19 interesting facts about Uruguay

19 interesting facts about Uruguay

A collection of interesting facts about Uruguay that we have experienced during our visit in the country

We didn't spend long enough in Uruguay - not nearly long enough. At the end of our trip, time was scarce and we had enough time to race through the country to stop in the charming city of Colonia del Sacramento and the country's versatile capital, Montevideo.

We have the feeling that we are not yet finished with South America's outsider and have therefore sworn to return one day. The country is progressive, stable and cultivated - a fresh wind in South America.

Despite our short stay, we learned a lot of interesting facts about Uruguay. We share our favorites below.

interesting facts about Uruguay

1. The official name of the country is República Oriental del Uruguay (Oriental Republic of Uruguay). (Source: BBC)

2. The name Uruguay comes from the Uruguay River, which means “flow of painted birds” in the Guarani language. The river arises in Brazil and ends in the pelvis of the Rio de la Plata, which forms the water border between Uruguay and Argentina. (Source: El Pais)

Alt = “Interesting facts about Uruguay Rio Plata Montevideo-1 ″> Atlas & Boots View from Montevideo on the Río de la Plata

1. Uruguay is the least corrupt country of Latin America. In the region it comes first for democracy, peace, freedom of corruption, quality of life, e-government, freedom of the press, size of the middle class, prosperity and security ... (Source: Transparency.org)

2. ... which is all the more impressive when the country was ruled by a military dictatorship until 1985. In 2009 General Gregorio Conrado Álvarez, the last dictator of the country, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for murder and human rights violations in 37 cases. (Source: Telegraph)

3. More than half of the 3.3 million inhabitants of the country live in the capital Montevideo. (Source: Cia World Factbook)

alt = "Interesting facts about Uruguay Montevideo"> Atlas & Boots The built-up bank promenade of Montevideo

1. Suriname is the only country in South America that is smaller than Uruguay. (Source: Weltatlas)

2. In Uruguay there are four to one more cows than humans. It is a nation with 12 million cattle, but only three million people (source: BBC)

3. forget the Andes. The highest point in Uruguay is the Cerro Catedral with only 514 m (1,684 ft) above sea level. (Source: Summitpost)

4. Uruguay is the only country in Latin America that is completely outside the tropics. (Source: The Guardian)

alt = “Interesting facts about Uruguay Colonia del Sacremento 2 ″> Atlas & Boots The country is completely in the moderate zone, so extreme temperatures are rarely

1. Uruguay's national anthem, which lasts more than five minutes, is the longest performance duration of the world. (Source: Telegraph )

2. With only 46 % Catholic population, Uruguay is one of the least religious countries in Latin America. (Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Uruguay)

3. Uruguay renamed many of his traditional Catholic holidays. For example, Christmas is called Family Day and the Holy Week means tourism week. (Source: The guard )

4. The Uruguayers won the World Cup twice. They were the first hosts and winners of the tournament in 1930 and won it again in 1950. (Source: fifa )

alt = “Interesting facts about Uruguay World Champion 1950 ″> GuShefrei Uruguay's World Champion 1950

1. in December 2013, Uruguay was the first country in the world to legalize production, sale and use of marijuana. (Source: BBC)
2. In 2009

   Uruguay was the first country in the world to provide every school child a free laptop and WLAN access. (Source: BBC)

3. José "Pepe" Mujica, President of Uruguay between 2010 and 2015, donated 90 % of his income for charitable purposes, a habit that earned him the nickname "The poorest president in the world". (Source: Al Jazera)

alt = “Interesting facts about the poor president of Uruguay”> Creative Commons José "Pepe" Mujica was president from 2010-2015

1. 2013 Uruguay was named land of the year by The Economist. (Source: The Economist)

2. Uruguay was the first nation in Latin America to build a welfare state. (Source: BBC)

3. Uruguay has one of the world's highest literacy rates at 98.7 %. This is primarily thanks to the access of the Uruguayers to free and mandatory education. (Source: Cia World Factbook)

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