South American Capitals Quiz

Capitals of South America.

All twelve South American capitals. A short list with two genuine traps and one country whose capital most people get wrong.

Twelve countries, finishable in a sitting

South America has the smallest country count of any populated continent, which makes this one of the few capital quizzes you can realistically complete in a single session.

Argentina — Buenos Aires
Bolivia — Sucre (constitutional), La Paz (seat of government)
Brazil — Brasília
Chile — Santiago
Colombia — Bogotá
Ecuador — Quito
Guyana — Georgetown
Paraguay — Asunción
Peru — Lima
Suriname — Paramaribo
Uruguay — Montevideo
Venezuela — Caracas

The Bolivia problem

Bolivia is the one that catches everyone, and both common answers are defensible.

Sucre is the constitutional capital and the seat of the judiciary. La Paz is where the executive and legislature sit, and it is the city that functions as the capital day to day. La Paz is also the highest administrative capital in the world, at roughly 3,600 metres.

Quizzes are split. Sucre is the technically correct answer and the one more likely to be marked right on a strict quiz; La Paz is the answer most people give. Knowing both, and knowing why, is the actual goal.

The Brazil trap

Brasília, not Rio de Janeiro and not São Paulo. Rio was the capital until 1960, when Brazil built an entirely new city in the interior to pull development away from the coast. It is one of the clearest examples anywhere of a purpose-built capital, and it is still widely missed because Rio remains the internationally famous city.

The ones people simply do not know

Guyana and Suriname are frequently skipped altogether — they are the two non-Spanish-speaking mainland states, English-speaking and Dutch-speaking respectively, and they sit outside most people's mental map of the continent.

Georgetown — Guyana
Paramaribo — Suriname

Learning just these two adds meaningfully to a twelve-question quiz.

The altitude cluster

Three of these capitals are among the highest in the world: La Paz, Quito and Bogotá all sit well above 2,500 metres in the Andes. Grouping them by that fact is a useful hook — the Andean capitals are the high ones, and they run in a north-south line.

Where to go next

South American Flags covers the same twelve countries and is the easier half, so doing it alongside this one gives you an early win and reinforces the country list at the same time.

Frequently asked questions

What is the capital of Bolivia?

Sucre is the constitutional capital and seat of the judiciary, while La Paz houses the executive and legislature and functions as the working capital. Strict quizzes want Sucre; most people answer La Paz. Both are defensible and knowing the distinction is the real answer.

What is the capital of Brazil?

Brasília. Rio de Janeiro was the capital until 1960, when a purpose-built city was constructed in the interior to shift development inland. Rio remains the better-known city internationally, which is why this is still commonly missed.

What is the highest capital city in the world?

La Paz, Bolivia, at roughly 3,600 metres, is the highest administrative capital. Quito in Ecuador and Bogotá in Colombia are also among the highest, all three sitting in the Andes.

How many countries are in South America?

Twelve sovereign states. French Guiana, often shown on maps of the continent, is an overseas department of France rather than an independent country, which is why some counts say thirteen.

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