There are 192 member countries in the United Nations. You have ten minutes. Name as many of them as you can. Spelling counts.
I was able to get 123 of them. After years of staring at maps, studying for the foreign service exam, and getting a degree in comparative politics–finally, payback!
It’s interesting to think about where the holes in my awareness are. The majority of mine were from sub-Saharan Africa (I began with North America and was still entering African countries when my time expired). I knew I would miss many of the little city-states and island nations (many in the South Pacific). I missed one Eastern European country and one former Soviet Republic.
Here’s a hint: you’re only entering UN member countries, so Taiwan and Tibet are out, and many (but not all!) islands are protectorates.
Let me know how you all do.
10 responses so far ↓
1 Bored in Vernal // Mar 7, 2007 at 7:56 am
I’m too embarrassed to actually tell you how many I got. But I had already named all I could think of before the time ran out. The only thing I did well was name the Soviet countries and spell them correctly!
Fun challenge.
2 Elise // Mar 7, 2007 at 8:57 am
John - let me make sure I understand right - you got 123 without any aid? You didn’t use any maps or the internet or anything?
I couldn’t name 123 countries at all, U.N. or non-U.N. I am very, very, very impressed with your geographical memory skills!
Fun game, though, and got me to actually look up a summary of the U.N. online. A nice way to start out a Wednesday morning.
3 Miko // Mar 7, 2007 at 9:01 am
I don’t know which are UN countries, but I immediately thought of Yakko’s World from the Animaniacs. Sung to the tune of the Mexican Hat Dance:
United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama, Haiti, Jamaica, Peru.
Republic Dominican, Cuba*, Carribean, Greenland, El Savador, too!
Puerto Rico*, Columbia, Venezuela, Honduras, Giana, & still
Guatamala, Bolivia, then Argentina, & Ecuador, Chili, Brazil.
Costa Rica, Belize, Nicaragua, Bermuda, Bahamas, Tobago, San Juan,
Paraguay, Uraguay, Surinam, & French Giana, Barbados & Guam*.
That’s as far as I know it by heart…some of the other bits come in pieces:
“Norway & Sweden, Germany now in one piece” & I think “Greece” rhymes with “piece”
“Cyprus, Iraq, & Iran”
“France, England, Denmark, & Spain”
“…Bhutan. Cambuchia, Malaysia, then Bangladesh, Asia**…”
“Zimbabwe, Djebuty, Botswana. Mozambique, Zambia, something something something Algeria, Ghana”
“Burundy, Lethsoto, and Malaway, Togo, the Spanish Sahara is gone! Niger, Nigeria, Chad & Liberia”
and, of course, the final line:
“Crete***, Mauritania, then Transylvania***, Monaco, Lichtenstein, Malta & Palestein, Fiji, Australia, Sudan!”
*aren’t UN memberstates, in my guess
**I think that’s meant as a “United States, North America” not as counting “Asia” as a country…
***I’m not sure that’s a country…
So, that’s 72, many of which I’m certain I couldn’t find on a map and others I’m sure I mispelled (I didn’t check my spelling, in deference to Bored). I’m not even certain they’re all still countries. This was produced sometime in the 90s, so…
4 John Remy // Mar 7, 2007 at 9:19 am
Thanks, all of you, for trying! CatGirl is addicted to it now. Miko, great song–I’ll have to track down a YouTube or mp3.
Elise, I’ve tried it several more times since, and was able to get 154 countries without any references. I really, really, love geography. If you ever want to quiz me, I have a pretty good mental map of the world. I am confident that I can name every country on the Eurasian continent, the Middle-Eastern peninsula and in North and South America with the exception of a dozen or two island and city-state nations. Not only that, but I can tell you where they are in relation to each other, and can give you a factoid or two about most. My undergrad years were spent studying international relations, so I spent a lot of time studying UN proceedings and reading foreign policy journals.
But all this falls apart when it comes to sub-saharan Africa. I’m ashamed to say this, and plan to make Africa and its people a larger part of my consciousness.
I should also mention that our shower curtain is a world map.
5 Miko // Mar 7, 2007 at 9:36 am
John: I’ve got the CD & I’ll email it to you if’n you want it (and others who think their accnt can handle the file size). There’s also the states & capitals in Wakko’s America, which, while not a great song (I’d listen to Yakko’s World any day), is a great way to remember them! When I was in HS I decided it was my duty to be able to recite the alphabet backwards & got hold of this (British) poem which has little to do with the UN but is fun none the less:
Said Why, “Ecks Double You Fee
Your Tea Is Our Cue-Pea.
Oh! En Em El Kay Jay!
I Hate Gee If He Deceives Bee Ay”
6 Bored in Vernal // Mar 7, 2007 at 10:28 am
Well, of course! That’s what comes of showering with the world every morning.
7 Bored in Vernal // Mar 7, 2007 at 10:36 am
Miko, when I was 10 years old, McDonalds had a contest where you could win a Big Mac if you could recite its ingredients backwards. (If you’re old enough you’ll remember the jingle they had on TV with the ingredients.)
All these years later I can still reel it off:
bun-seed-sesame-a-on-onions-pickles-cheese-lettuce-sauce-special-patties-beef-all-two!
Hooray for the right brain! And I would love to hear Miko’s CD so John, you’ll have to put it up!
8 Elise // Mar 7, 2007 at 11:53 am
John, if it makes you feel any less ashamed, North American is the only continent I feel confident that I could name all the countries on.
I’m curious now, though, how quickly I could educate myself. I can visualize a world map and if you tell me a relatively non-obscure country, I think I could point to its location on the map. So I bet I could learn the countries pretty easily. I’ll have to track down the Animaniacs song, too.
9 nee // Mar 7, 2007 at 12:41 pm
I didn’t even get 100 of them. Spelling was an issue on some. I didn’t look at the list of what I missed. I want to retake it when I’m not at work. The jabbermouths in the next aisle as well as Journey on my ipod were distracting me. It’s hard to visualize maps when Steve Perry is belting out “Now it’s your turn girl to cry-y… nah nah nahnah nah”
10 Miko // Mar 7, 2007 at 2:38 pm
Bored: I mean this as respectfully as possible for the way I know it’s going to sound…I’m not old enough to know the jingle, but my dad knows it and will break into song if the right key words are spoken (”sesame seed bun” being one) with my mom doing a “bum-bum” counterpoint in the background. As such, I am familiar with the jingle & am impressed by your ability to say it backwards! I had a password-protected application on a computer before I could spell and, knowning enough about passwords that it should not be a word that I could spell (like, my name or birthday), I switched off between “oreo” and bologna. Because, thanks to those jingles, I knew how to spell them sucessfully.
re: the song; ftp through iChat/AIM is prolly the easiest. You each should have an email of my SN.
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