Tag Archives: Country

Guatemala

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Guatemala

Guatemala is a site of exquisite history, both modern and ancient.

  • Guatemala is a small, Central American country located beneath Mexico, surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean, and the countries Belize, Honduras and El Salvador.
  • ‘Guatemala’ is also known under the official name of the ‘Republic of Guatemala’, and the name of the country comes from the Ancient Aztec language, derived from the word ‘Cuauchtēmallān’, meaning ‘place of many trees’.
  • Guatemala’s first inhabitants were the Mayan civilisation, however, they were conquered by the Spanish who arrived from 1517, and the natives were fully defeated in 1697.
  • Guatemala had a population estimation of just fewer than 16 million people in 2014, and the country covers an area of almost 109,000 square kilometres (42,085 square miles).
  • In 1821, Guatemala was declared independent from Spain, however the country only became a republic with a subsequently chosen president in 1847.
Guatemala, Aerial, Trivia, Ten Random Facts, Country, Mountain, Australia, PlacePart of Guatemala
Image courtesy of Sara Fratti/Flickr
  • Guatemala is quite a mountainous region with a mixture of sandy and forest habitats, featuring two main mountain ranges – unsurprising considering the country is situated on a fault line – and it has 33 extinct and 4 active volcanoes.
  • The Guatemala capital, now known as ‘Guatemala City’, has been subject to multiple relocations, initially moving south-east in 1527 after an attack on the city; and relocating in 1541 and 1773, due to flooding and earthquakes respectively.
  • Guatemala has consistently been a location of political unrest and high criminal activity, having its own revolution from 1944 to 1954, and an ongoing civil war from 1960 to 1996, which resulted in millions of refugees and displacements, and hundreds of thousands of deaths.
  • Guatemala primarily produces vegetables, fruit and textiles, as well as nickel and petroleum and some other commodities, and has a GDP of approximately US$7,500 per capita in 2014.
  • Due to its ancient historical importance, particularly of Mayan culture, Guatemala is a popular destination for tourism, receiving around two million visitors a year.
Bibliography:
Guatemala, 2016, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guatemala
Guatemala, n.d, Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, https://smartraveller.gov.au/countries/guatemala
Guatemala, n.d, The World Factbook, https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gt.html

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Siberia

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Siberia

Siberia is such a breath-taking place. *sigh*

  • Siberia is a region located in North Asia, spreading from the central to eastern parts of the continent, and it is one of the districts of Russia.
  • The origin of the name ‘Siberia’ is controversial; with some theorising its origins are from ‘su’ and ‘bir’, meaning ‘water and ‘land’ respectively, while others state ‘Sib Ir’ as the origin, which is native terminology for ‘sleeping land’.
  • The actual boundaries of Siberia are somewhat undefined, with the Federal District covering approximately 5.1 million square kilometres (2 million square miles), and the most broadest boundaries (also known as ‘Asian Russia’) include more than 70% of Russia.
  • Siberia is economically important in supplying minerals including gold, nickel, coal, silver, zinc, lead and diamond, with the region containing some of the largest reserves on earth.
  • Some towns in Siberia are generally isolated and unconnected from other settlements in that they do not have designated roads for vehicles, while the Trans-Siberian railway provides some of the greatest accessibility to the southern areas.
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Part of Siberia
Image courtesy of Marc van der Chijs/Flickr
  • Novosibirsk is the largest city in Siberia, and third largest city in Russia, with a population of approximately 1.5 million in 2013.
  • A wide variety of native groups inhabited parts of Siberia until the Mongolian invasions from the 1200s, and later the Russian invasions from the late 1500s.
  • Siberia has particularly cold temperatures, with low winter temperatures reaching -20°C (-4°F) despite the area originally being full of volcanic activity.
  • As of 2014, Siberia Federal District had a population of approximately 20 million people, and with the wider area included, the total was around 40 million, bringing it to roughly the same people to land ratio as Australia – a low density of 3 people per square kilometre (0.4 of a square mile).
  • Siberia is notable for its vastness, and its extensive and awe inspiring scenery, particularly Ukok Plateau, and the largest freshwater lake in the world, Lake Baikal.
Bibliography:
Siberia, 2015, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberia
Siberia Federal District, Russia (Siberian), 2015, Russia Trek, http://russiatrek.org/siberia-district
Siberia History, 2015, Lonely Planet, http://www.lonelyplanet.com/russia/siberia/history
Siberia, n.d, Encyclopedia.com, http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Siberia.aspx

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Belgium

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Belgium

“Strength through Unity” – Belgium’s Motto.

  • Belgium is a country found in Europe’s west, that covers just over 30,500 square kilometres (11,700 square miles) in area, and its neighbours are Germany, France, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, and the capital city is Brussels.
  • Belgium has a constitutional monarch in place; and is the only country in the world with the ‘popular monarchy’ system, and as such the king is known as the king of the people (King of the Belgians), rather than the king of the country.
  • ‘Belgium’ is also known as ‘België’ in Dutch, ‘Belgique’ in French, ‘Belgien’ in German, the ‘Kingdom of Belgium’ (its official name), and the ‘Battlefield of Europe’, referring to the country being the ground of many wars.
  • Of the 11 million people who populate Belgium, approximately 59% are Dutch speaking and 41% are French speaking, as well as a small quantity of German speaking people, causing the country to have three official languages.
  • Belgium is split into three areas, the two major areas being Flanders and Wallonia; the former mainly houses those of Flemish origin (Dutch speakers) while the latter mainly houses those of Walloon origin (French speakers) as well as the small group of 70,000 Germans that generally reside in the eastern part of the country.

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Aerial View of the capital city, Brussels
Image courtesy of La Citta Vita/Flickr
  • Belgium was originally occupied by Celtic and Germanic communities until 100 BC when it was conquered by Romans and known as ‘Gallia Belgica’, which is where the modern name of the country is derived from.
  • Belgium’s politics involves the king, who is the head of state, and from 2013 was King Philippe, who allocates the position of all ministers for the federal government.
  • In 2012, Belgium had a nominal GDP estimate of $484.7 billion, with food, finished diamonds, metal, machinery, and chemicals as major exports.
  • Belgium is known for its contribution to the arts, and for its cuisine, with many famous chocolates and over 1000 different types of beer.
  • Belgium is the home of 11 or more UNESCO World Heritage Sites and many famous architectural buildings and galleries, including the Cathedral of Notre-Dam.
Bibliography:
Belgium, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgium
Belgium, n.d, European Union, http://europa.eu/about-eu/countries/member-countries/belgium/index_en.htm

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United States of America

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United States of America

The world power: the United States of America.

  • The  ‘United States of America’ is also known as the ‘USA’, ‘US’, ‘U.S.A’, ‘U.S’, the ‘United States’ and ‘the States’ and covers an area of 9.83 million square kilometres (3.79 million square miles), making it the fourth largest country.
  • The United States of America became a nation on July 4, 1776, known as Independence Day, and is a republic of 50 states located in central America and north west America.
  • The capital of the United States of America is Washington DC, which is also the home of the White House and the president.
  • The United States of America is one of the most multicultural countries, with a population of over 315 million people, ranking it third in the world, and over 70% of the population are white Americans, and two thirds of the adult population is either overweight or obese.
  • In 2013, the United States of America was the wealthiest country in the world, with a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of over $16 trillion, the highest in the world, and more than a third of world’s wealth is own by Americans.

USA, US, United States, Road Map, Whole, Ten Random Facts, Flickr

Map of the USA
Image courtesy of Breki74/Flickr
  • The United States of America has been involved in numerous wars, and one of the most significant wars in its history was the American Civil War in 1861 to 1865, which was based on the issue of slavery and killed approximately 620,000 soldiers.
  • The United States of America has many geographical structures and national parks and over 400 mammals, 500 reptiles and 750 birds, make the US their home, as well as 91,000 species of insects and 17,000 species of plants.
  • The United States of America is the largest importer in the world and ranks as the second largest exporter, with China, Canada, Mexico, Germany, and Japan being all major traders, and the country is also the second largest carbon dioxide producer.
  • Cars are the main form of personal transport in the United States of America, and the country caters for motorists with its 13 million roads which include some of the longest in the world.
  • The United States of America has won more than double the number of medals than any other country, throughout the history of the Summer Olympic Games.
Bibliography:
United States of America, 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States>
United States of America Country Profile, 2012, BBC, <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/country_profiles/1217752.stm>

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