Countries That Start With S

Sovereign countries (25)

Twenty-five sovereign UN member states have English names beginning with S — the most of any letter in the alphabet. Several inhabited territories, dependencies, and special zones also start with S, listed below in their own section. The total count of "S" entries depends on which list you consult, but the sovereign-nation answer is fixed at twenty-five.

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Basseterre · The Caribbean

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Saint Lucia

Castries · The Caribbean

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Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Kingstown · The Caribbean

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Samoa

Apia · Oceania

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San Marino

San Marino · Europe

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Sao Tome and Principe

Sao Tome · Africa

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Saudi Arabia

Riyadh · Middle East

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Senegal

Dakar · Africa

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Serbia

Belgrade · Europe

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Seychelles

Victoria · Africa

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Sierra Leone

Freetown · Africa

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Singapore

Singapore · Asia

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Slovakia

Bratislava · Europe

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Slovenia

Ljubljana · Europe

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Solomon Islands

Honiara · Oceania

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Somalia

Mogadishu · Africa

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South Africa

Pretoria · Africa

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South Sudan

Juba · Africa

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Spain

Madrid · Europe

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Sri Lanka

Colombo · Asia

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Sudan

Khartoum · Africa

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Suriname

Paramaribo · South America

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Sweden

Stockholm · Europe

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Switzerland

Bern · Europe

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Syria

Damascus · Middle East

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Territories and other entities (3)

Inhabited territories, dependencies, and special zones whose English names also begin with S. These are not sovereign UN member states but have their own administrative status.

Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha

British Overseas Territory

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Saint Pierre and Miquelon

Overseas collectivity of France

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Svalbard and Jan Mayen

Territories of Norway

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Related letter lookups

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

• Countries That Start With R — Three nations — Romania, Russia, and Rwanda.
• Countries That Start With T — Twelve nations from Tajikistan to Turkmenistan.
• Countries That Start With A — Eleven nations from Afghanistan to Azerbaijan.

Quick answer for skimmers

Q: How many countries start with S?
A: Twenty-five sovereign UN member states — the most of any letter.

Q: What is the difference between Slovakia and Slovenia?
A: Two distinct Central European countries often confused. Slovakia (capital Bratislava) was part of Czechoslovakia until 1993; Slovenia (capital Ljubljana) was part of Yugoslavia until 1991. Different languages, different histories.

Q: What is the difference between Sudan and South Sudan?
A: South Sudan seceded from Sudan in 2011 after a referendum, becoming the world's newest UN member state. Both are now separate countries.

Country profiles mentioned in this post:

Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Sweden Switzerland Syria