States of South Sudan Trivia Quiz

Answer: Lol

Lol is indeed the state we're looking for. I doubt very much if the state was named after the internet abbreviation, but one may feel inclined to make the link.
When South Sudan gained independence in 2011, the country counted only ten states. In 2015 the state of Western Bahr el Ghazal was divided in the states Wau and Lol, and some former counties of Aweil were incorporated into Lol.
Lol is divided into 11 counties. The state capital of Lol is the most populous city, named Raga.
Fyn is a Danish island. Nice is a French city (by the way, the city name rhymes with "miss" and not with "mice"). Chuckwalla is a Canadian river.

Answer: Aweil East

Before 2015, there were five counties carrying the name of the city Aweil and a rough geographical denomination. The counties Aweil South and Aweil West were almost on the same latitude. To the north of the counties Aweil West and Aweil South were (from west to east, almost in a straight line) the counties Aweil North, Aweil Central and Aweil East.
When the South Sudanese president announced the formation of 28 states, the former counties Aweil South and Aweil West were merged into the state of Aweil. The previous counties Aweil North and Aweil Central were incorporated in the state of Lol. And the former county Aweil East was upgraded to a state - exactly to the north of Aweil State, oddly enough.
The states Aweil and Aweil East created in 2015 plus the former counties Aweil North and Aweil Central formed the state Northern Bahr el Ghazal between 2011 and 2015.
Aweil state has the eponymous city as state capital. Aweil East has the state capital Wanyjok. Both these South Sudanese states are divided into eight counties plus the capital municipality.

Answer: Eastern Lakes

Between 2011 and 2015, the most central state of South Sudan was named Lakes, with the state capital of Rumbek. In 2015 this former state was split into three new states: Western Lakes (including Rumbek), Eastern Lakes and Gok (state capital Cueibet).
The state of Eastern Lakes is divided into eleven counties, dominated by the city of Yirol adjacent to the eponymous lake. Yirol is also the state capital. Fishing and agriculture are the main economic activities in Eastern Lakes.
Most lakes in South Sudan have been formed by flooding of the White Nile, the most important river flowing through the country.
The red herrings are English translations of various other locations. Great River is the translation for the American river and state Mississippi. Fragrant Harbour is a literal translation of the Chinese city Hong Kong. And Whale Bay is the English translation of the Namibian city Walvisbaai.

Answer: Jubek

Juba is the largest city and the state capital of the Jubek state. Jubek lies on the White Nile, quite near the southern frontier of South Sudan.
Juba was founded in 1922 by Greek merchants (not the most obvious people to take part in African history). It served as a transportation hub until two long wars all but destroyed the roads to Juba.
Between 2011 and 2015 Juba was the capital of the state Central Equatoria. In 2015, this former state was divided into three states, namely (from north to south) Terekaka, Jubek and Yei River.
Yap is one of the states of Micronesia. Jura is a French department and the eponymous mountain range. Yangon is a region in Myanmar.

Answer: Boma

Boma is one of the South Sudanese states bordering Ethiopia. Before 2015 the state of Jonglei was the largest South Sudanese state (both in area and in population), but in 2015 this state was split into Jonglei, Boma, Western Bieh (which meanwhile has adopted the new name Fangak) and Eastern Bieh (which shortened since 2015 its name to simply Bieh, because of the new name adopted by former Western Bieh).
The state capital of Boma is Pibor. Another city of some importance in Boma state is Pochalla, straddling the border with Ethiopia.
The Congolese harbour Boma lies about 100 km from the Atlantic Ocean and was Congo's capital between 1886 and 1926.
Pattaya is a Thai harbour. Mokka is a port in Yemen. Jaffa is a harbour in Israel. None of these red herrings have a South Sudanese state as namesake.

Answer: Ethiopia

South Sudan has six neighbour countries. To the east of South Sudan lies Ethiopia, bordering (from north to south) the states of Eastern Nile, Latjoor, Eastern Bieh, Boma and Namorunyang.
The states of Latjoor and Eastern Nile are two of the three states created out of the former state Upper Nile (the state belonging to former Upper Nile and not bordering Ethiopia is Western Nile, in 2016 renamed Fashoda).
The red herrings Egypt, Eritrea and Equatorial Guinea do not border South Sudan.

Answer: Kenya

Namorunyang is a state in the south-eastern corner of South Sudan. The state capital is Kapoeta.
Namorunyang borders Ethiopia and Kenya. But the border with Kenya is ill-defined: the Ilemi triangle is claimed by both countries. If it were attributed finally to South Sudan, the border with Kenya would be a straight line parallel to the Equator in the east, and a smaller straight diagonal line in the west.
In 2015 the state of Eastern Equatoria was split into the states of Namorunyang and Imatong.
The red herrings are not at all in Africa: Kosovo is in Europe, Kyrgyzstan in Asia and Kiribati in the Pacific Ocean.

Answer: Sudan

Well, which country could be the northern neighbour of South Sudan? Logically it has to be Sudan, before 2011 the largest African country (in area).
South Sudan declared its independence from Sudan on July 9, 2011, exactly six years after gaining a form of autonomous rule within Sudan.
Ruweng state is a smaller state in South Sudan. Between 2011 and 2015 Ruweng, Northern Liech and Southern Liech were all comprised in the state Unity. Ruweng's state capital is Pariang.

Answer: Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of Congo

South Sudan borders in the west to the Central African Republic and in the south to a trio of countries: Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and Kenya. The northern neighbour of South Sudan is Sudan, while Ethiopia lies directly to the east of South Sudan.
None of the South Sudanese states border on more than two countries. Only a few of the 28 South Sudanese states have two neighbouring countries: Lol borders the Central African Republic and Sudan, Eastern Nile borders Sudan and Ethiopia, Namorunyang borders Ethiopia and Kenya, Yei River borders Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and finally Gbudwe borders the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Gbudwe is one of the larger South Sudanese states, with the state capital Yambio. Together with the states of Maridi and Amadi this state emerged in 2015 from the split of the former state Western Equatoria.
Neither of the red herrings border South Sudan. Two of the red herrings border no country at all: Cape Verde and the Comoros are island states. 

Answer: Twic

The area around the city Abyei was rich in oil, and thus an area of major economic importance. That's the core of a border dispute between Sudan and South Sudan about this relatively small area (10,546 square kilometres). There are indications that the oil reserves are nearly exhausted, but the strife remains.
If we consider the Abyei area as a separate region, it would border the South Sudan states Aweil East, Twic and Ruweng, with the major part of the border touching the state of Twic.
Twic state is the smallest of the South Sudanese states. The state capital was established in Mayen Abun, although a large number of the inhabitants protested against this decision.
Between 2011 and 2015, Twic together with the states of Gogrial and Tonj were included in the state of Warrap.
The red herrings are names of African lakes. Lake Tritriva, the least known of these red herrings, is situated on the island of Madagascar.