Capital cities people get wrong (and the countries with more than one)

The usual trap with capitals is that the biggest or most famous city is not the seat of government. Here are the ones that catch quiz players most often, and the countries where the job is split.

The big-city trap

| Country | Capital | Not | |---|---|---| | Australia | Canberra | Sydney or Melbourne. Canberra was built as a compromise between the two. | | Canada | Ottawa | Toronto or Montreal | | Turkey | Ankara | Istanbul, the largest city and the former Ottoman capital | | Brazil | Brasília | Rio de Janeiro, the capital until 1960 | | Nigeria | Abuja | Lagos, the capital until 1991 | | Pakistan | Islamabad | Karachi | | Morocco | Rabat | Casablanca | | Vietnam | Hanoi | Ho Chi Minh City | | Kazakhstan | Astana | Almaty, the capital until 1997 | | Myanmar | Naypyidaw | Yangon, replaced in 2005-2006 | | New Zealand | Wellington | Auckland | | Switzerland | Bern | Zurich or Geneva | | United Arab Emirates | Abu Dhabi | Dubai | | Tanzania | Dodoma | Dar es Salaam, still the main commercial city |

Switzerland is a curiosity of its own: its constitution does not name a capital at all. Bern is officially the "federal city", the seat of the government and parliament.

Countries with more than one capital

• South Africa has three: Pretoria (executive), Cape Town (legislative) and Bloemfontein (judicial).
• Bolivia splits the role. Sucre is the constitutional capital and home of the judiciary, while La Paz is the seat of government.
• The Netherlands: Amsterdam is the capital under the constitution, but the government, parliament and the king's working palace are in The Hague.
• Côte d'Ivoire: Yamoussoukro has been the official capital since 1983, while Abidjan remains the economic centre and hosts most government business.
• Sri Lanka: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is the official capital and seat of parliament; Colombo next door is the commercial capital.
• Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur is the capital, but most federal government offices moved to Putrajaya.

Capitals on the move

Countries do move capitals, usually to relieve a crowded city or to build a neutral new one. Brazil (Brasília), Nigeria (Abuja), Kazakhstan (Astana) and Myanmar (Naypyidaw) all did it in living memory. Indonesia passed a law in 2022 to move its capital from Jakarta to Nusantara, a new city on Borneo; the move is planned in stages.

How to make them stick

Learn capitals in pairs with the city they are confused with ("Canberra, not Sydney"). The wrong answer you used to give becomes part of the hook. Then test yourself on the map, not just on a list, so each capital has a place as well as a name.