South American Capitals Quiz
The smallest set in the game, and the one most worth finishing: twelve countries, two territories, and a handful of stories that make every answer stick.
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Fourteen questions and you are done
South America has only twelve sovereign countries, fewer than any inhabited continent, which makes this the one region a person can genuinely finish learning in an afternoon. Add French Guiana and the Falkland Islands and the whole set is fourteen questions. Nine of them are the capital and largest city of their country, so they behave the way you expect. The interesting part is the other five.
Bolivia has two capitals, and the quiz answer is the less famous one. Sucre is the constitutional capital and the seat of the judiciary. La Paz is the seat of the government and the legislature, and it is much larger, much higher and much better known. Bolivia's own constitution names Sucre, so Sucre is the answer here. La Paz, at roughly 3,640 metres, is the highest seat of government in the world.
Brasilia: a capital built in the middle of nowhere on purpose
Rio de Janeiro was the capital of Brazil for nearly two centuries, and the idea of moving inland had been discussed since the 1820s. It finally happened under president Juscelino Kubitschek, who committed to building a new capital in a single presidential term. Brasilia was laid out by Lucio Costa and its major buildings designed by Oscar Niemeyer, and it was inaugurated in April 1960 after roughly four years of construction on empty highland savanna. The intention was to pull population and investment away from the crowded Atlantic coast and into the interior. It is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, listed for its modernist urban design, and one of very few twentieth century cities on that list.
The five that catch people out
| Country | Capital | Common wrong answer |
|---|---|---|
| Bolivia | Sucre | La Paz |
| Brazil | Brasilia | Rio de Janeiro or Sao Paulo |
| Ecuador | Quito | Guayaquil |
| French Guiana | Cayenne | Treated as part of Suriname or Guyana |
| Guyana | Georgetown | Confused with George Town in the Cayman Islands |
Ecuador is the quiet one. Guayaquil is the largest city and the main port, and Quito, in a valley at about 2,850 metres in the Andes, is the capital and the second highest capital city in the world after La Paz. Both Quito's and Brasilia's historic centres are on the UNESCO list, for opposite reasons: one for being extraordinarily well preserved from the sixteenth century, the other for being extraordinarily new.
The three Guianas
The north east shoulder of the continent holds three territories that most people cannot separate. Guyana, formerly British Guiana, is independent and English speaking, with its capital at Georgetown. Suriname, formerly Dutch Guiana, is independent and Dutch speaking, with its capital at Paramaribo. French Guiana is not independent at all: it is an overseas department of France, which makes it part of the European Union, gives it the euro as its currency, and makes Cayenne the capital of a French department rather than of a country. The European Space Agency launches from Kourou, a little along the coast.
The fourteenth entry is Stanley, the capital of the Falkland Islands, a British overseas territory whose sovereignty Argentina disputes. As with every contested entry in this game, we give the seat of government actually in use and say plainly that the status is disputed, rather than leaving the reader to guess what our silence means.
Frequently asked questions
What is the capital of Bolivia?
Sucre is the constitutional capital and the answer used here. La Paz is the seat of government and the legislature, and is far larger, which is why most people answer La Paz.
Why is Brasilia the capital of Brazil?
Brasilia was built from nothing on the central highlands and inaugurated in 1960, replacing Rio de Janeiro. The aim was to draw population and investment inland from the crowded Atlantic coast.
How many countries are there in South America?
Twelve sovereign countries. This set has fourteen questions because it also includes French Guiana, an overseas department of France, and the Falkland Islands.
What is the highest capital city in the world?
La Paz in Bolivia, at roughly 3,640 metres, is the highest seat of government. Quito in Ecuador, at about 2,850 metres, is the second highest capital.
More Guess the Capital sets
- African capitals59 countries and territories, including the ones whose capital is not the biggest city.
- European capitals60 entries including the microstates, the four UK nations and the awkward cases.
- Asian capitals49 entries, including the purpose-built capitals and the ones that changed name recently.
- North America and the Caribbean43 entries, most of them islands, and the ones with two capitals on one island.
- Oceania and the Pacific27 island nations and territories, including a country with no official capital.
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