50 + Interesting Facts of the Countries

Few interesting facts about the countries and so called their names along with few interesting facts.

1. Bhutan is a tiny country that is only 177 kilometers from north to South and 321 kilometers from east to West. The Bhutanese name for Bhutan ,Druk Yul, means “Land of the Thunder Dragon”, and its flag shows a rampaging dragon.

2. Do you know what is the common about national anthems of India and Bangladesh? Both were written by Rabindranath Tagore.

3. Sri Lanka is also known as the “Jewel Box of the Indian Ocean”, and has yielded precious stones and fine gems in a great profusion of species and varieties. Today there is even a town called Ratnapura or “Gem Town”.

4. Thailand is the only south-east Asian Country never to have been colonized by European Powers.

5. “The Kingdom of Million Elephants” - Laos is a country of rugged mountains and dense forests that lies in the heart of South East Asia.

6. China stretches 5000 Kilometers from east to west, and 5500 kilometers from north to south. It occupies on fifth of Asia’s area, and is the third largest country in the world.

7. Angkor Wat, in Siem Reap, Cambodia, is the largest religious temple in the World. Under the Khmers, this magnificent temple complex was constructed at Angkor.

8. Land of the Rising Sun- Japan is an archipelago, which means a group of islands.  Though there are around 3000 islands in the archipelago, Japan’s four main islands are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku.

9. Mongolia is called the “Land of the Blue Sky”.

10. Taiwan is formerly known as Formosa, is an island that is separated from Mainland China.

11. Singapore is made up of 50 islands that just lie above the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. According to Legend, this city state was founded by a Malay prince who landed on the island in 1299.

12. Singapore is often referred to as One of Asia’s economic “Tigers”.

13. Malaysia is the only country in the world to have a rotating system of Kings.

14. The Philippines were discovered by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521, and colonized by the Spanish in 1565. The United States brought the Philippines for 20 million dollars in 1898.

15.  The Philippines are named after King Philip II of Spain because it was during his Reign that the islands came under Spanish rule.

16. Indonesia is the largest island nation in the world.

17. Vietnam- Shaped like an elongated ‘S’.

18. Vietnam is often described as ‘two rice bowls on a bamboo stick.

19. Countries Named After People:

Country	People
Bolivia	Simon Bolivar
Cambodia	Sage Kambu Swayambhuva
Colombia	Christopher Columbus
Dominican Republic	Saint Dominic
Georgia	Saint George
Kiribati	Thomas Gilbert(Gilbert Islands)
Marshall Islands	John Marshall
Mauritius	Maurice of Nassau
Mozambique	Mussa Mbiki
Nicaragua	Nicarao
Philippines	King Philip II of Spain
Rhodesia(Zimbabwe's former name)	Cecil Rhodes
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Saint Christopher
Saint Lucia	Saint Lucy
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Saint Vincent of Saragossa
San Marino	Saint Marinus
Saudi Arabia	Muhammad bin Saud
Seychelles	Jean Moreau de Seychelles
Solomon Islands	King Solomon
Swaziland	King Mswati II
USA	Amerigo Vespucci Or Richard Amerike
Bharath(Former Name of India)	King Bharatha

20. Russia is the largest country on Earth in terms of surface area. Russia borders 14 countries, and has eight time zones.

21. The USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republic) was a federation of 15 republics.

22. Europe is the second smallest continent after Australia.

23. Geographically Europe is not a Continent. It is classified as a continent for cultural and historical reasons. It is a subcontinent of the landmass Eurasia.

24. Belarus was known historically as ‘White Russia”.

25. Iceland is called ‘The Land of Ice and Fire”. In fact, the very word ‘Geyser’ comes from a single spring in Iceland that ever so often flings its waters, heated to boiling point by the volcanic magma below, in to the air.

26. Norway is called “The Land of the Midnight Sun”.

27. Finland is known as the land of a thousand lakes.

28. Ombudsman-An ombudsman, is an official appointed to investigate individual’s complaints against public authorities. This was first started in Sweden.

29. Lapland is Santa’s Birthplace which is a region in the Northern Europe. There is in fact a place called Santa Claus village in the town of Rovaniemi.

30. Bluetooth- It is said to be named after King Harald Bluetooth, credited with Uniting Denmark and Norway, as Bluetooth technology unifies communication and computing.

31. England’s Real Name: England is often used as a synonym for the UK. This may be because of England’s predominance in the union with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

32. The word Netherlands means the ‘Low Lands’- a good name for a country where sixty percent of the people live below sea level.

33. Ireland is also called as Emerald Isle.

34. Luxembourg is a tiny country lying between Belgium, Germany and France. Luxembourg is best known for its status as Europe’s most powerful investment management Centre.

35. Germany is the seventh largest country in Europe. After World War II, Germany was divided into the democratic west and the Communist East which was known as the German Democratic Republic. The Berlin Wall became the symbol of this division. It fell in 1989 and Germany was reunited a year later.

36. Switzerland is also known as Helvetia, which was the name that the ancient Romans gave this land. Even today, the name Helvetia appears on Swiss coins and stamps.

37. World Health Organization(WHO) is located in Switzerland.

38. Monaco is the second smallest independent state in the World. It is less than two square kilometers.

39. Austria is a federal republic country and the capital is Vienna. International Atomic Energy Agency is located in Austria.

40. France is sometimes called ‘I’ hexagon’ or the hexagon by its people because of its six sided shape. France is the third largest country in the Europe.

41. The world’s smallest independent state is Vatican City.

42. Ten Smallest Countries in the World

Country	Area
Vatican City	0.44 Sq KM
Monaco	1.95 Sq KM
Nauru	21.10 Sq KM
Tuvalu	26 Sq KM
San Marino	61Sq KM
Liechtenstein	160 Sq KM
Marshall Islands	181 Sq KM
St.Kitts - Nevis	269 Sq KM
Maldives	298 Sq KM
Seychelles	308 Sq KM

43. Lebanon is famous for Cedar Wood.

44. There are no Lakes or rivers in Kuwait

45. Saudi Arabia is a barren desert with no permanent rivers or lakes. And it sits on more than 25% of the world’s known oil reserves. It is capable of producing more than 10 million barrels per day.

46. Saudi Arabia is also the homeland of Islam, the world’s second-largest religion. The two holy pilgrimage cities of Mecca and Medina are also in Saudi.

47. United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a federation of seven states (Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Ajman, Fujairah,  Ras al Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al Qaiwain) formed in 1971.

48. Greece is also called “The cradle of Civilization”. The word ‘democracy’ comes from the Greek word ‘Demos’ means People, and ‘Kratia’-means Authority.

49. In the Albanian language, the name means ‘eagle’, and Albania has been named after the majestic eagles that soar over its lakes and high mountains.

50. The very first Olympic Games took place in the ancient Greek city of Olympia in 776 BC. The first Olympics of modern times were held in Athens in 1896.

51. Ukraine is Europe’s second largest country and is one of the world’s main centers of sugar production.

52. Land of Goulash - Hungary’s national dish is the Goulash – a delicious stew made of meat, potatoes and onions, and served with noodles and black bread.

53. The invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany on September 1, 1939 marked the beginning of the World War II.

54. Six world heritage sites and eight national parks bear witness to Croatia’s immense cultural and natural wealth.

55. Macedonia was once the kingdom of Macedon, ruled by Alexander the Great.

56. Africa is the second largest continent, and is three times the size of Europe.

57. Algeria is a very hot country because of the Sahara desert covers more than four-fifths of the land.

58. Dusty Continent – The continent of Africa is named after the Afridi tribe, who live in Tunisia. The word ‘afridi’ comes from the arab ‘afra’ which means dusty and Africa can really be called ‘ the dusty’ continent.

59. Senegal capital is Dakar.

60. Egypt is known as ‘the gift of the Nile’.

61. Kampala is the capital city of Uganda.

62. Liberia – means ‘Freed Land’.

63. Ghana is also called as the ‘Gold Coast’.

64. Nigeria often called ‘The Giant of Africa’- Because of the vastness of the land, and its huge population.

65. South Africa is called as the ‘Rainbow Nation”- because of its Colorful mix of people and cultures.

66. South Africa has three capitals. Pretoria is its administrative capital, Cape Town is the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein is the home of the judiciary.

67. Tallest mountain in the world, Mount Everest is in Nepal. Kathmandu is the capital city of Nepal. It was in this region that Prince Siddhartha Gautama was born in 563 BC. Gautama achieved enlightenment as Buddha and gave rise to Buddhism.

68.  The Eiffel Tower, the icon of France, was named after its architect Gustave Eiffel.  It was built for the Paris World’s Fair of 1889, conducted to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution.