Sovereign State

A sovereign state is a political entity that possesses sovereignty - the full right and power to govern itself without interference from outside sources. It has a permanent population, a defined territory, a functioning government, and the ability to conduct international relations.

The United Nations has 193 member states, a figure unchanged since South Sudan joined in 2011 (as of August 2026). UN membership, however, is not a requirement for statehood. Vatican City (the Holy See) is not a member and holds observer status instead, while entities such as Taiwan and Kosovo have a government, a territory, and a population, and exercise de facto sovereignty, yet receive only limited international recognition.

That question of recognition is why "how many countries are there?" has no single correct answer. The count depends on the criterion: the number of UN member states, the number of teams at the Olympics or in international football, and the number of states any one government recognises all differ. Highly autonomous territories without their own foreign policy, such as Hong Kong and Puerto Rico, are not counted as sovereign states either.

For learning geography, three practical tests work well: does it have an independent government; does it have a defined territory and a settled population; and can it conduct foreign relations, for instance by concluding treaties. GeoHint's quizzes cover sovereign states alongside dependencies and special administrative regions such as Hong Kong and Puerto Rico. Where the line around "country" falls depends on the criterion, so borderline territories are a chance to practise asking in what sense something is being counted.