Can you name the country with the longest name on Earth? Most people can’t name it. You may be surprised to know that it’s the United Kingdom. The full name is “The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”. It has 45 characters and 56 characters, including spaces. So the longest country name in the world belongs to a place most of us shorten to two letters and a shrug.
- The UK owns the longest country name in the world.
- São Tomé and Príncipe and Sri Lanka are on the second and third ranks.
- Most long country names have a brief history behind them.
- Liechtenstein is the longest one-word name of a nation.
UK Has the Longest Country Name
The name is basically for four countries: England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The wording we use now was adopted in 1927, after the Irish Free State left.
Before that came the Acts of Union in 1707, 1800, and 1922—a slow-motion merger if there ever was one. About 67 million people live there today. It’s a constitutional monarchy. It’s got a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has 45 alphabetical characters and 56 if you also count spaces.
Also Read – Try These Hardest Languages to Learn
Top 10 Longest Country Names
According to WorldAtlas, below is the list of countries that make their place among the longest country names.
- The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has 45 letters.
- Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe has 38 letters. They are two small islands in the Gulf of Guinea. Portuguese sailors came here in 1471 and named one on Saint Thomas’s feast day. The cocoa trade helps the economy and over 30,000 tourists come here every year.
- Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka has 37 letters. It got the name “Ceylon” in the 1970s when it became a republic. The country looks like a pear on the map, has a population of 22 million, and has UNESCO sites such as Sigiriya and Galle. Tea, rubber, and clothing are the main businesses.
- Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis has 36 letters. Fun fact nobody asked for: “Saint Christopher” is just the posh name for Saint Kitts. Free from the UK since 1983, there are only 55,000 people, and they go feral for Carnival.
- The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia has 35 letters. The name means “burnt face” in old Greek. Never colonized. Once called Abyssinia. Home to 130-plus million people and the African Union. It has rock churches at Lalibela and the Danakil Depression, somehow the hottest place on the planet.
- People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria has 34 letters. Africa’s biggest country, mostly Sahara Desert. The name comes from “al-Jazāʾir,” Arabic for “the islands”.
- Independent State of Papua New Guinea has 32 letters. Based on the JagranJosh report, over 800 languages are spoken here. It took the name in 1975 after splitting from Australia.
- Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal has 32 letters. Eight of the world’s ten tallest mountains are in Nepal, including Everest. Plus, Lumbini is where the Buddha was born.
- Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has 32 letters. We all call it North Korea. The name dates to 1948, and it reopened to tourists in December 2024.
- Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste has 30 letters. This one translates to “East East.” Not a typo. It has about 1.35 million people, mostly Christian and Portuguese-speaking.
What Country Has the Longest Name on Each Continent?
Africa: São Tomé and Príncipe is the continent’s second-smallest country, founded in 1470 by explorers Pedro Escobar and João de Santarém. That’s the longest country name in Africa, with Algeria and the Central African Republic next.
Asia: Sri Lanka takes the longest country name in Asia, North Korea second. Meanwhile, Japan has the shortest official name in Asia, which feels almost rude by comparison.
Europe: The UK has the longest name. Then North Macedonia, which abandoned “The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” in 2019 to end a long fight with Greece. Then the Federal Republic of Germany. Europe also owns Liechtenstein—the longest one-word name anywhere.
The Americas: The experts at Dream and Travel give the longest country name in South America to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela at 29 letters, with Guyana and Bolivia tied for second. And what about the longest country name in North America? The Collectivity of Saint Barthélemy, a French Caribbean territory, beat Saint Kitts and Nevis.
Also Read – When Was Italy Established As A Country
Interesting Facts
Long country names are nothing — and I mean nothing — compared to long place names. The Travel found a hill in New Zealand with an 85-letter name. Bangkok’s full ceremonial name is 168 letters.
And the longest in history? Libya once carried an Arabic title meaning “state of the masses.” For the record, there are 195 countries in the world, and 193 of them sit in the UN.
- What country has the longest name in the world?
Ans: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the longest country name in the world, with 45 letters and 56 with the spaces. - What’s the longest one-word country name?
Ans: This title goes to Liechtenstein, a small country located between Austria and Switzerland. - What’s the longest country name in South America?
Ans: By common name, it is Chile, and by official name, it is the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. - What’s the longest country name in Africa?
Ans: The Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe is the longest official country name in Africa. They are small islands in the Gulf of Guinea. - What’s the longest city name in the world?
Ans: Bangkok’s full ceremonial name is 168 letters long. It is Krungthepmahanakhon Amonrattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilokphop Noppharatratchathaniburirom Udomratchaniwetmahasathan Amonphimanawatansathit Sakkathattiyawitsanukamprasit.
Sources & References:
- WorldAtlas – The list of countries with the longest country names.
- Jagranjosh – The Independent State of Papua New Guinea has over 800 languages.
- The Travel – A hill in New Zealand has an 85-letter name.
- Dream and Travel – The longest country name in South America is the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
