How many countries in South America can you name? This name the countries of South America challenge gives you three minutes to type all 12 sovereign nations on the continent, from Colombia in the north to Chile and Argentina in the far south. Territories such as French Guiana and the Falkland Islands do not count, so it is the independent countries only.
South America has 12 sovereign countries. Brazil is the giant, covering nearly half the continent and bordering every other country except Chile and Ecuador. Most of the continent speaks Spanish, but Brazil speaks Portuguese, Guyana speaks English and Suriname speaks Dutch. French Guiana, on the northeast coast, is part of France rather than an independent country, which is why it is not on this list.
Trace the continent clockwise from the top: Colombia and Venezuela along the Caribbean, then Guyana and Suriname, down the Atlantic coast through Brazil and Uruguay to Argentina, then up the Pacific side through Chile, Peru and Ecuador. The two that slip most often are the landlocked ones, Bolivia and Paraguay, which sit in the middle where a coastal sweep misses them. Small Guyana and Suriname are the other usual stragglers.