Uruguay 🇺🇾
Uruguay is a country in South America with a population of 3,422,794. Its capital is Montevideo. The official currency is UYU, and the main languages are Spanish.
Quick facts
- Capital: Montevideo
- Continent: South America
- Population: 3,422,794
- Area: 176,215 km²
- Density: 19.4 people per km²
- Currency: UYU
- Languages: Spanish
- ISO code: UY
Where Uruguay sits
Uruguay 🇺🇾 is one of 12 countries in South America, with its capital at Montevideo. It covers 176,215 square kilometres — 89th in the world — and is home to about 3,422,794 people, 132nd globally.
The countries it shares a continent with include Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Peru and Venezuela. If you are learning geography region by region — which works far better than alphabetically, because memory for places is spatial — those are the ones to learn alongside it.
How Uruguay compares
Raw figures are hard to hold on their own, so it helps to anchor them. In population, Uruguay sits closest to Mongolia and Moldova. In land area, its nearest counterparts are Cambodia and Syria.
At 19.4 people per square kilometre it is about 3.1 times below the world average of 59.4. It ranks higher by area than by population, so it is more spacious than its population alone suggests.
Spanish is an official language in 20 countries here, among them Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Colombia, and 15 others. The UYU is used by Uruguay and no one else.
To see Uruguay next to every other country, sort the country rankings by population, area or density; its currency and languages are listed alongside every other country's in world currencies and world languages.
How to remember Uruguay
Montevideo is on the Río de la Plata, across the water from Buenos Aires. Uruguay and Argentina both have a Sun of May on their flags, but Uruguay's is in a corner above nine stripes.
The flag of Uruguay: white, blue and yellow
🇺🇾 The flag is nine horizontal stripes of white and blue, with a yellow sun with a face, the Sun of May, in a white corner. The nine stripes stand for the country's nine original departments. The Sun of May comes from the story of the sun breaking through the clouds in May 1810, at the start of the move to independence from Spain.
Region and neighbours
Uruguay is a small country in southeastern South America, between Argentina and Brazil, on the Atlantic Ocean and the Río de la Plata. It shares land borders with 2 countries: Argentina and Brazil.
- Argentina 🇦🇷 — capital Buenos Aires
- Brazil 🇧🇷 — capital Brasília
Three facts about Uruguay
- Uruguay hosted and won the first FIFA World Cup in 1930, and won it again in 1950.
- The historic quarter of Colonia del Sacramento is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Uruguay borders only two countries, Argentina and Brazil.
Sources: Wikipedia: Uruguay, Wikipedia: Flag of Uruguay, Wikipedia: Montevideo, Wikipedia: Colonia del Sacramento, CIA World Factbook.
Quiz yourself on Uruguay
- South American capitals quiz — match Uruguay to Montevideo
- South American flags quiz — spot the Uruguay flag among its neighbours
Quizzes that include Uruguay
Three angles are worth covering for any country — where it is, what its flag looks like, and what its capital is. For Uruguay those are:
- South America map quiz — place it on a blank map
- South America flags quiz — identify its flag among its neighbours
- South America capitals quiz — match it to Montevideo
- Uruguay capital quiz — five quick questions starting with Uruguay
- Daily Map Challenge — five countries to find on a blank world map, the same five for everyone each day
Doing all three for one continent before moving on is far more efficient than learning flags globally, then capitals globally, then the map.
Read more about Uruguay
- Capital of Uruguay: Montevideo — the capital in detail, with size and density rankings
- All 12 countries of South America
Nearby countries
- Argentina 🇦🇷 — capital Buenos Aires
- Bolivia 🇧🇴 — capital Sucre
- Brazil 🇧🇷 — capital Brasília
- Chile 🇨🇱 — capital Santiago
- Colombia 🇨🇴 — capital Bogotá
- Ecuador 🇪🇨 — capital Quito
- Guyana 🇬🇾 — capital Georgetown
- Paraguay 🇵🇾 — capital Asunción
- Peru 🇵🇪 — capital Lima
- Suriname 🇸🇷 — capital Paramaribo
- Venezuela 🇻🇪 — capital Caracas
Frequently asked questions
What are the colours of the Uruguay flag?
The flag of Uruguay is nine horizontal stripes of white and blue, with a yellow sun with a face, the Sun of May, in a white corner. The nine stripes stand for the country's nine original departments. The Sun of May comes from the story of the sun breaking through the clouds in May 1810, at the start of the move to independence from Spain.
Which countries border Uruguay?
Uruguay shares land borders with Argentina and Brazil.
How can I remember the capital of Uruguay?
Montevideo is on the Río de la Plata, across the water from Buenos Aires. Uruguay and Argentina both have a Sun of May on their flags, but Uruguay's is in a corner above nine stripes.