X Marks the Spot Trivia Quiz

Answer: Tibet

The name "Tibet" by which the Chinese autonomous region of Tibet is known in the West is of Turkic origin, and means "the heights" - a fitting handle for a region covering most of the Tibetan Plateau, whose average elevation is 4,500 m (14,800 ft), and surrounded by some of the world's highest mountains. The Chinese name "Xizang", coined in the early 19th century, means "western Tsang" (Tsang being one of the three traditional provinces of Tibet); the people of Tibet, however, call their land "Bod". Tibet's capital, Lhasa, is one of the highest cities in the world, with an elevation of about 3,650 m (12,001 ft) above sea level.

The Tibetan Plateau has been inhabited for over 20,000 years. In the 8th century AD it was the seat of an empire that encompassed large parts of Central Asia, and stretched south to the Bay of Bengal. Tibet was annexed by the People's Republic of China in 1950, and since then the region has been in an almost constant state of unrest. Tibet's last head of state before the annexation, the 14th Dalai Lama (Tenzin Gyatso), was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.

Answer: Uyghurs

Located directly north of Tibet, Xinjiang (formerly known as Sinkiang or Chinese Turkestan, and officially as Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region) is China's largest province-level division. In ancient times, this vast territory of mountains and deserts was crossed by the Silk Road, whose legacy is still present to this day. The Tian Shan mountain range divides the region in two halves, the Dzungarian Basin in the north, and the Tarim Basin (largely occupied by the Taklamakan Desert) in the south. Xinjiang's capital, Ürümqi, was a major hub on the Silk Road in the Early Middle Ages, and is now home to about 4 million people.

In 1954, the Uyghurs were officially recognized by the government of China as one of the nation's ethnic and regional minorities. Most Uyghurs are Muslim, and speak a Turkic language related to Uzbek. The Uyghur population in Xinjiang amounts to about 12 million; about 80% of them are concentrated in the Tarim Basin, where they have lived for centuries. Sadly, this people of ancient origin have been subjected to restrictions and police surveillance by the Chinese government since 2014 (apparently under suspicion of religious extremism), and large numbers of Uyghurs are detained in "re-education" camps, where they endure various forms of abuse. There is also growing concern about alleged attempts at eradicating the people altogether through forced sterilization, contraception, and abortion - allegations that the Chinese government has always denied.

The Manchus and Tatars are also among the 56 officially recognized ethnic minorities in China, while the Sherpas of Tibet are still unrecognized.

Answer: Xi'an

A metropolis home to almost 10 million people, Xi'an (formerly called by many different names, the best-known of which is Chang'an) is the capital of Shaanxi Province, and the most populous city in Northwest China. Its current name, adopted in the 14th century during the Ming Dynasty, means "Western Peace". The city was founded in the 11th century BC, and at one point in its history, during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD) became the largest city in the world. Formerly the eastern starting point of the Silk Road, Xi'an has kept many of its historical monuments, which include the 14th-century city wall, the early medieval Giant and Small Wild Goose Pagodas, many temples and museums, and the Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of unified China, with its famed Terracotta Army (a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987).

Most "X" places are located in China, as the sound transcribed as X in the Roman alphabet (halfway between "s" and "sh" in English) is very common in Chinese. The three cities listed as wrong answers are found in the provinces of Fuijan (Xiamen), Qinghai (Xining), and Henan (Xuchang).

Answer: Malta

Formerly called by the Italian name of Casal Caccia, Xaghra (pronounced "shara") is one of Malta's 68 administrative units ("kunsilli locali"). Located in the northeastern part of Gozo, the second-largest island in the Maltese archipelago, it is probably the oldest inhabited part of the island - home to a Neolithic funerary complex known as Xaghra Stone Circle, and the megalithic temples of Ġgantija ("giantess"). The town of Xaghra lies on the coast, and is a popular tourist attraction - not only on account of its cultural heritage, but also for the beach of Ramla Bay, with its reddish-orange sand and a cave named after Calypso, the nymph who became Odysseus' lover in "The Odyssey".

The temples of Ġgantija are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Megalithic Temples of Malta", added to the list in 1980.

Answer: Siegfried

Located in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Xanten - the only German town whose name begins with "X" - lies on the Lower Rhine, near the border with the Netherlands. Founded by the Romans around 15 BC as a fortified military base ("castrum") with the name of Vetera, in 110 AD it was given the rights of a colony by emperor Trajan, renamed "Colonia Ulpia Traiana", and rebuilt from scratch. The name "Xanten" (from Latin "sanctos", meaning "place of saints") dates from the Early Middle Ages. In the late 19th century and before WWII, Xanten was associated with various anti-Semitic acts, which eventually led to the flight of the whole of the town's Jewish population. Severely damaged during the war, the medieval centre of Xanten, including the cathedral (dedicated to local saint and martyr St Victor), has been thoroughly restored. A large archaeological open-air museum, one of the world's largest, was built on the site of the original Roman settlement, and opened in 1977.

In the 12th-century Middle High German epic "Nibelungenlied", Siegfried is the son and heir of the king of Xanten, Siegmund, and his queen, Sieglind. In Richard Wagner's Ring Cycle, however, the story of Siegfried is mostly based on the Norse tradition, in which the hero is called Sigurd.

Answer: Somalia

With an elevation of 2,380 m (7,708 ft), Xaubub is the fourth-highest peak in the Ogo Mountains ("Buuraha Oogo" in Somali), also known as Galgodon Highlands. This range is located in the region of Sanaag, part of Somaliland, a de facto state that is, however, recognized internationally as part of Somalia. The highest peak in Somalia, Mount Shimbiris, is located about 2 km (1.2 mi) to the west of Xaubub. The Ogo Mountains, which are of volcanic origin, lie parallel to the coastal plain on the Gulf of Aden, and have a semi-arid climate with moderate temperatures. The flora of this highland region includes trees that are sources of frankincense and myrrh, fragrant resins that were highly prized in antiquity; the highlands are also home to many endemic animal species.

Shaped like a tilted number 7, Somalia boasts 3,333 km (2, 071 mi) of coastline on the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean - more than twice as long as Tanzania, and six times as long as Kenya. Ethiopia has been landlocked since 1993, when Eritrea became independent.

Answer: Portugal

Home to over 100,000 people, Xai-Xai (pronounced "shai-shai") is the capital of the Gaza Province of Mozambique. It lies near the coast of the Indian Ocean, on the eastern bank of the River Limpopo. The city was called Vila João Belo by the Portuguese, but its name was changed to Xai-Xai after Mozambique's independence from Portugal in 1975.

In addition to its importance as a port and an industrial and agricultural centre (particularly as regards the production of rice and cashew nuts), Xai-Xai attracts many tourists with its bustling atmosphere and the beach located about 12 km (7.4 miles) from the city; the large coral reef that runs parallel to the shore is a popular destination for snorkeling. A huge rock pool on the beach (called Praia de Xai-Xai in Portuguese), which fills at medium and low tides, provides a safe swimming environment for both children and adults.

Answer: chili pepper

Xalapa (officially Xalapa-Enriquez) is also known as Jalapa; its name means "spring in the sand" in Classical Nahuatl, the language spoken by the Aztecs. In pre-Hispanic times, it was a smallish settlement, which grew in size and importance after the Spanish conquest. In the 18th century, the city rose to prominence as a centre of trade for the products of the region - such as the medicinal drug known in English as "jalap", a powerful cathartic extracted from the plant Ipomoea purga. In the 19th century, Xalapa's climate and landscape were praised by German scientist Alexander von Humboldt and future US President Ulysses S. Grant. The city is now home to over 100,000 people, as well as a number of important cultural institutions. It has been the capital of the state of Veracruz, in eastern Mexico, since 1885.

Xalapa's main claim to fame are the chili peppers named "jalapeños" (meaning "from Xalapa"), an essential ingredient of Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisine. They are usually picked and eaten when still green, but will turn red, orange, or yellow if allowed to ripen on the plant.

Answer: canals

Xochimilco is one of the 16 boroughs ("demarcaciones territoriales") of Mexico City, home to over 400,000 people. Established in 1828, it occupies the area of a former pre-Hispanic city that bore the same name - meaning "flower field" in Nahuatl. The city was located on the shore of Lake Xochimilco, whose remnants are the canals created by artificial islands called "chinampas". Colourful boats float on these waterways, carrying tourists from all over the world. The waters of the canals are home to the salamander known by the Nahuatl name of "axolotl", which the Aztecs believed to be the incarnation of the god Xolotl, brother of Quetzalcoatl.

Together with the Historic Centre of Mexico City, Xochimilco was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1987. Unfortunately, the canals are plagued by a number of environmental problems caused by pollution, overpopulation, and invasive species (mainly introduced fish). Many of the "chinampas" have deteriorated, and the remaining ones are being used to grow ornamental plants rather than for agricultural purposes as they were in the past. The best-known of these floating islands is the somewhat macabre "Island of the Dolls" ("Isla de las Muñecas"), often featured on sites and shows dedicated to weird and haunted places.

Answer: Amazon

One of the Amazon's southeast tributaries, the Xingu flows northward from the Brazilian Highlands through the states of Mato Grosso and Pará. With a length of at least 1,640 km (1,019 mi), it is one of the world's 100 longest rivers, and accounts for about 5% of the water flowing through the huge Amazon Basin. In the early 1960, Brazil's first Indigenous Park was established within the river basin, within which 14 tribes live. However, the Brazilian government also built the huge Belo Monte hydroelectric dam - one of the world's largest - on the Lower Xingu, in the northern part of the state of Pará. Completed in November 2019, the dam's construction was fraught with controversy, and has had a negative impact on the environment of the river basin - especially in terms of loss of biodiversity.

Though all the rivers listed as wrong answers are among the largest in the world in terms of discharge, the massive volume of water discharged by the Amazon into the Atlantic Ocean is about 5 times that of the Congo, the second-largest. Just to put things into perspective, it is estimated that the Amazon accounts for about 15-16% of the total river water discharged into the world's oceans.