List of sovereign states and dependent territories in South America
This is a list of sovereign states and dependent territories in South America. It includes both fully recognized states and dependent territories of both South American and non-South American states. It lists 12 sovereign states and 3 non-sovereign territories.
South America is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east by the Atlantic Ocean. North America and the Caribbean Sea lie to the northwest. South America has an area of approximately 17,840,000 square kilometres, or almost 3.5% of the Earth's surface. As of 2008, its population is more than 380 million, according to estimates of population in The World Factbook. South America ranks fourth among all continents in area and fifth in population.
The division between North and South America is unclear, lying somewhere in the Isthmus of Panama.
Sovereign states
Sovereign states having the largest part of their territories in South America
A sovereign state is a political association with effective sovereignty over a population for whom it makes decisions in the national interest. According to the Montevideo convention, a state must have a permanent population, a defined territory, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other states. The following states are all members of the United Nations and members of the Union of South American Nations.| Flag | Map | English short and formal names, and ISO code | Domestic short and formal names | Capital | Population | Area |
Argentine Republic | Argentina — República Argentina | Buenos Aires Ciudad de Buenos Aires | ||||
Plurinational State of Bolivia | Bolivia — Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia | Sucre and La Paz Sucre | ||||
Federative Republic of Brazil | Brasil — República Federativa do Brasil | Brasília Brasília | ||||
Republic of Chile | Chile — República de Chile | Santiago Santiago | ||||
Republic of Colombia | Colombia — República de Colombia | Bogotá / Santa Fe de Bogotá Bogotá | ||||
Republic of Ecuador | Ecuador — República del Ecuador | Quito Quito | ||||
Co-operative Republic of Guyana | Guyana — Co-operative Republic of Guyana | Georgetown Georgetown | ||||
Republic of Paraguay | Paraguay — República del Paraguay Paraguai — Tetã Paraguai | Asunción Asunción | ||||
Republic of Peru | Perú Perú Perú — República del Perú | Lima Lima | ||||
Republic of Suriname | Suriname — Republiek Suriname | Paramaribo Paramaribo | ||||
Eastern Republic of Uruguay | Uruguay — República Oriental del Uruguay Uruguai — República Oriental do Uruguai | Montevideo Montevideo | ||||
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela | Venezuela — República Bolivariana de Venezuela | Caracas Caracas |