# Are there any non-contiguous countries in the world, besides the US? **URL:** \ **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:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/21 "2003-08-22T13:36:35Z")
I don’t know how it works, **Aro**. I imagine that in the days before the EU and the Schengen Agreement it was even more of a headache. These days, with the free-and-easy borders in Europe, it probably doesn’t present too much of a headache. I still want to go there! (Incidentally, on a vaguely related note (?) [this chap](http://www.geocities.com/mafiapetedk/frch.html) has found a hotel where the French/Swiss border runs right through the room (and, he claims, through the double bed…)) ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/22 "2003-08-22T13:37:25Z")
Between 1947 and whenever Bangladesh got its independence, ca. 1970, Pakistan was in two large chunks separated by most of India, with the smaller portion having the majority of the population. Likewise, between 1918 and 1939 Germany had East Prussia, separated from the rest of the country by the Polish Corridor and the Free City of Danzig. The United Arab Republic was a union between Egypt and Syria that lasted over a decade, with all of Israel separating the two parts. Prior to 1871 Germany was a crazy quilt of enclaves, exclaves, and probably autoclaves. Prussia consisted of two large sections separated by a dozen German states. One of the Hesses was IIRC in two pieces with elements of Bavaria and the other Hesse between them. Hamburg was an independent city which also held a port (Cuxhaven) with only water connection between them; on land parts of other states separated them. I believe this was true for Bremen as well – and both hold the same boundaries as _lander_ of present-day Germany. Before Napoleon, Sweden had numerous possessions across the Baltic Sea from the mainland of the country, and Denmark held the southern tip of what’s today Sweden, across the Kattegat from its mainland and islands. And for the short period 1918-1922 Greece held several enclaves on the Aegean Coast of Turkey. Oman is mostly on the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, but includes the tip of the Muharram Peninsula, with the United Arab Emirates separating that piece from the rest of the country. You could make a case for Turkey – admittedly the Bosphorus and Dardanelles are not wide, but they and the Sea of Marmara separate the country into a small but populous European section and a large Asian section. ---
**Author:** ![Aro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b3f665/32.png) [@Aro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aro)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/23 "2003-08-22T13:37:49Z")
[Greenland](http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/gl.html) > [@](#): > > The world’s largest non-continental island, about 81% ice-capped, Greenland was granted self-government in 1978 by the Danish parliament. The law went into effect the following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of Greenland’s foreign affairs. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/24 "2003-08-22T14:55:24Z")
Isn’t Turkey separated by the Bosphorus? ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/25 "2003-08-22T14:57:02Z")
**Polycarp** mention of Germany reminds me (of course) of the status of Berlin during the Cold War. –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/26 "2003-08-22T15:31:43Z")
Would Northern Ireland fit in here? True, it’s on an island, but so is its boss. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/27 "2003-08-22T15:42:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Troy McClure SF \* > \*\*Would Northern Ireland fit in here? True, it’s on an island, but so is its boss. \*\* See conversation between **yojimbo** and **Aro** earlier on in the thread! ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/28 "2003-08-22T16:23:58Z")
Well, Malaysia’s Eastern portion may be on an island; however, its peninsular portion is on the Asian landmass. Thus: Peninsular Malaysia and Insular Malaysia as geographic terms. ANY country with a shoreline will most likely be noncontiguous given the various islands of whatever size that happen to be nearby and within its territory. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/29 "2003-08-22T16:46:35Z")
Still, the OP excludes such obvious cases (“I don’t mean countries who hold claim to islands…”) ---
**Author:** ![tanstaafl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/30 "2003-08-22T17:28:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jjimm \* > \*\*The French territories in/on the Caribbean (Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guyana and one other I can’t remember)… \*\* St. Martin, which is of itself an intersting case. St. Martin and St. Maarten are one island but one part is controlled by France and the other by the Netherlands. Is this the smallest island split between two countries? ---
**Author:** ![Thylacinewas\_taken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@Thylacinewas\_taken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thylacinewas_taken)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/31 "2003-08-22T18:21:52Z")
I can’t think of any other countries. There is the German Bundesland (I don’t know what they’re called in English, but it’s something that’s not a province and not a state) of Bremen which is in two seperated parts - the city of Bremen and maybe 50km away Bremerhaven, which is on the ocean. ---
**Author:** ![syncrolecyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@syncrolecyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/syncrolecyne)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/32 "2003-08-22T18:53:49Z")
Until 1967 or so, central El Paso, TX had a lump of Mexican territory (Cordova Island or Chamizal)that was surrounded by United States territory. [http://www.texasfreeway.com/elpaso/historic/road\_maps/images/1966\_elpaso\_enco\_highres.jpg](http://www.texasfreeway.com/elpaso/historic/road_maps/images/1966_elpaso_enco_highres.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/33 "2003-08-22T19:40:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jjimm \* > \*\*See conversation between **yojimbo** and **Aro** earlier on in the thread! \*\* God dammit! Sorry, folks. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/34 "2003-08-22T21:22:54Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > \*\*[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!) \*\* Holy crap, that’s cool. [This one](http://rz-home.de/%7Emhaertel/baarle2002/dia.cgi?33) is my favorite: “Whose cultural center _is_ it?” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/35 "2003-08-22T22:06:02Z")
With respect to Baarle-Nassau, it wouldn’t have been a problem even befor the EU. The Netherlands and Belgium have already had a border union (the Benelux, with Luxemburg as well) since 1944. (see [the official site](http://www.benelux.be), for those who can read Dutch or French). The [Baarle-Nassau](http://www.baarle-nassau.nl/index.php?p=410000) official site mentions that all official organizations are in fact available in duplo (such as police, post office etc.). ---
**Author:** ![The\_Griffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a87d85/32.png) [@The\_Griffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Griffin)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/36 "2003-08-22T22:10:00Z")
I think Turkey is a good one. Nobody can argue with that. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900/37 "2003-08-25T11:00:29Z")
No, **tanstaafl** , there are other, smaller, islands split between countries: [http://users.erols.com/jcalder/DIVIDEDV1.htm](http://users.erols.com/jcalder/DIVIDEDV1.htm) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-contiguous-countries-in-the-world-besides-the-us/196900.md?page=1)