User:Universal Life/Autonomous states and areas

 In progress

The following is a list of de facto sovereign states and inhabited autonomous areas of the world and includes the following entities.

Included Entities edit

  1.   UN Member or Observer States: All the United Nations Member States and Observer States that also exercise actual sovereign power over the territory they control (de facto sovereign states). -- "Both de jure and de facto states"
    • Sovereignty is the full right and power of a governing body over itself, without any interference from outside sources or bodies.
    • De facto sovereignty is the factual ability of a state to exercise its power, while de jure sovereignty refers to the legal right to do so.
    • Most countries are both de facto and de jure (i.e., they exist both in reality and in law), while some de facto sovereign states are not recognised by the international community and some de jure states are recognised as the legitimate government of a territory over which they have no actual control.
    • This category includes the 193 member states of the United Nations (UN) and the Vatican City (administered by the Holy See, a UN observer state).
    • Palestine, even though a UN observer state, is not listed in this category because it is solely a de jure state.
  2. Other States: All other de facto sovereign states that are neither member states nor observer states of the UN. -- "Only de facto states"
    • Only the entities that consider themselves sovereign (through a declaration of independence or some other means) and are often regarded as satisfying the declarative theory of statehood are considered a state and included in this category.
    • The declarative theory defines a state as a person in international law if it meets the following criteria:
      1. a defined territory
      2. a permanent population
      3. a government, and
      4. a capacity to enter into relations with other states.
    • Therefore, this category contains:
    • The constitutive theory of statehood is not applied for the purpose of this list.
  3. Proto-States: A proto-state is a nascent political entity that has some of the characteristics of a state but is not considered fully established. As it is usually categorised between a non-state and a state entity, its precise definition mostly flactuates in political literature and is determined according to context.
    • For the purpose of this list, it is defined as a middle category between "other states" and "dependent territories" and includes the following:
    • In any case, it should at least be maintaining most of the attributes of a functioning state to be included in this category.
    • Micronations, uncontacted peoples and areas in the active phase of a current civil war (where no stable proto-state has emerged) are excluded.
    • Deep states, also called states within a state are sometimes confused with a proto-state and are also excluded.
  4. Dependent Territories: A dependent territory or dependency is a territory that does not possess full political independence or sovereignty yet remains politically outside the controlling state's integral area. A dependency is commonly distinguished from country subdivisions by not being considered to be an integral territory of the governing state. Administrative subdivisions instead are understood as typically representing a division of the state proper. A dependent territory conversely often maintains a great degree of autonomy from the controlling central state.
    • Only currently inhabited entities are included in this category. Uninhabited dependencies or those populated by a very few number of scientists etc. are excluded.
    • This category includes the following:
      • All inhabited dependent territories such as Cocos (Keeling) Islands of Australia, Bailiwick of Guernsey of the UK, Puerto Rico of the USA and Tokelau of New Zealand.
      • Some similar entities that inhabit a special position guaranteed by international treaty or other agreement; creating a certain level of autonomy (e.g., differences in immigration rules). These are sometimes considered or at least grouped with dependencies, but are officially considered by their controlling states to be integral parts of the state. Examples include Åland of Finland and Hong Kong of China.
      • Any other de facto non-sovereign autonomous entity with a similar special position and excluded from the state proper, such as Palestine.
      • Other entities often regarded as separate geographical territories even though they are integral parts of their mother countries, such as Guadeloupe and Réunion of the overseas departments of France.
  5. Autonomous Areas: An autonomous area is defined as an area of a country that has a degree of autonomy or has freedom from an external authority. Dependent territories also possess a great deal of autonomy however they are usually not an integral part of the country.
  6. Special Territories: For the purpose of this list, a special territory is any inhabited area that is neither a de facto sovereign, dependent or autonomous polity nor is an integral part of another external authority. Therefore while it is beyond the reach of any external authority it includes those entities that do not fall under any of the categories (or definitions) above.
    • Units or areas formed by active war zones with a defined population, where no stable proto-state has emerged.
    • Inhabited areas under no one's control, such as Abyei.
    • Sovereign areas that don't fit the modern definition of a state, such as North Sentinel Island.

List of Sovereign States and Autonomous Areas edit

Code Common names Capital City Category Notes, Autonomous Areas & Special Territories
001   Abkhazia[a] Sukhumi 2. Other State
002   Afghanistan Kabul 1. UN Member State
UNK1   Akrotiri and Dhekelia Episkopi 4. Dependent Territory British Overseas Territory on Cyprus
FIN1   Åland Islands Mariehamn 4. Dependent Territory Finnish autonomous region
003   Albania Tirana 1. UN Member State
004   Algeria Algiers 1. UN Member State
UNS1   American Samoa Pago Pago 4. Dependent Territory United States unincorporated territory
005   Andorra Andorra la Vella 1. UN Member State
006   Angola Luanda 1. UN Member State
UNK2   Anguilla The Valley 4. Dependent Territory British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean
007   Antigua and Barbuda Saint John's 1. UN Member State None[b]
008   Argentina Buenos Aires 1. UN Member State
009   Armenia Yerevan 1. UN Member State
010   Artsakh[c][d] Stepanakert 2. Other State
NET1   Aruba Oranjestad 4. Dependent Territory Dutch Constituent Country in the Caribbean
011   Australia Canberra 1. UN Member State
012   Austria Vienna 1. UN Member State
013   Azerbaijan Baku 1. UN Member State Nakhchivan (autonomous republic)
014   Bahamas, The Nassau 1. UN Member State
015   Bahrain Manama 1. UN Member State
016   Bangladesh Dhaka 1. UN Member State
017   Barbados Bridgetown 1. UN Member State
018   Belarus Minsk 1. UN Member State
019   Belgium Brussels 1. UN Member State
020   Belize Belmopan 1. UN Member State
021   Benin Porto-Novo 1. UN Member State
UNK3   Bermuda Hamilton 4. Dependent Territory British Overseas Territory in the North Atlantic Ocean
022   Bhutan Thimphu 1. UN Member State
023   Bolivia Sucre / La Paz 1. UN Member State
NET2   Bonaire Kralendijk 4. Dependent Territory Dutch Special Municipality in the Caribbean
024   Bosnia and Herzegovina Sarajevo 1. UN Member State
025   Botswana Gaborone 1. UN Member State
026   Brazil Brasília 1. UN Member State
UNK4   British Indian Ocean Territory Camp Justice 4. Dependent Territory British Overseas Territory in the Indian Ocean
UNK5   British Virgin Islands Road Town 4. Dependent Territory British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean
027   Brunei Bandar Seri Begawan 1. UN Member State
028   Bulgaria Sofia 1. UN Member State
029   Burkina Faso Ouagadougou 1. UN Member State
030   Burundi Gitega 1. UN Member State
031   Cambodia Phnom Penh 1. UN Member State
032   Cameroon Yaoundé 1. UN Member State
033   Canada Ottawa 1. UN Member State
034   Cape Verde Praia 1. UN Member State
UNK6   Cayman Islands George Town 4. Dependent Territory
035   Central African Republic Bangui 1. UN Member State
036   Chad N'Djamena 1. UN Member State
037   Chile Santiago 1. UN Member State
038   China Beijing 1. UN Member State
AUSa1   Christmas Island Flying Fish Cove 4. Dependent Territory
AUSa2   Cocos (Keeling) Islands West Island 4. Dependent Territory
039   Colombia Bogotá 1. UN Member State
040   Comoros Moroni 1. UN Member State
041   Congo, Democratic Republic of the Kinshasa 1. UN Member State
042   Congo, Republic of the Brazzaville 1. UN Member State
043   Cook Islands[e] Avarua 2. Other State
044   Costa Rica San José 1. UN Member State
045   Croatia Zagreb 1. UN Member State
046   Cuba Havana 1. UN Member State
NET3   Curaçao Willemstad 4. Dependent Territory
047   Cyprus Nicosia 1. UN Member State
048   Czech Republic Prague 1. UN Member State
049   Denmark Copenhagen 1. UN Member State
050   Djibouti Djibouti 1. UN Member State
051   Dominica Roseau 1. UN Member State
052   Dominican Republic Santo Domingo 1. UN Member State
053   Donetsk[f] Donetsk 3. Proto-State
054   East Timor Dili 1. UN Member State
CHIa1   Easter Island Hanga Roa 4. Dependent Territory
055   Ecuador Quito 1. UN Member State
056   Egypt Cairo 1. UN Member State
057   El Salvador San Salvador 1. UN Member State
058   Equatorial Guinea Malabo 1. UN Member State
059   Eritrea Asmara 1. UN Member State
060   Estonia Tallinn 1. UN Member State
061   Eswatini[g] Mbabane 1. UN Member State
062   Ethiopia Addis Ababa 1. UN Member State
UNK7   Falkland Islands Stanley 4. Dependent Territory
DEN1   Faroe Islands Tórshavn 4. Dependent Territory
063   Fiji Suva 1. UN Member State
064   Finland Helsinki 1. UN Member State
065   France Paris 1. UN Member State
FRA1   French Guiana Cayenne 4. Dependent Territory
FRA2   French Polynesia Papeete 4. Dependent Territory
066   Gabon Libreville 1. UN Member State
067   Galmudug[h] Dhusamareb 3. Proto-State
068   Gambia, The Banjul 1. UN Member State
069   Gaza Strip[i] Gaza City 3. Proto-State
070   Georgia Tbilisi 1. UN Member State
071   Germany Berlin 1. UN Member State
072   Ghana Accra 1. UN Member State
UNK8   Gibraltar Gibraltar 4. Dependent Territory
073   Greece Athens 1. UN Member State
DEN2   Greenland Nuuk 4. Dependent Territory
074   Grenada St. George's 1. UN Member State
FRA3   Guadeloupe Basse-Terre 4. Dependent Territory
UNS2   Guam Hagåtña 4. Dependent Territory
075   Guatemala Guatemala City 1. UN Member State
UNK9   Guernsey Saint Peter Port 4. Dependent Territory
076   Guinea Conakry 1. UN Member State
077   Guinea-Bissau Bissau 1. UN Member State
078   Guyana Georgetown 1. UN Member State
079   Haiti Port-au-Prince 1. UN Member State
080   Honduras Tegucigalpa 1. UN Member State
CHIb1   Hong Kong Hong Kong 4. Dependent Territory
081   Hungary Budapest 1. UN Member State
082   Iceland Reykjavík 1. UN Member State
083   India New Delhi 1. UN Member State
084   Indonesia Jakarta 1. UN Member State
085   Iran Tehran 1. UN Member State
086   Iraq Baghdad 1. UN Member State
087   Iraqi Kurdistan[j] Erbil 3. Proto-State
088   Ireland Dublin 1. UN Member State
UNK10   Isle of Man Douglas 4. Dependent Territory
089   Israel Jerusalem 1. UN Member State
090   Italy Rome 1. UN Member State
091   Ivory Coast Yamoussoukro 1. UN Member State
092   Jamaica Kingston 1. UN Member State
093   Japan Tokyo 1. UN Member State
UNK11   Jersey Saint Helier 4. Dependent Territory
094   Jordan Amman 1. UN Member State
095   Kazakhstan Nur-Sultan 1. UN Member State
096   Kenya Nairobi 1. UN Member State
097   Kiribati Tarawa 1. UN Member State
098   Kosovo[k] Pristina 2. Other State
099   Kuwait Kuwait City 1. UN Member State
100   Kyrgyzstan Bishkek 1. UN Member State
101   Laos Vientiane 1. UN Member State
102   Latvia Riga 1. UN Member State
103   Lebanon Beirut 1. UN Member State
104   Lesotho Maseru 1. UN Member State
105   Liberia Monrovia 1. UN Member State
106   Libya Tripoli 1. UN Member State
107   Liechtenstein Vaduz 1. UN Member State
108   Lithuania Vilnius 1. UN Member State
109   Logone[l][m] Kaga-Bandoro 3. Proto-State
110   Luhansk[n] Luhansk 3. Proto-State
111   Luxembourg Luxembourg 1. UN Member State
CHIb2   Macau Macau 4. Dependent Territory
112   Madagascar Antananarivo 1. UN Member State
113   Malawi Lilongwe 1. UN Member State
114   Malaysia Kuala Lumpur 1. UN Member State
115   Maldives Malé 1. UN Member State
116   Mali Bamako 1. UN Member State
117   Malta Valletta 1. UN Member State
118   Marshall Islands Majuro 1. UN Member State
FRA4   Martinique Fort-de-France 4. Dependent Territory
119   Mauritania Nouakchott 1. UN Member State
120   Mauritius Port Louis 1. UN Member State
FRA5   Mayotte Mamoudzou 4. Dependent Territory
121   Mexico Mexico City 1. UN Member State
122   Micronesia Palikir 1. UN Member State
123   Moldova Chișinău 1. UN Member State
124   Monaco Monaco 1. UN Member State
125   Mongolia Ulaanbaatar 1. UN Member State
126   Montenegro Podgorica 1. UN Member State
UNK12   Montserrat Brades 4. Dependent Territory
127   Morocco Rabat 1. UN Member State
128   Mozambique Maputo 1. UN Member State
129   Myanmar Naypyidaw 1. UN Member State
130   Namibia Windhoek 1. UN Member State
131   Nauru Yaren 1. UN Member State
132     Nepal Kathmandu 1. UN Member State
133   Netherlands Amsterdam /

The Hague

1. UN Member State
FRA6   New Caledonia Nouméa 4. Dependent Territory
134   New Zealand Wellington 1. UN Member State
135   Nicaragua Managua 1. UN Member State
136   Niger Niamey 1. UN Member State
137   Nigeria Abuja 1. UN Member State
138   Niue[o] Alofi 2. Other State
AUSa3   Norfolk Island Kingston 4. Dependent Territory
139   North Korea Pyongyang 1. UN Member State
140   North Macedonia Skopje 1. UN Member State
141   Northern Cyprus[p] Nicosia 2. Other State
UNS3   Northern Mariana Islands Saipan 4. Dependent Territory
142   Norway Oslo 1. UN Member State
143   Oman Muscat 1. UN Member State
144   Pakistan Islamabad 1. UN Member State
145   Palau Ngerulmud 1. UN Member State
ISR1   Palestine Ramallah 4. Dependent Territory
146   Panama Panama City 1. UN Member State
147   Papua New Guinea Port Moresby 1. UN Member State
148   Paraguay Asunción 1. UN Member State
149   Peru Lima 1. UN Member State
150   Philippines Manila 1. UN Member State
UNK13   Pitcairn Islands Adamstown 4. Dependent Territory
151   Poland Warsaw 1. UN Member State
152   Portugal Lisbon 1. UN Member State
UNS4   Puerto Rico San Juan 4. Dependent Territory
153   Puntland[q] Garoowe 3. Proto-State
154   Qatar Doha 1. UN Member State
FRA7   Réunion Saint-Denis 4. Dependent Territory
155   Rojava[r] Ayn Issa 3. Proto-State
156   Romania Bucharest 1. UN Member State
157   Russia Moscow 1. UN Member State
158   Rwanda Kigali 1. UN Member State
NET4   Saba The Bottom 4. Dependent Territory
159   Sahrawi[s][t] Tifariti 2. Other State
FRA8   Saint Barthélemy Gustavia 4. Dependent Territory
UNK14   Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Jamestown 4. Dependent Territory
160   Saint Kitts and Nevis Basseterre 1. UN Member State
161   Saint Lucia Castries 1. UN Member State
FRA9   Saint Martin Marigot 4. Dependent Territory
FRA10   Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint-Pierre 4. Dependent Territory
162   Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Kingstown 1. UN Member State
163   Samoa Apia 1. UN Member State
164   San Marino San Marino 1. UN Member State
165   São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé 1. UN Member State
166   Saudi Arabia Riyadh 1. UN Member State
167   Senegal Dakar 1. UN Member State
168   Serbia Belgrade 1. UN Member State
169   Seychelles Victoria 1. UN Member State
170   Sierra Leone Freetown 1. UN Member State
171   Singapore Singapore 1. UN Member State
NET5   Sint Eustatius Oranjestad 4. Dependent Territory
NET6   Sint Maarten Philipsburg 4. Dependent Territory
172   Slovakia Bratislava 1. UN Member State
173   Slovenia Ljubljana 1. UN Member State
174   Solomon Islands Honiara 1. UN Member State
175   Somalia Mogadishu 1. UN Member State
176   Somaliland[u] Hargeisa 2. Other State
177   South Africa Pretoria / Cape Town

/ Bloemfontein

1. UN Member State
UNK15   South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands King Edward Point 4. Dependent Territory
178   South Korea Seoul 1. UN Member State
179   South Ossetia[v] Tskhinvali 2. Other State
180   South Sudan Juba 1. UN Member State
181   Spain Madrid 1. UN Member State
182   Sri Lanka Kotte / Colombo 1. UN Member State
183   Sudan Khartoum 1. UN Member State
184   Suriname Paramaribo 1. UN Member State
NORd1   Svalbard Longyearbyen 4. Dependent Territory
185   Sweden Stockholm 1. UN Member State
186    Switzerland Bern 1. UN Member State
187   Syria Damascus 1. UN Member State
188   Taiwan[w] Taipei 2. Other State
189   Tajikistan Dushanbe 1. UN Member State
190   Tanzania Dodoma 1. UN Member State
191   Thailand Bangkok 1. UN Member State
192   Togo Lomé 1. UN Member State
NEW1   Tokelau None 4. Dependent Territory
193   Tonga Nukuʻalofa 1. UN Member State
194   Transnistria[x] Tiraspol 2. Other State
195   Trinidad and Tobago Port of Spain 1. UN Member State
196   Tunisia Tunis 1. UN Member State
197   Turkey Ankara 1. UN Member State
198   Turkmenistan Ashgabat 1. UN Member State
UNK16   Turks and Caicos Islands Cockburn Town 4. Dependent Territory
199   Tuvalu Funafuti 1. UN Member State
200   Uganda Kampala 1. UN Member State
201   Ukraine Kiev 1. UN Member State
202   United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi 1. UN Member State
203   United Kingdom London 1. UN Member State
204   United States Washington, D.C. 1. UN Member State
UNS5   United States Virgin Islands Charlotte Amalie 4. Dependent Territory
205   Uruguay Montevideo 1. UN Member State
206   Uzbekistan Tashkent 1. UN Member State
207   Vanuatu Port Vila 1. UN Member State
208   Vatican City Vatican City 1. UN Observer State
209   Venezuela Caracas 1. UN Member State
210   Vietnam Hanoi 1. UN Member State
211   Wa State[y] Pangkham 3. Proto-State
FRA11   Wallis and Futuna Mata Utu 4. Dependent Territory
212   Yemen Aden 1. UN Member State
213   Zambia Lusaka 1. UN Member State
214   Zimbabwe Harare 1. UN Member State

Citations edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ Claimed in whole by   Georgia as part of its sovereign territory. It is recognised by 9 countries: Nauru, Nicaragua, Russia, Syria, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Artsakh, South Ossetia and Transnistria.
  2. ^ Barbuda, the once autonomous island is uninhabited since 2017.
  3. ^ Also known as   Nagorno-Karabakh
  4. ^ Claimed in whole by   Azerbaijan as part of its sovereign territory. It is recognised by 3 countries: Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transnistria.
  5. ^ A state in free association with   New Zealand, the Cook Islands maintains diplomatic relations with 52 states.
  6. ^ Claimed in whole by   Ukraine as part of its sovereign territory, recognised only by Luhansk and South Ossetia.
  7. ^ Also known as   Swaziland
  8. ^ A de facto proto-state in   Somalia.
  9. ^ A de facto proto-state in de jure   Palestine.
  10. ^ A de facto proto-state in   Iraq.
  11. ^ Claimed in whole by   Serbia as part of its sovereign territory. It is recognised by at least 100 countries.
  12. ^ Also known as   Dar El Kuti
  13. ^ A de facto proto-state in   Central African Republic.
  14. ^ Claimed in whole by   Ukraine as part of its sovereign territory, recognised only by Donetsk and South Ossetia.
  15. ^ A state in free association with   New Zealand, Niue maintains diplomatic relations with 20 states.
  16. ^ Claimed in whole by   Cyprus as part of its sovereign territory. It is recognised only by Turkey.
  17. ^ A de facto proto-state in   Somalia.
  18. ^ A de facto proto-state in   Syria.
  19. ^ Also known as   Western Sahara
  20. ^ Claimed in whole by   Morocco as part of its sovereign territory. It is recognised by 41 countries.
  21. ^ Claimed in whole by   Somalia as part of its sovereign territory. It is not recognised by any country.
  22. ^ Claimed in whole by   Georgia as part of its sovereign territory. It is recognised by 9 countries: Nauru, Nicaragua, Russia, Syria, Venezuela, Abkhazia, Artsakh, Sahrawi and Transnistria.
  23. ^ Claimed in whole by   China as part of its sovereign territory. It is recognised by 15 countries: Belize, Eswatini, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Nicaragua, Palau, Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tuvalu and the Vatican City.
  24. ^ Claimed in whole by   Moldova as part of its sovereign territory. It is recognised by 3 countries: Abkhazia, Artsakh and South Ossetia.
  25. ^ A de facto proto-state in   Myanmar.

References edit