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Extinct countries
In the past, many states, countries or territories have been in existence. This page attempts to list them, grouped into a number of categories.
See also: list of countries, list of historical national capitals
Ancient Afro-Eurasian Civilizations
Territories that disappeared in ancient history.
Ancient American Civilisations
Middle Ages to modern times
Former Colonies, possessions, protectorates and territories
These were all colonies, most of which were renamed after their independence.
- Afars and Issas - French territory between 1967 and 1977, called French Somaliland before that. Became independent as Djibouti.
- Basutoland - Since 1868 a British protectorate, later colony (governed from South Africa). Became independent as Lesotho in 1966.
- Bechuanaland - Since 1884 a British protectorate, later colony (governed from South Africa). Became independent as Botswana in 1966.
- Belgian Congo - Belgian colony from 1908 until 1960, when the it became independent as the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
- British Guiana - became Guyana
- British Honduras - became Belize
- Congo Free State - Name of the state owned from 1884 by King Leopold II of Belgium, later mostly annexed by his country in 1908, then known as Belgian Congo.
- Dahomey - This African kingdom was acquired by France. In 1904, it was made part of the French West African federation. It became independent in 1960, changing its name in 1975 to Benin.
- Danish West Indies - Danish colony, sold in 1917 to the United States. Now known as the United States Virgin Islands.
- Dutch Guiana - became Suriname
- French Equatorial Africa - A French federation of colonies, formed in 1910, containing the colonies of Gabon, Middle Congo, Chad and Ubangi-Shari. The territories became autonomous parts of France in 1958, and the federation was dissolved.
- French Somaliland - became Afars and Issas then independent Djibouti
- French Sudan - A French colony, part of the French West African federation since 1904. In 1959 it formed the independent Mali Federation together with Senegal, which fell apart in 1960, after which the country was renamed Mali.
- French West Africa - dissolved into Mali, Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Upper Volta, Niger, Guinea, Dahomey, and Togo
- German East Africa - became Tanganyika, now in Tanzania
- German New Guinea - protectorate from 1884 until conquered by Australia in 1914.
- German South-West Africa - A German colony from 1884 to 1915, after which it became South African held territory until 1990, when the country became independent as Namibia.
- Gold Coast - A British colony since 1874, it became independent as Ghana in 1957.
- Hong Kong - colony of the United Kingdom, sovereignty transferred to the People's Republic of China on July 1, 1997.
- Indo-China - French territory until 1949. Became independent as Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.
- Italian East Africa - Italian colonies of Eritrea and Italian Somaliland together with occupied Ethiopia.
- Italian North Africa - became Libya
- Macau - colony of Portugal, sovereignty transferred to the People's Republic of China on December 20, 1999.
- Middle Congo - A French colony, previously named French Congo, became independent as the Republic of the Congo in 1960.
- Netherlands East Indies - A collection of Dutch colonies, officially since the end of the Napoleonic Wars, up to 1799 controlled by the Dutch East India Company but occupied and administered by the British in an interregnum during the Napoleonic Wars under the authority of the Kew Letters. Became independent as Indonesia in 1949.
- Netherlands Guiana - became Suriname
- Netherlands New Guinea - adjacent to the Netherlands East Indies until 1949, became part of Indonesia in 1969 as Irian Jaya.
- New France was conquered by Britain; various parts of it later became part of Canada and the United States.
- New Hebrides - Condominium until 1980. Became independent as Vanuatu.
- Northern Rhodesia - became Zambia in 1964.
- Nyasaland - British protectorate, previously called British Central Africa, it was renamed Nyasaland in 1907. It became part of a federation with Rhodesia in 1953, and became independent as Malawi in 1964.
- Oubangui-Chari - became Central African Republic
- Panama Canal Zone - US territory until 1979. Became part of Panama.
- Portuguese East Africa - became Mozambique
- Portuguese Guinea - became Guinea-Bissau
- Portuguese India - became part of India
- Portuguese Timor - The eastern side of the island of Timor was a Portuguese colony until 1975, when independence was declared as East Timor. Indonesian troops seized the country, but the country was finally declared independent in 2002.
- Portuguese West Africa - became Angola
- Rhodesia - name for Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) while unilaterally claiming independence, 1965-1979.
- Rio Muni - Former Spanish colony, then part of territory of Spanish Guinea until 1968. Became independent as Equatorial Guinea.
- Ruanda-Urundi - UN Trusteeship until 1962. Became independent as Burundi and Rwanda.
- Protectorate of South Arabia - Federation until 1967, consisting of British colony of Aden and numerous protectorates. Became independent as People's Republic of Yemen (from 1970 People's Democratic Republic of Yemen) see: South Yemen.
- South-West Africa - In 1915, South Africa occupied the German colony of South-West Africa, which it held under mandate until 1922, after which they remained ruling the territory until its independence in 1990 as Namibia.
- Southern Rhodesia - British colony, unilaterally declared itself independent as Rhodesia in 1965, renamed Zimbabwe Rhodesia 1979, then gained international recognition as Zimbabwe 1980.
- Spanish Guinea - became Equatorial Guinea. Consisted of two former colonies of Rio Muni and Fernando Po.
- Spanish Sahara - now generally known as Western Sahara, but claimed by and divided between Morocco and Mauritania in 1976, later entirely by Morocco.
- The Straits Settlements - British colony until 1946. Became independent as Malaya and Singapore.
- Tanganyika - British territory until 1961. From then independent until 1964, when it became part of Tanzania.
- The colonies of Vancouver Island, New Caledonia, Upper Canada and Lower Canada (later, the Province of Canada), Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland, plus the territory of Rupert's Land, spent much time reorganizing themselves into various patterns; they all eventually became part of Canada.
Dissolved countries
These states are now dissolved into a number of countries.
- Austria-Hungary - This double monarchy was formed in 1867 from the Habsburg empire, having an Austrian and a Hungarian part. In 1918, the empire was split into Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland and Yugoslavia.
- Yugoslavia - State created from parts of Austria-Hungary and Kingdoms of Serbia and Montenegro in 1918/1929. Re-created after World War II, dissolved when four out of six constituent republics (Slovenia, Croatia, Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina) seceded in 1990s. Remaining two republics officially renamed back into Serbia and Montenegro in 2003.
- Czechoslovakia - State created from parts of Austria-Hungary, which dissolved after World War I. In 1993, the country was split into two parts, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
- West Indies Federation - Federal state created by Britain in 1952 that simultaniously granted independence to all former British colonies in the Caribbean. The federation collapsed after Jamaica voted to separate.
- Mali Federation - In 1959 formed by Senegal and French Sudan, both parts of French West Africa, as an independent nation. It fell apart in 1960 into Senegal and Mali.
- Soviet Union or USSR - Formed after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1918, made up of several republics which have since become independent as Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Moldova, Belarus, Ukraine, Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Russia.
- United Arab Republic - A union formed by Egypt and Syria in 1958 was dissolved in 1961, though Egypt used the name until 1971.
- United Provinces of Central America also known as United States of Central America-- independent 1823; fell apart into separate states in civil war 1838-1840.
- Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (or The Commonwealth of the Two Nations) partitioned in 1772-1795 among Russia, Prussia and Austria. These lands are distrubuted today among Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Ukraine, Belarus, and partly Russia.
Renamed countries
These country names have been replaced.
"Independent" Homelands of South Africa
These homelands, for black people, were granted "independence" from South Africa. Not recognised by other nations, they were officially re-incorporated in 1994.
Secessionist states
These nations declared themselves independent, but failed to achieve or did not seek permanent independence and were either re-incorporated into the mother country or incorporated into another country.
Countries now part of other countries
These nations, once separate, are now part of another country.
- British Somaliland - became part of Somalia, but has since asserted its independence as the Somaliland republic.
- East Germany - Joined West Germany in 1990 to form re-unified Germany again.
- Chan Santa Cruz Maya state in eastern Yucatan peninsula, recognized as independent nation by British Empire in 1850s; now part of Mexico.
- Regency of Carnaro in 1919 and Free State of Fiume in 1920, two short-lived states in the port city of Fiume/Rijeka proclaimed by Gabriele D'Annunzio. Following World War I, the city was disputed between Italy and Yugoslavia, and eventually captured by Italy in 1921. The city passed to Yugoslavia after World War II and is now in Croatia.
- Kingdom of Great Britain - merged into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801
- The Kingdom of Hawaii was unified in 1810 under Kamehameha I, and was recognized by the United States as an independent nation from 1826 until January 17, 1893. Following the overthrow of the monarchy it existed as the independent Republic of Hawaii until annexation by the United States in 1898.
- Ifni - A Spanish possession until 1969, when it was ceded to and incorporated in Morocco.
- Indian Princely States
- Italian Somaliland - Became part of Somalia.
- Kalat - Became part of Pakistan.
- Kongo - African kingdom, divided between the colonial powers in 1885 at the Conference of Berlin. Now part of Angola (incl. Cabinda), Republic of the Congo, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
- Manchuria - Japanese puppet state until 1945. Became part of China.
- Moldavia - Now divided between Romania, Moldova and Ukraine.
- Moresnet - A tiny European territory that endured for a hundred years before definitively becoming part of Belgium.
- Newfoundland- Existed as a autonomous colony of Great Britain from 1855 to 1907, then a sovereign dominion until 1934 when it reverted to a crown colony. It joined in Confederation with Canada in 1949.
- Puerto Rico - Caribbean Territory of the United States.
- Republic of Taiwan - Lasted from May to October 1895 after the island was ceded by China to Japan and the natives declared independence
- Republic of Texas - After becoming independent of Mexico in 1836, Texas sought annexation by the United States, which occurred in 1845.
- South Yemen (People's Democratic Republic of Yemen) and North Yemen (Yemen Arab Republic) in 1990 united to form Yemen
- Tuva (also known as Tannu Tuva) - now part of Russia after the dissolution of the USSR
- Tibet - De facto independent from China from 1912 to 1950, when it was made an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China.
- Transylvania - Semi-independent before becoming part of Austria-Hungary. Became part of Romania after World War I.
- Vermont - Republic of Vermont existed from 1777 until 1791, when it became the 14th state of the United States.
- Wallachia - United with Moldavia to form Romania in 1859.
- West Germany - Joined by East Germany in 1990 to form Germany again.
- Republic of Yucatan became part of Mexico
- Zanzibar - Zanzibar merged in 1964 with Tanganyika to become Tanzania.
To be classified
These should probably be included in one of the above categories - to be done.
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