# Are there any non-contiguous countries in the world, besides the US?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [August 22, 2003, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900 "2003-08-22T12:08:51Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Aro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aro)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/1 "2003-08-22T12:08:51Z")
With the obvious exception of Island nations (such as New Zealand), are there any non-contiguous countries in the world, besides the US? I don’t mean countries who hold claim to islands, but a country that has two unattached and distinct areas of land under its control?
A quick shiftie over my atlas says ‘no’, but I might have missed one or two.
Thanks.
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### Author:  [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/2 "2003-08-22T12:15:18Z")
The French territories in/on the Caribbean (Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guyana and one other I can’t remember) are 100% French soil - each is a département of France. If you look at a [Euro note](http://www.aaura.com/newsletters/popups/images/20-euro-front.jpg), you’ll see some weird blobs at the bottom left, by the word “EURO” - those are Caribbean parts of France.
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### Author:  [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/3 "2003-08-22T12:17:19Z")
BTW I answered thus because French Guyana isn’t an island. Or did you mean contiguous on the same landmass?
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### Author:  [@gluteus\_maximus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gluteus_maximus)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/4 "2003-08-22T12:23:38Z")
Malaysia.
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### Author:  [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/5 "2003-08-22T12:25:05Z")
[This site](http://www.vasa.abo.fi/users/rpalmber/enclaves.htm) gives a list of geographical enclaves – parts of countries that are not attached to the rest of the country. They are usually small, of couse. There are 19 countries on the list, though a few of the enclaves are islands.
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### Author:  [@everton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/everton)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/6 "2003-08-22T12:25:12Z")
France does consider its overseas départements to be part of France rather than just possessions of it.
But [Russia is another good example](http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/rs.html). The Kaliningrad Oblast is up the road towards Poland separate from the rest.
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### Author:  [@Aro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aro)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/7 "2003-08-22T12:28:59Z")
Nope, good answer., **Jjimm**. I had always assumed that [French Guiana](http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/fg.html) was an independant nation. I see now it has no government of its own.
Malaysia - Mmmmm, good answer too, except the eastern part is really on an island, although it is shared with Indonesia and Brunei.
On preview, looks like I missed a whole load of countries. Doh!
Thank all.
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### Author:  [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/8 "2003-08-22T12:29:53Z")
Kaliningrad is separated from the rest of Russia by Lithuania and Latvia or Belarus, depending on your route.
Croatia is divided in two by a small corridor that gives Bosnia access to the ocean.
The border between the Netherlands and Belgium is _really_ bizarre - there’s bits of both countries inside the other.
More than you ever wanted to know about [international enclaves](http://www.vasa.abo.fi/users/rpalmber/enclaves.htm)
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### Author:  [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/9 "2003-08-22T12:30:55Z")
Spain has Ceuta and Melilla too, but I don’t know their constitutional status.
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### Author:  [@rjk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjk)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/10 "2003-08-22T12:34:53Z")
[St. Pierre et Miquelon](http://www.st-pierre-et-miquelon.com/), just off Newfoundland, is also part of France.
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### Author:  [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/11 "2003-08-22T12:43:13Z")
I believe Cabinda is a province of Angola and is separated from the motyher country bya piece of Congo/Zaire (whatever they’re calling themselves these days)
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### Author:  [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/12 "2003-08-22T12:47:17Z")
Brunei itself is in two parts.
Angola has the exclave of Cabinda.
The UK could also be counted if you stretch the definition a bit - Northern Ireland is _on_ an island, but not an island itself.
There are lots of little enclaves around the borders of the former Soviet republics of Central Asia (Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan). Azerbaijan has two large portions separated by Armenia, as well as several smaller enclaves.
Italy has the town of Campione, which is cut off from the rest of the country by Switzerland.
For the really bizarre set-up that **flodnak** mentioned, Google for Baarle-Nassau and Baarle-Hertog. These are a Dutch town and Belgian town completely mingled together.
> [@](#):
>
> from this site: [http://ontology.buffalo.edu/smith/baarle.htm](http://ontology.buffalo.edu/smith/baarle.htm)
> The Treaty of Maastricht of 1843 delimited the boundary between the Netherlands and Belgium, but even then it was found impossible to compromise on the territory of Baarle. It was instead decided to leave things as they stood, for it was impossible to define the boundary between boundary poles 214 and 215 (about 50 km).
>
> Instead of defining a boundary, it was accepted that the nationality of 5732 parcels be established one by one (the colouring on the cadastral maps). A part of these parcels constitute the (at least) twenty Belgian enclaves, presently Baarle Hertog, which are situated either within the territory of the Dutch municipality of Baarle-Nassau or, in the case of the agrarian region of Zondereigen, in the surrounding land.
>
> Most of them lie about five km beyond the Belgian border, but there is also a small enclave of Baarle-Nassau inside Belgium and even a Belgian parcel within a Dutch parcel within a Belgian enclave surrounded by Dutch territory.
Individual buildings in Baarle are identified as belonging to one country or another by signs on the walls, with the nationality depending on the location of the front door.
It sounds like an intriguing place - one of these days I’ll get around to paying it a visit!
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### Author:  [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/13 "2003-08-22T12:52:39Z")
Spain has the Balearics, the Canaries, Ceuta and Melilla.
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### Author:  [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/14 "2003-08-22T12:53:32Z")
[Here](http://rz-home.de/%7Emhaertel/baarle2002/dia.cgi?1) is a site with some interesting photos from Baarle-Nassau/Baarle-Hertog, showing the border running through houses etc (and even a beer storeroom, it appears!)
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/15 "2003-08-22T12:59:22Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Aro \*
> \*\*I don’t mean countries who hold claim to islands, but a country that has two unattached and distinct areas of land under its control? \*\*
Are you counting Gibraltar as an island?
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### Author:  [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/16 "2003-08-22T13:15:12Z")
Gibraltar isn’t part of the UK, though. It’s a… um, it used to be a Crown colony, and now it’s [consults dictionary - no help] … er … [consults Google] a “dependent territory of the UK”, whatever that means.
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### Author:  [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/17 "2003-08-22T13:17:02Z")
Oh, I’ll also add that I was in Ceuta a couple of months ago - I got the ferry from Algeciras and travelled on to Morocco. It’s a bit of a dump, all in all. (Ceuta, that is. Morocco’s great.)
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### Author:  [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/18 "2003-08-22T13:18:58Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Aro \*
> On preview, looks like I missed a whole load of countries. Doh!
Well there’s the one you live in 😃
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### Author:  [@Aro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aro)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/19 "2003-08-22T13:24:36Z")
Gibraltar exercises self-government for most internal affairs, AFAIK. It also has a separate judicial authority.
Thus I don’t really see it as an ‘integrated but separated’ part of the UK, just as a dependant territory. (which may in all accounts amount to the very same thing).
**r\_k,** that stuff on Baarle-Nassau/Baarle-Hertog is quite mad. Wonder how that sort of distinction affects general things in everyday life? (like funding for road sweepers, new paving, even insurance for driving may not cover you in a different country.) Interesting. (yet at the same time quite pointless)
**Yojimbo** , last time I looked this little land of ours was an island. 😉
And are you finally admitting that NI **is** a ‘integral yet separated’ part of the UK? 😃
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### Author:  [@Coil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coil)
#### Post date: [August 22, 2003, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/20 "2003-08-22T13:33:05Z")
I had never heard of Baarle-Nassau and Baarle-Hertog, thanks for teaching me something new. Looks like the place is worth a visit.
What about Denmark and Greenland? Of course Greenland is an island, but it is rather big so maybe we can cut the Danes some slack.
I know that Greenland has some form of self-governance, but IIRC they are still a part of Denmark.
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