Visited Countries

select in the table below the countries you have been to and click go.

world
by valentina zagra

Geography
by George
Isn't wonderful to be human !! The practical and the theoretical side don't always seem to mix. Many appear to need a few more classes in geography, both social and political. However, this is a good learning exercise for many. If you are filling this in to impress your friends, aren't you the one who is losing out? A world traveller does not need to impress, but learns as (s)he travels. Great undertakking !!

Geography
by George
Isn't wonderful to be human !! The practical and the theoretical side don't always seem to mix. Many appear to need a few more classes in geography, both social and political. However, this is a good learning exercise for many. If you are filling this in to impress your friends, aren't you the one who is losing out? A world traveller does not need to impress, but learns as (s)he travels. Great undertakking !!

but....
by Pamela
where are the Canary Islands? You have the CHannel Islands, which are far smaller, but not the Canaries!

Cook Islands listed twice
by Paul in Japan
The Cook Islands are listed twice, once by themselves and once with Rarotonga.

comment_6
by Rachel
Am I a fool or where is England?

Turkey? I do not see it. It's Asia
by Jakob
great idea for a site. nice feature to post on one's own site, thanks for offering this great free service. really appreciated

This is for Rachel
by Jim
Rachel

England is not a country! It's part of the United Kingdom (which is correctly listed!)

question
by
This site is a great idea. I was wondering, as one visits more countries, is it possible to add those countries to the map without having to go through the entire checklist again?

antarctica's not a country, but ...
by brien
I know it's not a country, but some of us have visited the seventh continent (Antarctica) and it would be cool to tick that one off, too. Thanks

Travelers Century Club
by Terry
Here is a link to a website that has always been a reliable source for a country list. Obviously there is plenty of room for discussion in any case.
http://www.travelerscenturyclub.org/

isn't hongkong a country?
by Croix de Bough
well, i've been to hongkong , and from what i know it's a country, so please put t on the list.
Thank You!

United Kingdom
by code6
The United Kingdom is comprised of four territories, not countries -- England, Northern Ireland, Wales & Scotland.

Hong Kong
by code6
Hong Kong is a territory under the PRC (People's Republic of China). It was under British rule for 99 years (1997 ended).

canary islands?
by helen
where are they? tenerife etc?
if you're doing COUNTRIES, you should really have england, wales, scotland and ireland seperatley..

Canary Islands are Spain!
by Spanish
Hey guys, Canary Islands are <b>Spain</b> and Tenerife is just one of the Islands (the capital of the region is not even there, but in Gran Canaria)

You are welcome!

Daniel

Where's Holland?
by Jon
I couldn't see Holland on here. Am i missing something?

comment_18
by
Hong Kong I heard is a really dirty city, but I have never been there.... so I dont know....

Anyone who hasnt been to Berlin, Germany should think about going! Worth it!!! Very colorful and lively....

this is coming from a 15 yr. old... so you might want to check the facts b4 u go...

Holland
by Anna
Holland is actually a state/part of the Netherlands.

For helen
by Claire
Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are principalities of England. They are not countries in their own right. Therefore they are all under the branch United Kingdom.

For helen
by Claire
Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are principalities of England. They are not countries in their own right. Therefore they are all under the branch United Kingdom.

Wales!
by Charlotte
Wales and Scotland have their own governments and should therefore be countries.

Balearics?
by Charlote
Menorca, Mallorca, Ibiza...?

comment_24
by aks
Holland == Netherlands!!!

Is Taiwan really a country?
by Some random student
si Taiwan a real country or it's it a part of great China? help me out-thx

map in facebook
by mark
would it be possible to have such a map embedded in ur facebook personal profile? i think that it would be very interesting if this service and facebook could combine.
Thanks,
Mark.

3%?
by fabiandavid
Generating this visited countries map has shown me for the first time a percentage of the world I know (if I can use the word "know"). Guys, have we got a task to do!

So far so good
by Ash
i would like to travel more

countries within a country
by .
I think that technically England, N. Ireland, Scotland and Wales are countries in the same way that the individual countries of the EU are still "countries".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constituent_country#_note-countries_within_a_country

No, no, NO!
by Sam Roberts
What you're calling 'countries' are technically known as 'states'. There's a lot of debate on what actually constitues statehood, so I won't go into that.

England, Scotland, etc, are NOT principalities. They're probably best described as 'nations'. They certainly aren't states though, as they don't have independence from the United Kingdom, despite Scotland and Wales having their own (limited) parliaments.

Hong Kong a 'dirty city'? Have you ever been to Detroit?

Scotland
by Craig
Scotland and England are two constituent countries of the United Kingdom, They are in fact two independent countries that joined together to form the United Kingdom of Great Britan in 1707, and as such are definitely countries and not states or provinces or any other administrative division. They are defined as such in the act of union 1707.

What Craig Said!
by Rich
Of course England is a country! So is Scotland, however Wales is a principality and the correct full title of when England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (the constituents of the UK) is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Irleand. How could you think that England isn't a country, it ruled a quarter of the globe at one point?

Balearics and Canary Islands
by Rosa
Balearic Islands (Islas Baleares) and Canary Islands (Islas Canarias)are part of Spain, they are just another "Comunidad Automna" of the 17 that Spain is divided on.

Thanks,

Mexico is in North America
by Megan
Mexico is technically in North America, not central America.

Official List
by Anita
This is very cool.I've been looking for this for ages!But the list's not right:(This is the list of the 193 states with general international recognition.Please amend!Also,I think Antarctica should be added (I know it's not a country but it would be nice to see it on there shaded in!):
Afghanistan,Albania,Algeria,Andorra,Angola,Antigua and Barbuda,Argentina,Armenia,Australia,Austria,Azerbaijan,The Bahamas,Bahrain,Bangladesh,Barbados,Belarus,Belgium,Belize,Benin,Bhutan,Bolivia,Bosnia and Herzegovina,Botswana,Brazil,Brunei,Bulgaria,Burkina Faso,Burundi,Cambodia,Cameroon,Canada,Cape Verde,Central African Republic,Chad,Chile,China,Colombia,Comoros,Democratic Republic of the Congo,Republic of the Congo,Costa Rica,Côte d'Ivoire,Croatia,Cuba,Cyprus,Czech Republic,Denmark,Djibouti,Dominica,Dominican Republic,Ecuador,Egypt,El Salvador,Equatorial Guinea,Eritrea,Estonia,Ethiopia,Fiji,Finland,France,Gabon,The Gambia,Georgia,Germany,Ghana,Greece,Grenada,Guatemala,Guinea,Guinea-Bissau,Guyana,Haiti,Honduras,Hungary,Iceland,India,Indonesia,Iran,Iraq,Ireland,Israel,Italy,Jamaica,Japan,JordanKazakhstan,Kenya,Kiribati,Democratic People's Republic of Korea,Republic of Korea,Kuwait,Kyrgyzstan,Laos,Latvia,Lebanon,Lesotho,Liberia,Libya,Liechtenstein,Lithuania,Luxembourg,Macedonia,Madagascar,Malawi,Malaysia,Maldives,Mali,Malta,Marshall Islands,Mauritania,Mauritius,Mexico,Micronesia,Moldova,Monaco,Mongolia,Montenegro,Morocco,Mozambique,Myanmar,Namibia,Nauru,Nepal,Netherlands,New Zealand,Nicaragua,Niger,Nigeria,Norway,Oman,Pakistan,Palau,Panama,Papua New Guinea,Paraguay,Peru,Philippines,Poland,Portugal,Qatar,Romania,Russia,Rwanda,Saint Kitts and Nevis,Saint Lucia,Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,Samoa,San Marino,São Tomé and Príncipe,Saudi Arabia,Senegal,Serbia,Seychelles,Sierra Leone,Singapore,Slovakia,Slovenia,Solomon Islands,Somalia,South Africa,Spain,Sri Lanka,Sudan,Suriname,Swaziland,Sweden,Switzerland,Syria,Tajikistan,Tanzania,Thailand,Timor-Leste,Togo,Tonga,Trinidad and Tobago,Tunisia,Turkey,Turkmenistan,Tuvalu,Uganda,Ukraine,United Arab Emirates,United Kingdom,United States,Uruguay,Uzbekistan,Vanuatu,Vatican City,Venezuela,Vietnam,Yemen,Zambia,Zimbabwe.

Excellent tool
by J. P. Milne
Just ignore the 'England is a country' debate above - your list is correct.
The only inaccuracy is where you say '...and sets the colors of those countries to red, the rest to green'. In my map, the rest are white.

Pays Visités
by Marc Colliard

HK and Taiwan are not countries
by Jenny
Hong Kong and Taiwan are a part of China.

England is a part of the UK.

please don't be as ignorant and George W Bush.

MONTENEGRO
by Karl
Montenegro is now an indipendent state

Birma
by Xaverius
Where is Birma???

Bits of China
by Tim
It's a very interesting, if ultimately futile debate, as to what is actually an independent country, and what isn't. The whole 'Greater China' debate is one aspect of it. China (the People's Republic) lays claim to Tibet, Macao, Hong Kong and Taiwan. It's absorbed Tibet; it has taken Macao and Hong Kong back from Portugal and the UK, while giving them a certain leeway in managing their own affairs; despite all its sword-rattling, it had so far allowed Taiwan to maintain a relatively independent path (because WW3 would kick off if it didn't).

But since this is about travellers' experiences, maybe some of these should be considered separately. For example, as a UK national, I was able to enter Hong Kong, without a visa, and stay for up to 180 days. I wouldn't be able to do that in mainland China. Does that make them different places?

It's not ignorance
by Terence Parker
I agree witih Tim. This tool isn't about patriotism or nationalistic values - it's for travellers to make note of places they have been. As far as i'm concerned, and I live in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao might as well be considered separate countries for the context of this tool.

Perhaps 'administrative regions' would be a better name, all these said regions of China have in fact their own independant immigration control and passports - which should be sufficient to classify them separately for these purposes.

It's not ignorance at all.

:(
by SteniS
The service appears to be down... Just added a map to my blogg, but now none of my readers can view it. This is a really sweet idea, hope you'll have it back up and running soon!

Regards

Great Service!
by Tobbe
I just added this to my website: http://resochlev.webhop.net and it looks fantastic. Thanks for this great service.

'Birma' (sic)
by Babsbaby
Burma is now called Myanmar.

iran
by amin
what country are you looking for?
iran is here
iran is there
iran is anywhere
....
yes
only .....IRAN

we are not spain
by manolo
canarias islannds, catalonia ,galicia and basque country is not spain.

we are not spain
by manolo
canarias islannds, catalonia ,galicia and basque country is not spain.

TO MANOLO
by EGON
all the parts you listed --such as Catalonia, Basques Country, Galicia or Canary Islands etc. are SPAIN, if you like it or not!!!! But you all want to be part of the EUROPEAN UNION ??? Don't you ??? So it is just stupid what you wrote. Sorry

Spain is what Spain is
by eleutheria
Spain is an amount of areas, different areas, but that form the country of Spain, like the human body: a hand is different if you compare it with the belly, or a foot. But theyare all part of the body. The heart is believed to be the most important part of our body, but you can imagine how useful hands are, and you can not take anything you need with the heart, but with heands. Madrid could be the heart of Spain, but all the parts of our country are necessary...
Manolo, do not forget that what we want, is not always fair or due.
Que jodan al nacionalismo de provincias!!!!!!!

Spain is what Spain is
by eleutheria
Spain is an amount of areas, different areas, but that form the country of Spain, like the human body: a hand is different if you compare it with the belly, or a foot. But theyare all part of the body. The heart is believed to be the most important part of our body, but you can imagine how useful hands are, and you can not take anything you need with the heart, but with heands. Madrid could be the heart of Spain, but all the parts of our country are necessary...
Manolo, do not forget that what we want, is not always fair or due.
Que jodan al nacionalismo de provincias!!!!!!!

Spain is what Spain is
by eleutheria
Spain is an amount of areas, different areas, but that form the country of Spain, like the human body: a hand is different if you compare it with the belly, or a foot. But theyare all part of the body. The heart is believed to be the most important part of our body, but you can imagine how useful hands are, and you can not take anything you need with the heart, but with heands. Madrid could be the heart of Spain, but all the parts of our country are necessary...
Manolo, do not forget that what we want, is not always fair or due.
Que jodan al nacionalismo de provincias!!!!!!!

Country, state, nation, kingdom, empire, union, federation, ...
by Viktor
It is interesting how these concepts are mixed up all the time and how what they actually mean. United Nation is in fact an organisation of states, right? A state is a political area and a nation is a people who share the same culture, language, history etc, something like that. What a country is may be less clear..

There is an international standard of country names at ISO here:
http://www.iso.org/iso/en/prods-services/iso3166ma/02iso-3166-code-lists/list-en1.html#lr

If you have visited 100 countries you can be an honored member of the Travelers' Century Club. They have a nice definition of what a country is and an official country list of 315 countries, which can be found here: http://www.travelerscenturyclub.org/countries.html

Mexico is actually part of North America...
by Darel
...not Central America.

http://worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/na.htm

Montenegro
by Wes
Montenegro offically declared independence in June 2006 from Serbia. It joined the United Nations that same month. Both countries maintain seperate ties to the UN, EU and US. It should be shown as a seperate choice, as should Serbia.

map image??
by
The map won't actually show up! i get the resulting % of the world that i've visited, but your beloved .gif image loads and loads and then isn't visible, even after i right click and say "show picture" or whatever.
can this be fixed? i want to post it!
thanks!

Where's Dagestan?
by nagi
It's not here! Add it?

Clearing up the UK/Country argument
by Bob
The Office for National Statistics states authoritatively in its glossary that "In the context of the UK, each of the 4 main subdivisions (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) is referred to as a country". (see the website, under 'Country' ... http://www.statistics.gov.uk/geography/glossary/c.asp)

Also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constituent_country for the full explanation.

Wheres CYPRUS
by darren
you seem to have missed cyprus out of your list of countries, i just thought i'd say!

Wheres CYPRUS
by darren
you seem to have missed cyprus out of your list of countries, i just thought i'd say!

Wheres CYPRUS
by darren
you seem to have missed cyprus out of your list of countries, i just thought i'd say!

this is fantastic
by Achyut
This is a fantastic site was looking for a while, there should be one with cities/towns as well. Or does one already exists?

I miss Europe
by Gabriella Dauner
I need to visit the Southern Hemisphere, go to some place warm.

comment_64
by mark.g
please seperate england, wales and scotland. else you'll cause a full scale war of here. quite simply we are seperate countries.

TRAVEL HISTORY
by ALAN FLYNN
What a marvellous way to view where you have been. I have recorded a list but it takes a while to read it.

comment_66
by Do
Thank you for this good idea!

NAFTA means...
by Tony
N.orth A.merican F.ree T.rade A.greement Its members are Canada, United States of American, and the 'Estados Unidos Mexicanos', aka--MEXICO. Mexico is part of North America.

Georgraphy!
by issi
turkey is in europe not the middle east.

Great idea and well done!
by Marco
My only comment is that the map generated is too generous. ie .. I went to Russia, but only to Moscow and St Petersburg. But my map shows the whole of Russia. My map looks like I have traveled much more than I actually have!! But anyway, thanks for making such a clever and useful web site. :)

Taiwan is a country !
by Victor
Of course, Taiwan is a country! the Taiwaneses have their currency, national flag, anthem,government,and President voted by Taiwaneses. And the most important, Taiwan is democratic. Of course,Taiwan is a country.

where did Scottland go
by nikki
hey i went to scottland and didn't find it on the list. how can I put it on my map

add a Antarctica to the map ?
by victor
i think you can add Antarctica to the map. ^^

to jakob
by evren
In some resources, Turkey is considered as part of Asia and some others consider Turkey as a Middle Eastern counrty or European.
As a Turkish citizen, I can say that all of these assumptions are correct depending on the subject, situation etc.

Yes, Taiwan is a country
by Wendy
I have seen people debating whether Taiwan is a country or not, I think Taiwan is an INDEPENDENT country. If China harms Taiwan or attacks Taiwan in anyway, I guess someone will do something about it
But other than that, this is a very nice and useful tool that I can put on my blog!

Where ive been in the world....
by Milly
Ive been to 7% of the world!! need to see SOOO much more!!!

more places to see!
by wendy
hey, i have been only to 5% of the world
yeah me too!!!!
traveling around the world has always been one of the things i have dreamt about!

Montenegro
by Schnutz Dürr
Hi great idea !

Two suggestions:

1. Montenegro has split from Serbia in May 2006 and is now an independent country.

2. Would it be possible to show the borders between the countries visited in order to disstinguish them?

Schnutz

comment_78
by

credit
by jr
why haven't you credited www.world66.com this image is generated by them and you in no way have credited them, at least I cant see it?

name of country
by c
it would be nice if the name of the country which one has been to, would pop up and appear as you scroll over the actual country on the map. just a thought...
otherwise, this was a great idea!

Mexico is part of North America
by Woody
You should move it up into the N.A. section.

jealous...
by sairs
this is seriously neat, but i am way WAY behind on my travelling - damn full time work and 3 weeks holiday a year! i've got some work ahead of me!

End of story
by Jope
The British are the only ones who view their country as 4 different entities. To the rest of the world there is only the UK, and the UK is also the only British member of the UN. The British may squabble about what they want the rest of the world to call them, but it´s none of our concern.

geography lessons
by annoyed
i'm sorry, but i was just reading through these comments and questions, and i'm slightly appalled by the majority of them. do they not teach geography anymore. this is coming from a young american, and i'm frightened that i have more of a clue about the rest of the world than it seems 90% of everyone else does... at least, i feel validated now... you can call us stupid americans, all you want. now, i can laugh. england is a country?? hong kong is a country?? those are the brightest of the questions.

this is a shit site
by FUK the SITE
I am from China, and the website seperates Taiwan from China.
So, isn't it a shit!!!

Missing
by TheDigitalLife
this is missing a few countries. actually, since i dont know all of the countries in the world, i dont know how many or which ones are missing. but you're missing the country i was born in. nepal. it is right between india and china and it is the home of the himalayas which is the home of mt. everest which is the tallest mountain in the world.

Don't get rude
by Will
'FUK the SITE' (sic) please don't launch personal attacks on the creator of this tool, which I think is pretty cool. There's a million places on the internet where people can vent on whether Taiwan is or is not an independent country. Until I can get a valid visa to visit 'Taiwan province' from the PRC consulate in my home city, I think it belongs where this site is. I assume you're Chinese... ever tried going to Taiwan without going through immigration?

United Kingdom
by Ed
The United Kingdom is actually sovereign state made up of 4 distinct countries, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales (alphabetically ordered by the by.)

Europe
by Keith Ruffles
Excellent site!
One small request - how about a map of Europe similar to the USA states map?

How about dropping all the drama!
by Dark Knight
The reason there is some much problems in the world is because we "Earthlings" argue about everything.

My advise to the web master is to just list every place in alphabetical order. This way people will stop arguing about what is a country and what is not.

How about dropping all the drama!
by Dark Knight
The reason there is some many problems in the world is because we "Earthlings" argue about everything.

My advise to the web master is to just list every place in alphabetical order. This way people will stop arguing about what is a country and what is not.

europe
by maggie
What do Armenia and Aserbeijan do in Europe? And Turkey and Russia are both in Europe and Asia, lol

Antarctica!
by Denali
Hey, what's up with neglecting the 7th continent??!? This makes me sad. I desire to exhibit the whole of my epic-ness on this map.

states + countries
by
Could the state map and world map be combined? The states are large enough to show up on the world map, so it would be nice to have.

Taiwan is NOT China
by William
Any of those mainland Chinese that thinks Taiwan is part of China, just try to travel there!

The Taiwanese are free, unlike the mainland China whose government censors their news and the Internet! Your own government does not trust you to read the Internet and make up your own mind, how can you trust your government?

Mainland China has not ruled Taiwan, except for the years between 1945-1949, for well over 100 years!

Turkey is Bi-continental
by Lynn
Turkey should arguably be listed in both the Europe and the Asia lists as it bridges both continents.

how may continents do you count??
by Lynn again
WHen my kids were in school in France they learned at ALL the Americas count (for Europeans at least) as one continent, whereas in Canada my kids were taought that there is North America and South America.
When challenges, the teachers overseas said America is all one because it is all one land mass. Of course, when we pointed out that no topography distinguishes Europe from Asia, they didn't have much to say.
What did you learn in school??

Antarctica
by Helen
Hey? why isnt antarctica on the map?

bilateral problems
by Luke Peters
Turkey is indeed both in Asia and in Europe. It is 94% in Asia, however so it would be more precise to define it as Asia. Never mind that the EU want it in Europe. The traditional definition of the middle east starts at Iraq, so anything further west is actually "near east". By the by most of Russian territory is in Asia too so that should be counted as Asia too technically. Kazakhstan is also bi-continental, with a small portion being in Europe, although the Russians want that bit back. Azerbaijan is hardly European either. Depending on where you define the border at the Caucasus, it is mostly or wholly in Asia. Armenia is similar. Never be fooled by EU, Eurovision or UEFA definitions of European. They would have all of the above and Israel in Europe!! Morocco might be joining Europe one day too!
What about Egypt? I'm not sure if Sinai is Asia or Africa?
Mexico is indeed North America, although again there is an overlap between north and central america so variously portions of Mexico and Guatemala maybe defined as either. However in my book central america hardly constitutes a continent in any real sense and fits nicely into north america down to the Darien gap.

Even Brits get confused about their country
by Luke Peters
Having one of the most archaic, imprecise and loose constitutions in the world may be a good thing, but it has done the UK residents no favours in knowing where on earth they are from.
The nation state to which all Brits belong is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, although the statutes and treaties that bind them together are woolly at best. To my knowledge, for example there is no explicit act of union between Wales and Scotland, except by dint of them both being united with England.
Although all four constituted "countries" at the time of Union they ceased to operate as "countries" once union was declared. There is a lot of flag-waving and poetry (started in the 70s) in each of these parts which fuels an illusion of being independent nations (or would-be) and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland do have "REGIONAL" governments - not "NATIONAL" ones, which have no more power than the many many other regional governments across Europe.
Complications arise during competitive sports where we variously compete separately as England, Scotland, etc., or as Great Britain, though curiously not as the United Kingdom, except during Eurovision competitions. A farsical example is the problem of Olympic Football where we compete as Great Britain (although representing the UK, incl Northern Ireland). The football federations have always been separate and Scotland and Wales refuse to be part of the team, leaving just England and Northern Ireland players in the GB squad (likely to be almost all English). Begs the question - how can we really be united if we can't even play football together?
Even places like the Isle of Man and Channel Islands are separate from the UK itself and have special status as territories.
No wonder we're confused... but by the by as the UK and many other European states will soon fade into memory as the European constitution effectively overrides them all and places us all under the European State. OK rant over.

correction
by Luke Peters
Actually, at the time of Union with Ireland, Northern Ireland was not separate. It was never a country and is thus considered a Province of Ireland, remaining in the Uk after the partition in the 20s.

Cyprus question
by Luke Peters
Forgot this one - Cyprus is an island tucked between Asian Turkey, Lebanon and Israel, and African Egypt, leaving most definitions of it as Europe as complete baloney.
It is further complicated by being divided in 2 different states- Cyprus, which only operates in the Greek southern 2 thirds, internationally recognised and a member of the EU - and the Turkish republic of northern Cyprus, recognised only by Turkey, which although territorially accepted as EU, is excluded by dint of being an "occupied" area.
Funny we don't still think of the USA as being an "occupied" territory, or just about anywhere for that matter...

comment_103
by
if we want to get all technical about it, Australia is a commonwealth and not really a country (!) Though haven't checked out whether they've changed that in the constitution lately....


Though this is a pretty awesome tool, how about the next generation where you could colour in parts of the globe you've been to - perhaps integrating google earth and help improve knowledge on geography at the same time ^_^

On the Union of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland
by Stuart
There have been two Acts of Union - 1707 joined the Kingdom of Scotland to the Kingdom of England and Wales, while 1801 joined the High Kingdom of Ireland to the Kingdom of Great Britain - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Act_of_Union_of_1801.

The United Kingdom is considered a single nation.

Wales
by Luke Peters
Actually Wales was technically part of England long before 1707. It is considered a principality and remains bound to England far more firmly than England is to Scotland. All those stats and graphs you see - England & Wales always together. Hell, we even manage to play international cricket together, which is again odd, since we compete as England, though Welshmen do play. Don't know if any Scots have played for England at cricket??? Hence the very strange disctinction between the Welsh ASSEMBLY and the Scottish PARLIAMENT which has a lot more power.

Someone needed to sort this mess out a long time ago...

In Continents...
by Luke Peters
Taken from Wikipedia...
By the geologists' definition, Europe and Asia are separate continents since they have separate, distinct ancient shield areas and a distinct newer mobile belt (the Ural Mountains) forming the mutual margin. Also, India is a geological continent, as it contains a central shield, and the geologically recent Himalaya mobile belt forms its northern margin. North America and South America are separate continents, the connecting isthmus being largely the result of volcanism from relatively recent subduction tectonics. But the North American continent also includes Greenland, which is a portion of Canadian Shield, and the mobile belt forming its western margin includes the easternmost portion of the Asian land mass.

Central America sits on a separate plate, as does Arabia, as far as south eastern Turkey, making them by this definition continents in their own right.

Different parts of the world teach continental theory differently, defining 5, 6 or 7 continents. Personally I favour the 7 continent model...

The best definition of contries by continent...
by LUKE Peters
...that I have found.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_continent

where is englend
by Timothee
where is englend i cant see it from here

where's texas?
by Frank
Am I missing something? Where's Texas?

Antarctica
by Someone
PLEASE ADD ANTARCTICA TO THE MAP! If other territories (such as the USVI and the BVI) are shown as countries, then Antarctica could be added too.

Fantastic website, fascinating discussion!
by Priscilla
Fantastic website -- thanks so much for the very cool map tool, Douwe Osinga!

As an anthropologist, I find the lively discussion accompanying the map tool to be equally fascinating... an interesting treatise on nationalism, tourism, and what people consider to be worthy of "country-status".

The Taiwan/China debate is especially interesting (and I've noticed that you've listed them separately). One thing that is un-debatable: given the de facto separate governing regimes, these two places have very distinct and different entry requirements, depending on your own passport-carrying identity!! So from a tourist's POV, they probably should be marked as distinct. I'm sure the P.R.C. government (not to mention quite a few nationalistic Chinese citizens) would argue differently from the Taiwanese president Chen Shui-Bian, however... Taiwan is also a very good case in point for who gets recognized by whom, when, and for what reasons.

Hope everyone is doing well in your respective far flung corners of the world!

comment_112
by forzet

Missing Places
by David
You are missing in your map choices St. Martin (which is a french/dutch dependancy in the Caribbean). Also, a linked "save" function so you can update the work you have already done as one visits more places.

Spitsbergen
by Chris
Any chance of separating spitsbergen from Norway as the Faeroes are from Denmark. If you've been to Norway you might not have been to spitsbergen which is much further away and very different.

Wales
by Sarah
WALES IS A COUNTRY!!!!!

world
by karim
i really hope to go as far as i can to discover as more foreign countries as possible. See you everyone.

Good, but innacurate
by Global nomad
It's a cool tool, though the United Kingdom is actually a federation of 4 sovereign states - England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland; each with its own powers to create and administer their own laws. The United Arab Emirates is also a federation of 6 sovereign states - Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Fujairah, Umm al-Quwain, Ras al Khaimah and Ajman. Each has its own vastly different set of laws, monarch and royal family.

And Taiwan is not an official country and is actually part of China. Cyprus and Turkey are also in Europe, not the Middle East.

Overall though good effort.

Greenland
by Green
And Greenland isn't a country, it's part of the Kingdom of Denmark.

ur mum
by smbody from sweden
u r all gay nd u suc off ur mum

Easter Island?
by Josh
So, sure, I know its not a country, but as French Polynesia is up there, and still a colony... What about Easter Island? I want my credit from the time I spent living there.

Sorry
by Luke Peters
to Global Nomad. The UK is not a federation of sovereign states. It is a Union of 2 kingdoms, a principality and a province. They all share one sovereign (the queen), one leader (blair), one currency, one military and one flag etc. They do not all make their own laws. They make some laws independently, particularly local/regional issues, but the UK is still THE state. It's been pretty well outlined above, ditto Cyprus and Turkey. Get a map.

Cabinda
by Luke Peters
Interesting one... Occupied by Angola since independence it was a separate colony from Angola. It has a government in exile and finds itself in international limbo along with Tibet, Turkestan/Xinjiang, Taiwan, Northern Cyprus and Western Sahara/ Any others?

Wales again
by Luke Peters
Wales is in many people's eyes a dear and lovely country but not an independent, sovereign country. It would get a little complex to recognise every national/regional sentiment and just about every country in the world would have to be fragmented into tiny little pieces.

Have a look...
by Luke Peters
... at what it says on your passport.

caribbean
by stephen Joyce
there is some of the caribbean islands missing,
will have to check my passport and the map to give you exact details.

Bundgarnsfisker
by Kurt T. Modler?

montenegro
by milan
yes Montenegro is endipendent...need to update borders....finally....world is changing daily....
epur se movet

China and Taiwan
by Wong
I believe that Taiwan should be listed as China. No more, no less. And the People's Republic of China (the mainland province) should use the term "Chinese Peking".

Where are the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Grande Territory and Abkhazia?

WCC

A little addition to the UK argument
by Ben
Just to add to the debate on the UK,

Firstly, I'm happy that this debate is open, and for all the idiots that keep asking "why is england/scotland/wales not on here" read the answers already writted to the questions.

It is a large area of confusion and is not perfectly defined but roughly has been explained before. England conquered Wales in the 13th century and Wales became a "principality" hint "the prince of Wales" gives a strong clue to this, there is no prince of any other part of the UK and they are not principalities. Scotland was also conquered by england around the 16th century (this could be very much open to discussion by scots) and the soverigns of England and Scotland became the same when the King of Scotland James the 6th became the King of England James the 1st In 1604, this happened because they had the same blood line. So if by soverign you mean a ruler then they are the same soverign state, but different countries, with Wales having a seperate soverign "ruler". The act of Union bound the Scottish and English parliaments. This is Britain, as it covers the British Isles. Later the British (although mainly English) invaded the Irish and this was less of an act of Union but more of an occupation. When in 1916 Ireland gained independance from the UK and Ulster (Northern Ireland), Ulster remained in the UK due to it's large Protestant community.

Now, as to your debate about listings. You either list soverign states. i.e. the UK, or you list countries. England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales (and all the others including Gibraltar, which there could be a real discussion about)

I looked at the "Travelers' Century Club's official list of countries" and can find no argument that as countries England, Scotland and Wales can be listed as seperate. But that Ireland was listed as two countries. Eire (the republic of ireland) and Ulster (Northern Ireland) now being Welsh and not Irish I may be wrong, but Ireland is one country as we have been defining it. To use a sporting analogy here would be misleading as the Northern Irish have a seperate football team to The Republic of Ireland, but Ireland play as a whole rugby country.

Basically, when it comes to site's like this, where visiting a "country" is quite a personal experience. As England, Ireland (yes the whole of it), Scotland and Wales are extremely different places, they could be considered different countries to go to. But in Legal "Soverign State" terms. There is the United Kindom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and The Republic of Ireland. Take your pick.

A more general statement
by Ben
There are arguments all over the world about countries and how they should be defined.

E.g.

England/Scotland/Ireland/Wales or UK

Catalonia/Galicia/Basque etc or Spain

Hong Kong/Tibet/Taiwan or China

Serbia/Montenagro and the Balkans to my shame I know far to little to talk about to comment on here

Now to the outsider, to someone from the UK most of China/Spain is the same and we notice little difference. But to someone from the country, especially to the smaller additions to the larger state, Wales to England, Taiwan to China, Basque to Spain, that difference is huge, and as a Welshman, I dislike being called English.

Sadly there is no one answer to everything, and berating the designer of this web page for these things is highly unfair. It is personal there is no definative answer, just shut up and enjoy the website.

8%
by
I've seen 8% of the world! Woohoo, not to mention im going to Russia in a few weeks and Tanzania in the summer! Partaaaaaay! Hahaha, not bad for a 15 year old!

hong kong
by steve
i realize hong kong is part of china, but i think it should be listed seperately .... i've been to hong kong but i wouldn't really count that as having been to china

Nice to have
by Thierry
Really cool little tool! That sure generates a lot of heated arguing about which 'countries' should be listed or not...

Personally, I think it would be nice to have:

- More regional differentiation, that way visited places could be more specificly and precisely marked.

- User selectable colors for the visited and not-visited places (not to mention the ocean), so that the resulting map could be made to fit its host page's color styling.

- And why not different colors according to the type of visit: place-of-residence, holidays, business, transit, etc.

Again, thanks for sharing!

places i visited
by John

what about ireland?
by ireland
wheres ireland? if its there i must be blind

Cyprus is in Europe
by Victor
Cyprus is in Europe and in the European Union as a matter of fact

Antarctica
by jakevol2
You know there are some of us who have been to Antartica and it would be nice to ba able to show that off

Where's Gambia?
by Diolla
Where's Gambia? It's an actual independent country... It is strange for me not to be able to select the country that I have visited most.

Where's Hong Kong (& Macau)?
by DutchMeteor
Although Hong Kong is taken back by China, it is still a more or less independant 'country' vs. state. It has it own rules and laws (under the umbrella of Being ofcourse...).

Same goes for Macau...

Good luck in coloring those tho :P

India???
by Lana
Did I miss India?? Can't find it..

uk
by vicky
Just stummbled across this page from Flickr and was astonished to notice that some comments say that the the united kingdom is not made up of countries but just provinces! I can assure you as a scot, that Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland are countries!!

This is for Jim
by Al
Jim, England IS a country. The UK is short for United Kingdom, which is four countries united - namely Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. To suggest that neither one is a country in its own right is positively absurd. For example, I live in Scotland - which has its own government and has some different laws to England. I am both Scottish and British, but not English, Welsh or Irish.

Iceland didnt map for me
by Ian
It didn't show up in red for some reason.

Cyprus - again!
by Andrew
Victor says 'Cyprus is in Europe and in the European Union as a matter of fact'.

Sorry, Victor, you've got the two confused. Cyprus is in the EU (since 2004). However, it is closer to mainland Asia and Africa than mainland Europe. So putting it in the 'middle east' seems sensible. Remember this site is about physical geography not politics, so although Cyprus might want to be 'European', this does not alter its position on the globe!

Sovereign Order of Malta
by Mike Milic
I believe you forgot one country "The Sovereign Order of Malta" Not to be confused with Malta, the country is one building located in Rome.

comment_146
by
They are their own independent government and issue their own passports

UK debate
by han
I understand that some scottish/welsh/northern irish/english people don't want to be listed as united kingdom....however, that is your country no matter what you think! I know years of English occupation :p (light-hearted comment) has made some people angry to be lumped with them, but you are from the UK. This doesn't stop you bein Scottish, Welsh, Northern Irish or English.

Holland
by Elke
Hi,
I just stumbled across your site by accident. But I read somone posted that Holland is a state of the Netherlands. This is not so. Holland IS the Netherlands. It goes by two names, I think the official one is the Netherlands, while Holland is used more in Europe. But both names mean the same country.

Duh
by Sofia
Armenia is in ASIA. As is Azarbaijan. As is Georgia! Isn't that basic knowledge?

Hawaii
by
Where's Hawaii on the list??!! Or what does it come under?

What is St Barts?
by Ilona
Do you consider St Barts and St Martin as separate entities - while they are technically French Overseas Collectivities it does not seem correct to call them part of France and St Barts voted to cede itself from Guadeloupe in 2004. Thoughts?

UK
by Michael
Ofcourse, technically this is a list of countries and the United Kingdom of great Britain and Northern Ireland is a nation state made up of 3 seperate countries (sorry Wales, Youv'e been part of England for 700 years and weren't even a united country before that) so they should be seperated. If the Americans can have their states seperated out, we should atleast be entitled to have our countries depicted properly. Not to mention the Isle of man and the channel Islands, which form 2 sovereign nations.

Check also hostelplan.com before travelling!
by Guido Lavespa
Hi guys! this site is really cool! If you, like me, love travelling, you might use this site www.hostelplan.com You can book online hostels or hotels! happy travelling!

Antartic
by Alejandra De la O
Hi I've been in Antartic, can you place an option for this continent?

Thanks!

comment_155
by
Holland
by Elke
"Holland IS the Netherlands."

Way to be confused. The name of the country is The Netherlands.
From Wikipedia:
The Netherlands is often referred to by the name Holland. This terminology is not correct, as the provinces of North and South Holland in the western Netherlands are only two of the country's twelve provinces (for more on this and other naming issues see Netherlands terminology).

comment_156
by Adrienne
Seems a little strange that you have Cyprus in the Middle East when it is Mediterranean, with Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot sides, and is hoping to join the EU - would have thought it was Europe....

Holland
by Jetman
Holland is commonly used as a synonym for the Netherlands as a whole, while actually it just refers to the central-western part of the country. This part consists of two of the country's twelve provinces, namely North Holland and South Holland. This confusion between a part and its whole (pars pro toto) also exists with the names of other countries, such as Russia for the Soviet Union or England for the UK (see also British Isles terminology).

Updating maps
by Gurkie
Is there a way I can update my map without having to go through all the places I have been again? (I did see this question above but did not see an answer)

my tavels
by Anthony
I am ex-navy so I have traveled alot an I have founded that life is good everywhere you go if that's what you are looking for the people around the world love to meet people that are not from other places so that they can look forward to hearing about defferent places an life styles

Not a country
by Rachel
England and Scotland are not countries. People in the UK sometimes call them countries. It is cute that they do this, but not correct.

They also sometimes call the bit between Scotland and England a "border". This is cute too.

If you are confronted with someone who wants to call England a country, ask them what exactly the United Kingdom is then.

Africa worth to be visited!
by Godif Nigus
Ethiopia is in Africa and has many historical and natural beauties. So come and enjoy it!

Europe/Mid East Countries
by Graham Ó Maonaigh
How can you list Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia as Europe yet list Turkey as Middle East when Turkey is an official candidate for the EU and 5% of its landmass is definitly in the European sphere and all of it in the European sub-continent.

Either add Turkey to Europe or remove Armenia and Azerbaijan from the Middle East. Personally I belief it would be more correct to include Turkey in the European catagory.

Cheers
Graham

Defining the UK
by Graham Ó Maonaigh
Some folks are correct that the UK is a country and SCotland, England, Wales, N. Ireland are not. THey are however Nations.

A little comments
by Witness11
This is a brilliant idea and a very nice site. With all respect, to avoid confusions and misunderstanding, it is better to say "territories and/or countries". As we all known there are areas are just territories, not countries. You can refer to the UN's couintry list. So if anyone want to argue, go and find the UN.

Countries, countries, countries..
by Julian Way
I've enjoyed this discussion. I think that the site author is correct in going by UN standards for countries, ie. listing Taiwan and the Palestinian territories separately (as they're both observer states recognized by the UN). By this standard Serbia and Montenegro need to be split. Also not including Turkish Republic of North Cyprus as they are NOT a recognized state.

I am glad to see Cyprus in the Middle East, where it belongs (yes I know it's in the EU. I was there when it joined in 2004, following the failed Reunification Referendum!), but Cyprus is geographically in the Middle East. Turkey should stay in the Middle East as they are geographically part of that region and do not speak an Indo-European language. Georgia and Armenia however, ARE part of Europe (geographically by way of the south Caucasus Mountains, and population-wise as they speak an Indo-European language). Azerbaijan however, is not European, as its people speak a Turkic dialect similiar to those spoken in Central Asia and should therefore be in the Middle East along with Iran and Turkey.

The best solution would be to have another section for Central Asia, in which all three independent countries of the Caucasus could be included, along with the Former Soviet states of Central Asia, and Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan etc.

On Taiwan, (official name: Republic of China) yes it's independent and has Embassies, its own passports, and diplomatic relations with other states. People's Republic of China does not recognize it, but then again 24 states still don't recognize the People's Republic of China and recognize Taiwan as the exiled rulers of mainland China! Let's not forget that this was the case for the entire world until 1976, when the UN officially recognized the People's Republic of China and gave them Taiwan's permanent seat on the security council! This had more to do with their growing military strength than anything else.

I feel that China should be broken up on this map as it is made up of many regions that are not inhabited by Chinese or more correctly "Han Chinese" which in the West would be called Orientals. You do in fact need separate visas to travel to "no go areas" such as Tibet, Xinjiang Province (formerly the Republic of East Turkestan whose people, still fighting for independence, speak a Turkic dialect like most others in Central Asia), Inner Mongolia, etc.

The Russian Federation should also be broken into geographical sections, ie. European Russia, Central Russia, Siberian Russia etc. Timelines would be a nice touch as I think they have about ten. Solely because people who go to St Petersburg, and end up with most of Asia covered, is quite ridiculous!

If Greenland is separated (which it should be), so should Alaska be separated from the United States, and Provinces and Territories of Canada and Austalia should be separate, simply as they're massive geographic areas themselves.

Overall, Excellent Site!!! A+++++++++++++++++

United Kingdom
by Julian Way
On the issue of the United Kingdom (of which I hold a citizenship), I agree with the author that it should be listed as one "state" as it has ONE seat on international bodies such as the UN, and Scotland and England do not have independent diplomatic relations. However, I can see the sensitivity of debate, as it is in fact made up of countries and principalities. One solution would be to list England, Scotland, Wales, AND Northern Ireland separately.

Where's Antarctica?
by June Siever
What about Antarctica? There are people (like myself) who have been there..

To Jon
by
The correct name of the country is The Netherlands, which is listed. Holland is just a small part of The Netherlands

comment_169
by Jannicke
As far as I know, Hong Kong is a separate country...

AAAAAAAGGGHH
by Hermione
I've become increasingly amused yet irritated as I've read through these comments, "am I missing something? where's Texas?" being a particular stunner (though somewhat terrifying).

Before making comments like "as far as I know, Hong Kong is a separate country" and "where's Holland", can people please bear in mind that the creators of this site are not stupid, whereas you are. Also, this really isn't the place for political statements like "Basque Country is not Spain", and "Wales is a country!" Having your own laws/language/boundaries/national identity does not make you an independent country. International recognition does. Simple as that.

The map has been created from an authoritative list of internationally recognised sovereign states. Where a dependent territory is distant from the state to which it belongs (e.g. Greenland and Denmark) it has been listed separately, a highly logical approach. I've been to Denmark but I sure as hell haven't been to Greenland.

A few mistakes do admittedly remain (e.g. not listing Serbia and Montenegro separately), but for the most part the list is correct and countries are listed as they are for a good reason. Therefore think long and hard before adding comments that might make you look stupid.

To Frank
by Sigs
If you are ignorant enough to think texas is a Country.... you really shouldn't be on this site...

Besides that, to all those debating over territories/countries, get over it.
Personally, being Israeli, and not agreeing with those who believe "the Palestinean territories" are a country, which others do, I am glad that it is noted that it isn't a country. However, this is NOt the place to argue such issues, so all those arguing UK/china/spain/ etc. - i know how much it sux that people say htings you STRONGLY disagree with due to your nationalism - but this isn't the place to do it and be thankful that you have this tool - it's pretty cool after all.

passports
by confused nationalities
I'd like to suggest that the issuing of internationally recognised passports might be the most useful way of defining which clumps of land are defined as "nations" (I don't really know which word to use anymore; country, state...?). ie there is a UK passport, but not an english, scottish, welsh or northern irish passport; there is a spanish, but not a balearic, canarian etc passport.
Would that work as a definition to help with this site? To go by nations that issue internationally recognised passports?

Hong Kong / Puerto Rico
by George
Why is Puerto Rico there but not Hong Kong? When I lived in Hong kong (late 1998-2000) it was a special economic area... owned by China but not yet fully integrated

Travel experience rather than political
by Linda
Perhaps there could be some accommodation for the differences in travelling to a destination which is "part" of a nation but is unique, i.e. Tibet (China), Easter Islands (Chile), Hawaii (U.S.).

Clicking on the map and enlarging it
by Scott
Great site although you should add Canadian provinces.

We should also be able to click on the map to enlarge it. It would allow the user to see smaller countries that they've visited (like Costa Rica) better. If this is already an option - great. How do you do it?

Hong Kong
by big charl
Hong Kong. Where is it on this list?

Don't be so serious!
by Anne-Sophie
Personally I think this is a *fun* tool, and when I ticked off countries I had visited I did it for my own amusement. Okay, so some modifications could be made, particularly for the bigger countries such as the USA, Russia and China. I mean.. I've been to one state in the US, and the map marks off the entire country in red :)

And yes, there are political controversies about territories, countries, names and status of independance, but the creator of this site had to find one guideline and stick with it! I highly doubt they were trying to offend anyone or force their views on the matter onto anyone.

Remember guys, it's supposed to be fun, not spark angry political debates! There are plenty of other forums dedicated to that purpose! If you really want to tick of where you've been in the world, buy a world map and put a little pin or sticker on the cities you've been to. That would be way more accurate, if that's what you are looking for :)

Happy travelling!

Unrecognized territories
by Peacenik
It would be good to be able to mark some unrecognized territories, perhaps with a different shade than the country they formally belong. My case in point is Abkhazia. I've been there and by your current set-up I should categorize it as visit to Georgia. But as much as I liked Abkhazia I don't think it's the same as visiting real Georgia.

comment_179
by Asko from Estonia
This site is excellent.

missing countries
by DRC
where are zanzibar and tahiti?

French Guyana
by novaric
French Guyana is part of France: it is simply one of the 100 regions of France.

Martinique, Guadeloupe, Reunion, French Plynesia, New Caledonia
by novaric
same thing : parts of France

Bad geographical knowledge
by nigantsaoir
Its really sad there there are still people out there whose knowledge of geography is so bad that they say things like Scotland and Wales are part of England...the kind of ignorance that makes you wonder what the point of education is....really really stupid comment

fuck da following
by GAnG$tA
bush is a fuckin fagget and i hate those fuckin israelies and greeks and kurds and arabs.. can u tell where im from!!!!!!!!1

kurds are fags
by steven
kurds are homos that bomb other countries because they dont have a fuckin country

freakin terrorist
by brandon
not all kurds , arabs , azeris are terrorist but
all terrorist are kurds , arabs , azeris .

Can't beleive this
by Zebra
Reading the comments I feel ashame. People living in given countries or visiting others, don't know where they were, where they live. So evidencies appear as questions. And in the age of internet one should have a little search before asking stupid questions.
Excuse me for writing such, but i got so shocked.
Anyway the site is great and I'm glad having found it.

Countries and places
by Armando
I suggest to call this site "Countries and Places" so that those places part of a country but very special or differents because of the distance are shown separate.

india
by Ramesh kapoor

Countries vs Regions
by Pe
I agree with the general train of thought that as a tool for travellers, and should reflect experience rather than politics.

I've been to Hong Kong but have not been to mainland China, so while I know it's part of China, I would feel stupid saying that I've been to China and it seems stupid having China coloured in on a map.

Similarly, I've been to England and Scotland (which are actually separate countries) but not Wales or Northern Island, so again, it's incorrect to have the whole thing coloured in.

Other distinct regions like Hawaii and Tibet, as well as separate cities in Russia, also leap to mind.

UK Get a Grip!
by anglo-scot
All these people going on about England, Scotland, Wales, N Ireland being separately listed ...GET A LIFE! In the context of global political problems such as the Middle East, Darfur, the Rwanda genocide, the ethnic hatred in the Balkans, Mugabe, (let alone HIV, global warming etc), people in the UK who get their knickers in a twist about whether or not England, Wales or Scotland are listed as separate countries are guilty of the most selfish navel gazing ever. You are such an embarrassment, PLEASE GET A GRIP! If you really care that much about injustice and politics, please try helping people with real issues -there are plenty of them outside our little country (which for better or worse, is still for the moment, the UK). Admittedly it is irritating as a non-English UK citizen when foreigners regard England and the UK as interchangeable but to think this is worthy of debate in the context of an international online forum is to display the kind of self centred ignorance worthy of George W.

F.Y.R.O.M
by Lefteris Zermas
Since you are involved with names of countries you are obligated to know that there isn't officially a country with the name of Macedonia. The official name of this country, the name that United Nations, Europen Union, Nato and other organizations are accept for this country is F.Y.R.o.M
You should correct this immediately

immigration to the UK
by EW
I know that if you talk to anyone from wales or scotland they generally tell you that they live in different countries to england. However, as I have recently moved to england, I can tell you that entry to any one of these 'countries' falls under one home office. One visa gives right of passage to all 4 places, states or territories... it's all the same citizenship. where you reside is a different story, but that's just english burocracy:)

TAIWAN
by german guy
I am German and live since more than 5 years in Taiwan. I can assure you that of course Taiwan is a independent country.

Taiwanese people have a Taiwan-passport and they need to get a China-Visa if they want to travel to China.

Chinese people have a China-passport and they need to get a Taiwan-Visa in order to travel to Taiwan.

I am German and I need a Taiwan-Visa to go to Taiwan and I need a China-Visa to go to China.
If I go to China I will take Renmimbi as currency - if I go to Taiwan I will take Taiwan-Doller.

If I want to buy a high-quality Laptop-computer I will probably buy one "Made in Taiwan"
If I want to buy a cheap watch I will by one "Made in China"

What ignorant, sick, retarded mind would try to tell me that Taiwan belongs to China ???

:angry:

Re: F.Y.R.O.M.
by Philip
Yes, you're right that the official name is F.Y.R.O.M., not Macedonia. However, this is due to Greek pressure, for they were scared that if Macedonia would actually be called Macedonia, they might lay claims on the Greek province which has the same name as well.

Canadian Provinces???
by Philip
Great site!!! Could you also do one for the Canadian provinces, similar to the "Visited States" one?

comment_197
by Erich
Wow, I didn't know people took the "It's not called Macedonia!!!!1" thing seriously. Greece is ridiculous.

What about Northern Ireland?
by Karl Johan
Northern Ireland is its own country. Europe.

i agree
by someone from somewhere
THIS IS THE GAYEST THING IN THE WORLD YOU ARE ALL GAY I AGREE WIT THE SWEEDEN DUDE YOU ARE GAY!!!

Go study geography
by CluedUp
Please people, go study geography before saying stupid things like 'Where is Holland? Where is Hong Kong?'

Now about the UK debate, erm, there is no seat for Scotland or Wales in the UN, and that is because they relinquished their sovereignty (at least with regards to foreign policy, defence, etc), or some would say were forced to relinquish, to England, and this new unit became the UK. That is why there are British/UK passports and no Scottish, Welsh, Northern Irish, passports!

No map
by Sunshine
The map u are talkin about doesn't show.. The only thing that appears when I press "go" is a sentence about how many prosent of the world I've covered travelling....

Kingdom of four countries?
by Helen
"When speaking of the United Kingdom and its constituent parts it is important to use the correct terminology. In 1969 the Royal Commission on the Constitution was set up with the aim of examining the relation between central legislature and government on one hand and the "several countries, nations and regions of the United Kingdom" on the other. The words "countries", "nations" and "regions" reveal a certain vagueness which was eventually resolved by the Report of the Commission. It speaks of the four "countries" that make up the United Kingdom: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland." www.knowbritain.com

Nobody is saying that...
by Citizen of the world
Hardly anyone is saying that the countries that comprise the UK should be separately listed. That's not the POINT! IT's just a fun discussion about whether they are called countries or not. And it seems that they are countries, united into one kingdom.

So stuff that up your jumpers.

We can discuss it if we choose!

Antarctica ???
by Tathagat Varma
It is a wonderful tool - thanks for your efforts. I would love to include Antarctica - I know not too many fortunate ones get to go there, but I have lived there for 16 months and so, would love to see it on my visited countried map. thanks.

Suggestion for island nations
by Raphael
Here's an idea for those wee island nations that simply don't show up on the map: Include their oceanic territory. French Polynesia covers an area larger than Europe, but you can't see the darn thing on the map!

comment_206
by
George - you are a douchebag.

tibet?
by
hi - fun site. but can't see tibet anywhere... thought it was a country... hm

feel like a loser!
by michele
wow- i really haven't travelled much :( but the caribbean is plenty of travel for me when the weather is cold at home

Greek and Turkish Cyprus
by Mike
Ought to count both as separate countries. You have to pass border security to go from one to another. Turkish Cyprus is recognized by Turky, itself and me.

image doesn't work
by
the image doesn't show when using the code to post in facebook notes

Ascension Island
by Paul

How come Ascension Island is not listed?

Taiwan is a country
by Hu
Taiwan is a country because it has its own government and President. Taiwanese people are not ruled by China.

snoop dogg
by snoop dogg
California is very cool too bad it's going to be gone in any minute.

Turkey?!
by Kat
Where is Turkey?

11%
by Jens
Not bad for a 15 year old kid!?
;D

???????
by amsterdam
I can see that there are so many uneducated people aroud the world than i have ever imagined.
Even though there are few faults in this map, please use it as a personal guide or just try to enjoy it, but, please do not bring up a stupid debate about, where is ENGLAND?

I am a british citizen who lived in England, wales (They're both United kingdom), Turkey, Holland ( The Netherlands), (Holland is south and north Holland they are just two provinces)and i have travelled extensively.

It is good to read about these discussions but don't take it too seriously, there are so many beautiful countries "places" for us to visit... JUST ENJOY IT.

egypt
by patrick
Wheres Egypt?

go back to school
by
PEOPLE! WHERE DID YOU LEARN YOU GEOGRAPHY FROM??? I can't believe some of the comments I've read. I would suggest some serious revision for some of you.

comment_219
by S.P
Has someone actually gone to Tenerife thinking it's a country on its own?

Middle East – Is that a new continent??
by Al
Hi,
Countries listed under "the Middle East" should be relocated either under Europe or Asia. There is no such continent called "Middle East". It doesn't make sense with respect to the rest of your categories, which are essentially continents. If you list Middle East as a separate entity, there should be tons of other regions such as Central Asia, Sout East Asia, the Balkans, the Baltics, Scandinavia, etc.

Middle East – not a continent (2)
by Al
Another point following up my earlier comment: Howcome Egypt and even Libya are under Africa and not Middle East, per your categorization they should be listed under "the Middle East"? Again, Middle East is not a continent, and your listing is not consistent...
:-)

Holland
by Ria
I just saw a silly comment somewhere up in the list so here's my answer... Holland = The Netherlands. It's not a part of it, they're just two names for the same country!!

Making it fit on side
by Soccer Mom in Denial
This site is brilliant! Thanks for putting it together. I would love to put the map on my sidebar but it won't fit. Is there anyway to make it smaller?

And if you've explained this already I'm sorry I missed it. I tried to find it in the comments.

Paste doesn't work
by Anthony
This is fun, but I'd like to be able to paste the map to my Flickr profile. Why doesn't paste work from this site?

Serbia and...
by George
Serbia and Montonegro are two diferent countries now. Since a bout a year ago.

Hi,
by Alborz
Thanks for ur site,,

Websites/E-mail in Antarctica or obscure places
by Wayne Real
I have been told I have a world's best practice , not for profit, Fishing website concetrating upon ABU fishing equipment.
I would like to make contact with as many people as possible who show an interest in Fishing and/or ABU fishing equipment.
Please visit my site www.realsreels.com and If you enjoy what you see I am attempting to do, I would be truly appreciative of yu signing my Guestbook.
Kind regards and Tight Lines
Wayne Real

Defining Europe
by Jeremy Jimenez
I agree that the "Middle East" is not a good category - better to say "South West Asia" and perhaps further break up Asia into "Central Asia" and "East Asia." Also, including Turkey as Middle East, but some countries EAST of Turkey (eg Armenia and Georgia) as part of Europe seems to be mirroring those in the EU who wish to keep the EU a "Christian club" (though duly noted Azerbaijan is primarily Muslim.) I don't think was the intention - I'm just saying some might perceive it as such and thus detract from what is otherwise an interesting project both for opening a dialogue on geography as well as boosting one's own ego. ;)

Very interesting
by Jamie
The whole conversation taking place here is facinating, what is and isnt a country. Obviously there are some glaring errors in this list, but it is still very interesting to see how people view the earth and how it is divided. Either way i have seen 13% of it, so much more to go!

--
by Cat
To the person asking about Zanzibar. It is now part of Tanzania (joining Tanganyika and Zanzibar).

TAIWAN IS NOT A COUNTRY
by Joe
The UN does not recognize Taiwan as a country.

Here are the nations that recognize taiwan as a country:

Burkina Faso, El Salvador, Belize, Nauru, Palau, Tuvalu, Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Paraguay, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Panama, the Vatican, Swaziland, Malawi, Sao Tome and Principe, Haiti, Gambia and St. Kitts and Nevis

Enough said. If taiwan were legitimately a sovereign nation, the world community would recognize it as such. It does not.

brunei..
by AL
just to let you know that when brunei is selected, it does not show on the mao, it stays grey and does not turn red.

Where is Budapest?
by
Why isn't Budapest on the map?

To Rachel
by Mike
Rachel,

I England is there under The UK as it is a part of it.

Mike

Serbia and Montenegro
by EVAN
Serbia and Montenegro are 2 different states.

Countries
by Frazer
You people who get your 'knowledge' from wikipedia really piss me off, you don't know anything. England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland ARE separate countries and to call them anything else is idiotic. Some of you Americans who have posted are a perfect example of how small minded your people are as a whole, not caring about anything outside of your own country.

Anyway, regardless of this debate it makes sense to have the countries of the UK, the states of America, Taiwan, Hong Kong etc all listed separately. Especially for highlightting where you've travelled. Going to England doesn't mean you've been to Scotland and Wales too, the same as going to Flordia doesn't mean you've been to the entire USA or Hong Kong doesn't mean you've been to China.

Stop Whining
by Erik
What with all the whining... this site is the only one out there like this any it does a good job. Who give a flying duck if a countries listed in the wrong section or if somethings missing. Put Canada in the Artic for all I care its cold enough up here...

Trying not to get drawn in
by Martina
On the debate over the UK - officially the country of my birth is England and the country of my citizenship is the UK. This is not my decision, rather the way it is divided officially on job applications, birth certificates and passport applications.

On the spliting of Ireland - Ulster does not equal Northern Ireland. Ulster is a group of counties including Donegal which is actually in Eire

montenegro
by Ola
Why isn't Montenegro on the map? :)

Based on the results of a referendum held on May 21, 2006, Montenegro declared independence on June 3, 2006. On June 28, Montenegro became the 192nd member state of the United Nations.

Dnt u just wat to do it all!!!
by BigLew
like right now!!!

going to do southern africa and mabe europe in the summer an just gt bk frm Aus a few weeks ago... im supposed to be at uni!!!! bt i never gt a gap year and it has had this effect lol...

great site... really opened my eyes

must do more!!!!!!!!!

Lew

Counting cities are more appropriate
by matias
It shows that I visited 13% of the world, which I think is not that accurate. For example, big countries like China, Russia and USA, visiting only one city in this kind of countries means nothing in knowing the country. Myself, I only visited a few cities in the west coast of USA. About the lands I visited, I only consider myself having good understanding on three pieces of lands: China (over 30 cities in about 10 provinces out of 23 provinces, hmm... that means less than a half in this country), Europe (over 40 cities, mostly in western side), South Korea (about 10 cities, for business only)

Around world on my 40
by haijun

Parts of China
by Grant Agnew
There should be separate listings (and dots on the map) for Hong Kong and Macau. They are distinct parts of China just as Taiwan is, and are most definitely separate destinations. Like some of your other correspondents, I don't like to claim that I've been to China after just one day trip across the border from Macau, but I've been to Macau and HK more than once and would like to put them on my map. And separate maps for Europe, Canada and Australia like for the USA would be a good idea -- there are plenty of travellers who have been to only a few parts of each of these.

Nice
by Daren
Great idea, now if you could add rollovers to each visted spot that would bring up linked users photos?

Daren

To Rachel
by Paula
'This is cute', very patronising. I am English, not Scotish, not Irish and not Welsh. My father being Scottish, often states that I am in fact Scottish and not English, but since I was born in England and have lived in England all my life I am English and they are seperate countries, with varying laws.

There is indeed a border between Scotland and England and is called Hadrian's Wall. It was built in AD 122 and runs the entire width of England. Also the four countries that make up thre UK have different flags and the flag representing the UK is the union jack flag which combines all four.

For Jim
by Kerys
Jim

England IS a country, the UK is a united group of countries. If we weren't a country we wouldn't be able to compete as Englad in say the football and rugby world cups

comment_247
by The Inch
Hadrians Wall is NOT the border between England and Scotland it is about 60 miles away from the "border". There are common misnomers over teh use of England for the UK not least by the British themsleves, the "country" that we British all belong too, is the UK. The legally correct nationality is British and not English, Scottish, Welsh, Northern Irish.

Visited Country
by Pelloso
I would like to say... FUCK YOU ALL!

SCRIPT
by Eiric
Hello Guys.
I have a version of this script that you can put into your website! You can allow the visitors of your site to make their own visited country map!

The script costs US$20 via Paypal.

eiric69@yahoo.com

# visits
by Hans
And another proposal, allow the user to enter the number of times each country has been visited, and then colour the country accordingly, so that it is visible if you've been many times to some far off place........

lol
by canii
hehehe

you're missing egypt too
by rebecca

Bet you didnt know
by danno
There is no coutry begining with the letter O!!!!

doh
by michal
there is a country beginning with the letter O

Oman u fool

193 countries
by Someone
Why is spitsbergen not a separate location but the canal islands are??? strange

32% and counting!

U.K.
by Jerid421
Uh... not just England! What about Scotland and Wales... not to mention N. Ireland and The Republic of Ireland... they are seperate countries!

antarctica
by pedro
it's not there either!!!

Europe
by Maria
I do love Europe!

I don't like this...
by K-Jo
I don't like this... If you want an accurate map, you should be able to itemize where you've REALLY been, not what "techically" is covered under the blanket of what a country owns. I've been to England but not Scotland, so Scotland should not light up, but it does under "United Kingdom." Someone's been on a cruise to Saint Martin but never been to Europe, yet the entire country of France or Holland lights up?? I've been to the Canary Islands, so the entire country of Spain lights up? I don't know what country I picked to make some islands in the Pacific light up... I've never been there... This needs to be REAL.

To do list
by Philippe
it would be nice, if it was possible tu turn in blue the places where you want to go someday, to compare what you have done and what to do

Puerto Rico
by Jonathan
I don't think Puerto Rico should be listed as a country. It is a United States unincorporated territory with Commonwealth status.
<p>
http://worldunfurled.com/

The Middle East
by Russel
The Palestinian Autthority is not a country. Egypt is a country. Please replace the one with the other.

Palestine
by Meg
The Palestinian Authority is a bit of a misnomer. I think Palestinian Territories would be more appropriate. And the Palestinians have an elected government, a seat in the UN and defined borders. OK, no passport, but they do have Palestinian travel documents. Works for me as a state.

Har endel reising igjen;p
by

Great site
by Lucas
Just want to drop a note saying that I think this script is great and you have done a wonderful work! Thanks!

Suggestion: it would be so much cooler if you could register somehow, with a login/pass, so that each time you come back the computer would recognize you and come up with your personal list of visited countries. This way you could update it each time you go to another country and see the progress you make live!

(actually, if you could do that, I guess you could build a real community of users, and maybe put some ads, and make money - it shows people here want to interact and chat, just look at the comments)

OK, OK, I swore I would not go into an argument, but just for Joe: Taiwan is a country. I guess the list you provide of countries that recognize Taiwan is accurate (I didn't bother to check), but you can add Santa Lucia, that officially recognized Taiwan as a country last week (which makes 25 the number of countries that recognize Taiwan). Needless to say, China has immediately retaliated by cutting off all diplomatic relations with Santa Lucia. This explains why so little countries recognize Taiwan.

But saying that Taiwan is not a country is just agreeing with the Chinese politburo's view and complying with the constant diplomatic either-us-or-them blackmail from China. Joe, are you some high-level Chinese official?

Sweden
by Åke
Is Sweden a country ? Me think it is a city i Norway - right ?

Åke

UK Nations
by John
First the UK is not a nation state. It is a political state made up of four nations namely England, Scotland, Wales and also part of the Irish nation dwelling in the province of Ulster. Also Wales is not a part of England. Two separate entities (England plus Wales) were united in the Act of Union in 1536. Wales as a cultural entity exists from around 490 AD being direct descendants of the Brythonic (where the name Britain comes from) Celts. Our national flag 'The Red Dragon' and our language are among the oldest in Europe. The Scots, Irish and Welsh are descendants of the Goidelic and Brythonic Celts where as the English are mainly descendants of Anglo Saxon and the French conquerors (1066AD). Thus when considering holidays visits to the UK it is wise for the tourist to remember that there are great cultural differences among the nations that make up the UK. Enjoy your stay. Croeso i bawb.

More separate maps
by Otolith
Put up separate maps for Europe and the Caribbean just like you did for the US! (You can't see the islands properly... just dots... very insulting!!)

P.S.
by Otolith
AWESOME site, by the way!

Na na nana na
by Patrick
52 countries, 23% yay. :-D

Myanmar
by Nicki
England is a country, Uk is not. Sweden is a country, NOT a city. Burma is now called Myanmar, as Sri Lanka was once called Ceylon.

UK
by Adam
Fot those of you who really want to be picky about the UK it consists of 2 constituent countries (SCOTLAND/ENGLAND) 1 constituent principality (WALES) and 1 constituent region (NORTHERN IRELAND) 4 seperate entities, each with varying degrees of autonomy, within one UNITED KINGDOM of GREAT BRITAIN (S/E/W) AND NORTHERN IRELAND.

Addendum
by Adam
Furthermore, the distinction between Scotland and England could not be clearer! If you look at contracts and other such legal documents it does not refer to UK law, but to english law or scots law. The english/welsh and scottish judicial systems are wholly independent of each other. that is why for example scotland has a smoking ban whereas England does not! Education system is also completely seperate. Health care is seperate. the scottish parliament has tax varying powers. with the exception of defence, foreign affairs and social security, the london parliament, led by tony blair has no real power in scotland anymore! Scotlands laws are, for the most part, made by the independently elected scottish parliament in a voting system (AMS) which is distinct from that used in Westminster. Scotland also has a government which is led by the SNP whereas Westminster is led by Labour!

i thought i was well traveled...
by nic
this is awsome, when ever iam not sure where to go next ill just pick a place which has the largest area of white!

also who the hell keeps saying hk is dirty? you ever been there? it is awsome, i live there, it is a tiny island and 0ver 70% is uninhabited and national parks!... not to say it dosent have alotof people who lik to party.

Her har jeg vært
by Berit

Get over your bloody debate...
by the best
Would you all just shut up about which country belongs to which continent or which island/state/region should actually be considered as an individual country...

stupid gay cunts! get dicks shoved up your bum holes and rotate on them!!!

comment_277
by Villy
If England and Scotland, isn’t separate countries, then why is Greenland and The Faroe Islands? They are both a part of Denmark ??

places forgotten
by
you forgot Hong Kong and Macau.
While technically HK isn't its own country, I know many people who would be very offended if they were told they lived in China. It's like saying the same for Taiwan.

Chile is a country?
by Martin
Is Chile a country? or is an argentine province?

ignorance
by Michael
I can't believe how ignorant some of you are. 'is chile a country?' It's a great site but I'm traumatized by the people using it

serbia & montenegro
by al
as of 2006, Montenegro officially broke out of the Union of Serbia & Montenegro, creating two seperate countries.
Both are UN members.
could the site possibly be updated to recognize Montenegro's independance.

kosovoc
by cat
isn't kosovo a recognized country by now?

travels on a google map
by ryan byrd
what about cool country flags on a google map? check it out: http://www.ryanbyrd.net/globe.php

more on China
by Keith
Thanks for the cool tool!
I'm an American, married to a Beijing Citizen (yes, that's how they prefer to call themselves, at least when referring to other Chinese), and now we are living in Beijing. I've visited Taiwan and Hong Kong. I can just show up in either place and get a "Visa on arrival" for short stays. My wife must apply for Visa to Hong Kong in advance. Rumor has it that it would not be easy for her to get a Visa to Taiwan. Just recently, you can get direct flights between mainland China and Taiwan, but they are pretty much limited to the holiday seasons (1 week each in Feb, May and Oct). The rest of the year, most people have to fly through Singapore. (There is a big demand for direct flights, but politics get in the way.) Oh yeah, Taiwan has a completely different political system.
I certainly think Hong Kong and Taiwan should be listed separately from mainland China.

Spitsbergen
by Tventano
Nice map and nice service.
I would put Spitsbergen as a seperate country and not part of Norway. Just like you put the Netherlands Antiles and Greenland etc. seperate from their kingdom. Btw the norwegians call Spitsbergen "Svalbard".

singapore
by angela
hello. where is singapore in the map? and can you make a map of the philippines?pls.:)

comment_287
by tm
tried to post the html code on my myspace site and it doesnt work. Any ideas?

the UK
by Jake
The UK is not an area of territories but four seperate countries pulled together at some time in history. It is important to point out that all four countries have a seperate parliament and some even have a different legal system.
That said wee should all stick together but appreciate each others requirements for proportional representation.

Fun Interesting
by Dinu
Excellent Tool, Great and pat on your shoulder for developing it.

Just don't like how i've only visited Cali & NY, and it appears as though i have covered the entire U-S-A.

Cheers

Shades of color to indicate time spent
by LivePaola
Very nice tool. For future versions, add color depth to indicate time spent. I have spent 2 years in California, but only about 5 months in New York, so California should be a deeper red (or purple, or whatever) than New York. Cheers!

England is a country
by jack
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England

visit that, England is a country on its own as is wales and scotland. England once ruled over a quarter of the worlds population at one point ffs. the united kingdom is the name for the countries the monarch (the queen) is currently the head of state of and is not just one country.

Stupid
by M M
Shows how stupid many yanks are thinking england isn't a country

yanks today
by j
if england wasnt a country then they wouldnt be able to have an international football team or as you call it a 'soccer' team. also wales, scotland and ireland all have there own international football teams and you know why? because they are individual countrys! there is no United kingdom football team is there? no. The united kingdom is the countrys that the queen is head of state over that are united as the name suggests. i dont mind being assosiated with our neighbours but we all have our own national identity hence the different flags we all have. it like saying north america is a country and canada is not a country it doesnt work, i have a lot of respect for canadians but yanks do my head in.

Conuntires I have Visited
by Cric-PhotoPassionate

comment_295
by
Just to be pendantic, the UK is not the only place our pointless Queen is head of state, she is infact Head of state of MANY countries, including Canada, Australia, Barbados, Bahamas, Papua New Guinea...

She gets around does Liz.

response ^
by j
i didnt say they were the only ones she was head of state of i said those were the ones that were united

Palestine
by Barry Flanagan
As many non-states are listed here, so correctly is the Palestinian Authority, though in as much as it is under the Israeli gun - it should be listed as Occupied Palestine.

Taiwan
by Adam
In response to a previous post about the validity of Taiwan being an independant country: Just because the UN does not recognize it, does not mean that it is not an independant country. For many years after America won it's independance, it was not considered to be a country. Now look at it. It is one of the most powerful countries in the world!

Taiwan is an independant country regardless of whether you want to recognize it or not. Life exists beyond the printed page. So just because you don't recognize it because it isnt written fact, the people of that nation do acknowledge it. It is their opinion, and their thoughts on their civilization that matters, not just scibbles of ink on paper that determine their validity.

comment_299
by Stupid Asshole
I can't find the United States on here. Is it close to New York? Also, where is Detroit?

comment_300
by Jerk
Do you people ever get laid?

Congrats
by Cairo
hi! excellent idea!
why dont you try now a version with states (e.g. Florida) to US, Brazil, etc.?

Countries that no longer exist?
by Dave
How about listing former countries that no longer exist? I've been to former East Germany in the 1980s. I'm sure others have been to Rhodesia, Ceylon, Zaire, etc.

England a country?
by Robert Barton
Nevermind Yanks doing your head in, my fellow Brits ignorance does my head in. Right...you ready for a lesson?

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state. It includes the island of Great Britain and the north-east part of the island of Ireland, together with many small local islands. The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy comprised of four constituent countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The current monarch is Queen Elizabeth II who is also Queen and Head of State of fifteen other Commonwealth Realms including Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Jamaica. Politically, "Great Britain" describes the combination of England, Scotland, and Wales. It includes outlying islands such as the Isle of Wight, Anglesey, the Isles of Scilly, the Hebrides, and the island groups of Orkney and Shetland, but does not include the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands. The Crown Dependencies of the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, form a federacy with the United Kingdom.

The British Isles refers to the group of islands off the northwest coast of Europe comprising Great Britain, Ireland, and adjacent smaller islands.The British Isles refer to the island of Great Britian (England Scotland and Wales) and the whole island of Ireland. However, the term British Isles is controversial in relation to Ireland where its use is objected to by many people and by the government of the Republic of Ireland. The euphemism, these islands, or a similar construction, is usually employed in relations between the governments. It has been suggested that this group of islands be called IONA. This acronym stands for "Islands of the North Atlantic". While maybe satisfying the Irish, many over nationalities don't like IONA as it excludes most of the islands in the North Atlantic, including Iceland, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Cape Breton, and the Azores.

"The British Islands" is a term used in UK law to refer collectively to the United Kingdom of Great Britian and Northern Ireland, the Bailiwick of Jersey, the Bailiwick of Guernsey (including Alderney, Herm, and Sark) and the Isle of Man.

comment_304
by margaret

Montserrat Spelling
by Ishwar Persad
Monserrat is spelt incorrectly - it should be Montserrat

Taiwan is NOT part of China
by Elizabeth
Taiwan is an independnet country, has its own democratic system, traditions, indigenous groups, etc. While many here have family that trace their roots to China, Taiwan is still independent from China. It's richer per capita and classified as a developed country. Though th US switched to recognizing China over Taiwan in 1978 during President Carter's term in office, Taiwan still gets millitary support from the US, which is something Communist China will not see