Subdivisions Trivia Quiz

Answer: Europe

Germany is a federal republic with 16 constituent states - three of which (Berlin, Hamburg and Bremen) are city-states. The Free State of Thuringia (Thüringen in German), once part of the German Democratic Republic (DDR), is located in the central-eastern part of the country, directly north of Bavaria - the largest of the German states. Thuringia, on the other hand, is rather small, being only the 11th-largest in area. The state's name comes from the Germanic tribe of the Thuringii, who established a kingdom in its territory in the 5th century AD.

Known as the "green heart of Germany" for its dense forest cover, Thuringia is rich in history and culture, being home to a number of world-renowned universities and associated with seminal figures of German culture such as Johann Sebastian Bach (a native of the state), Friedrich Schiller and Wolfgang Goethe (who both died in Weimar). The state's capital, Erfurt, boasts one of the best-preserved medieval centres in Germany. Thuringia also contains the geographic centre of the Federal Republic.

Answer: Europe

The world's largest country, Russia is a federal republic consisting of 46 oblasts, 21 republics, nine krais, four autonomous okrugs, two federal cities and one autonomous oblast. The Republic of Karelia is located in northwest Russia, between Lake Ladoga and the White Sea; it includes the eastern part of the larger geographical region of Karelia, whose western part lies in Finland. Like all the other Russian republics, Karelia was originally created as a nation-state for an indigenous ethnic minority - in this case, a people speaking a language closely related to Finnish and Estonian. Now, however, ethnic Russians vastly outnumber ethnic Karelians and other minorities.

Karelia is largely covered by conifer forests, and characterized by the presence of thousands of rivers and lakes; it is also rich in mineral resources. It is also known for its rich culture and folklore, which provided most of the material for the "Kalevala", the Finnish national poem. The republic's capital, Petrozavodsk (Petroskoi in Karelian) lies on the western shore of Lake Onega. As its name ("Peter's foundry") suggests, it was founded in 1703, during the reign of Peter I the Great.

Answer: Europe

Spain is a regionalized unitary state consisting of 17 autonomous communities and two autonomous cities (Ceuta and Melilla, both located in Africa). The Principality of Asturias lies in the northwestern part of the country, with a coastline on the Atlantic Ocean. It is a mountainous region with a cool, temperate climate and the plentiful greenery typical of the Cantabrian Coast of northern Spain. The territory takes its name from the Astures, a local Celtic tribe. Since 1386, the heir to the Spanish throne bears the title of Prince or Princess of Asturias.

Once an industrial hub for coal mining and steel production, Asturias has experienced an economic decline since the 1980s. Its beautiful natural landscapes and historic towns, however, have a lot to offer to tourists searching for less crowded destinations. Asturias' capital, Oviedo, boasts a number of medieval buildings, including one UNESCO World Heritage Site, the pre-Romanesque Cámara Santa (Holy Chamber). The territory's largest city, Gijón, is a port located on the Bay of Biscay.

Answer: Asia

Malaysia is a federal constitutional monarchy consisting of 13 states and three federal territories. The state of Sarawak lies in East Malaysia, which includes the northern part of the island of Borneo, as well as the island of Labuan. The largest of the country's states, Sarawak is located to the west of the other Malaysian state of Sabah, and also borders Indonesia and Brunei. Settled over 40,000 years ago, the state is believed to have been named after the chemical element antimony; it is nicknamed the "Land of the Hornbills", large birds that inhabit Sarawak's lush tropical rainforests.

Between 1841 and 1941, Sarawak was ruled by a dynasty of "White Rajahs", whose founder was British explorer James Brooke; it became part of the Malaysian federation in 1963. It is a very ethnically diverse state, home to many different cultures and languages. Its capital and largest city, Kuching, lies at the state's southwestern tip: its name means "cat" in Malay, and the city has adopted the cat as its symbol.

Answer: Asia

India is a federation of 28 states and eight union territories. Located in southwestern India, Karnataka is the country's eighth-largest state by population. Formerly named Mysore State, it was renamed Karnataka (probably meaning "land of black soil" in Tamil) in 1973. It is the only state in southern India to have borders with all the other four states in the region (Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala) - where classical Dravidian languages are spoken. Karnataka's official language, Kannada, is one of India's designated classical languages.

As well as possessing a rich historical and cultural heritage, modern Karnataka is also one of India's most productive and fastest-growing states. Its capital, Bangalore - a metropolis home to over 15 million people - is a thriving technology hub, known as the Silicon Valley of India. Karnataka is also noted for its varied geographical landscape and the rich biodiversity of its forested areas.

Answer: Asia

China is a unitary state divided into 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four municipalities and two special administrative regions. Hubei is an inland province of Central China, whose name means "north of the lake" (Dongting Lake, a flood basin of the Yangtze River). A centre of culture and political power for almost 3,000 years, Hubei is now one of the most economically developed provinces in China. The massive Three Gorges Dam, one of the world's largest power stations, opened in 2003, is located in the west of the province, near the city of Yichang.

Hubei's capital, Wuhan - one of China's most populous cities - rose to international notoriety in early 2020 for being the site where the novel coronavirus that caused the COVID-19 pandemic was first discovered. The city was put on lockdown on January of that year. The province also hosts over 100 universities and other institutions of higher education: Wuhan has one of the world's largest student populations (1.3 million).

Answer: South America

Argentina is a federal republic consisting of 23 provinces and one autonomous city, the capital Buenos Aires. The province of Chubut is located in the southern part of the country, in the region of Patagonia; it is named after the Chubut River, whose name means "transparent" in the indigenous Tehuelche language. Stretching from the Atlantic coast to the Andes, it is one of Argentina's largest provinces in area, though sparsely populated. With a mostly cold, dry climate characterized by strong winds, Chubut Province is also an area of remarkable natural beauty, containing the famed Peninsula Valdés, a nature reserve designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2012.

Chubut's provincial capital. Rawson, is considerably smaller than the province's largest city, Comodoro Rivadavia, located on the coast. Part of the province is also the region known as Y Wladfa ("The Colony"), settled by Welsh colonists in the 1860s. It is now home to a Welsh-Argentine community that includes a small number of speakers of Patagonian Welsh, a dialect distinct from the language spoken in Europe.

Answer: South America

One of the world's largest countries, Brazil is a federation of 26 states and one federal district (the capital, Brasilia). The state of Bahia is located in the Northeast Region of the country, with an extensive coastline on the Atlantic Ocean. It is Brazil's fifth-largest state by area, and the fourth-largest by population; its name means "bay" in archaic Portuguese, a reference to the Bay of All Saints ("Baía de Todos os Santos") that opens on the Atlantic Ocean, partly surrounding the state's capital, Salvador - which many still erroneously call Bahia.

The state of Bahia includes various geographical regions, each with its own distinctive landscape and ecology - such as the Atlantic Forest and part of the arid region known as the "sertão". Founded in 1549, Salvador served as Brazil's first capital until the late 18th century. The city is renowned for its colonial architecture and rich, unique culture that blends West African, Native Indian and European elements: in 1985, its historic centre was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Answer: South America

Chile is a unitary state comprising 16 regions. The Atacama Region lies in the north of the country, occupying the southern part of the Atacama Desert - a natural region known as Norte Chico ("near north"). Most of its rather sparse population is concentrated in two cities, Copiapó (the regional capital) and Vallenar. The region's territory is mostly covered by arid desert- which, however, is rich in mineral deposits (in particular iron and copper), and also home to a number of distinctive animal and plant species - such as the lesser rhea, a flightless bird distantly related to the ostrich and the emu.

Located about 800 km (501 mi) north of the national capital of Santiago, Copiapó lies at the centre of a major mining district. The San José Copper Mine, whose collapse was extensively covered by international media, occurred not far from the city on 5 August 2010: all the 33 miners trapped underground were rescued after 69 days. The Atacama Region is also known for solar power generation, which is facilitated by the uniquely dry, cloudless weather of the desert - one of the driest regions on Earth.

Answer: North America

Mexico is a federation of 31 states plus the capital of Mexico City (Distrito Federal). Located in the northwest of the country, Sonora is one of the states on the US-Mexico border: it primarily borders Arizona, to which it lost about a quarter of its territory with the Gadsden Purchase of 1854. It also has a long coastline on the Gulf of California. while the eastern portion of the state is occupied by the mountains of the Sierra Madre Occidental, part of the American Cordillera. Most of Sonora's territory consists of desert or semi-arid grasslands, and desertification is a major issue in the state as in the rest of northern Mexico. Though Sonora has a long tradition of cattle farming, it is also rich in mineral resources.

Sonora's capital, Hermosillo (formerly Pitic), is located in the centre of the state; it is a major hub for the Mexican automotive industry. The state is famous for its beaches, popular for water sports and fishing. Mexico's largest island, Isla Tiburón (Shark Island), part of the Hermosillo Municipality, is a nature reserve known for its flora and fauna, both marine and terrestrial. Unfortunately, in recent times tourism in Sonora has been negatively affected by gang violence connected to drug trafficking.

Answer: North America

Canada is a federation of ten provinces and three territories. Nunavut ("our land" in Inuktituk) is the most recent of the territories, having been created in 1999 by separating a part of the Northwest Territories in order to provide a self-governing unit for the Inuit population. It is also the largest of Canada's administrative divisions (covering about 21% of the country's total area), and the world's fifth-largest: if it were a sovereign nation, it would rank 15th. On the other hand, it is even more sparsely populated than slightly larger Greenland (which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark). This is not surprising, seen as more than half of Nunavut lies north of the Arctic Circle: mostly covered by tundra vegetation with permafrost underneath, it has a very cold climate with extremely low winter temperatures.

Nunavut comprises most of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, which includes some of the world's largest islands, such as Baffin Island, Victoria Island and Ellesmere Island. The territory's capital, Iqaluit (formerly known as Frobisher Bay), is located on Baffin Island. The territory also contains the world's northernmost continuously inhabited settlement - Alert, a military and weather station located on Ellesmere Island at 82º N.

Answer: Africa

Nigeria is a federal republic comprising 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. Lagos State is located in southwestern Nigeria. Although the smallest in area, it is Nigeria's second-most populous state, whose fast-growing population is mostly concentrated in the eponymous city, the country's former capital. The state borders the Bight of Benin, part of the larger Gulf of Guinea, to the south; it is rich in watercourses, which serve as means of transportation for people and goods. The non-urbanized areas of Lagos State are covered with forests that are home to some rare animal species.

Lagos (Portuguese for "lakes") was capital of Nigeria until December 1991, when the federal capital was moved to the purpose-built city of Abuja. In spite of this loss of status, the city is a thriving financial, commercial and cultural hub, with one of Africa's busiest seaports. Home to over 16 million people, Lagos vies with Cairo, the capital of Egypt, for the title of Africa's most populous city.

Answer: Africa

South Africa is a unitary state divided into nine provinces. Gauteng ("place of gold" in Sotho-Tswana) is located in the northeastern part of the country, on the highland plateau known as the Highveld. Though the smallest in area (accounting for about 1,5% of the country's territory), Gauteng is the most populous of the nine provinces, as it contains Johannesburg, South Africa's largest city, and its administrative capital, Pretoria. It is also the country's only landlocked province, with an average elevation of 1,500 m (4,921) above sea level.

As the meaning of its name suggests, Gauteng is also the wealthiest province, and a major financial hub. Johannesburg, which is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world, is located in the Witwatersrand hills, known for their rich deposits of gold, diamonds and other valuable mineral resources. The largest diamond ever found was mined near the town of Cullinan (near Pretoria), after which it was named.

Answer: Oceania

Australia is a federation comprising six states and ten territories. Located in southeastern Australia, Victoria is one of the five states that lie on the Australian mainland. Named after Queen Victoria, the state was separated from New South Wales in 1851. Though the second-smallest Australian state, it is the one with the second-highest population and the highest density. Most of Victoria's inhabitants are concentrated in the south-central area around Port Phillip Bay. The state has a mainly temperate climate, especially along the coast, and is Australia's second-largest agricultural producer.

Victoria's state capital, and the former seat of the federal government, Melbourne, is Australia's second-largest city. It is a thriving, vibrant metropolis, home to over 5 million people - one-third of which are immigrants - known as a major financial and cultural centre, as well as a Mecca for sports lovers. Other important cities in Victoria are the port city of Geelong and the gold mining centres of Ballarat and Bendigo. Tourism is a major industry in the state, which offers over 2,000 km (1,243 mi) of coastline, the Victorian Alpine region, plenty of vineyards and historic sights.

Answer: Oceania

New Zealand is a unitary state divided into sixteen regions. Otago lies in the southern half of the South Island: it is the country's second-largest region after Canterbury, which is located directly north of it. The name Otago comes from the Māori village of Ōtākou, located near the entrance of Otago Harbour (the natural harbour of Dunedin); the meaning of the name is still unclear, but it is thought to mean "place of red earth". Much of Otago's territory consists of high alpine mountains, with many rivers that form glacial lakes. The region's climate is continental in the central areas, with cold winters and dry, hot summers, while coastal areas tend to be cooler and wetter.

Otago's regional capital and main city, Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island. It was given the Scottish Gaelic name of Edinburgh ("fort of Edin") by Charles Kettle, the city's surveyor, who was inspired by the Scottish capital in his town planning. Otago's economy is based on both manufacture and farming; Central Otago is known for its vineyards.