Oil explorations in the 1950s uncovered a fossil aquifer in this African nation that is 40,000 years old and existed before the end of the last ice age. They were able to tame, ride and milk horses some 5,500 years ago. These stunning creations take months of preparation, but inevitably they are trampled on by the celebrations procession. Take the road less travelled and visit these underrated European cities. The tallest people among us live in the Netherlands, where the average adult height is 6 feet. That means that 106 people die each minute, 6,392 people die each hour, 153,424 people die each day, and 56 million people die each year. This former Yugoslavian republic on the Adriatic Sea is credited with inventing the necktie. The British royal family may be the most famous royal family on the planet, but there are still plenty of other nobles out there. That's it for our list of world facts, but be sure to check back in with us soon for even more trivia! But the group dates all the way back to 1914 when the International Criminal Police Congress was held in Monaco. This is because the Earth is not perfectly spherical, but rather oblate. French settlers were the first Europeans to arrive on the island, and gave it that name. Spain has twice occupied this African nation, and its the only country on the continent with Spanish as its official language. Located on the northeast coast of South America, this entire country has only one movie theater, in the capital city of Paramaribo. "From about 1915, when the statistical record begins, until 1980, about one in every 50 babies born was a twin, a rate of 2 percent," writes Alexis C. Madrigal of The Atlantic. Co-residential living is also popular, and men and women both have multiple partners and children with different people over the course of their lives. if( 'moc.enilnoefiltseb' !== location.hostname.split('').reverse().join('') ) { 5. If the Earth's time zones were each one hour apart, then we would have 24 time zones, which sounds pretty straightforward. Air pollution, pollen, and a large amount of cresting waves also help to put Hawaii at the top of the list when it comes to rainbow quantity and quality. Step aside John, James, Mary, and Janethe most popular name in the world is believed to be Muhammad. As one of the biggest waterfalls in the world, Victoria Falls is quite impressive. When you turn your head, you can hear that motion. This nation in the middle of Africa is one of the three least light-polluted areas in the world, along with Chad and Madagascar. Striking findings from 2022 | Pew Research Center 14. Ancient Kazakhs are credited with domesticating wild horses. Our Diego/Who art on earth/Hallowed be thy left foot/Thy magic come/Thy goals be remembered.. This Caribbean island nation has no snow or winter-like conditions at any time of the year, but it does have whats arguably the worlds most famous bobsled team. This African nation is the youngest country in the world, having achieved full independence in 2011. You win this round Russia. The Gruesome Tale of the Laughing Death Epidemic, The Greatest Air Race of All Time Which Helped Give Us the Global Airline Industry, An Ode to Glorious Chips (And Who Invented Nachos), What Those Nasty White Chunks That Sometimes Come From Your Throat Are, The Difference Between a Fact and a Factoid, Marilyn Monroe was Not Even Close to a Size 12-16, A Japanese Soldier Who Continued Fighting WWII 29 Years After the Japanese Surrendered, Because He Didnt Know. One of the things Monaco, a tiny country surrounded by France and the Mediterranean Sea, is most known for is its casino in Monte Carlo, but local residents of the country are barred from entering it unless they work there. While China consumes more tea overall than any other country (at approximately 1.6 billion pounds a year), as of 2014, Turkey drank the most tea per capita, at a whopping 6.961 pounds per person . The United Nations recognizes 193 countries plus two observer states, Palestine and the Vatican (Holy See). In Spanish, the area's name is Islas Canarias, which comes from the Latin phrase Canariae Insulae for "island of dogs.". Dentistry goes all the way back to when humans first had teeth well, not quite that long. Today, however, Cholula is mostly covered by dirt and plants. 125 Geography Facts That Will Blow Your Mind | Far & Wide They apparently put it on everything here. The flag of Nicaragua features a rainbow in the center that includes a band of purple, while the flag of Dominica boasts a picture of a sisserou parrot, a bird with purple feathers. With more than 1,000 species, it contains 60 percent of Africas birds and 11 percent of the worlds avian population. If you're an avid rainbow gazer and want to get your fill of the beautiful phenomenon, look no further than the state of Hawaii. Due to its location 8 to 12 degrees north of the equator, this Central American country is always about the same distance from the sun. Home to more than one billion oysters, the area is a no-fishing zone, which will hopefully give the population a chance to recover. "I've tried it on the tip of my tongue and it just burned and burned," Mike Smith, the hobby grower who invented the Dragon's Breath along with scientists from Nottingham University, told Live Science. "Most people find the absence of sound deafening, feel a sense of fullness in the ears, or some ringing. That's why 68 percent of households in the country have a pet, which is more than any other nation in the world. The baby box has been a Finnish institution since the 1930s, when the European countrys infant mortality rate was high. Burkinab revolutionary Thomas Sankara is known as the African Che Guevara for his efforts, as president from 1983-87, to rid the country of corruption and environmental degradation while empowering women and boosting education and health-care access. Published 2 years ago. At the same time, there are 10 quadrillion (10,000,000,000,000,000) individual ants crawling around at any given time. Boys and girls are educated separately in Iran until they reach university. Without further ado, here's 25 travel facts that are certain to shock and surprise. Indonesia attempted to count them all in 2017, but several differing figures still exist. Europe has been experiencing serious dry spells and extreme heat since 2015, which has caused major droughts. This is one of the things that make it one of the top 10 countries in the Caribbean. This South American country unfortunately has a history with German Aryans dating back to the 1880s, when Bernhard Frster, the father of Nazism, relocated to Paraguay. That makes dentistry one of the oldest recorded professions and is definitely a reason to smile. Melons are so important to the culture and history of this former Soviet republic that it has a holiday dedicated to the fruit that takes place each August. That number is expected to reach 22 percent by 2050. However, only The Gambia and The Bahamas formally include "the" in their names. The Aztecs are believed to have built the Great Pyramid of Cholula some 2,000 years ago. Samoa, an island nation in the South Pacific Ocean, has a third gender called fa'afafines. It's seven years old. And if rainfall is rare, wouldn't snowfall be even rarer? Watch the whole process of how bees make honey in this video! The cutting was taken from the Indian tree that gave Siddhartha Gautama the enlightenment to become Buddha. People who live in New Zealand seem to love having at least one animal companion around. Bestlifeonline.com is part of the Dotdash Meredith Publishing Family. It strives to encapsulate the human experience in a week of art, culture, and fire. This Southeast Asian country is one of only three in the world, along with Liberia and the United States, that does not use the metric system. Beliefs include not lending money or bread at night and never hurrying off to a funeral. He is so popular in his home country that some 120,000 people worship at the Church of Maradona. Thanks to the work of an amateur archaeologist in the early 2000s, residents and government officials in this former Yugoslavian republic in southeast Europe believe that a network of 12,000-year-old pyramids exists within the countrys borders. Impress your friends with mind-blowing trivia about dolphins, koalas, bats, and more. Folklore and superstition reign supreme in this former Soviet republic. Since 1949, the Finnish government has given every expectant mother a cardboard box that their baby can sleep in, filled with essential items like clothes, sheets and toys. This tiny country sandwiched between Austria and Switzerland is the worlds top producer of false teeth. Yes, they're technically the property of the government of China, according to Vox. Bob Dylan, known for his politically charged songwriting, released an album in 1976 around the time of this African nations independence from Portugal that contained a romantic love song called Mozambique celebrating the country. 40% of world's countries and territories had blasphemy laws in 2019 This is the only country in Central America that doesnt have a coastline on the Caribbean Sea. READ THIS NEXT: 70 Wonderfully Weird Facts That Will Make You Question Everything. Residents of this South American country cannot legally watch The Simpsons because their former president, Hugo Chavez, deemed it unsuitable for children. We reject government funding so we can guarantee our absolute independence and integrity. But its least famous triangular structure is actually the largest one in the world. And when the PyeongChang Winter Games were held in 2018, 2,952 athletes were expected to show up from a total of 92 countries. That would make them far older than the Egyptian pyramids, and Bosnia would be the cradle of European civilization. That's almost seven miles! And although the nations population is low, it has produced several of the greatest cricket players of all time, including Viv Richards, Richie Richardson, Andy Roberts and Curtly Ambrose. At 5,525 miles, its the worlds longest unprotected border. This European country is the birthplace of Miguel de Cervantes, whose iconic Don Quixote is considered the first modern novel. Fun Country Facts for Kids - Interesting Trivia & Information 01 There are 195 countries in the world today. Our neighbors to the north boast 396.9 million hectares of forests, or 9 percenet of all of the forest area in the entire world, according to Natural Resources Canada. A third of world's languages are spoken in Africa! Due to its placement in the central Pacific Ocean and the fact that its islands cover an area of 1.3 million square miles, Kiribati has the special distinction of being the only country in the world thats located in all four hemispheres. 15 Interesting Facts About Countries Around the World - travelingmitch These days, Interpol (or the International Criminal Police Organization) may be well-known for tracking down outlaws around the world. Bicycles are much more prevalent than personal automobiles in this European country. xhr.open('POST', 'https://www.google-analytics.com/collect', true); 25 FASCINATING COUNTRY FACTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD - Pinterest READ THIS NEXT: 175 Random Facts So Interesting You'll Say, "OMG!". Want to try it? In 2011, this Pacific Ocean nation comprised of dozens of islands and atolls created the largest shark sanctuary in the world. Sorry, folksnot all interesting facts are fun! Time for some literal world facts: Earth's radius at the equator is 3,963 miles (6,378 km), according to NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. Icelanders, per capita, consume more of the soft drink than any other country in the world. Its water resources are shared by 11 different countries, too. Africa has 54 countries! Some research has linked hydrothermal vents, like deep-sea volcanoes, to the "origin of life." Category 1: Nature The deepest place on Earth is the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean. In China, the holiday lasts for weeks! The Soviet era never really ended in this European country, and Belarus is often called Europes last dictatorship. Only recently did this African nation switch from marbles to paper ballots for elections. Countries such as United States, Russia and Germany typically top the list. The Richat Structure, an uplifted dome that has eroded away, is located in this African nation. Between 300,000 and 125,000 years old. More chocolate is sold at the Brussels airport than anywhere else in Belgium. The company finalized its exit from the world's largest country just five months after the war began. But it was a Portugeuse woman who first brought the drink to the isles. We are a movement of people from over 100 countries. While this fizzy drink is sold practically everywhere, it still hasn't (officially) made its way to North Korea or Cuba, according to the BBC. * Population stats were sourced from Worldometer. The teenager actually anticipated the addition of Alaska and Hawaii a year later? Manas is a folk hero in this former Soviet republic. The former member of Yugoslavia in southeastern Europe is home to whats considered one of, if not the, worlds oldest olive tree: Stara Maslina. That meeting saw police and judicial representatives from 24 countries get together to improve contacts between police forces in different countries to increase the effectiveness of international investigations. Bees are big in this former Yugoslavian republic. There may not be any red-billed queleas in your neighborhood, but that's not because there isn't an abundance of them. The exact date varies from year to year, but it always falls during the winter. The Spanish Steps (seen below) are found in which city? Crocodiles are found on the American, Asian and Australian continents. Dating back to 859, the University of Al-Karaouine in the ancient city of Fes el-Bali is the oldest known university in the world. In 2012, Russian scientists were able to regenerate a plant from a seed found in Siberian permafrost that was more than 30,000 years old. You might think you're accustomed to frigid air and blustery winds, but the average winter day has nothing on the coldest day ever recorded, which was -144 degrees Fahrenheit. Roquemaure's Lovers' Festival boasts 19th-century costumes and music. These days, around 86 percent of adults around the world can enjoy a book on their own. We rely on you. "As soon as one enters the room, one immediately feels a strange and unique sensation which is hard to describe," Hundraj Gopal, a speech and hearing scientist and principal designer of the anechoic chamber at Microsoft, told CNN. Every second, we welcome four new babies into our overall population. Five hundred people live on the island in around 155 houses. This former Soviet republic contains the largest glacier outside of either the north or south poles. In 2017, the European country welcomed 86.9 million people. When looking for unusual and fascinating cultures all around the world, you don't want to pass up an opportunity to visit or even see the Wayuu people. Its true, and its in this Central American nation. A new Pew Research Center analysis finds that 79 countries and territories out of the 198 studied around the world (40%) had laws or policies in 2019 banning blasphemy, which is defined as speech or actions considered to be contemptuous of God or of people or objects considered sacred. The olympics is an event that many look forward too and countries around the world start to wear their colors! Canada Is (Finally) No. For years, people have been taking and then returning chunks of sandstone, fearing that the pilfering cursed them with bad luck. Due to repeated droughts in the 20th century, many Cabo Verdeans left the West African island nation for better opportunities. India gave the world its sweet tooth. But Italians have only been eating this fruit since the 1500s, when Spanish conquistadors brought it from Peru to Naples, which at the time was under Spanish rule. At nearly 6 minutes long, this South American country has the worlds longest national anthem. The Namib Desert, from which this African country gets its name, is the oldest desert in the world at 55 million years old. The marbles practice started in the 1960s as a way to avoid spoiled ballots and to make it easier for illiterate citizens to vote. It was written by many people starting in the 1800s and finishing with the first publication in the 1920s. It depicts two giraffes, with the tallest one measuring nearly 18 feet. Sep 26, 2013 - This is a guest post contributed by List25 Depending on which government list you're reading from and which countries they recognize, it's estimated that there are about 196 official countries in the world. Mongooses are a familiar sight on this Caribbean island. The North American . 25 Fascinating Country Facts from Around the World - Today I Found Out Thanks, India. In order to avoid excessive wear and tear to its historic monuments, this ancient European country banned high heels at archaeological sites. The world's longest commercial flight took around 30 hours. The smallest recognized independent country in the world uses the euro as its currency even though its not part of the Eurozone or European Union. Coffee is grown commercially in Hawaii! A traditional martial art called Moraingy was developed on this African island in the precolonial 17th century and remains wildly popular. Religious edicts called fatwas encourage contraceptives, and both men and women are required by law to take a class on modern contraception before their marriage license will be issued. 20 Fascinating Cultural Traditions Around the World - Day Translations Blog 23. That's almost seven miles! 90% of the world's fresh water is in Antarctica! Only four out of 10 Danes own a vehicle, while nine out of 10 own a bike. About a quarter of all overseas nurses come from the Philippines, making it the worlds top supplier of nurses. Mount Everest may not have physically grown, having reached maturity a long time ago, but the most recent measurement performed by surveyors representing China and Nepal has the mountain peak standing taller than we'd thought in the past. Theres a saying on Barbados that if a mongoose crosses the street in front of you, it signifies good luck. In 2015, airborne laser scanners found vast ancient cities buried under the jungle near Angkor Wat in this Southeast Asia nation. And over in Nicaragua, you'll encounter one of the only two flags in the world to feature the color purple. The first time a conifer was decorated for Christmas in the style we know today was in 1510 in Riga, Latvia. Americans also happen to love furry friends, which is why more than half of all U.S. homes have either a dog or cat (or both). Don't worry, your prized red roses aren't going to turn turquoise overnight, but an increase in UV radiation due to the ozone layer deteriorating over the past decades has caused flowers all over the globe to change. Because of this, it grows 99.9 percent of all commercially grown artichokes, and has even been nicknamed the "Artichoke Capital of the World.". Ivoclar Vivadent manufactures 60 million artificial teeth annually, which is 20 percent of all false teeth made worldwide. There are 23 different species. For decades, residents of Comayagua in this Central American nation have celebrated Good Friday by creating ornate and colorful sawdust carpets in front of their homes that depict scenes from Jesus Christs life. Its constitution was suspended in 1997 and there is only one political party in the entire country, the Peoples Front for Democracy and Justice. Located at Microsoft's headquarters in Redmond, Washington, the lab room measures a background noise of -20.35 dBA, which is 20 decibels below the threshold of human hearing and breaks previous records for spaces that were deemed the planet's quietest places, according to CNN. But you know what? Fascinating Facts About Every Single Country on Earth A 2021 study published by the American Meteorological Society noted that the area's "mountains produce sharp gradients in clouds and rainfall, which are key to abundant rainbow sightings." The Haitian Revolution, which lasted from 1791 to 1804, ultimately led to the creation of this Caribbean nation, making it the first country to be founded by former slaves. The first part was published in 1605 and the second 10 years later. To find the bulk of the world's freshwater, you need to trek to the poles, as 68.7 percent of it is encased in ice caps, permanent snow, and glaciers. In the land of the Kiwis, for instance, you'll find the highest concentration of pet owners on the planet. Either way, the main fermentation bacteria in the creamy dairy product is named after Bulgaria, lactobacillus bulgaricus, and was first discovered in the region. navigator.sendBeacon('https://www.google-analytics.com/collect', payload); Shibam is a 16th-century walled city in this Middle East nation thats known as the Manhattan of the Desert thanks to its impressive mud-brick highrises and grid layout. Everyone associates this European nation with chocolate, and for good reason. After the long process of measuring the mountain with GPS devices, however, experts have now stated that Mount Everest stands at a whopping 29,031.69 feet, due to plate tectonics. But unless you live in China, the pandas that you're seeing are just visiting. This East African nation was the site of an archaeological discovery that rewrote human history. Besides big players like the United States, Indonesia, Pakistan, China, Mexico and Brazil, most of these countries have fewer than 50 million residents and might be difficult for people to find on a map. It first competed in the Olympics in 1988. Not all bacteria are bad. AfrikaBurn is a cousin festival to the Burning Man festival in the U.S. As it turns out, the chili was initially developed to be used in medical treatment as an anesthetic that can numb the skin. In fact, over 12 percent of people on Earth are 60 years old and older. Thanks to a long monsoon season, this countrys capital, Conkary, is the wettest capital on Earth. Gibnut is so revered in these parts that it was served to Queen Elizabeth II in 1985 during a royal visit. The Yoruba people in the southwest part of this African nation are known for giving birth to more twins than anywhere else in the world, at a rate of 50 per 1,000 births. They were in Parc National Nouabal-Ndoki, a swampy forested region teeming with flora and fauna. The national sport of this South-Central Asian country is called buzkashi and involves men on horses fighting over half of a calf carcass (goat carcasses were once used, but couldnt handle the pounding as well). He was assassinated in 1987. At 20 times longer than the Odyssey by Homer, the Epic of Manas is considered the longest poem in the world. In 1893, this island nation in Oceania became the first self-governing country in the world to allow women to vote in parliamentary elections. Here you can view the embalmed body of the countrys most beloved leader, known as Uncle Ho, who was encased in glass (against his will). By adding 772,000 square miles of space, the Marshall Islands nearly doubled the amount of protected ocean for the marine mammals. According to a worldwide survey conducted in 2019 by the World Economic Forum, Singapore ranks number one in the world for its infrastructure, with an impressive score of 95.4 on a scale of 0 to 100. This African nation has one television station, Tele-Tchad, and its run by the state. Wadi Rum, aka the Valley of the Moon, has been used as a filming site in movies including Lawrence of Arabia, Red Desert and The Martian.. Forager bees regurgitate it. How many provinces are there in Canada? When 174 world leaders signed the Paris Agreement on Earth Day in 2016 at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York, it was the largest number of countries ever to come together to sign anything on a single day. This South American country has only volunteer firefighters who are entirely unpaid. July 23, 2021 15:37. The mystery is enhanced by the fact that they are only visible from high above. You've basically got superpowers from head to toe. 1 spot for 2021. And a large chunk of that number is alive right now. Since many time zones only differ by 30 or 45 minutes, they don't fit into a neat and tidy 24-hour span, which means that there are more than 24, though it's hard to say exactly how many. Category 1: Nature The deepest place on Earth is the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean. There is a tire dump in this small Middle East nation that is so massive, its not only the biggest in the world, but it can be seen from space. The Rubiks Cube was invented in this European nation by an architect who named it after himself. The American Colonization Society founded this African nation in the early 1800s as a place where free-born black Americans and freed slaves could live. Fun Facts about Countries Enjoy our range of fun facts for kids from countries all around the world.