# How many countries can you name? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 16, 2007, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153 "2007-03-16T04:20:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**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:** [March 17, 2007, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/41 "2007-03-17T02:11:28Z")
I’m embarrassed to say I only got 77. I’ve lived in Europe, Asia and Africa and worked for the Foreign Service for 12 years! I would have done better 10 years ago, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Secret\_Volcano\_Lair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Secret\_Volcano\_Lair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Secret_Volcano_Lair)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/42 "2007-03-17T02:47:13Z")
I got 90. I can’t believe I forgot Belgium! ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/43 "2007-03-17T03:19:27Z")
I got 83, and forgot a bunch of South American, Eastern European, Asian, and tiny countries. Roughly a third of the countries I missed I had on the tip of my tongue. I’m going to try again and see what I get. Got 100, and missed 8 that I had the first time. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/44 "2007-03-17T03:35:50Z")
In my World Civ class we have been taking geography quizzes, and so at the moment I can accurately place pretty much every country in Europe, Asia, and Africa on a map… (as well as whatever other things I happen to know, but those I know down cold) so I clicked on the link and started typing in countries… I had done about 30 before I realized that I was bored silly and that this wasn’t how I wanted to spend 10 minutes of my Friday night, so I stopped. Heh. Does this mean I have to turn in my geek badge? ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/45 "2007-03-17T03:43:11Z")
I got 84, even after not noticing that the clock was ticking for almost a half a minute. I’ll agree with the spelling gripes; it didn’t accept Phillipines - took Holland instead of the Netherlands - didn’t accept Congo at all! And there’s two of 'em! And how the fuck does _anybody_ spell HKhahzhahkhhshthahnh? ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/46 "2007-03-17T03:44:14Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] Does this mean I have to turn in my geek badge? [/QUOTE] [ol] [li]Yes[/li][li]Of course[/li][li]Hi Opal[/li][/ol] ---
**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/47 "2007-03-17T03:46:53Z")
I can name thousands of countries. Unfortunately, no accepts my authority to name countries, and they keep insisting on calling themselves by the silly names the people in that area think should be used. Foreigners! pah. Tris ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/48 "2007-03-17T04:11:45Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > didn’t accept Congo at all! That’s because ‘Congo’ isn’t a country. There is the Republic of the Congo, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Parker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@Richard\_Parker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Parker)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/49 "2007-03-17T04:14:52Z")
[QUOTE=Captain Carrot] That’s because ‘Congo’ isn’t a country. There is the Republic of the Congo, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [/QUOTE] ETA: Oh, I’m an idiot. Nevermind. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/50 "2007-03-17T04:18:16Z")
[QUOTE=Captain Carrot] That’s because ‘Congo’ isn’t a country. There is the Republic of the Congo, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [/QUOTE] Pshaw. All that typing would have cost me Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, a net gain of one state. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/51 "2007-03-17T04:33:40Z")
[QUOTE=Frank] And how the fuck does _anybody_ spell HKhahzhahkhhshthahnh? [/QUOTE] You mean the country Borat’s from? It’s Kazakhstan. Didn’t even have to look that up. > [@Frank](#): > > it didn’t accept Phillipines That’s because it’s Philippines. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/52 "2007-03-17T04:34:25Z")
[QUOTE=Frank] took Holland instead of the Netherlands [/QUOTE] It took Netherlands for me. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/53 "2007-03-17T04:49:50Z")
I got 90: _Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Dominica, East Timor, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Libya, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Myanmar, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Niger, North Korea, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Rwanda, Serbia, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Zambia, Zimbabwe_ It would not accept Vatican City, Taiwan, Congo, or Democratic Republic of Congo. I started going by region, but then found it more helpful to go by first letter and keep glancing to see what I already had. If I’d had a little more time, I would have thought of some more. But not all that many more… I was about tapped out. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/54 "2007-03-17T04:57:20Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] It took Netherlands for me. [/QUOTE] It wouldn’t take Holland for me, so I wasted time wondering what the hell happened to Holland. I knew there was a Holland when I was in school, wooden shoes, fingers in dikes, windmills, tulips, all that stuff. Phooey. 🙂 I only managed 77. Missed most of Africa and all those new names in the former Soviet Republic. I was inordinately proud to remember Mauritania and Monaco. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/55 "2007-03-17T04:59:32Z")
[QUOTE=Elendil’s Heir] It would not accept Vatican City, Taiwan, Congo, or Democratic Republic of Congo. [/QUOTE] As already mentioned by myself, Vatican City and Taiwan are not United Nations member states. The names the game takes for the two African countries with similar names are “Republic of the Congo” and “Democratic Republic of the Congo.” ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/56 "2007-03-17T05:02:18Z")
Well, what do they know? 😛 I remember touring the UN in the mid-'80s and seeing a big wall map (I think near the Trusteeship Council’s meeting chamber) of “imperialist holdings” or the like (it certainly wasn’t neutral wording, I remember that much), and Puerto Rico was among the highlighted areas. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/57 "2007-03-17T05:04:07Z")
“The” two African countries with similar names? What about Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, and Equatorial Guinea? ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/58 "2007-03-17T05:11:15Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] “The” two African countries with similar names? What about Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, and Equatorial Guinea? [/QUOTE] It could be worse. South America could still have British Guiana, French Guiana and Dutch Guiana. (Dutch Guiana is now Suriname and British Guiana is now Guyana. French Guiana is still French Guiana (that’s where Devil’s Island is.)) ---
**Author:** ![Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alive_At_Both_Ends)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/59 "2007-03-17T09:40:15Z")
I got 89, but lost time, for instance, typing Bosnia-Herzegovina when they wanted “Bosnia \*and \*Herzegovina”. OK, but in that case why does it accept “United States” instead of insisting on “\*The \*United States _of America_”? And so on… I think this game needs a bit more work done on it to make it fairer. In the meantime, I must remember more countries with short names like Chad, Peru or Mali. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2007, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153/60 "2007-03-17T13:25:39Z")
This game has motivated me to memorize every U.N. member country. There are 192, as the page says, so I may not be able to get all the way through, but I’ll sure try. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-can-you-name/396153.md?page=4)