Quiz: Can You Name Every Country That Starts With a Vowel?

Maybe you're a wordsmith, or perhaps you're a geophile. Or better yet, you're both—which means you should be able to rattle off a list of all the countries that start with vowels, no sweat. A, E, I, O ... are U there yet? It's a task that's harder than it looks, especially when time pressure comes into play.

Out of the hundreds of countries that make up the map, there are only 35 whose names begin with a vowel. Some of these countries are global giants; others can only be described as hidden gems. Let's see if you can name them all before the timer hits zero.

How many countries that start with a vowel were you able to pinpoint before the clock ran out? Send this quiz to your fellow travel enthusiasts to see if anyone can achieve a perfect score. Once you’ve conquered the world, keep exploring the Mental Floss geography archives to keep your trivia skills sharp!

Countries Starting With "A"

You aren't imagining things: the letter "A" starts the names of more countries than every other vowel put together. To be precise, there are 11 countries that begin with the letter "A": Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antigua, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, and Azerbaijan.

• Countries like Australia, Argentina, and Algeria span large swaths of land. From surf culture Down Under to gauchos in South America, these "A" nations make their presence felt across the entire globe.
• Albania, Andorra, and Austria are tiny in comparison, tucked away in the heart of Europe. Don't let their size fool you: they’re marked by centuries of mountain tradition and landscapes that range from the Pyrenees to the Alps.

Countries Starting With "O"

At the other end of the spectrum, "O" and "U" are the rarest; countries like Oman are outliers in a small, select group.

• Oman borders the United Arab Emirates, but it’s much different from its metropolitan neighbor. Here, you won't find towering skyscrapers or modern malls. Instead, Oman is an oasis of ancient forts and traditional souks tucked between mountains and desert. It’s the kind of place that feels much more like the classic Middle East you’ve likely imagined.

Countries Starting With "E"

More toward the middle of the pack than the scarce "O" countries or the abundant "A"s are the countries that begin with the letter "E." There are exactly eight of them: Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Eswatini, and Ethiopia.

• Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Eswatini, and Equatorial Guinea are all in Africa, but that’s about where the similarities end. You’ve got Egypt’s ancient Nile, Ethiopia’s high-altitude ruggedness, Eritrea’s Red Sea coastline, and the landlocked kingdom of Eswatini. Finally, there’s Equatorial Guinea. the odd one out with its mix of mainland and island.
• The rest of the "E" countries hit a few more continents. Ecuador straddles the equator, El Salvador holds down Central America, and Estonia completes our list in Northern Europe.

To recap, the 35 vowel countries are:

• A: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan
• E: Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Eswatini, Ethiopia
• I: Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy
• O: Oman
• U: Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan

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