Countries That Start With F

Sovereign countries (3)

Three sovereign UN member states have English names beginning with F: Fiji, Finland, and France. The list is short, but France punches well above its weight on the map — its overseas departments and collectivities push the letter F across four oceans and onto every populated continent except Antarctica.

Fiji

Suva · Oceania

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Finland

Helsinki · Europe

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France

Paris · Europe

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Territories and other entities (4)

Inhabited territories, dependencies, and overseas departments whose English names also begin with F. These are not sovereign UN member states, though French Guiana is legally a part of France itself rather than a separate jurisdiction.

Falkland Islands

British Overseas Territory

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Faroe Islands

Self-governing nation, Kingdom of Denmark

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French Guiana

Overseas department of France

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French Polynesia

Overseas collectivity of France

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Browsing the alphabet is a popular way to teach geography. Try the neighbouring letters:

Countries That Start With E — Seven nations from Ecuador to Eswatini.
Countries That Start With G — Eleven nations including Germany, Ghana, and Guyana.
Countries That Start With O — Just one country — Oman.

Quick answer for skimmers

Q: How many countries start with F?
A: Three sovereign UN member states — Fiji, Finland, and France. Four inhabited territories also begin with F: the Falkland Islands, the Faroe Islands, French Guiana, and French Polynesia.

Q: Are Tahiti and Bora Bora separate countries?
A: No. Both are part of French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the South Pacific. Tahiti is the largest island and the seat of government; Bora Bora sits roughly 260 kilometres to the northwest in the Society Islands group. Travellers there are entering French territory and use the CFP franc.

Q: What is the difference between French Guiana and Guyana?
A: They are two different jurisdictions on the same Atlantic coast of South America. French Guiana is an overseas department of France — legally part of France itself, inside the European Union, using the euro, and home to the Guiana Space Centre at Kourou. Guyana is a sovereign English-speaking country that gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1966; it is listed under the letter G.

Country profiles mentioned in this post: