Nicknames & Flag History

36 questions · Answers revealed below each question · Print this set

1.Which empire spread the crescent-and-star emblem across the Mediterranean world?
- A. the Persian Empire
- B. the Roman Empire
- C. the Ottoman Empire
- D. the Byzantine Empire
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the Ottoman Empire
Did you know? The Ottoman crescent appeared on the flags of many later states.
2.Which country is called the Gift of the Nile?
- A. Chile
- B. Egypt
- C. Ireland
- D. the Philippines
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Egypt
Did you know? The historian Herodotus gave Egypt its famous description.
3.Which country is often called the Cradle of Western Civilization?
- A. Iraq
- B. Greece
- C. Egypt
- D. Italy
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Greece
Did you know? Greek ideas of democracy and philosophy shaped the West.
4.Which country restored its black-red-gold tricolor when it reunified in 1990?
- A. Germany
- B. Belgium
- C. Austria
- D. Hungary
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Germany
Did you know? The German flag flew over the reunification celebration in Berlin.
5.Which country's own name for itself means the Middle Kingdom?
- A. Korea
- B. Japan
- C. Mongolia
- D. China
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China
Did you know? Zhongguo, China's name in Chinese, reflects an ancient worldview.
6.Which flag combined the crosses of England and Scotland in 1606?
- A. the Union Jack
- B. the Dannebrog
- C. the Stars and Stripes
- D. the Tricolore
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the Union Jack
Did you know? Ireland's cross joined the Union Jack in 1801.
7.Which country is informally called the Boot because of its shape?
- A. Italy
- B. Norway
- C. Portugal
- D. Chile
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Italy
Did you know? The Italian peninsula tapers into the Mediterranean like a boot.
8.Which country is nicknamed the Emerald Isle?
- A. Malawi
- B. Ireland
- C. Albania
- D. New Zealand
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Ireland
Did you know? Ireland's rolling green hills inspired the poetic nickname.
9.Which country is called the Land of the Midnight Sun?
- A. Colombia
- B. the Philippines
- C. Norway
- D. Israel
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Norway
Did you know? North of the Arctic Circle, the summer sun never fully sets.
10.Which country is called the Land of the Morning Calm?
- A. Australia
- B. Chile
- C. South Korea
- D. Sri Lanka
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South Korea
Did you know? The poetic name comes from an old rendering of Korea's history.
11.Which country is nicknamed the Land of the Rising Sun?
- A. Sri Lanka
- B. Finland
- C. Ireland
- D. Japan
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Japan
Did you know? Japan's name in Japanese, Nihon, means "origin of the sun".
12.Which country is nicknamed the Land of Fire and Ice?
- A. Chile
- B. Norway
- C. Iceland
- D. Singapore
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Iceland
Did you know? Iceland's volcanoes and glaciers gave rise to the nickname.
13.Which country is nicknamed the Rainbow Nation?
- A. Mongolia
- B. Malawi
- C. South Africa
- D. Singapore
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South Africa
Did you know? Archbishop Desmond Tutu coined the phrase after apartheid.
14.Which country is called Aotearoa, the Land of the Long White Cloud?
- A. South Africa
- B. Burkina Faso
- C. New Zealand
- D. Canada
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New Zealand
Did you know? Maori navigators gave New Zealand its poetic name.
15.Which country is nicknamed the Great White North?
- A. South Korea
- B. Canada
- C. Colombia
- D. South Africa
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Canada
Did you know? A famous comedy sketch popularized the phrase Great White North worldwide.
16.Which country is nicknamed the Land of Smiles?
- A. South Korea
- B. Thailand
- C. Singapore
- D. Australia
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Thailand
Did you know? The nickname highlights the warmth of Thai hospitality.
17.Which country is nicknamed the Land Down Under?
- A. Sri Lanka
- B. Australia
- C. Ireland
- D. Israel
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Australia
Did you know? The name refers to Australia's position below the Equator.
18.Which country is known as the Land of a Thousand Lakes?
- A. Japan
- B. South Korea
- C. Finland
- D. New Zealand
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Finland
Did you know? Finland counts nearly 188,000 lakes within its borders.
19.Which country's independence fighters cut the white band out of the French tricolor?
- A. Romania
- B. Chile
- C. Haiti
- D. Ireland
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Haiti
Did you know? Haiti's blue and red bands honored its two peoples.
20.Which country is called the Pearl of the Orient Seas?
- A. Sri Lanka
- B. the Philippines
- C. Japan
- D. New Zealand
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the Philippines
Did you know? A Spanish priest first used the phrase in the 1700s.
21.Which country is nicknamed the Land of the Thunder Dragon?
- A. Bhutan
- B. China
- C. Wales
- D. Mongolia
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Bhutan
Did you know? Bhutan's flag dragon is called Druk in the national language.
22.According to legend, which flag fell from the sky during a Danish battle in 1219?
- A. the Hinomaru
- B. the Estelada
- C. the Union Jack
- D. the Dannebrog
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the Dannebrog
Did you know? The Dannebrog legend is tied to the Battle of Lindanise in Estonia.
23.Which country is widely known as the Holy Land?
- A. Thailand
- B. Sri Lanka
- C. Israel
- D. Norway
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Israel
Did you know? The name reflects the region's importance to several world religions.
24.Which country's colors of green, yellow, and red inspired the pan-African flag colors?
- A. Ghana
- B. Senegal
- C. Mali
- D. Ethiopia
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Ethiopia
Did you know? Ethiopia's flag colors honor its history of independence.
25.Which country was called the Playground of Europe by nineteenth-century travelers?
- A. France
- B. Austria
- C. Switzerland
- D. Italy
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Switzerland
Did you know? Alpine tourism made Switzerland the era's favorite playground.
26.Which country has a name meaning the Land of Honest Men?
- A. Singapore
- B. South Korea
- C. Burkina Faso
- D. Canada
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Burkina Faso
Did you know? The country renamed itself from Upper Volta in 1984.
27.Which country is also officially known by the name Bharat?
- A. India
- B. Egypt
- C. Iran
- D. Jordan
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India
Did you know? India's constitution recognizes both India and Bharat as names.
28.Which country's 1789 revolution made the horizontal-bar tricolor a worldwide model?
- A. Russia
- B. Italy
- C. the Netherlands
- D. France
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France
Did you know? France's cockade of blue, white, and red preceded the tricolor flag.
29.Which country is nicknamed the Lion City?
- A. South Korea
- B. Albania
- C. Norway
- D. Singapore
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Singapore
Did you know? Singapura derives from Sanskrit words meaning lion city.
30.Which country is nicknamed the Pearl of the Indian Ocean?
- A. Sri Lanka
- B. Iceland
- C. the Philippines
- D. Norway
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Sri Lanka
Did you know? The island's shape and gems inspired the description.
31.Which country is nicknamed the Land of Poets?
- A. Iceland
- B. Chile
- C. South Africa
- D. New Zealand
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Chile
Did you know? Two Chileans, Gabriela Mistral and Pablo Neruda, won the Nobel Prize in Literature.
32.Which country was historically nicknamed the Land of White Elephants?
- A. Kenya
- B. Sri Lanka
- C. India
- D. Thailand
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Thailand
Did you know? The white elephant once appeared on Thailand's national flag.
33.Which country is nicknamed the Gateway to South America?
- A. Colombia
- B. Malawi
- C. Albania
- D. Burkina Faso
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Colombia
Did you know? Colombia is the only South American country with coasts on two oceans.
34.Which country is nicknamed the Land of the Eagles?
- A. Albania
- B. Egypt
- C. Malawi
- D. Finland
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Albania
Did you know? Albanians call their country Shqiperia, Land of Eagles.
35.Which country is nicknamed the Land of the Blue Sky?
- A. Canada
- B. South Africa
- C. Japan
- D. Mongolia
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Mongolia
Did you know? Mongolia enjoys over 250 sunny days a year.
36.Which country is nicknamed the Warm Heart of Africa?
- A. South Korea
- B. Finland
- C. Malawi
- D. Australia
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Malawi
Did you know? The nickname celebrates Malawi's reputation for friendly people.

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