# Most obscure country for its size **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 11, 2012, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716 "2012-12-11T17:25:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![GreenElf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@GreenElf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenElf)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/41 "2012-12-11T23:03:09Z")
Greenland, or even Canada isn’t in the news too often, usually with regards to US relations or border issues. Most people don’t know much about Australia beyond that it has kangaroos, the Aussie accents, and is the homeland of AC/DC. Most people don’t know much about Russia, China or India for that matter. How many people know who’s the president of each of those countries? ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/42 "2012-12-11T23:08:13Z")
> [@GreenElf](#): > > Most people don’t know much about Australia beyond that it has kangaroos, the Aussie accents, and is the homeland of AC/DC. What do you mean, it is not like depicted in the Outback Steakhouse commercials? They don’t “put another shrimp on the bah-bie”? ---
**Author:** ![cougar58](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@cougar58](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cougar58)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/43 "2012-12-11T23:09:32Z")
Greenland when is the last time there was a bombing there, or any terrorist act? No protests…No police chases…no scandals…yet it is huge ---
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/44 "2012-12-11T23:53:21Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > What do you mean, it is not like depicted in the Outback Steakhouse commercials? They don’t “put another shrimp on the bah-bie”? well we do have lots of barbies but they aren’t shrimps they are prawns. I think we have a winner with the central African whatever place. ---
**Author:** ![gracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@gracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gracer)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/45 "2012-12-11T23:56:19Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > Honestly, if you think Brazil or Indonesia is in any sense obscure, that’s a statement about _you_. I’m sorry to say it, and I realise that people might be exposed to different angles of the news, but this is absolutely true. If you don’t hear about Brazil or Indonesia with some regularity (say, at least once a month, I’m being very charitable) you live under a rock. I’ll go with Kyrgyzstan. I can’t really picture it. The others, I can usually picture _something_. Be it yurts, or starving African children, or crazy revolutions, or nature and animals, or people eating rice with their hands, or embassies being blown up, or floods, or drought, or angry bearded men. But Kyrgyzstan gives me nothing. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/46 "2012-12-12T00:00:18Z")
I did my masters research on road bandits in CAR. If you ever want to know about it, just ask. I vote for Uruguay. When was the last time you thought about Uruguay? ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/47 "2012-12-12T00:06:29Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > When was the last time you thought about Uruguay? July 2010. ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/48 "2012-12-12T00:18:09Z")
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire) makes the news every time Joseph Kony and the [Lord’s Resistance Army](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord's_Resistance_Army) flares up. The DRC along with Uganda, South Sudan, and the Central African Republic are the countries affected. Kony was the subject of the Kony 2012 viral video that scored tens of millions of YouTube views. Additionally the DRC shows when there is an Ebola virus outbreak. The most virulent strain of Ebola is even named Ebola - Zaire. As for obscure, try Vanuatu. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/49 "2012-12-12T00:21:10Z")
On one of my recent Megabus trips, I spent ten hours talking to a very nice Mongolian doctor. She was married to a diplomat, the Mongolian Ambassador to Laos. She had trained in medicine in the Soviet Union, and we spent a while talking about Mongolia’s transition to a market economy. She felt [Bodrov’s film _Mongol_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_%28film%29) was one of the few fair treatments of Genghis Khan. On preview: What was the wife on an ambassador doing on a bus? Mongolia is not exactly a rich country. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/50 "2012-12-12T00:26:07Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire). A big country with a lot of people and problems but rarely heard from in world events: > > [Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Republic_of_the_Congo): “It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world. With a population of over 71 million, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the nineteenth most populous nation in the world, the fourth most populous nation in Africa, as well as the most populous officially Francophone country.” Maybe there’s a divide between how Europeans get news and Americans but DRC is always in the news. It was the site of [Africa’s Great War](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Congo_War) and when known as Zaire was hardly obscure compared to many other African nations. Granted it punches far, far, far below its population/land area weight than it should but it’s not obscure by any means, from the perspective of Ireland at least. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/51 "2012-12-12T00:35:10Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > Maybe there’s a divide between how Europeans get news and Americans but DRC is always in the news. It was the site of [Africa’s Great War](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Congo_War) and when known as Zaire was hardly obscure compared to many other African nations. Granted it punches far, far, far below its population/land area weight than it should but it’s not obscure by any means, from the perspective of Ireland at least. Yes, I would agree with your and **Iggy** ’s assessment of the DRC. I do think it is a result of our news sources in the US. One really has to explore or be interested in exploring in order to learn about such places. Also, if it does not have oil, or islamic terrorists, or other economic interests, places like the DRC get very little coverage in the news here. And, Vanuatu is tiny, but was made less obscure in the US via _[Survivor: Vanuatu](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivor:_Vanuatu)_. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/52 "2012-12-12T01:57:34Z")
> [@cougar58](#): > > Greenland when is the last time there was a bombing there, or any terrorist act? No protests..No police chases…no scandals…yet it is huge Greenland is big, but not as big as it looks on most maps. An [equal-area projection](http://odt.org/Pictures/sidea.jpg) cuts Greenland down to size while coincidentally giving pride of place smack-dab in the middle to… yes, the Central African Republic! 😃 Although having said that, Chad is much bigger than the CAR and doesn’t seem to get much air time. Also, if we’re being picky, Greenland isn’t a country. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/53 "2012-12-12T02:38:07Z")
> [@gracer](#): > > I’m sorry to say it, and I realise that people might be exposed to different angles of the news, but this is absolutely true. If you don’t hear about Brazil or Indonesia with some regularity (say, at least once a month, I’m being very charitable) you live under a rock. It’s not that Brazil or Indonesia are incredibly obscure countries. But they are gigantic countries with vast territories and large populations, and they don’t make the news very often compared to, say, Canada, or Greece or Serbia. Considering that Brazil is 20 times larger than countries you hear about in the news every day, you don’t hear a lot about Brazil in the news. It under-performs news-wise. ---
**Author:** ![RadicalPi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/radicalpi/32/9806_2.png) [@RadicalPi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RadicalPi)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/54 "2012-12-12T02:51:58Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > Honestly, if you think Brazil or Indonesia is in any sense obscure, that’s a statement about _you_. Brazil is plenty obscure _for its size_. It has 193 million people, an area of 3.3 million square miles, and it’s the world’s seventh largest economy at $2.5 trillion. Given that you maybe hear about Brazil once or twice a month, that’s pretty obscure. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/55 "2012-12-12T03:31:56Z")
> [@GreenElf](#): > > Greenland, or even Canada isn’t in the news too often, usually with regards to US relations or border issues. > … > How many people know who’s the president of each of those countries? Ahem. Canada does not have a president. We have a Queen. ---
**Author:** ![Telperion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telperion/32/509_2.png) [@Telperion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperion)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/56 "2012-12-12T03:46:38Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Ahem. Canada does not have a president. We have a Queen. So does Greenland, as it happens. On pretty much the same terms, too. Anyway, Papua New Guinea is pretty big and I don’t think I could mention a single fact about it even if my life depended on it. I don’t even know why they gave it that name. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/57 "2012-12-12T03:47:21Z")
Niger is really big in land area. Can you even name a city in it? ---
**Author:** ![GreenElf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@GreenElf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenElf)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/58 "2012-12-12T03:49:24Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Ahem. Canada does not have a president. We have a Queen. Well, there you go. I’m probably fairly typical for an American (that is, citizen of the USA) in my ignorance of Canadian politics. Who’s your prime minister? Who’s the president of Mexico for that matter? I know it was Vicente Fox at some point. I used to have the names of most world leaders memorized when I was in high school, but haven’t kept updated. There’s basically a news blackout in the US of Canadian and Mexican news unless it involves NHL hockey or drug gang-related violence. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/59 "2012-12-12T04:04:50Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Neighboring Chad is much more obscure. Boy, they wouldn’t stop going on about it back during the 2000 Presidential election, though. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716/60 "2012-12-12T04:18:02Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > But apart from brutal empire-builders, innovative tent designs and top sumo wrestlers, what have the Mongolians ever done for us? > [@billfish678](#): > > BBQ? > [@tdn](#): > > Hoards. Koomis. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-obscure-country-for-its-size/643716.md?page=4)