47 Questions from Britannica’s Most Popular Geography Quizzes

Question: On what river does China’s Three Gorges Dam lie?

Answer: The Three Gorges Dam began operation in 1994. The dam allows freighters to navigate 1,400 miles (2,250 kilometers) inland from the East China Sea to Chungking, on the Yangtze River.

Question: What is the capital of Moldova?

Answer: The city of Chișinău is the capital of Moldova. The first documentary reference to Chișinău dates from 1466.

Question: The capital of Maryland is:

Answer: Annapolis is the capital of Maryland.

Question: Besides the Italian Peninsula, what are the other two great peninsulas of southern Europe?

Answer: The Italian Peninsula is one of the three great peninsulas of southern Europe, the other two being the Balkan (to the east) and the Iberian (to the west) peninsulas.

Question: The capital of Fiji is:

Answer: Suva is the capital of Fiji.

Question: What Indian city is the capital of two states?

Answer: The city of Chandigarh is the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana. (It is also the capital of the Chandigarh union territory, within which it is situated.)

Question: The capital of Bulgaria is:

Answer: Sofia is the capital of Bulgaria.

Question: The capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is:

Answer: Kinshasha is the capital of Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Question: Which capital is situated on the banks of the Chao Phraya River?

Answer: Bangkok, the capital and chief port of Thailand, is located on the Chao Phraya River about 25 miles (40 km) from the Gulf of Thailand.

Question: The capital of Illinois is:

Answer: Springfield is the capital of Illinois.

Question: The capital of Cuba is:

Answer: Havana is the capital of Cuba.

Question: The capital of North Dakota is:

Answer: Bismarck is the capital of North Dakota.

Question: San Marino is the capital of:

Answer: The capital of San Marino (the republic) is San Marino (the city).

Question: Which country’s capital city derives its name from dakhar, a Wolof name for the tamarind tree?

Answer: The capital of Senegal is Dakar. The city’s name comes from dakhar, a Wolof name for the tamarind tree (and the name of a coastal Lebu village located there).

Question: Which of these cities was known as Philadelphia in ancient times?

Answer: Amman is the capital of Jordan. It was conquered by Egypt''s King Ptolemy II Philadelphus (reigned 285–246 BCE), who named it Philadelphia after himself; the name was retained through Byzantine and Roman times.

Question: The capital of Dominica is:

Answer: Roseau is the capital of Dominica.

Question: Which city replaced Moscow as the capital of Russia for more than 200 years?

Answer: St. Petersburg was founded in 1703 and became Russia’s capital city in 1712. Moscow did not recover its role as capital city until after the Russian Revolution of 1917.

Question: Which European capital was formerly known as Kristiania?

Answer: Oslo, the capital and largest city of Norway, was formerly Christiania (1624–1877) and Kristiania (1877–1925).

Question: Which peak is the highest active volcano in Europe?

Answer: Mount Etna is an active volcano on the east coast of Sicily. It is the highest active volcano in Europe, its topmost elevation being more than 10,000 feet (3,200 metres).

Question: The capital of China is:

Answer: Beijing is the capital of China.

Question: Windhoek is the capital of:

Answer: The capital of Namibia is Windhoek.

Question: Which country was formerly known as Gold Coast?

Answer: Ghana was formerly known as Gold Coast. Gold Coast is a section of the coast of the Gulf of Guinea, in Africa. It extends approximately from Axim, Ghana, or nearby Cape Three Points, in the west to the Volta River in the east and is so called because it was an important source of gold.

Question: In what country is Gdańsk located?

Answer: The city of Gdańsk is in north-central Poland, situated at the mouth of the Vistula River on the Baltic Sea.

Question: The capital of Kentucky is:

Answer: Frankfort is the capital of Kentucky.

Question: What is the world’s highest capital?

Answer: La Paz is Bolivia’s largest city and, at an elevation between 10,650 and 13,250 feet (3,250 and 4,100 metres) above sea level, the world’s highest capital.

Question: The capital of Nevada is:

Answer: Carson City is the capital of Nevada.

Question: What is the capital of Slovenia?

Answer: Ljubljana is the capital city and economic, political, and cultural centre of Slovenia. It is located on the Ljubljanica River. It lies in a natural depression surrounded by high peaks of the Julian Alps.

Question: Bangkok is the capital of:

Answer: The capital of Thailand is Bangkok.

Question: What is India’s smallest state by area?

Answer: Goa is India’s smallest state. It is just 1,429 square miles (3,702 square kilometers) in area.

Question: The capital of Hawaii is:

Answer: Honolulu is the capital of Hawaii.

Question: The capital of Colorado is:

Answer: Denver is the capital of Colorado.

Question: The capital of Florida is:

Answer: Tallahassee is the capital of Florida.

Question: Wellington is the capital of:

Answer: The capital of New Zealand is Wellington.

Question: Which of these is not a river of India?

Answer: The Mekong has its source very near those of many Indian rivers, high in the Himalaya Mountains. But it flows eastward through Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.

Question: What is the capital of Iceland?

Answer: Reykjavík is the capital and largest city of Iceland. According to tradition, the Norseman Ingólfur Arnarson founded Reykjavík (“Bay of Smokes”) in 874.

Question: Svithiod is the ancient name of which country?

Answer: The name Sweden was derived from the Svear, or Suiones, a people mentioned as early as 98 CE by the Roman author Tacitus. Sweden''s ancient name was Svithiod.

Question: The capital of Alaska is:

Answer: Juneau is the capital of Alaska.

Question: Nay Pyi Taw is the capital of:

Answer: The capital of Myanmar (Burma) is Nay Pyi Taw.

Question: The capital of Afghanistan is:

Answer: Kabul is the capital of Afghanistan.

Question: What is the longest river in Asia?

Answer: With a length of 3,915 miles (6,300 kilometers), the Yangtze River of China is the longest river in Asia.

Question: Which of these nations does not border Thailand?

Answer: Thailand is bordered by Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Malaysia.

Question: The summit of Mont Blanc, Europe’s highest peak, is located in which country?

Answer: Mount Blanc is a mountain massif and the highest peak (15,771 feet [4,807 metres]) in Europe. Located in the Alps, the massif lies along the French-Italian border and reaches into Switzerland, but its summit is in French territory.

Question: Which of these does not border India?

Answer: India shares land borders with Pakistan in the northwest; China, Nepal, and Bhutan on the northeast; and Myanmar on the east.

Question: The capital of Mississippi is:

Answer: Jackson is the capital of Mississippi.

Question: What is the capital of Gujarat?

Answer: Gandhinagar is the capital of Gujarat state. It is named in honor of Mahatma Gandhi.

Question: Pretoria is the administrative capital of which country?

Answer: Pretoria is a city in Gauteng province that serves as the administrative capital of the Republic of South Africa.

Question: Which of the following is not one of the Channel Islands?

Answer: The Channel Islands form an archipelago in the English Channel, west of the Cotentin peninsula of France. They comprise four main islands: Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, and Sark.