List of sovereign states and dependent territories in South America
Sovereign states -- Sovereign states having the largest part of their territories in South America
Table:
Flag

Map

English short and formal names, and ISO code[6][7][8]

Domestic short and formal names
[6][7]

Capital
[8][9][10]

Population
[11]

Area
[12]

Argentina
Argentine Republic
ARG

Spanish: Argentina — República Argentina

Buenos Aires
Spanish: Ciudad de Buenos Aires

45,695,493

2,780,400 km2 (1,073,518 sq mi)

Bolivia
Plurinational State of Bolivia
BOL

Spanish: Bolivia — Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia

Sucre (official)
and La Paz (seat of government)
Spanish: Sucre[n 1]

12,447,616

1,098,581 km2 (424,164 sq mi)

Brazil
Federative Republic of Brazil
BRA

Portuguese: Brasil — República Federativa do Brasil

Brasília
Portuguese: Brasília

212,146,276

8,514,877 km2 (3,287,612 sq mi)

Chile [n 2]
Republic of Chile

Spanish: Chile — República de Chile

Santiago[n 3]
Spanish: Santiago

19,786,550

756,102 km2 (291,933 sq mi)

Colombia
Republic of Colombia
COL

Spanish: Colombia — República de Colombia

Bogotá / Santa Fe de Bogotá
Spanish: Bogotá

53,029,686

1,138,910 km2 (439,736 sq mi)

Ecuador
Republic of Ecuador
ECU

Spanish: Ecuador — República del Ecuador

Quito
Spanish: Quito

18,169,314

283,561 km2 (109,484 sq mi)

Guyana
Co-operative Republic of Guyana
GUY

English: Guyana — Co-operative Republic of Guyana

Georgetown
English: Georgetown

832,048

214,969 km2 (83,000 sq mi)

Paraguay
Republic of Paraguay
PRY

Spanish: Paraguay — República del Paraguay
Guarani: Paraguai — Tetã Paraguai

Asunción
Spanish: Asunción

6,945,933

406,752 km2 (157,048 sq mi)

Peru
Republic of Peru
PER

Aymara: Perú
Quechua: Perú
Spanish: Perú — República del Perú

Lima
Spanish: Lima

34,295,239

1,285,216 km2 (496,225 sq mi)

Suriname
Republic of Suriname
SUR

Dutch: Suriname — Republiek Suriname

Paramaribo
Dutch: Paramaribo

635,822

163,820 km2 (63,251 sq mi)

Uruguay
Eastern Republic of Uruguay[n 4]
URY

Spanish: Uruguay — República Oriental del Uruguay
Portuguese: Uruguai — República Oriental do Uruguai

Montevideo
Spanish: Montevideo

3,384,686

176,215 km2 (68,037 sq mi)

Venezuela
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
VEN

Spanish: Venezuela — República Bolivariana de Venezuela

Caracas
Spanish: Caracas

28,406,619

912,050 km2 (352,144 sq mi)

With reference to the given table along with the supplementary paragraphs listed at the end.

Give the answer to the question: In what year did Spanish conquistadors arrive in the country that has an area of 406,752 square km ? Output only the correct answer as {"answer": "YOUR ANSWER"}. Avoid adding external knowledge.

ISO 3166-1 is part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization ( ISO ) , and defines codes for the names of countries , dependent territories , and special areas of geographical interest . The official name of the standard is Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions - Part 1 : Country codes . It defines three sets of country codes :
Argentina ( Spanish : [ aɾxenˈtina ] ) , officially the Argentine Republic [ A ] ( Spanish : República Argentina ) , is a country located mostly in the southern half of South America . Sharing the bulk of the Southern Cone with Chile to the west , the country is also bordered by Bolivia and Paraguay to the north , Brazil to the northeast , Uruguay and the South Atlantic Ocean to the east , and the Drake Passage to the south . With a mainland area of 2,780,400 km2 ( 1,073,500 sq mi ) , [ B ] Argentina is the eighth-largest country in the world , the fourth largest in the Americas , the second largest in South America after Brazil , and the largest Spanish-speaking nation . The sovereign state is subdivided into twenty-three provinces ( Spanish : provincias , singular provincia ) and one autonomous city ( ciudad autónoma ) , Buenos Aires , which is the federal capital of the nation ( Spanish : Capital Federal ) as decided by Congress . The provinces and the capital have their own constitutions , but exist under a federal system . Argentina claims sovereignty over part of Antarctica , the Falkland Islands ( Spanish : Islas Malvinas ) , and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands . The earliest recorded human presence in modern-day Argentina dates back to the Paleolithic period . The Inca Empire expanded to the northwest of the country in Pre-Columbian times . The country has its roots in Spanish colonization of the region during the 16th century . Argentina rose as the successor state of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata , a Spanish overseas viceroyalty founded in 1776 . The declaration and fight for independence ( 1810-1818 ) was followed by an extended civil war that lasted until 1861 , culminating in the country 's reorganization as a federation of provinces with Buenos Aires as its capital city . The country thereafter enjoyed relative peace and stability , with several waves of European immigration , mainly Italians and Spaniards , radically reshaping its cultural and demographic outlook ; 62.5% of the population has full or partial Italian ancestry , and the Argentine culture has significant connections to the Italian culture .
Spanish ( /ˈspænɪʃ/ ( listen ) ; español ( help·info ) ) , or Castilian ( /kæˈstɪliən/ ( listen ) , castellano ( help·info ) ) , is a Romance language that originated in the Iberian Peninsula and today has over 483 million native speakers , mainly in Spain and the Americas . It is a global language , the world 's second-most spoken native language , after Mandarin Chinese , and the world 's fourth-most spoken language , after Mandarin Chinese , English and Hindi . Spanish is a part of the Ibero-Romance group of languages , which evolved from several dialects of Vulgar Latin in Iberia after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century . The oldest Latin texts with traces of Spanish come from mid-northern Iberia in the 9th century , and the first systematic written use of the language happened in Toledo , a prominent city of the Kingdom of Castile , in the 13th century . Beginning in 1492 , the Spanish language was taken to the viceroyalties of the Spanish Empire , most notably to the Americas , as well as territories in Africa , Oceania and the Philippines . A 1949 study by Italian-American linguist Mario Pei , analyzing the degree of difference from a language 's parent ( Latin , in the case of Romance languages ) by comparing phonology , inflection , syntax , vocabulary , and intonation , indicated the following percentages ( the higher the percentage , the greater the distance from Latin ) : In the case of Spanish , it is one of the closest Romance languages to Latin ( 20% distance ) , only behind Sardinian ( 8% distance ) and Italian ( 12% distance ) . Around 75% of modern Spanish vocabulary is derived from Latin , including Latin borrowings from Ancient Greek . Spanish vocabulary has been in contact with Arabic from an early date , having developed during the Al-Andalus era in the Iberian Peninsula . With around 8% of its vocabulary being Arabic in origin , this language makes up the second greatest vocabulary source after Latin itself . It has also been influenced by Basque , Iberian , Celtiberian , Visigothic , and by neighboring Ibero-Romance languages . Additionally , it has absorbed vocabulary from other languages , particularly other Romance languages - French , Italian , Andalusi Romance , Portuguese , Galician , Catalan , Occitan , and Sardinian - as well as from Quechua , Nahuatl , and other indigenous languages of the Americas . Spanish is one of the six official languages of the United Nations .
Buenos Aires ( /ˌbweɪnəs ˈɛəriːz/ or /-ˈaɪrɪs/ ; Spanish pronunciation : [ ˈbwenos ˈaiɾes ] ) is the capital and largest city of Argentina . The city is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata , on the South American continent 's southeastern coast . Buenos Aires can be translated as fair winds or good airs , but the former was the meaning intended by the founders in the 16th century , by the use of the original name Real de Nuestra Señora Santa María del Buen Ayre , named after the Madonna of Bonaria in Sardinia . The Greater Buenos Aires conurbation , which also includes several Buenos Aires Province districts , constitutes the fourth-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas , with a population of around 15.6 million . The city of Buenos Aires is neither part of Buenos Aires Province nor the Province 's capital ; rather , it is an autonomous district . In 1880 , after decades of political infighting , Buenos Aires was federalized and removed from Buenos Aires Province . The city limits were enlarged to include the towns of Belgrano and Flores ; both are now neighborhoods of the city . The 1994 constitutional amendment granted the city autonomy , hence its formal name of Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires ; CABA ) . Its citizens first elected a chief of government ( i.e . mayor ) in 1996 ; previously , the mayor was directly appointed by the President of the Republic . Buenos Aires ' quality of life was ranked 91st in the world in 2018 , being one of the best in Latin America . In 2012 , it was the most visited city in South America , and the second-most visited city of Latin America ( behind Mexico City ) .
Bolivia ( /bəˈlɪviə/ ( listen ) Spanish pronunciation : [ bo.ˈli.βja ] ) , officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia ( Spanish : Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia Spanish pronunciation : [ esˈtaðo pluɾinasjoˈnal de βoˈliβja ] ( listen ) ) , is a landlocked country located in western-central South America . The capital is Sucre , while the seat of government and financial center is located in La Paz . The largest city and principal industrial center is Santa Cruz de la Sierra , located on the Llanos Orientales ( tropical lowlands ) , a mostly flat region in the east of the country . The sovereign state of Bolivia is a constitutionally unitary state , divided into nine departments . Its geography varies from the peaks of the Andes in the West , to the Eastern Lowlands , situated within the Amazon Basin . It is bordered to the north and east by Brazil , to the southeast by Paraguay , to the south by Argentina , to the southwest by Chile , and to the northwest by Peru . One-third of the country is within the Andean mountain range . With 1,098,581 km2 ( 424,164 sq mi ) of area , Bolivia is the fifth largest country in South America , after Brazil , Argentina , Peru and Colombia ( and alongside Paraguay , one of the only two landlocked countries in the Americas ) , the 27th largest in the world , the largest landlocked country in the Southern Hemisphere and the world 's seventh largest landlocked country , after Kazakhstan , Mongolia , Chad , Niger , Mali and Ethiopia . The country 's population , estimated at 11 million , is multiethnic , including Amerindians , Mestizos , Europeans , Asians and Africans . Spanish is the official and predominant language , although 36 indigenous languages also have official status , of which the most commonly spoken are Guarani , Aymara and Quechua languages . Before Spanish colonization , the Andean region of Bolivia was part of the Inca Empire , while the northern and eastern lowlands were inhabited by independent tribes . Spanish conquistadors arriving from Cuzco and Asunción took control of the region in the 16th century .
Sucre ( Spanish : [ ˈsukɾe ] ) is the constitutional capital of Bolivia , the capital of the Chuquisaca Department and the 6th most populated city in Bolivia . Located in the south-central part of the country , Sucre lies at an elevation of 2,810 meters ( 9,214 feet ) . This relatively high altitude gives the city a subtropical highland climate with cool temperates year-round . Its pre-Columbian name was Chuquisaca , During the Spanish Empire it was called La Plata . Before the arrival of the Spanish , the city of Chuquisaca had its own autonomy with respect to the Inca Empire ( the Charcas were the only people that did not pay the ransom for the Inca captive ) .
La Paz ( /lɑː ˈpɑːz/ ) , officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz ( Spanish pronunciation : [ ˈnwestɾa seˈɲoɾa ðe la ˈpas ] ; English : Our Lady of Peace ) , also named Chuqi Yapu ( Chuquiago ) in Aymara , is the seat of government and the de facto national capital of the Plurinational State of Bolivia ( the constitutional capital of Bolivia is Sucre ) . With an estimated 789,541 residents as of 2015 , La Paz is the third-most populous city in Bolivia ( after Santa Cruz de la Sierra and El Alto ) . Its metropolitan area , which is formed by La Paz , El Alto and Viacha , makes up the most populous urban area in Bolivia , with a population of 2.3 million . It is also the capital of the La Paz Department . The city , located in west-central Bolivia 68 km ( 42 mi ) southeast of Lake Titicaca , is set in a canyon created by the Choqueyapu River . It is located in a bowl-like depression surrounded by the high mountains of the Altiplano . Overlooking the city is the towering , triple-peaked Illimani . Its peaks are always snow-covered and can be seen from many parts of the city . At an elevation of roughly 3,650 m ( 11,975 ft ) above sea level , La Paz is the highest capital city in the world . Due to its altitude , La Paz has an unusual subtropical highland climate , with rainy summers and dry winters . La Paz was founded on October 20 , 1548 by the Spanish conquistador Captain Alonso de Mendoza at the site of the Inca settlement of Laja as a connecting point between the commercial routes that led from Potosí and Oruro to Lima ; the full name of the city was originally Nuestra Señora de La Paz ( meaning Our Lady of Peace ) in commemoration of the restoration of peace following the insurrection of Gonzalo Pizarro and fellow conquistadors against the first viceroy of Peru . The city was later moved to its present location in the valley of Chuquiago Marka .
A capital or capital city is the municipality exercising primary status in a country , state , province , or other administrative region , usually as its seat of government . A capital is typically a city that physically encompasses the government 's offices and meeting places ; the status as capital is often designated by its law or constitution . In some jurisdictions , including several countries , the different branches of government are located in different settlements . In some cases , a distinction is made between the official ( constitutional ) capital and the seat of government , which is in another place . Capital cities that also serve as the prime economic , population , cultural , or intellectual centres of a nation or an empire are sometimes referred to as primate cities . Examples are Athens , Bangkok , Brussels , Copenhagen , Cairo , London , Mexico City , Paris , Lima , Seoul and Tokyo . News media often use the name of a capital city as an alternative name for the country of which it is the capital or of the government that is seated there , as a form of metonymy . For example , relations between Washington and London refer to relations between the United States and the United Kingdom .
Brazil ( Portuguese : Brasil ; Portuguese pronunciation : [ bɾaˈziw ] ) , [ nt 1 ] officially the Federative Republic of Brazil ( Portuguese : República Federativa do Brasil , listen ( help·info ) ) , is the largest country in both South America and Latin America . At 8.5 million square kilometers ( 3.2 million square miles ) and with over 211 million people , Brazil is the world 's fifth-largest country by area and the sixth most populous . Its capital is Brasília , and its most populous city is São Paulo . The federation is composed of the union of the 26 states , the Federal District , and the 5,570 municipalities . It is the largest country to have Portuguese as an official language and the only one in the Americas ; it is also one of the most multicultural and ethnically diverse nations , due to over a century of mass immigration from around the world . Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the east , Brazil has a coastline of 7,491 kilometers ( 4,655 mi ) . It borders all other countries in South America except Ecuador and Chile and covers 47.3% of the continent 's land area . Its Amazon River basin includes a vast tropical forest , home to diverse wildlife , a variety of ecological systems , and extensive natural resources spanning numerous protected habitats . This unique environmental heritage makes Brazil one of 17 megadiverse countries , and is the subject of significant global interest and debate regarding deforestation and environmental protection . Brazil was inhabited by numerous tribal nations prior to the landing in 1500 of explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral , who claimed the area for the Portuguese Empire . Brazil remained a Portuguese colony until 1808 , when the capital of the empire was transferred from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro . In 1815 , the colony was elevated to the rank of kingdom upon the formation of the United Kingdom of Portugal , Brazil and the Algarves .
Portuguese ( português or , in full , língua portuguesa ) is a Western Romance language originating in the Iberian Peninsula . It is the sole official language of Portugal , Brazil , Cape Verde , Guinea-Bissau , Mozambique , Angola and São Tomé and Príncipe . It also has co-official language status in East Timor , Equatorial Guinea and Chinese Macau . As the result of expansion during colonial times , a cultural presence of Portuguese and Portuguese creole speakers are also found in Goa , Daman and Diu in India ; in Batticaloa on the east coast of Sri Lanka ; in the Indonesian island of Flores ; in the Malacca state of Malaysia ; and the ABC islands in the Caribbean where Papiamento is spoken , while Cape Verdean Creole is the most widely spoken Portuguese-based Creole . A Portuguese-speaking person or nation is referred to as Lusophone ( Lusófono ) . Portuguese is part of the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several dialects of Vulgar Latin in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia and the County of Portugal , and has kept some Celtic phonology and lexicon . With approximately 215 to 220 million native speakers and 250 million total speakers , Portuguese is usually listed as the sixth most natively spoken language in the world , the third-most spoken European language in the world in terms of native speakers , and the most spoken language in the Southern Hemisphere . It is also the second-most spoken language , after Spanish , in South America and all of Latin America , one of the 10 most spoken languages in Africa and is an official language of the European Union , Mercosur , OAS , ECOWAS and the African Union . The Community of Portuguese Language Countries is an international organization made up of all of the world 's officially Lusophone nations .
Brasília ( /brəˈzɪliə/ , Portuguese : [ bɾaˈziljɐ ] ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District . The city is located atop the Brazilian highlands in the country 's center-western region . It was founded on April 21 , 1960 , to serve as the new national capital . Brasília is estimated to be Brazil 's third-most populous city . Among major Latin American cities , it has the highest GDP per capita . Brasília was planned and developed by Lúcio Costa , Oscar Niemeyer and Joaquim Cardozo in 1956 in a scheme to move the capital from Rio de Janeiro to a more central location . The landscape architect was Roberto Burle Marx . The city 's design divides it into numbered blocks as well as sectors for specified activities , such as the Hotel Sector , the Banking Sector , and the Embassy Sector . Brasília was chosen as a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its modernist architecture and uniquely artistic urban planning . It was named City of Design by UNESCO in October 2017 and has been part of the Creative Cities Network since then . All three branches of Brazil 's federal government are centered in the city : executive , legislative and judiciary . Brasília also hosts 124 foreign embassies .
Chile ( /ˈtʃɪli/ ( listen ) , /ˈtʃɪleɪ/ ; Spanish : [ ˈtʃile ] ) , [ nb 2 ] officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish : República de Chile ( help·info ) ) , is a South American country occupying a long , narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west . It borders Peru to the north , Bolivia to the northeast , Argentina to the east , and the Drake Passage in the far south . Chilean territory includes the Pacific islands of Juan Fernández , Salas y Gómez , Desventuradas , and Easter Island in Oceania . Chile also claims about 1,250,000 square kilometres ( 480,000 sq mi ) of Antarctica under the Chilean Antarctic Territory . [ nb 3 ] , The arid Atacama Desert in northern Chile contains great mineral wealth , principally copper and lithium . The relatively small central area dominates in terms of population and agricultural resources , and is the cultural and political center from which Chile expanded in the late 19th century when it incorporated its northern and southern regions . Southern Chile is rich in forests and grazing lands , and features a string of volcanoes and lakes . The southern coast is a labyrinth of fjords , inlets , canals , twisting peninsulas , and islands . Spain conquered and colonized the region in the mid-16th century , replacing Inca rule in the north and centre , but failing to conquer the independent Mapuche who inhabited what is now south-central Chile . After declaring its independence from Spain in 1818 , Chile emerged in the 1830s as a relatively stable authoritarian republic . In the 19th century , Chile saw significant economic and territorial growth , ending Mapuche resistance in the 1880s and gaining its current northern territory in the War of the Pacific ( 1879-83 ) after defeating Peru and Bolivia . In the 1960s and 1970s , the country experienced severe left-right political polarization and turmoil .
Santiago ( /ˌsɒntiˈɑːɡoʊ/ /ˌsæntiˈɑːɡoʊ/ , Spanish : [ sanˈtjaɣo ] , derived from Saint-James ) , also known as Santiago de Chile , is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas . It is the center of Chile 's largest and most densely populated conurbation , the Santiago Metropolitan Region , whose total population is 7 million . The city is entirely located in the country 's central valley . Most of the city lies between 500 m ( 1,640 ft ) and 650 m ( 2,133 ft ) above mean sea level . Founded in 1541 by the Spanish conqueror Pedro de Valdivia , Santiago has been the capital city of Chile since colonial times . The city has a downtown core of 19th-century neoclassical architecture and winding side-streets , dotted by art deco , neo-gothic , and other styles . Santiago 's cityscape is shaped by several stand-alone hills and the fast-flowing Mapocho River , lined by parks such as Parque Forestal . The Andes Mountains can be seen from most points in the city . These mountains contribute to a considerable smog problem , particularly during winter . The city outskirts are surrounded by vineyards and Santiago is within an hour of both the mountains and the Pacific Ocean . Santiago is the cultural , political and financial center of Chile and is home to the regional headquarters of many multinational corporations . The Chilean executive and judiciary are located in Santiago , but Congress meets mostly in nearby Valparaíso .
Colombia ( /kəˈlʌmbiə/ ( listen ) kə-LUM-bee-ə , /-ˈlɒm-/ -⁠LOM- ; Spanish : [ koˈlombja ] ( listen ) ) , officially the Republic of Colombia ( Spanish : República de Colombia ( help·info ) ) , [ Note 1 ] is a country largely situated in the north of South America , with land and territories in North America . Colombia is bounded on the north by the Caribbean Sea , the northwest by Panama , the south by both Ecuador and Peru , the east by Venezuela , the southeast by Brazil , and the west by the Pacific . It comprises thirty-two departments , with the capital in Bogotá . Colombia is ethnically and linguistically diverse , with its rich cultural heritage reflecting influences by various Amerindian civilizations , European settlement , forced African labor , and immigration from Europe and the greater Middle East . Urban centres are concentrated in the Andean highlands and the Caribbean coast . Colombia has been inhabited by various American Indian peoples since at least 12,000 BCE , including the Muisca , Quimbaya , and the Tairona . Spaniards arrived in 1499 and by the mid-16th century annexed part of the region , establishing the New Kingdom of Granada , with Santafé de Bogotá as its capital . Independence from Spain was achieved in 1819 , but by 1830 the Gran Colombia Federation was dissolved , with what is now Colombia and Panama emerging as the Republic of New Granada . The new sovereign state experimented with federalism as the Granadine Confederation ( 1858 ) , and then the United States of Colombia ( 1863 ) , before the Republic of Colombia was finally declared in 1886 . Panama seceded in 1903 , leading to Colombia 's present borders . Beginning in the 1960s , the country suffered from an asymmetric low-intensity armed conflict and political violence , both of which escalated in the 1990s . Since 2005 , there has been significant improvement in security , stability , and rule of law .
Bogotá ( /ˌboʊɡəˈtɑː/ , also UK : /ˌbɒɡ-/ , US : /ˈboʊɡətɑː/ , Spanish : [ boɣoˈta ] ( listen ) ) , officially Bogotá , Distrito Capital , abbreviated Bogotá , D.C. , and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá between 1991 and 2000 , is the capital and largest city of Colombia , administered as the Capital District , as well as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca . Bogotá is a territorial entity of the first order , with the same administrative status as the departments of Colombia . It is the political , economic , administrative and industrial center of the country . Bogotá was founded as the capital of the New Kingdom of Granada on August 6 , 1538 , by Spanish conquistador Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada after a harsh expedition into the Andes conquering the Muisca . The Muisca were the indigenous inhabitants of the region , and they called the place of the foundation Thybzaca or Old Town . The name of Bogotá corresponds to the Spanish pronunciation of the Muisca Bacatá ( or Mueketá ) which was the name of a neighboring settlement located between the modern towns of Funza and Cota . There are different opinions about the meaning of the word Bacatá , the most accepted being that it means walling of the farmland in the Chibcha language . Another popular translation argues that it means The Lady of the Andes . Further , the word 'Andes ' in the Aymara language means shining mountain , thus rendering the full lexical signification of Bogotá as The Lady of the shining mountain ( notice , however , that the language of the Muisca people was not Aymara but Chibcha ) . Others suggest that Bacatá was the name of the Muisca cacique who governed the land before the Spaniards arrived . Jiménez de Quesada gave the settlement the name of Our Lady of Hope but the Spanish crown gave it the name of Santafé ( Holy Faith ) in 1540 when it was appointed as a city . Santafé became the seat of the government of the Spanish Royal Audiencia of the New Kingdom of Granada ( created in 1550 ) , and then after 1717 it was the capital of the Viceroyalty of New Granada .
Ecuador ( /ˈɛkwədɔːr/ ( listen ) EK-wə-dor ; Spanish pronunciation : [ ekwaˈðoɾ ] ( listen ) ; Quechua : Ikwayur ; Shuar : Ecuador or Ekuatur ) , officially the Republic of Ecuador ( Spanish : República del Ecuador , which literally translates as Republic of the Equator ; Quechua : Ikwadur Ripuwlika ; Shuar : Ekuatur Nunka ) , is a country in northwestern South America , bordered by Colombia on the north , Peru on the east and south , and the Pacific Ocean on the west . Ecuador also includes the Galápagos Islands in the Pacific , about 1,000 kilometres ( 620 mi ) west of the mainland . The capital city is Quito , which is also its largest city . The territories of modern-day Ecuador were once home to a variety of Amerindian groups that were gradually incorporated into the Inca Empire during the 15th century . The territory was colonized by Spain during the 16th century , achieving independence in 1820 as part of Gran Colombia , from which it emerged as its own sovereign state in 1830 . The legacy of both empires is reflected in Ecuador 's ethnically diverse population , with most of its 17.1 million people being mestizos , followed by large minorities of European , Amerindian , and African descendants . Spanish is the official language and is spoken by a majority of the population , though 13 Amerindian languages are also recognized , including Quichua and Shuar . The sovereign state of Ecuador is a middle-income representative democratic republic with a developing economy that is highly dependent on commodities , namely petroleum and agricultural products . It is governed as a democratic presidential republic . One of 18 megadiverse countries in the world , Ecuador hosts many endemic plants and animals , such as those of the Galápagos Islands . In recognition of its unique ecological heritage , the new constitution of 2008 is the first in the world to recognize legally enforceable Rights of Nature , or ecosystem rights . It also has the fifth lowest homicide rate in the Americas .
Quito ( /ˈkiːtoʊ/ ; Spanish pronunciation : [ ˈkito ] ( listen ) ; Quechua : Kitu ; formally San Francisco de Quito ) is the capital of Ecuador , the country 's most populous city , and at an elevation of 2,850 metres ( 9,350 ft ) above sea level , it is the second highest official capital city in the world , after La Paz , and the one which is closest to the equator . It is located in the Guayllabamba river basin , on the eastern slopes of Pichincha , [ verification needed ] an active stratovolcano in the Andes Mountains . In 2008 , the city was designated as the headquarters of the Union of South American Nations . The historic center of Quito is one of the largest , least-altered and best-preserved in the Americas . Quito and Kraków , Poland , were among the first World Cultural Heritage Sites declared by UNESCO , in 1978 . The central square of Quito is located about 25 kilometres ( 16 mi ) south of the equator ; the city itself extends to within about 1 kilometre ( 0.62 mi ) of zero latitude . A monument and museum marking the general location of the equator is known locally as la mitad del mundo ( the middle of the world ) , to avoid confusion , as the word Ecuador is Spanish for equator .
Guyana ( /ɡaɪˈɑːnə/ or /ɡaɪˈænə/ ) , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana , is a country on the northern mainland of South America . It is the only English speaking country in South America , and is culturally considered part of the Anglophone-Caribbean sphere . In addition it is one of the founding member countries of the Caribbean Community organization ( CARICOM ) . Guyana is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north , Brazil to the south and southwest , Venezuela to the west , and Suriname to the east . With an area of 215,000 square kilometres ( 83,000 sq mi ) , Guyana is the third-smallest sovereign state on mainland South America after Uruguay and Suriname . The region known as the Guianas consists of the large shield landmass north of the Amazon River and east of the Orinoco River known as the land of many waters . Major rivers in Guyana include the Essequibo , the Berbice , and the Demerara . Originally inhabited by many indigenous groups , Guyana was settled by the Dutch before coming under British control in the late 18th century . It was governed as British Guiana , with a mostly plantation-style economy until the 1950s . It gained independence in 1966 , and officially became a republic within the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970 . The legacy of British rule is reflected in the country 's political administration and diverse population , which includes Indian , African , Amerindian , and multiracial groups . Guyana is the only South American nation in which English is the official language .
Georgetown is a city and the capital of Guyana , located in Region 4 , which is also known as the Demerara-Mahaica region . It is the country 's largest urban centre . It is situated on the Atlantic Ocean coast at the mouth of the Demerara River and it was nicknamed the Garden City of the Caribbean . Georgetown serves primarily as a retail and administrative centre . It also serves as a financial services centre . The city recorded a population of 200,500 in the 2016 census .
Paraguay ( /ˈpærəɡwaɪ/ ; Spanish pronunciation : [ paɾaˈɣwaj ] ( listen ) ; Guarani : Paraguái , [ paɾaˈɰwaj ] ) , officially the Republic of Paraguay ( Spanish : República del Paraguay ; Guarani : Tetã Paraguái ) , is a country in South America . It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest , Brazil to the east and northeast , and Bolivia to the northwest . Although it is one of only two landlocked countries in South America ( the other is Bolivia ) , the country has coasts , beaches and ports on the Paraguay and Paraná rivers that give exit to the Atlantic Ocean through the Paraná-Paraguay Waterway . Due to its central location in South America , it is sometimes referred to as Corazón de Sudamérica ( Heart of South America ) . Spanish conquistadores arrived in 1524 after navigating northwards from the Río de la Plata to the Paraná River , and finally up the Paraguay River . In 1537 , they established the city of Asunción , which was the first capital of the Governorate of Paraguay and Río de la Plata . Paraguay was the epicenter of the Jesuit Missions , where the Guaraní people were educated and introduced to Christianity and European culture under the direction of the Society of Jesus in Jesuit reductions , mainly during the 17th century . However , after the expulsion of the Jesuits from Spanish territories in 1767 , Paraguay increasingly became a peripheral colony , with few urban centers and settlers . Following independence from Spain at the beginning of the 19th century , Paraguay was ruled by a series of authoritarian governments who generally implemented nationalist , isolationist and protectionist policies . This period ended with the disastrous Paraguayan War , during which Paraguay lost at least 50% of its prewar population and around 25-33% of its territory to the Triple Alliance of Argentina , Brazil and Uruguay . In the 20th century , Paraguay faced another major international conflict - the Chaco War - against Bolivia , from which the Paraguayans emerged victorious . Afterwards , the country entered a period of military dictatorships , ending with the 35 year regime of Alfredo Stroessner that lasted until he was toppled in 1989 by an internal military coup .
Guarani ( /ˌɡwɑːrəˈniː , ˈɡwɑːrəni/ ) specifically the primary variety known as Paraguayan Guarani ( avañe ' ẽ [ aʋãɲẽˈʔẽ ] transl . the people 's language ) , is an indigenous language of South America that belongs to the Tupi-Guarani family of the Tupian languages . It is one of the official languages of Paraguay ( along with Spanish ) , where it is spoken by the majority of the population , and where half of the rural population is monolingual . It is spoken by communities in neighboring countries , including parts of northeastern Argentina , southeastern Bolivia and southwestern Brazil , and is a second official language of the Argentine province of Corrientes since 2004 ; it is also an official language of Mercosur . Guarani is one of the most widely spoken indigenous languages of the Americas and the only one whose speakers include a large proportion of non-indigenous people . This represents a unique anomaly in the Americas , where language shift towards European colonial languages ( in this case , the other official language of Spanish ) has otherwise been a nearly universal cultural and identity marker of mestizos ( people of mixed Spanish and Amerindian ancestry ) . Jesuit priest Antonio Ruiz de Montoya , who in 1639 published the first written grammar of Guarani in a book called Tesoro de la lengua guaraní ( Treasure of the Guarani Language / The Guarani Language Thesaurus ) , described it as a language so copious and elegant that it can compete with the most famous [ of languages ] . The name Guarani is generally used for the official language of Paraguay . However , this is part of a dialect chain , most of whose components are also often called Guarani .
Asunción ( UK : /əˌsʊnsiˈɒn/ , US : /ɑːˌsuːnsiˈoʊn , ɑːsuːnˈsjoʊn/ , Spanish : [ asunˈsjon ] ) is the capital and largest city of Paraguay . The city is located on the left bank of the Paraguay River , almost at the confluence of this river with the River Pilcomayo , on the South American continent . The Paraguay River and the Bay of Asunción in the northwest separate the city from the Occidental Region of Paraguay and Argentina in the south part of the city . The rest of the city is surrounded by the Central Department . The city is an autonomous capital district , not a part of any department . The metropolitan area , called Gran Asunción , includes the cities of San Lorenzo , Fernando de la Mora , Lambaré , Luque , Mariano Roque Alonso , Ñemby , San Antonio , Limpio , Capiatá and Villa Elisa , which are part of the Central Department . The Asunción metropolitan area has around two million inhabitants . The Municipality of Asunción is listed on the Asunción Stock Exchange , as BVPASA : MUA . Asunción is one of the oldest cities in South America and the longest continually inhabited area in the Río de la Plata Basin ; for this reason it is known as the Mother of Cities . From Asunción the colonial expeditions departed to found other cities , including the second foundation of Buenos Aires and other important cities such as Villarrica , Corrientes , Santa Fe and Santa Cruz de la Sierra . Asunción is considered a 'gamma city ' by the study GaWC5 . It is the home of the national government , principal port , and the chief industrial and cultural center of the country .
Peru ( /pəˈruː/ ( listen ) ; Spanish : Perú [ peˈɾu ] ; Quechua : Piruw Republika [ pʰɪɾʊw ] ; Aymara : Piruw Suyu [ pɪɾʊw ] ) , officially the Republic of Peru ( Spanish : República del Perú ( help·info ) ) , is a country in western South America . It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia , in the east by Brazil , in the southeast by Bolivia , in the south by Chile , and in the west by the Pacific Ocean . Peru is a megadiverse country with habitats ranging from the arid plains of the Pacific coastal region in the west to the peaks of the Andes mountains vertically extending from the north to the southeast of the country to the tropical Amazon Basin rainforest in the east with the Amazon river . At 1.28 million km2 ( 0.5 million mi2 ) , Peru is the 19th largest country in the world , and the third largest in South America . Peruvian territory was home to several ancient cultures . Ranging from the Norte Chico civilization starting in 3500 BC , the oldest civilization in the Americas and one of the five cradles of civilization , to the Inca Empire , the largest state in pre-Columbian America , the territory now including Peru has one of the longest histories of civilization of any country , tracing its heritage back to the 4th millennia BCE . The Spanish Empire conquered the region in the 16th century and established a viceroyalty that encompassed most of its South American colonies , with its capital in Lima . Peru formally proclaimed independence in 1821 , and following the military campaigns of José de San Martín and Simón Bolívar , and the decisive battle of Ayacucho , Peru completed its independence in 1824 . In the ensuing years , the country enjoyed relative economic and political stability , which ended shortly before the War of the Pacific with Chile . Throughout the 20th century , Peru endured armed territorial disputes , coups , social unrest , and internal conflicts , as well as periods of stability and economic upswing . Alberto Fujimori was elected to the presidency in 1990 ; his government was credited with economically stabilizing Peru and successfully ending the Shining Path insurgency , though he was widely accused of human rights violations and suppression of political dissent . Fujimori left the presidency in 2000 and was charged with human rights violations and imprisoned until his pardon by President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski in 2017 .
Aymara ( IPA : [ ajˈma.ɾa ] ( listen ) ; also Aymar aru ) is an Aymaran language spoken by the Aymara people of the Andes . It is one of only a handful of Native American languages with over one million speakers . Aymara , along with Spanish , is an official language of Bolivia . It is also spoken , to a much lesser extent , by some communities in southern Peru and in northern Chile , where it is a recognized minority language . Some linguists have claimed that Aymara is related to its more widely spoken neighbor , Quechua . That claim , however , is disputed . Although there are indeed similarities , like the nearly-identical phonologies , the majority position among linguists today is that the similarities are better explained as areal features rising from prolonged cohabitation , rather than natural genealogical changes that would stem from a common protolanguage . Aymara is an agglutinating and , to a certain extent , a polysynthetic language . It has a subject-object-verb word order .
Quechua ( /ˈkɛtʃuə/ , US also /ˈkɛtʃwɑː/ ; Spanish : [ ˈketʃwa ] ) , usually called Runasimi ( people 's language ) in Quechuan languages , is an indigenous language family spoken by the Quechua peoples , primarily living in the Peruvian Andes and highlands of South America . Derived from a common ancestral language , it is the most widely spoken language family of indigenous peoples of the Americas , with a total of probably some 8-10 million speakers . Approximately 25% ( 7.7 million ) of Peruvians speak a Quechuan language . It is perhaps most widely known for being the main language family of the Inca Empire . The Spaniards encouraged its use , so Quechua ultimately survived and variants are still widely spoken today , being the co-official language of many regions and the second most spoken language in Peru .
Lima ( /ˈliːmə/ , Spanish pronunciation : [ ˈlima ] ; Quechua : Limaq ) is the capital and the largest city of Peru . It is located in the valleys of the Chillón , Rímac and Lurín rivers , in the central coastal part of the country , overlooking the Pacific Ocean . Together with the seaport of Callao , it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima Metropolitan Area . With a population of more than 9 million , Lima is the most populous metropolitan area of Peru and the third-largest city in the Americas ( as defined by city proper ) , behind São Paulo and Mexico City . Lima was named by natives in the agricultural region known by native Peruvians as Limaq , a name that it had acquired over time . It became the capital and most important city in the Viceroyalty of Peru . Following the Peruvian War of Independence , it became the capital of the Republic of Peru ( República del Perú ) . Around one-third of the national population lives in the metropolitan area . Lima is home to one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the New World . The National University of San Marcos , founded on 12 May 1551 , during the Spanish colonial empire , is the first officially established and the oldest continuously functioning university in the Americas . Nowadays the city is considered as the political , cultural , financial and commercial center of the country . Internationally , it is one of the thirty most populated urban agglomerations in the world .
Suriname ( /ˈsjʊərɪnæm/ , US also /-nɑːm/ , sometimes spelled Surinam ) , officially known as the Republic of Suriname ( Dutch : Republiek Suriname [ reːpyˌblik syːriˈnaːmə ] ) , is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America . It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north , French Guiana to the east , Guyana to the west and Brazil to the south . At just under 165,000 square kilometers ( 64,000 square miles ) , it is the smallest sovereign state in South America . [ note 1 ] Suriname has a population of approximately 575,990 , most of whom live on the country 's north coast , in and around the capital and largest city , Paramaribo . Suriname was long inhabited by various indigenous people before being invaded and contested by European powers from the 16th century , eventually coming under Dutch rule in the late 17th century . As the chief sugar colony during the Dutch colonial period , it was primarily a plantation economy dependent on African slaves and , following the abolition of slavery in 1863 , indentured servants from Asia . Suriname was ruled by the Dutch-chartered company Society of Suriname between 1683 and 1795 . In 1954 , Suriname became one of the constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands . On 25 November 1975 , the country of Suriname left the Kingdom of the Netherlands to become an independent state , nonetheless maintaining close economic , diplomatic , and cultural ties to its former colonizer . Suriname is considered to be a culturally Caribbean country , and is a member of the Caribbean Community ( CARICOM ) . While Dutch is the official language of government , business , media , and education , Sranan Tongo , an English-based creole language , is a widely used lingua franca . Suriname is the only sovereign nation outside Europe where Dutch is spoken by a majority of the population .
Dutch ( Nederlands ( help·info ) ) is a West Germanic language spoken by around 24 million people as a first language and 5 million people as a second language , constituting the majority of people in the Netherlands ( where it is the sole official language countrywide ) and Belgium ( as one of three official languages ) . It is the third-most-widely spoken Germanic language , after its close relatives English and German . Outside the Low Countries , it is the native language of the majority of the population of Suriname where it also holds an official status , as it does in Aruba , Curaçao and Sint Maarten , which are constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean . Historical linguistic minorities on the verge of extinction remain in parts of France and Germany , and in Indonesia , [ n 1 ] while up to half a million native speakers may reside in the United States , Canada and Australia combined . [ n 2 ] The Cape Dutch dialects of Southern Africa have evolved into Afrikaans , a mutually intelligible daughter language [ n 3 ] which is spoken to some degree by at least 16 million people , mainly in South Africa and Namibia . [ n 4 ] Dutch is one of the closest relatives of both German and English [ n 5 ] and is colloquially said to be roughly in between them . [ n 6 ] Dutch , like English , has not undergone the High German consonant shift , does not use Germanic umlaut as a grammatical marker , has largely abandoned the use of the subjunctive , and has levelled much of its morphology , including most of its case system . [ n 7 ] Features shared with German include the survival of two to three grammatical genders - albeit with few grammatical consequences [ n 8 ] - as well as the use of modal particles , final-obstruent devoicing , and a similar word order . [ n 9 ] Dutch vocabulary is mostly Germanic and incorporates slightly more Romance loans than German but far fewer than English . [ n 10 ] As with German , the vocabulary of Dutch also has strong similarities with the continental Scandinavian languages , but is not mutually intelligible in text or speech with any of them .
Paramaribo ( Dutch pronunciation : [ ˌpaːraːˈmaːriboː ] ; nicknamed Par′bo ) is the capital and largest city of Suriname , located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District . Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people ( 2012 census ) , almost half of Suriname 's population . The historic inner city of Paramaribo has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2002 .
Uruguay ( /ˈjʊərəɡwaɪ/ ( listen ) ; Spanish : [ uɾuˈɣwai ] ( listen ) ) , officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( Spanish : República Oriental del Uruguay ; Portuguese : República Oriental do Uruguai ) , is a country in the southeastern region of South America . It borders Argentina to its west and Brazil to its north and east , with the Río de la Plata ( River of Silver ) to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast . Uruguay is home to an estimated 3.45 million people , of whom 1.8 million live in the metropolitan area of its capital and largest city , Montevideo . With an area of approximately 176,000 square kilometers ( 68,000 sq mi ) , Uruguay is geographically the second-smallest nation in South America , after Suriname . Uruguay was inhabited by the Charrúa people for approximately 4,000 years before the Portuguese established Colónia do Sacramento in 1680 ; Uruguay was colonized by Europeans relatively late compared with neighboring countries . Montevideo was founded as a military stronghold by the Spanish in the early 18th century , signifying the competing claims over the region . Uruguay won its independence between 1811 and 1828 , following a four-way struggle between Portugal and Spain , and later Argentina and Brazil . It remained subject to foreign influence and intervention throughout the 19th century , with the military playing a recurring role in domestic politics . A series of economic crises put an end to a democratic period that had begun in the early 20th century , culminating in a 1973 coup , which established a civic-military dictatorship . The military government persecuted leftists , socialists , and political opponents , resulting in several deaths and numerous instances of torture by the military ; the military relinquished power to a civilian government in 1985 . Uruguay is today a democratic constitutional republic , with a president who serves as both head of state and head of government . Uruguay is ranked first in Latin America in democracy , peace , low perception of corruption , e-government , and is first in South America when it comes to press freedom , size of the middle class and prosperity .
Montevideo ( Spanish pronunciation : [ monteβiˈðeo ] ) is the capital and largest city of Uruguay . According to the 2011 census , the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 ( about one-third of the country 's total population ) in an area of 201 square kilometres ( 78 sq mi ) . The southernmost capital city in the Americas , Montevideo is situated on the southern coast of the country , on the northeastern bank of the Río de la Plata . The city was established in 1724 by a Spanish soldier , Bruno Mauricio de Zabala , as a strategic move amidst the Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region . It was also under brief British rule in 1807 . Montevideo is the seat of the administrative headquarters of Mercosur and ALADI , Latin America 's leading trade blocs , a position that entailed comparisons to the role of Brussels in Europe . The 2017 Mercer 's report on quality of life , rated Montevideo first in Latin America , a rank the city has consistently held since 2005 . As of 2010 [ update ] , Montevideo was the 19th largest city economy in the continent and 9th highest income earner among major cities . In 2019 , it has a projected GDP of $ 47.7 billion , with a per capita of $ 27,542 . In 2018 , it was classified as a beta global city ranking eighth in Latin America and 84th in the world . Montevideo hosted every match during the first FIFA World Cup , in 1930 . Described as a vibrant , eclectic place with a rich cultural life , and a thriving tech center and entrepreneurial culture , Montevideo ranked eighth in Latin America on the 2013 MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index .
Venezuela ( /ˌvɛnəˈzwɛlə/ ( listen ) ; American Spanish : [ beneˈswela ] ( listen ) ) , officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( Spanish : República Bolivariana de Venezuela ) , is a country on the northern coast of South America , consisting of a continental landmass and many small islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea . It has a territorial extension of 916,445 km2 ( 353,841 sq mi ) . The continental territory is bordered on the north by the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean , on the west by Colombia , Brazil on the south , Trinidad and Tobago to the north-east and on the east by Guyana . The Venezuelan government maintains a claim against Guyana to Guayana Esequiba , an area of 159,542 km2 ( 61,600 sq mi ) . For its maritime areas , Venezuela exercises sovereignty over 71,295 km2 ( 27,527 sq mi ) of territorial waters , 22,224 km2 ( 8,581 sq mi ) in its contiguous zone , 471,507 km2 ( 182,050 sq mi ) of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean under the concept of exclusive economic zone , and 99,889 km2 ( 38,567 sq mi ) of continental shelf . This marine area borders those of 13 states . The capital and largest urban agglomeration is the city of Caracas . The country has extremely high biodiversity and is ranked seventh in the world 's list of nations with the most number of species . There are habitats ranging from the Andes Mountains in the west to the Amazon basin rain-forest in the south via extensive llanos plains , the Caribbean coast and the Orinoco River Delta in the east . The sovereign state is a federal presidential republic consisting of 23 states , the Capital District ( covering Caracas ) , and federal dependencies ( covering Venezuela 's offshore islands ) . Venezuela also claims all Guyanese territory west of the Essequibo River , a 159,500-square-kilometre ( 61,583 sq mi ) tract dubbed Guayana Esequiba or the Zona en Reclamación ( the zone under dispute ) . Venezuela is among the most urbanized countries in Latin America ; the vast majority of Venezuelans live in the cities of the north , especially in the capital ( Caracas ) which is also the largest city in Venezuela .
Caracas ( /kəˈrækəs , -ˈrɑːk-/ , Spanish : [ kaˈɾakas ] ) , officially Santiago de León de Caracas , abbreviated as CCS , is the capital and largest city of Venezuela , and the centre of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas ( or Greater Caracas ) . Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern part of the country , following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range ( Cordillera de la Costa ) . Terrain suitable for building lies between 760 and 1,140 m ( 2,490 and 3,740 ft ) above sea level , although there is some settlement above this range . The valley is close to the Caribbean Sea , separated from the coast by a steep 2,200-metre-high ( 7,200 ft ) mountain range , Cerro El Ávila ; to the south there are more hills and mountains . The Metropolitan Region of Caracas has an estimated population of almost 3 million inhabitants . It is the seventh largest metropolitan area in terms of population in Latin America . Strictly speaking , the centre of the city is still Catedral , located near Bolívar Square , even though it is assumed that it is Plaza Venezuela , located in the Los Caobos neighbourhood . Chacaíto area , Luis Brión Square and El Rosal neighborhood are also considered the geographic center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas . Businesses in the city include service companies , banks , and malls . Caracas has a largely service-based economy , apart from some industrial activity in its metropolitan area . The Caracas Stock Exchange and Petróleos de Venezuela ( PDVSA ) are headquartered in Caracas . PDVSA is the largest company in Venezuela .