     Canberra Federal Monarchy English
many others
Baker and Howland Islands       Colony (USA)  
Christmas Island     Flying Fish Cove Colony (Australia)  
Cocos Islands     West island Colony (Australia)  
Cook Islands     Avarua Colony (New Zealand)  
Coral Sea Islands       Colony (Australia)  
Federated States of Micronesia     Palikir Federal Republic  
Fiji     Suva Military Dictatorship Fijian
English
French Polynesia     Papeete Colony (France) Tahitian
French
English
Guam     Agana Colony (USA)  
Heard and McDonald Islands       Colony (Australia)  
Jarvis Island       Colony (USA)  
Johnston Atoll       Colony (USA)  
Kingman Reef       Colony (USA)  
Kiribati     Tarawa Republic  
Marshall Islands     Majuro Republic  
Midway Islands       Colony (USA)  
Nauru     Yaren District Republic  
New Caledonia     Noumea Colony (France)  
New Zealand     Wellington   English
Maori
Niue     Alofi Colony (New Zealand)  
Norfolk Island     Kingston Colony (Australia)  
Northern Marina Islands     Saipan Colony (USA)  
Palau 1994   Koror Republic  
Palmyra Atoll       Colony (USA)  
Pitcairn Island     Adamstown Colony (UK)  
Samoa     Apia Constitutional Monarchy  
Solomon Islands     Honiara Constitutional Monarchy  
Tokelau       Colony (New Zealand)  
Tonga     Nuku'alofa One Party State Tongan
Tuvalu     Funafuti Republic  
Vanuatu     Port-Vila Republic  
Wake Island       Colony (USA)  
Wallis and Futuna     Mata Uta Colony (France)  


North America, Central America and the Caribbean

39 countries and territories

Name Date Previous Names Capital Government Languages
Anguilla     The Valley Colony (UK)  
Antigua and Barbuda     Saint John's   English
Aruba     Oranjestad Colony (Netherlands)  
Bahamas     Nassau Constitutional Monarchy English
Barbados     Bridgetown Constitutional Monarchy English
Belize 1840 British Honduras Belmopan Republic English
Spanish
Yucatec
Bermuda     Hamilton Colony (UK)  
British Virgin Islands     Road Town Colony (UK)  
Canada     Ottawa Federal Monarchy English
French
many others
Cayman Islands     Georgetown Colony (UK)  
Costa Rica 1838   San Jose Republic Spanish
Cuba 1902   Havana One Party State Spanish
Dominica     Roseau Constitutional Monarchy  
Dominican Republic   Hispaniola Santo Domingo Republic Spanish
El Salvador 1838   San Salvador Republic Spanish
Grenada     Saint George's Constitutional Monarchy English
Guadeloupe     Basse-Terre Colony (France)  
Guatemala 1524   Guatemala City Republic Spanish
Quiche
Cakchiqul
Mam
Kekchi
Haiti     Port-au-Prince Military Dictatorship French
Honduras 1838   Tegucigalpa Republic Spanish
Lenca
English
Jamaica     Kingston Constitutional Monarchy English
Martinique     Port-de-France Colony (France)  
Mexico 1821   Mexico City Federal Republic Spanish
Nahuatl
Yucatec
many others
Montserrat     Plymouth Colony (UK)  
Navassa Island       Colony (USA)  
Netherlands Antilles     Willemstad Colony (Netherlands) Dutch
Papiamento
Nicaragua 1838   Mangua Republic Spanish
Panama 1903 Colombia Panama City Republic Spanish
Cuna
Peter Island       Colony (Norway)  
Puerto Rico     San Juan Dependency (USA) Spanish
English
Saint Kitts and Nevis     Basseterre Constitutional Monarchy  
Saint Lucia     Castries Constitutional Monarchy  
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines     Kingstown Constitutional Monarchy  
St Helena     Jamestown Colony (UK)  
St Pierre and Miquelon     St Pierre Colony (France)  
Trinidad and Tobago       Constitutional Monarchy English
Turks and Caicos Islands     Cockburn Colony (UK)  
United States of America 1776   Washington DC Federal Republic English
Spanish
French
many others
Virgin Islands     Charlotte Amalie Colony (USA)  


South America and The South Atlantic

16 countries and territories

Name Date Previous Names Capital Government Languages
Argentina 1816   Buenos Aires Federal Republic Spanish
Italian
German
Bolivia 1825 Alto-Peru La Paz Republic Spanish
Aymara
Quechua
Guarani
Bouvet Island       Colony (Norway)  
Brazil 1822   Brasilia Federal Republic Portuguese
Tupi
Arawak
Guarani
Chile 1818   Santiago Republic Spanish
German
Mapuche
Colombia 1819 New Granada Bogota Republic Spanish
Arawak
Carib
Ecuador 1830 New Granada Quito Republic Spanish
Quechua
Falkland Islands     Stanley Dependency (UK) English
French Guiana     Cayenne Colony (France) French
Guyana     Georgetown Constitutional Monarchy English
Arawak
Paraguay 1811   Asuncion Republic Spanish
Guarani
Peru 1824   Lima Republic Spanish
Quechua
South Georgia     Grytviken Dependency (UK)  
Suriname     Paramaribo Republic Dutch
Pidgin English
Uruguay 1828   Montevideo Republic Spanish
Venezuela 1821 New Grenada Caracas Republic Spanish


Disputed Territories

These 11 territories have been in long standing dispute with ruling or occupying powers:

Name Date Previous Names Capital Government Languages
Abkhasia       Ruled by Georgia  
Chechnya       Claimed and Ruled by Russia Chechen
Kashmir     Srinagar Ruled by India and Pakistan Kashmiri
Kosova     Pristina Claimed by Serbia Albanian
Serbian
Kurdistan       Divided by Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran Kurdish
Nagorno-Karabakh       Claimed by Azerbaijan; Ruled by Armenia Armenian
Azeri
Northern Cyprus     Nicosia Ruled by Turkey Turkish
Palestine     Quds (Jerusalem) Ruled by Israel Arabic
Hebrew
Tibet     Lhasa Ruled by China Tibetan
Mandarin
Transdniester       Claimed and Ruled by Moldova  
Western Sahara       Claimed and Ruled by Morocco  
West Papua       Claimed and Ruled by Indonesia  


Special Territories

This territory is has regions claimed by many states but is not allocated to any one country:

Name Date Previous Names Capital Government Languages
Antarctica       Claimed by Several Countries  


Notes

Dates

The dates given are an estimate of the year that a country began to exist in its current recognisable form or the date of independence if created by a colonial power.

Government

This is a summary of the types of government that does not cover in detail all the different forms of government in existence.

Republic

A government with multi-party elections. The head of state may be elected directly, by the government or (if symbolic) appointed.

Federal Republic

A government with multi-party elections. The central government has limited powers - regions, provinces or states run their own affairs. The head of state may be elected directly, by the government or (if symbolic) appointed.

Colony

Administrated by colonial power with or without limited self rule.

Dependency

Democratic state dependent on another country for its foreign policy.

Constitutional Monarchy

A multi-party democracy with a non-elected, heredetary (but symbolic) head of state (usually a King or Queen).

Monarchy

Some elections but heredetary head of state has a large say in government.

Principality

A multi-party democracy with a non-elected, heredetary (but symbolic) head of state (usually a Prince or Princess). May be in partial political union with neighbouring states.

Dutchy

A multi-party democracy with a non-elected, heredetary (but symbolic) head of state (not royal). May be in partial political union with neighbouring states.

Absolute Monarchy

Ruled by a head of state (usually a King or Queen) without elections.

Federal Monarchy

Country with many monarchs, one of which is head of state.

Theocratic Monarchy

Ruled by a head of state (usually a King or Queen) without elections. Laws based on religion.

Theocratic Republic

A government with multi-party elections but limited to religious parties. The head of state may be elected directly, by the government or (if symbolic) appointed. Laws based on religion.

Theocracy

Non-democratic rule by religious leader.

Military Dictatorship

Rule by the military forces, usually after a violent removal of previous government.

One Party State

Rule by a single political party. Some republics may effectively be single party states because of election malpractices.


External Links

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