International Countries

Did You Know … ? Amerindians colonized the island 4,000 years ago; artifacts date to 1300 B.C. The provisional government in 1967 asked to be an administrative territory of the U.S. but ...

Did You Know … ? The continent has 25 airports and 53 heliports; runways are solid ice. The marker for the geographic South Pole is moved each year because the ice is ...

Did You Know … ? Antigua’s craggy coastline provides 365 beaches, literally one for each day of the year. It is illegal to wear camouflage or military apparel in Antigua. Barbudans count only ...

Did You Know … ? The name Argentina comes from the Latin term argentum, meaning silver. The world’s largest colony of Magellan penguins is located at Punta Tombo. Iguazu Falls, on the Argentina-Brazil ...

Did You Know…? At 72 square miles, Aruba is slightly larger than Washington, D.C. The island had a gold rush, set in motion by the discovery of gold in 1824. Aruba’s name probably ...

Did You Know…? It is a 5.83-mile hike to circumnavigate Uluru/Ayers Rock. Anna Creek Station, the world’s largest cattle ranch, is larger than Belgium. Qantas is an acronym for Queensland and Northern Territory ...

Did you know … ? Austria’s Lipizzaner horses are bred on a state stud farm in Piber. Stiftskeller St. Peter in Salzburg is central Europe’s oldest restaurant (803). The Austrian engineer Ferdinand Porsche, ...

Did You Know…? When Columbus sighted land on Oct. 12, 1492, he saw San Salvador in the Bahamas. Only about 20 of the 700 Bahamian islands are inhabited. Abaco Barbs descend from Spanish ...

Did You Know…? More than half of Barbados’ arable land is used to grow sugar. George Washington slept here, the only foreign country he ever visited. Ferdinand Paleologus, last claimant to the Byzantine ...

Did You Know…? More than 450 type of beer are made in Belgium. The saxophone was invented around 1840 by Adolphe Sax, a Belgian instrument maker. The word spa comes from the Belgian ...

Did You Know…? Belize’s first permanent European settlers were British buccaneers and shipwrecked British sailors. Part of “The Mosquito Coast,” based on a Paul Theroux novel, was filmed in Belize (1986). Archaeologists estimate ...

Did You Know…? Bermuda is about half the size of Disney World (21 square miles compared with 43). The island was first inhabited (1609) by shipwrecked Jamestown-bound settlers. By law, Bermuda shorts can ...

Did You Know … ? For three centuries, Bonaire provided salt for most of the Caribbean; the mines are still active. Hotel Zeebad is a converted World War II internment camp for ...

Did You Know…? Until 1967, the country’s official name was United States of Brazil. Brazil occupies 47.3% of the South American continent. Native Indians are about 0.15% of the population and speak 180 ...

Did You Know …? The pirate Blackbeard based his operations at Soper’s Hole on Tortola between 1715 and 1718. Anageda has more than 300 shipwrecks because the island is so flat sailors ...

Did You Know … ? Bulgaria’s King Simeon II, in exile during communism, returned and served a stint as prime minister. The Cyrillic alphabet was created by a Bulgarian monk in the ...

Did You Know … ? Cambodia has the only flag that incorporates a building in its design (Angkor Wat). The Tonle Sap River changes direction during monsoons because the water rises higher ...

Did You Know … ? More than half the population of Canada’s northern territories is aboriginal. Alberta’s West Edmonton Mall is the world’s largest mall under one roof. Other names considered for Canada ...

Did You Know…? Recreational diving in the Caribbean got its start in the Caymans in 1957. Tourists can have cards and letters postmarked from Hell (it’s near West Bay). The word Cayman comes ...

Did You Know … ? Chile’s Atacama Desert is the driest in the world. Cape Horn in Chile is the southernmost point in South America. Alexander Selkirk lived alone (1704-1708] on a Chilean ...

Did You Know…? The Three Gorges Dam site is the world’s largest hydroelectric project. There are no past-tense or future-tense verbs in Chinese; the verbs have no tenses at all. China is broad ...

Did You Know? Colombia is the world’s top coffee producer, and two-thirds of all gem-quality emeralds are Colombian. Bogota tailor Miguel Caballero designs and sells high fashion bulletproof clothes. Colombia counts 87 Indian ...

Did You Know…? Costa Rica’s focus on conservation can be traced to Quaker settlers who arrived in 1951. Costa Rica is Spanish for rich coast; Spaniards thought they’d find gold. The regular army ...

Did You Know … ? The patent for inventing the radio belongs to Nikola Tesla, the prolific Croatian-born inventor, not to Marconi. The voting age is 18 — except that married Croatians ...

Did You Know? Willemstad’s buildings were first painted in pastels (1817) on orders of a governor who claimed white gave him a headache. Willemstad’s Mikve Israel-Emanuel Synagogue is the Western Hemisphere’s oldest ...

Did You Know…? If all Czech hiking trails were laid end to end, they’d encircle the globe at the Equator. Kutna Hora, an old silver mining town near Prague, was once larger ...

Did You Know…? Denmark boasts Europe’s oldest continuous monarchy, from the 10th century. Danes typically eat four meals a day. Denmark claims the world’s oldest state flag still in use, from the 14th ...

Did You Know? Hurricane David left approximately 80% of the population homeless (1979). Dominica is the only Caribbean island with a population of pre-Columbian Carib peoples. Dominica’s Eugenia Charles, granddaughter of slaves, served ...

Did You Know…? The oldest European city in the New World is Santo Domingo (1496). The merengue is the national dance. The Dominican Republic is the world’s largest producer of cigars. Some historians believe ...

Did You Know … ? Ecuador’s official currency is the U.S. dollar — and $1 coins are favored over paper bills. Panama hats are made in Ecuador, not Panama. Cotopaxi in the Ecuadorian ...

Did You Know … ? Alexandria’s Pharos lighthouse was the world’s tallest (400-plus feet) and possibly the first (third century B.C.). Ancient Egyptians created the world’s first national government. The Djoser Step Pyramid ...

Did you know … ? The largest stone at Stonehenge weighs nearly 50 tons. More newspapers are sold in the U.K. than in any other European country. In the movies, Alnwick Castle in ...

Did You Know … ? Ninety-eight percent of Estonia is wired for free access to Wi-Fi. Estonia counts more Hummers per person than any other country in the world. Over the centuries, an ...

Did You Know…? Sauna is the only Finnish word to enter languages around the world. Finland counts close to 190,000 lakes and Europe’s largest archipelago: 100,000 islands. Only about 5 million people speak ...

Did you know … ? Some 5 million people make the pilgrimage to Lourdes each year. Modern soft luggage originated in France, as did the hot-air balloon. The “Mona Lisa” was delivered to ...

Did You Know…? French Polynesia has no poisonous snakes or insects. Tattoo is a Polynesian word. Fresh baguettes are delivered to French Polynesia twice daily. Vanilla, a major crop here, is the only edible ...

Did You Know…? German cities and towns stage about 2,500 Christmas markets. Although noted as beer lovers, Germans now spend more on wine than beer each year. The Baedeker guidebooks were created in ...

Did You Know … ? With no farmland, Gibraltar imports all its food. If the U.K. decides to give up Gibraltar, it must offer it to Spain. Gibraltar’s Barbary macaques are Europe’s only ...

Did You Know…? The first recorded Olympics, in 776 B.C., featured one event: a foot race. In Greece, a nod of the head means “no.” Locally, the country’s name is Elliniki Dhimokratia; the ...

Did You Know? Captain Bligh, of “Mutiny on the Bounty” fame, brought the breadfruit tree to Grenada. Grenada has more spices per square mile than any other country in the world. By law, ...

Did You Know … ? Guatemala is home to an estimated 720 bird species including migratory birds. Spanish is the official language, but 23 Mayan tongues are the first language of 40% ...

Did You Know? Haiti was the world’s first post-colonial black-led nation (1804). Haiti’s 19th century Laferriere Citadel is the largest fortress in the Western Hemisphere. Haiti claims more exhibited artists per capita than ...

Did You Know…? Roatan’s resident dolphins can earn their owners $4,000 an hour appearing in TV and film productions. Christopher Columbus made his first mainland Central American landfall at Trujillo (1502). American short-story ...

Did You Know…? Hungary boasts roughly 1,300 thermal springs. Real goulash is a kind of soup cooked on an open fire. Hungary exports more than 5,500 tons of paprika a year. Hungary’s inflation rate ...

Did You Know … ? The word geyser comes from one of Iceland’s own, named Geysir. Eldhraun is a rugged lava field where the Apollo 11 crewmen trained for their moon walks. Iceland’s ...

Did You Know … ? India’s newspapers print in more than 90 languages and radio stations broadcast in 71. The world’s largest Hindu temple, Srirangam at Tiruchirappalli, occupies 50% more space than ...

Did You Know…? Borobudur is the world’s largest Buddhist temple. The Indonesian population encompasses some 365 ethnic and tribal groups. Bahasa Indonesia is the official language but the people also speak 583 dialects. More ...

Did you know … ? Gaeltacht refers to areas, mostly to the west, where the Irish language is common. Ireland’s Valentia Island is the westernmost point in Europe. Leprechauns of Celtic folktales are ...

Did You Know…? Israel uses kosher glue on its stamps. The Dead Sea is evaporating; it loses about three feet of depth each year. Israel counts about 100 kinds of wild mammals, compared ...

Did You Know…? Two independent countries lie within Italy’s borders: San Marino and Vatican City. Marco Polo did not bring pasta to Italy; the Italians had already thought of it. Turin was Italy’s ...

Did You Know…? The ortanique, a cross between a tangerine and orange, is unique to Jamaica. Back to Africa’s Marcus Garvey and pirate Blackbeard (Edward Teach) were natives. Jamaica opened the first railway ...

Did You Know…? There are fewer than 10,000 geisha in Japan today. Kansai International Airport sits on an artificial island that is sinking (as expected). The same family has owned the Houshi Ryokan ...

Did You Know … ? Jordan’s Queen Noor was American born; she was married to the late King Hussein. John the Baptist began and ended his ministry in Jordan; he’s the patron ...

Did You Know … ? At the Mount Kenya Safari Club, guests cross the Equator to get to the restaurants. In Kenya, hitchhikers flag drivers by flapping their arms up and down. Roughly ...

Did You Know? The Saxon name for Luxembourg City was Lucilinburhuc, meaning little fortress. Luxembourg is the world’s only grand duchy (meaning headed by a grand duke). More than 60% of Luxembourg City’s ...

Did You Know … ? The 1959 movie, “South Pacific,” was shot on Malaysia’s Tioman Island. Malaysia’s first railway, built in 1869, was made of wood — and was soon destroyed by ...

Did You Know … ? Malta claims the world’s oldest freestanding temple, Ggantija on Gozo (earliest construction: 3600 B.C.). Tradition says St. Paul was shipwrecked on Malta in about 60 A.D. The Malta ...

Did You Know? The Martinique city of Le Diamant named a downtown street Rue Obama; it extends 472 feet. Paul Gauguin painted several Martinique landscapes during a short stay on the island ...

Did you know … ? Mexico City’s bullring, seating about 55,000, is the world’s largest. Mexico produces about a sixth of the world’s silver, making it the biggest producer. More than 5 million ...

Did You Know …? The Grimaldis have ruled Monaco since 1297, making theirs Europe’s longest-reigning dynasty. Monte-Carlo is named for Monaco’s 19th century Prince Charles III who opened the first casino. If Prince ...

Did You Know … ? The red, flat-topped cap called the fez was named for the city of Fez. “Casablanca,” which put Morocco on the map for many, was shot almost entirely ...

Did You Know…? The Netherlands counts approximately 1,000 working windmills. The country has more bicycles than residents and twice as many bikes as cars. Amsterdam is built entirely on piles. Schipol Airport is more ...

Did you know … ? New Zealanders invented bungee jumping, the jetboat, the Blokart and the Zorb. Wellington is the world’s southernmost capital city. New Zealand claims the world’s longest place name — ...

Did You Know? The Nicaraguan address system does not use street names or house numbers. Lake Nicaragua is the only freshwater lake where sharks live; they travel upriver from the Caribbean. Nicaragua’s Violeta ...

Did you know … ? St. Patrick died in Northern Ireland on March 17, in the year 461. Amelia Earhart ended her historic solo Atlantic flight, in 1932, near Londonderry. Bushmills in County ...

Did You Know…? Telemark, a Norwegian county, gave its name to a ski technique. Norwegians may eat four meals a day, with some farm families eating five. There is evidence that skiing goes ...

Did You Know? Explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa was in Panama when he first saw the Pacific (1513). Writer Richard Halliburton swam the Panama Canal (1928), paying its lowest-ever toll (36 cents, ...

Did You Know … ? Caral, estimated to be 5,000 years old, is the oldest known city in the New World. About a fifth of all Indians in the Americas live in ...

Did You Know … ? Ferdinand Magellan was killed in 1521 in the Philippines while leading the world’s first circumnavigation of the globe. The country was named for Spain’s King Philip II. It ...

Did You Know … ? Poland’s Nicolaus Copernicus was the first person to show that the planets move around the sun. To meet public transport needs during communism, the government paid drivers ...

Did You Know…? Portuguese began tiling building exteriors in the 19th century to avoid paint jobs required by law. Portugal is party to the world’s oldest formal alliance between two countries (England, ...

Did You Know…? Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens but island residents don’t vote for president or pay U.S. taxes. Don Q rum originated in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico is the only place in ...

Did You Know? Bucharest’s Palace of the Parliament is Europe’s largest office building and second in the world after the Pentagon. The Danube annually deposits 67 million tons of alluvia at the ...

Did You Know? Siberia’s Baikal, the world’s deepest lake (5,715 feet), holds one-fifth of the world’s fresh surface water. It’s a 16-mile walk to visit the more than 360 rooms in St. ...

Did you know … ? Scotland exports about 85 million gallons of Scotch a year. Scots developed Clydesdale horses, Shetland ponies, Aberdeen-Angus cows and Collies. A kilt is made with up to eight ...

Did You Know … ? Bukit Timah Nature Reserve has more species of trees than the whole of North America. The name Singapore means lion city in Sanskrit, but lions are not ...

Did You Know? Artist Andy Warhol’s parents came from a village in Slovakia. The mountain bison living in western Slovakia are Europe’s largest land mammal. The Slovak, Stefan Banic, invented the parachute in ...

Did You Know … ? De Beers, the world’s largest diamond company, coined the phrase “Diamonds Are Forever.” South Africa has three capitals and 11 official languages. The Bloukrans Bridge has the world’s ...

Did You Know … ? Kim is the surname for about one in five Koreans. Koreans invented moveable metal type printing in the 13th century, before Johannes Gutenberg was born. Korea’s Joseon dynasty ...

Did You Know…? Columbus is buried in Seville; Ferdinand and Isabella are in Granada. Africa is eight miles from Spain, across the Strait of Gibraltar. The Basque language is not related to any ...

Did You Know … ? On discovering the island in 1493, Christopher Columbus named it for his brother, Bartolomeo. In 1784, France traded the island to Sweden for a warehouse in Gothenburg. The ...

Did You Know … ? St. Kitts and Nevis is the smallest sovereign nation in the Americas in both area and population. Alexander Hamilton, the first U.S. secretary of the treasury, was ...

Did You Know … ? On a clear day, St. Lucia visitors can see Martinique to the north and St. Vincent to the south. Napoleon’s beloved Josephine spent most of her childhood ...

Did You Know…? This is the smallest island in the world shared by two sovereign governments. The Dutch-French pact establishing a shared island is the oldest treaty (1648) in force. The area’s Papiamento ...

Did You Know…? The Sami (or Lapp) people have their own parliament, located in Kiruna. Sweden is host to the world’s longest cross-country ski race (56 miles). Of the world’s 75,000 Sami people, ...

Did you know … ? Grand St. Bernard Pass gave its name to the well-known dogs. Davos at 5,118 feet is the highest town in Europe. Maienfeld and area provided the geographic setting ...

Did You Know … ? There are 12 aboriginal tribes on Taiwan, accounting for only 2% of the population. The traditional Taiwanese language does not have a written form. The National Palace Museum ...

Did You Know…? More than 1,200 butterfly species flutter in Thailand. Thai waters are home to more than 200 species of coral. Thailand is the only Southeast Asian nation never ruled by a ...

Did You Know … ? The world’s first coins were minted in ancient Sardis where Croesus was king. The long-haired angora cat originated naturally in central Turkey and is regarded as a ...

Did You Know? Public nudity is illegal on all the islands, many of which are uninhabited. After astronaut John Glenn ended man’s first orbital flight (1962), he first touched land on Grand ...

Did you know … ? Christopher Columbus named these islands for St. Ursula and her 11,000 maidens. Taxes on exported rum yield more than $24 million annually for the government. Tourism accounts for ...

Did You Know? Evidence at Sharjah suggests human occupation of the UAE dates back to 85,000 B.C. The Burj Khalifa in Dubai, at 1,716.5 feet, became the world’s tallest structure when inaugurated ...

Did You Know? Each year, Uruguayans consume more than 200 pounds of meat, more than Argentinians. The country is, officially, the Oriental Republic of Uruguay. Uruguay is a Guarani Indian name that means ...

Did You Know? Vatican City is the world’s smallest independent country (108.7 acres). Most of St. Peter’s Basilica, Europe’s largest church, was designed by Michelangelo. The Swiss Guards have protected the pope at ...

Did You Know … ? The Kinh (Viet) account for close to 90% of citizens, but Vietnam has another 53 ethnic groups. The country’s paper currency is really plastic. Vietnam is only 31 ...

Did you know … ? About a quarter of the people in Wales speak the Welsh language. Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch.com is the world’s longest Internet domain name. All early references to King Arthur were written ...