There are NOT 195 countries

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How many countries are there? Does the UN's official list of 195 include them all? Which ones are missing? Does Sealand count? Does England count for that matter? And why are Mark and Jay up a tree?
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/ jayforeman
Written and presented by
JAY FOREMAN / jayforeman
MARK COOPER-JONES / markcooperjones
Director/DOP
JADE NAGI / jade_nagi
Edited by
JAY FOREMAN
Runner
ABBY TIMMS
VFX
DAVE BRAIN / ornsack
Additional music
THE TIM TRAVELLER / @thetimtraveller
Voice of translator
BRYN BUCK / @brynbuck
Taiwan National anthem, music notation animation
DAVID BENNETT / @davidbennettpiano
Guest presenter
BARBS / @geographynow

[@JayForeman]

Go to ground.news/mapmen to get the world's news in one place, compare coverage and be better informed. Subscribe through our link to save 40% off unlimited access.

[@jammyjamjars6995]

How could you have posted this 7 hours ago when the video has only been out for 17 seconds?

[@user-uv2cp1qd1j]

Awhhh but I don't wanna 😢

[@KardioIzletmetovic]

8 hours how the fu-

[@AbenZin1]

Thank you for including the cue dot. It's presumably very important.

[@nebulousrascal]

@@jammyjamjars6995 it was probably unlisted until now

[@bryannichols2366]

The fact that Bhutan doesn’t recognize either china or Taiwan maybe the funniest thing I have ever heard

[@villevalste1888]

They have a complicated relationship status.

[@samueltakac8436]

they dont recognise half of the world. I wonder how their maps look like

[@9Cal]

and they border china

[@derbazi257]

I actually was so suprised by this that I just had to google it. Apparently it is due to their isolationism.

[@droolhd]

@@9Calno they don't! China does not exist.

[@ALTnOtes]

8:52 TREE MEN TREE MEN TREE TREE TREE MEN MEN

[@CaveSpiderRider]

There's not tree, only two.

[@abydosianchulac2]

Or Jay's Tree's National Anthem: MAN TREE MAN TREE MAN MAN MAN TREE TREE

[@DontReadMyProfilePicture566]

Don't read my name

[@gangstreG123]

And with those two as leaders, a fair pair of c*ntrees jk jk

[@Theurbanmajor]

MEN MEN MEN MEN MEN MEN MEN MEN

[@Hugawt]

I like the fact that Barbs from Geography Now appeared just to say "of".

[@Hans5958]

Bros become "guest presenter" for less than 1 second

[@patratyrell24]

That was cool!!

[@NotKyleChicago]

I didn't know who that was, but he's credited as "guest presenter". 😊

[@DontReadMyProfilePicture566]

Don't read my name

[@MrPercolator9000]

Up there with when they got Tom Scott for a 1 second cutaway of him pretending to feed a coin into a light pole

[@davidgannon5388]

In 2014, as a contractor at the U.S. Mint Manufacturing Department, I set about creating a document that itemized and categorized all countries' coins in the world, including the coins' relative value to the dollar and the material from which they're made. The total number of countries I came up with was 207, not all of which even had coins, and several of which used U.S. currency!

[@rais1953]

Timor-Leste, a UN-recognised country, uses US dollars as its currency but has its own centavo coins, 100 to the dollar.

[@Demiglitch]

@@rais1953 Sounds a bit like Poland which ostensibly uses Euros but also has złoty.

[@zir1010011010]

@@Demiglitch Poland does not use euro, wtf. There are places in Poland (tourist-oriented restaurants, bars, etc) that will accept euros at very bad exchange rates, but in 99% of places you won't be able to pay with euro

[@Gentleman...Driver]

@@zir1010011010 And expect to be "ripped off" when you pay in Euro. There is a "convenience fee" they add up (pretty normal before the Euro was introduced in most european countries).

[@jacksonwillymacker-pw1vu]

When a random commenter does a better job than these clowns wasting 12 minutes of our time without an answer:

[@splatter_proto]

The density of jokes-per-minute in these videos is wild

[@RoyMatzem]

Absolute magnific

[@vonlicktenbuttz8417]

Like a humor neutron star

[@Orange_Pear]

Like Airplane

[@ClementinesmWTF]

The dictionary page itself that only lasts a second or two is worth pausing a good 5min for to try and read the 240p definitions they wrote out for each.

[@D9fjg]

I saw the thumbnail change from "Is this a country?"

[@GeographyNow]

10:32 -ew wtf is that

[@kleseus]

Did you expect a larger portion than "or"?😂

[@gabrielowenjukardi4284]

Bro really only spoke 1 word and it only contains 2 letters

[@willewiking98]

i was so confused

[@woody4077]

nice cameo bro!!!

[@Claxeo_Productions]

99:59:59

[@jackdiedtoday_]

10:32 Geography Now jumpscare

[@tktru]

*NOW*

[@diggasinparis]

_of_

[@murmol444]

who is it?

[@ghengilhar]

I literally had to rewind it to make sure I wasn't going crazy

[@Dog1818YT]

Jay foreman did a video with Geography Now. i bet this was recorded around that time

[@edwardbrown3721]

Funny tidbit from a lifelong Montevideano, there's a rumour that the Montevideo treaty was defined specifically to exclude the Republic of Parva Domus, a gentlemen's club not far away from the hotel where the convention was taking place, which claims, as a joke, to be an independent country.

[@Oscar92839]

Lol

[@suhnih4076]

Lol

[@BigChungles-no9xf]

Lol

[@RewindGPs]

Lol

[@pplo7]

Un recognised country ❌ Bhutan recognised country ✅

[@saidhammar5006]

At the end Bhutan recognised countries could be the real ones 😂😂

[@stefun4084]

they must be very meticulous for how few the recognize

[@space_1073]

“Unrecognized countries- sorry, UN recognized countries” 😂😂😂

[@australiangamer7956]

I didn’t get this joke, could you explain it?

[@ap0llo.0ne51]

@@australiangamer7956 if you wrote it as UNrecognised countries can be read both as unrecognised and UN recognised

[@jasongb5666]

UN is TERRORISM madness

[@TheEvilCheesecake]

yes that is something that they said in the video but why did you type it out again

[@TheGrammarPolice7]

Too bad the only grammatically correct way to write this is with a hyphen: "UN-recognized countries." Written without a hyphen, it is a statement where UN is the subject who did the act of recognizing countries.

[@yip924]

1:53 "Take Taiwan" "Something China wants to do" got me lmao

[@Deeenk]

That one liner was so on the nose and unexpected I actually laughed so hard that I started crying

[@Fs3i]

I was watching this while brushing my teeth. Made me drop my phone in my sink…

[@temple69]

too bad china doesnt actually want to take taiwan.

[@artugert]

@@temple69Uh… they have been openly saying so for many years now.

[@ytb7838]

@@artugert as a chinese person i can say that you are tellin the truth

[@fixcz]

I am always amazed at how much effort you put into every millisecond of your videos. You make a special graphic and texting for each of 10 different microcountries just for showing them for a time so short it is hardly pausable to read it. I love it!

[@gregmichael8473]

I've actually been to Whangamomona and stayed overnight. Compared to other micro nations, I'd say they don't really take the matter seriously, and it's just a tourist and marketing gimmick based on the Forgotten World brand, whereas others such as Hutt River Province (surrounded by the State of Western Australia and created by a farmer due to issues with his crops) went the whole hog with stamps and, I think, currency. (Spell Check didn't recognise the name either)

[@noemiac]

I set the speed to 0.25 so that I could pause and read all 😁

[@ckl9390]

@@noemiac As did I.

[@rateeightx]

2:43 It's honestly really weird that Niue and the Cook Islands aren't recognised by the U.N., like, New Zealand says they're independent countries, and they say they're independent countries, but everyone else says they're part of New Zealand.

[@1258-Eckhart]

Mate, they're part of New Zealand. Who would be tabling a UN motion faster than you could say Стоп! if the Russians moved in?

[@rateeightx]

@@1258-Eckhart They're _not_ part of New Zealand though? Not legally at least, they're considered to be in Free Association with New Zealand, which is as a matter of fact the same relationship The Federated States of Micronesia has with the U.S., but you don't see anybody going around calling Micronesia part of the U.S..

[@collisw8302]

@@rateeightx Kiwi here, most of us don't even really consider the Cook Islands part of NZ. They're our friends and we look after them if need be, but most of the time they do their own thing.

[@1258-Eckhart]

@@rateeightx Darling, we're ALL part of the US in the "West". But a different point, sorry.

[@leonmcrostie6580]

@@1258-Eckhart If we're really honest about the NZ navy, there's nothing stopping the Russians moving in right now

[@scotandiamapping4549]

2:45 for anyone wondering, SMOM is the "Sovereign Military Order of Malta", a successor to the Knights Hospitaller which is considered a country under international law, but doesn't control any territory.

[@peterknutsen3070]

Thanks for explaining.

[@supershinigami1]

I had such a difficulty understanding what they said. I read and googled SMOM but I just couldn't hear in the video and thought they skipped it or said another word instead. But no, they were just talking quickly and just spelled SMOM.

[@scotandiamapping4549]

@@supershinigami1 yeah I actually had to turn on the subtitles to realise what they were saying. Even then I wasn't sure what SMOM meant until I googled it, but once I did it all made sense

[@DontReadMyProfilePicture566]

Don't read my name

[@EireProductions]

Fun fact: It's full name is actually "the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta", and since no shortform name has ever been OFFICIALLY adopted, this makes it the longest name of any country in the world.

[@HubbiNashrullahM]

"Take Taiwan..." "Something China wants to do." I splurted out my coffee

[@jorislal]

It's funny and tragic at the same time.

[@tasty_fish]

I came to the comments to find this, thank you ☕️💦

[@TheGrinningViking]

It's a bit of silly propaganda by the Pentagon to keep suggesting that Tiwan (which says it's part of China) is not a part of China. Also that China has no legal rights or legitimate interest in the South China Sea. Which is a bit silly if you just know the name of the sea.

[@jorislal]

@@TheGrinningViking, Taiwan IS part of China, the Republic of China. The communist China is also part of Republic of China legally. China does not legal rights to their claim of South China Sea, we have international law that determines maritime borders and they apply to every country equally, the name of the sea is literally irrelevant, just like the Gulf of Mexico doesn't belong to Mexico.

[@jorislal]

@@TheGrinningViking, Pentagon has nothing to do with it. Government in Taiwan is the legitimate government of the Republic of China, what you call "China" is actually the communist china. China does not have legal rights to their claim of South China Sea, we have international laws that define the maritime borders very clearly. The "name of the sea" argument is idiotic, The Gulf of Mexico doesn't belong to Mexico, Norwegian Sea doesn't belong to Norway, Indian Ocean doesn't belong to India, Philippine Sea doesn't belong to the Philippines, Gulf of Guinea doesn't belong to Guinea etc etc, and South China Sea doesn't belong to China either. Territorial Sea is the area 12 nautical miles from the shore and exclusive economic zone is 200NM from the shore, that is set in stone.

[@shawngray4882]

To be honest, Map Men videos are my comfort videos. I watch them when I feel overwhelmed. Or just for fun. Thank you both for making Map Men!

[@Oscar92839]

Yes

[@Ultraw]

UN: Do you believe in China or Taiwan? Bhutan: Neither. Nothing. All i see is emptiness

[@Mimchuxx]

ultraw???? the dev on roblox?? dang, didnt expect to see you here..

[@musicstage3457]

@@Mimchuxx sameee i love restaurant tycoon 2

[@simonrespeto]

Its all Mongolia to me

[@Oscar92839]

Yo big fan dude

[@abhinowbatram2714]

Bhutan: I'll will never recognize the big Bois but recognize the weaklings

[@wojtekpolska1013]

Bhutan not recognizing either China or Taiwan is a bit of a longer story - Bhutan doesn't have a list of "these are the countries i recognize as real countries", what people say Bhutan recognizes is actually countries Bhutan has diplomatic relations with, but the thing is that Bhutan is very isolationist, only opening relations on a need-to basis, having India handle most of their daily affairs. so its not Bhutan not recognizing China or Taiwan, its Bhutan deciding they don't need any business with them so they don't send a diplomatic mission to them. If you define Bhutan recognizing a country by whether they sent a mission to them, then by this definition Bhutan doesn't recognize the United States nor UK, and only recognizing Germany since 2020. In fact Bhutan only holds relations with 54 countries. EDIT: I fixed the spelling of Bhutan as I mistakenly wrote "Buthan" every time, sorry.

[@Davey-Boyd]

Thank you for the explanation!

[@jeffallen55]

This is the most intelligent comment I've ever seen that misspells the subject of the comment 20 times in a row.

[@dinky9216]

@@jeffallen55 or could it be that the 30 occurrences of the subject are all spelt perfectly but the rest of the comment refers to something unrelated?

[@lishark843]

@@dinky9216 The name of the country is spelled Bhutan, not Buthan

[@jeffallen55]

@@lishark843 But what if @wojtekpolska1013 was referring to the little-known micronation of Buthan?

[@Duros360]

4:07 I love the inclusion of the British “Adverts are about to start” bars :P

[@GryphLane]

Cue dots 😁

[@jacobfife7273]

So thats what that is! I've been wondering for years why he kept adding it.

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

Cue dots are a cue to the regional commercial TV stations to be ready to press play on their regional adverts tape recorder kinda thing. A bit like the big black dot in films in the cinema which did a very similar job of alerting the projectionist to be ready to press play on the next reel of film projector. As mentioned nearby, they can also be used by the more observant of us to nip off to the loo. Lastly, in another example of Concordian backwards progress, there were TV receivers and recorders which used them to allow their owners to skip the adverts entirely. These put the viewers first marvels were quickly made illegal, I kid you not! Now that you know that they're there, it'll probably be a while before you forget the fact so I apologise for being one of a number here who has brought them to your attention. If only there were an unobtrusive aural version that pinged just before the programme was about to start again so that you knew when to take the tea bags out!

[@oldvlognewtricks]

And the theme tune on glockenspiel the cherry on top 🤩

[@Anonymous-sb9rr]

We should start calling England a province of the UK.

[@mariemiel]

@@liamturner8540 What? Your comment literally makes no sense.

[@MuchWhittering]

Agreed. England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are more comparable to US states. The "country" name is just to avoid annoying nationalists.

[@acksawblack]

@@MuchWhitteringA scholar of history clearly 😂

[@jojorose1947]

@@MuchWhittering Typically we call these "constituent countries".

[@capybara2450]

@@MuchWhittering Could not have said it better myself.

[@Reluxthelegend]

0:47 love how they specify the time but not the day lol

[@jamiepayton1574]

+

[@Liggliluff]

Not even timezone

[@vez3834]

​@@Liggliluff England time

[@jameswarner1928]

@@vez3834 Tea time

[@FrelanceEQ]

you timestamp this and don't call out the DUB OVER OF THE YEAR?

[@Jon-yv4iu]

Just a quick correction. Sealand USED to sell currency and passports. They no longer sell passports and have revoked all sold passports as they realized they were being used to launder money. The Sealand Rebel government in exile (ran by Germans Achenbach and Pütz) who hired mercenaries to take the fort from Bates in 78 sold passports till Achenbach died.

[@schtormm]

the what who did WHAT

[@zigongosaurus5274]

There was a fucking rebel government in _Sealand????_

[@NickLaslett]

Please explain more about this interesting history of Sealand.

[@Kwekubo]

They will absolutely sell you knighthood and lord/lady status, though!

[@malegria9641]

Oh my god that second part is some of the funniest shit I’ve heard all day

[@divyanshaggarwal6292]

Rebuttal to the tree argument: you do not have complete control over that tree, you can't start a meth lab on that tree, cannot murder someone on that tree. If you do, the real government will come at you

[@thewrens_]

so the tree is autonomous but not sovereign?

[@Demiglitch]

@@thewrens_ Well, maybe the Son of the Tree that Owns Itself is sovereign, but anyone who wants to live in there isn't.

[@professorhaystacks6606]

So country status is dependent on how willing someone else is to seize the territory by force? ...Actually that started as a joke but that's a pretty good definition.

[@divyanshaggarwal6292]

​@@professorhaystacks6606 In this definition antarctica isn't a country, since pretty much every govt has agreed none of them are going to seize it. And you know what? i think im fine with antarctica not being called a country! no permanent and no real govt either.

[@professorhaystacks6606]

@@divyanshaggarwal6292 Might need some tweaking: Someone somewhere has to WANT to seize the territory by force, but be unable to for it to be a 'country'. If they are able to then it is 'in flux' and not yet a firm 'country' and if no one wants to it is Antarctica.

[@SimulatorAdventures]

0:47 Pretty smooth editing changing 2023 to 2024. Time travel is possible by the power of editing :)

[@purgruv]

I thought they were being clever like Tom Scott somehow

[@MarinoMoons]

Yooo Simulator adventures, you're here!!

[@randomname9291]

They forgot to edit it in the 3200 BC or 5223 BN joke

[@SimulatorAdventures]

@@MarinoMoons

[@randomtuner8786]

Of all the people to find in the comments of a Jay Foreman video

[@infilTR41T0R]

I 100% appreciate the little Cue Mark animation at the top right before the advert.

[@nuxx1876]

i thought there was going to literally be a tiny Mark in the corner waving at you or something

[@yolomolo2736]

Why isn’t the channel called Map Men and called Jay Foreman? Why does Jay get all the attention of the title name while Mark gets nothing? Mark Cooper-Jones should be an independent country!

[@Pope_Rural_I5184]

Jay has a fair few videos on his own

[@tbird2013]

It’s like daft punk where Thomas Bangalter is more known than Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo

[@tobydickinson2709]

The fact that it jumped from 195 to 199 when the UK was split into 4 meant all 5 of: UK, England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland were all being considered countries at the same time

[@Tequilamockingbird71]

I’ll let them off and assume they were also recognising Isle Of Man.

[@roejogan2693]

​@@Tequilamockingbird71 So how about Guernsey and Jersey?

[@Tequilamockingbird71]

I don’t think they’re equivalent but I might be wrong? Channel Islands have never had the historic institutions that the Manx did that made it country-like. Channel Islands were a possession of Normandy later rolled into UK.

[@o.t2001]

I'd say that's right. Because scotland Wales and northern Ireland all have their own laws and parliaments, but they also for bigger issues have a shared parliament where they decide on laws for more international and worldwide issues that they let England join In on since England don't have thier own parliament and only have UK law.

[@rais1953]

​@@Tequilamockingbird71 The Channel Islands are not part of the UK. They are autonomous Crown Dependencies.

[@NoNeedForRandomNumbers]

0:14 the image in the background is actually depicting all countries in geographical order

[@JoeBleasdaleReal]

Here’s another one: “Long live the Olympics - 206!” At the Olympics, in addition to the 193 “actual” UN-recognised countries (195 minus the two naughty ones), there are teams from: - American Samoa 🇦🇸 (officially part of the US) - Aruba 🇦🇼 (overseas territory of the Netherlands) - Bermuda 🇧🇲 (British island territory in the Atlantic) - Cayman Islands 🇰🇾 (where British politicians keep their bank accounts) - Chinese Taipei 🇹🇼 (Olympic name for Taiwan so as not to annoy China) - Cook Islands 🇨🇰 (politically tied to NZ) - Guam 🇬🇺 (US overseas territory in the Pacific) - Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (UN recognises it as a region of China) - Kosovo 🇽🇰 (long story) - Palestine 🇵🇸 (even longer story) - Puerto Rico 🇵🇷 (unincorporated territory of the US) - British Virgin Islands 🇻🇬 - US Virgin Islands 🇻🇮 (like the British Virgin Islands but with less tea and more cola) The fact that they all have emoji flags is useful for us when we want to tweet about Flora Duffy winning gold at the Triathlon in Paris in July, or whoever your favourite non-UN-recognised athlete happens to be! 🥇

[@thomaskositzki9424]

Top posting! 😄👍 (I'm German, this accounts for top humor in my country)

[@PreGyCT]

"(195 minus the two naughty ones)" I'm afraid the USA has NOT been prohibited attendence... and it's by far the naughtiest one (at least in infrigments of international law, which other measures did you use?)

[@Lawfair]

You list Palestine twice basically. To get to 195, you add the 193 member states and the two official observer states, which are the Holy See and Palestine. For the Olympics you than subtract the two states who aren't invited this year (Russia and Belarus) and then add territories which are 12. That gives you 205.

[@kourii]

@@Lawfair I think he meant the observers by the naughty ones; it was a joke. The Vatican doesn't have an Olympic team, and there are 206 competing nations (204 if you exclude Russia and Belarus)

[@willch.2259]

@@PreGyCT Have you considered going outside today

[@yesthisisdonut]

man i have to say, the CGI worms really worked on me. great job.

[@Writer_Productions_Map]

They weren't CGI tho

[@DarrenMansell]

Yay I was hoping Sealand would get a mention. Map Men is the most incredibly well produced series on KZbin. The attention to detail for something that might be a couple of frames and is only readable on pause is remarkable. Add in the humour and comic timing and nothing else comes close. Thanks both. Is a live tour on the cards?

[@rvallenduuk]

But why not Liberland?

[@AkihabaraWasteland]

The picture-in-picture of the "making a MapMen video" was comedy gold.

[@hanneslundin346]

It’s a common misconception that Bhutan doesn’t recognise half the world, including both Chinas. In reality they just lack diplomatic relations, not recognition.

[@teteeheeted]

Honestly great, isolationism is underrated

[@soundscape26]

@@teteeheeted It's rightly underrated... Bhutan is a very underdeveloped country.

[@joshk.]

@@teteeheeted this is essentially what north korea's juche ideology is about (spoiler alert: isolationism doesn't actually work when you're trying to sustain a country's worth of people)

[@ng.tr.s.p.1254]

@@teteeheeted Sure bro, keep saying that till you realise the devide you used to type that silly comment is likely to be made in china.

[@cactustactics]

@@joshk. North Korea's only isolated because the US is deliberately imposing it on them - same with blockading Cuba. Creating those problems is the whole point. You're confusing independence with isolationism I think, the DPRK has always had relations with other countries and is a member of the Non-Aligned Movement. Socialism is generally international by nature - which is why its enemies seek to isolate those countries. They're still truckin' though, that's what a focus on independence and resilience gets ya

[@FredGreen182]

As an Uruguayan I have to say "MONTEVIDEO MENTIONED" Lovely episode as always

[@alexpotts6520]

As a not-Uruguayan, your country certainly does have a lot of U's in it.

[@nickharvey7233]

As an 8th Uruguayan, I support this statement.

[@stco2426]

Cool.

[@lain7758]

Haha funny one Cisplatense man

[@Evemeister12]

U r gay.

[@p0kepengin592]

3:22 the only based 28 countries

[@jonnnuti]

I don't think north Korea, south Korea, and Japan count as 28 countries

[@p0kepengin592]

​@jonnnuti the timestamp is on the thing I'm talking about, wdym

[@OrnaSwanson]

The plane coming back to Rio in 8:15 and not Brasilia (which didn’t exist back then) is a nice accurate touch.

[@piter4595]

these bots are getting too advanced

[@molybd3num823]

​@@piter4595damn I didn't even notice

[@westrim]

Shame the "definition of a state" sheet a few seconds earlier said "a 50th of the USA" instead of "a 48th", though.

[@bjornroesbeke]

@@piter4595 They copy other people's comments.

[@MalachiAyre]

​@@piter4595how is it a bot?

[@Cenn_Devel]

10:39 As a Belgian, I can confirm that Belgium is indeed Belgium

[@LeafHuntress]

As a Dutchy... hmmm... how's that taalstrijd going? And the wafelijzerpolitiek? Come home to momma baby! ~wrings hands in anticipation~ (it's a joke!) [werkelijk]

[@Cenn_Devel]

@@LeafHuntress wat

[@my-spinning-wheel]

Facts!

[@brushylake4606]

I can't believe you Terrans insist on using that horrific term. That's why the rest of the galaxy has ostracized you.

[@takix2007]

​@@LeafHuntress as a Frenchman, let's cut the cake in two. /Germany entered the chat/ Oh crap.

[@twojuiceman]

Jay Foreman's strategy for getting more views is to have so many jokes in the background you have to watch the video 3 or 4 times to see them all. Cheeky.

[@Shalott99]

I just read the Wikipedia entry for Sealand. That is the most incredible thing I've ever read. They even had a Rebel Government in Exile at one point. 🤯

[@ItsTheVibers]

The real way to tell if something is a country or not is to see if it was mentioned in the squarest country song

[@Oscar92839]

Lol

[@Gia1911Logous]

Shoutout Barbs' cameo at 10:30 That was... inspirational

[@patrickshaw411]

“Hey Barbs, wouldn’t it be funny if you only had one word in the entire video?” That’s how I imagine why we got 10:52

[@takoizu]

10:32 geography now jumpscare warning

[@elliesteele2027]

*_OF_*

[@CONE778]

OF

[@zacharyrodgers693]

OF

[@imcarlosjr4898]

OF

[@PharrowlOG]

O F

[@saschaforeal3009]

If only every KZbin video made the advertisement just as good as the main content. These guys are sweet blend of genius and kind hearted

[@loenk2651]

This channel has the only advertisements that I never skip. I still remember their skillshare song where they swapped their voices.

[@Chris-et2fm]

Also the little bit in the top right corner just before the ad is a reference to a thing that used to appear on TV in the UK before ads

[@dennis_duran]

10:30 OMG that Geography Now jumpscare really got me

[@cantbothernaming]

That geography now cameo killed me!

[@cybermanne]

The most important reason to have a fixed list of exactly how many countries there are is to be able to have an interactive web quiz where you have to name every country (and capital, flag, etc) and be absolutely sure you get a 100% score on the whole earth. It depends doesn't cut it!!!

[@Deimos2k5]

Sporcle counts 197 and has a nice detailed article on how they got to that number.

[@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721]

That's why I think there should be exactly 200. It's just a nice number.

@@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721 200 is a pretty boring number, although I'm not sure Srinivasa Ramanujan would agree.

[@user-df1ns1ob8y]

@@Deimos2k5Is that just the UN‘s 195 plus Taiwan and Kosovo? Pretty good list I‘d say, as those two are far closer to being actual countries than like Abkhazia or Niue for example.

[@MyRegardsToTheDodo]

But it really does depend. It even depends on when you ask the question. Up until the 1960s or 1970s (not sure) both the western Republic of Germany and the eastern German Democratic Republic didn't recognize each others. Even up until the German Democratic Republic collapsed, both claimed that they were representing all Germans, that's why refugees from the German Democratic Republic immediately received a Republic of Germany passport and the RAF terrorists (Rote Armee Fraktion, not Royal Air Force) that fled into the GDR became GDR citizens immediately. And even though even the Soviet Union recognized Israel, the German Democratic Republic never did, because that way they didn't have to pay reparations for WWII to Holocaust survivors represented by Israel.

[@ShadowRealmsAdit]

The only thing the whole world agrees on is there's more than one country

[@ApacheSenzala]

Consistently the best KZbinr. Also super appreciate the ad cue in the top right brings back the good old days of ITV and channel 4 when they actually warned you ads were coming. The best thing is the effort you go to for your ads as well. Honestly the dog’s bollocks.

[@screetchycello]

ok i (American) was looking for an explanation of what that was a reference to. thank you lol

[@ApacheSenzala]

@@screetchycello glad I could be "that comment"

[@ApacheSenzala]

@@screetchycello in the UK knowing when the ad was coming allowed you to nip of for a quick brew

[@CanonessEllinor]

You know it’s a Map Men episode when replaying parts of it at 0,25x speed and pausing every two seconds is not only tempting, but actually pays off. Vive Arbor Marci

[@grengar7763]

Viva La Jay's Tree!

[@JW65]

real

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

I'm looking at a Map right now. Mr Foreman and Mr Cooper-Jones must be telepathic!

[@Oak_II]

It becomes even more complicated when you think about that some countries (like for example lebanon and syria) have different factions within them that act independently.

[@anne.andromeda]

And there also a few more rebelions who are generally not really seen as full-on unrecognised countries becouse they are too weak to be seen as such, but who claim to be such, and control their own small territories. And there also a cases of some territories in politically unstable regions that are fully sovereign from the countries they are in, but do not claim full independence to not really cause more international and internal conflicts (like some areas in Somalia or Myanmar, and formerly in Mexico)

[@cabin98]

Well, any country recognizing those countries probably chooses a faction to align themselves with, so it's all the same in terms of overall count. You probably won't have a country recognizing multiple warring factions as legitimate ruling governments of the same territory, and if you do, it certainly won't be a significant enough number to impact the count.

[@3st3st77]

@@cabin98 That's only true if all factions involved have ambitions to control exactly the same borders. If there are some separatists inside a recognized state that only want to control a part of that state, it gets tricky.

[@WhimsicalSock]

I need for absolutely everyone to pause at 8:19 so you can read all of the other definitions

[@thatonedynamitecuber]

Con Air

[@nathanmcgill7249]

*Crunchie* Chocolate bar with a honeycomb centre. The holes get bigger towards the middle for reasons to do with VAT.

[@alexpotts6520]

I think, having read through all of them, "cow" is my favourite.

[@SurgeDashcam]

Sideways bastard

[@PxPtheBook]

Constantinople’s been removed for some reason

[@Ikaruszaki]

Okay what's the squigly bar that comes on the top right corner of the screen each time before an ad? Also this is one of only two channels where I ACTUALLY LOVE ads and watch them all the way through.

[@COBRandYouTube]

1:53 I choked on my drink

[@connor7272]

New to this channel. Are the beautifully crafted bits that last 10 seconds usual? I feel like that would take forever

[@Salmine05]

I was absolutely not coming to watch older videos at the perfect time

[@LiezAllLiez]

You guys made it really complicated. Overly, even. "A country is a political entity that has an army equal in size or larger than ours. Everything else is just free real estate."

[@melodyclark1944]

Where did you get that quote?

[@LiezAllLiez]

@@melodyclark1944 I came up with it as a result of *logic* applied to Europa Universalis games. It, obviously, does not include the power ones allies add to the equation, but its close enough.

[@Demiglitch]

@@LiezAllLiez I believe there's another geographical philosophy put forward by Mohandas Gandhi that's very relevant. "Our words are backed with NUCLEAR WEAPONS!"

[@abugidaiguess]

the Map Men x Countryballs crossover wasn't quite what i was expecting clicking on this video also i appreciate the toki pona mention

[@jan_Eten]

frfr

[@Anuojat]

Hah! The eastern Dragon making the classic super confused noise at 3:45 had me slapping sides hard enough to pound em into scales :P

[@cmaven4762]

That worm crossing the bottom of the screen at 7:40, though...😂😂😂 Also, can we count Barbs at 10:33 as a cameo, or merely a micro-cameo? 😂😂😂

[@chanyy6838]

10:15 “Symbolically breaking a loaf of stale Cuban bread over the head of a man dressed in a naval uniform” 💀

[@crsm42]

This whole quick-flash slide show bit was rather humorous

[@StuffandThings_]

Local Florida man starts a symbolic war

[@edgould5190]

Jay (or maybe Mark I suppose) still occasionally responding to comments is so cool to see, Love your vids and cant wait for the next ones.

[@merlinquark5659]

I love how you included the small black and white square at the top of the screen just before the ad break

[@SomeGuy-yl1bx]

Now that you guys have used it twice now, we need a full Jay Foreman Dictionary.

[@mildredthegoat8340]

Yes! this would be great!

[@RobertGrif]

Funnily enough, according to the Montevideo Convention definition, all 50 U.S. states are "countries". All have a permanent population, a defined territory, a government, and the ability to enter into agreements with other states (each other, such agreements are called Interstate Compacts); though they can't enter into agreements with non-U.S.-member states without Congress's permission. The hundreds of federally-recognized tribes are another interesting wrinkle, as they are legally considered "domestic dependent nations" and are sometimes treated sort-of like countries in certain areas.

[@somethingcraft3148]

They can’t enter into agreements with other states without the permission of the federal government.

[@annakilifa331]

Yeah, there are a bunch of countries that are made up of federal states in the world. But the limiting factor in the Montevideo definition is that they would usually need permission from the bigger country they are a part of to enter into agreements with other countries. They can't just do what they want in that regard. Northrhinewestfalia and Kentucky aren't going to start entering political agreements between only themselves, because they are parts of the US and Germany, which have international relations on their scale.

[@jackroutledge352]

​@@somethingcraft3148Unless you regard those other US States as countries. And that's the problem with the Montevideo definition - it's circular.

[@fisharmor]

​@@somethingcraft3148 That tends to happen when the threat of killing 750000 people still hangs in the air

[@hughmungusbungusfungus4618]

Until the Civil War, we were These United States. And then the Republicans had to screw it all up

[@jamiepayton1574]

The giggle ‘it is isn’t it’s at 9:00 is gold

[@pannkale9259]

This is incredibile. Last night I tought "hey, Jay Foreman exists and I miss him" and now i can watch this video!!! Thank you!!! (Mark, on the contrary, is always in my thoughts and I never forget about him)

[@DuncWilson]

Actually, there's a bunch of countries that don't recognise Jay Foreman as existing. It depends who you ask.

[@Oscar92839]

Yes

[@iiSimplified1]

love that Barbs cameo for just about a second

[@lily_the_ladybug]

0:09 I love the map men intro

[@Chelm9]

1 planet = 200ish countries Sounds like a typical archaic Imperial unit of measure to me! In the future, we should all adopt the geographic metric system, where 1 planet = 10 continents = 100 countries

[@RoyMatzem]

Oh shit. Now i gonna need elaborate a map/list like that, just to calm my metric mind.

[@netkv]

1 universe 10 galaxy clusters 100 galaxies 1 000 suns 10 000 planets 100 000 continents 1 000 000 countries

[@AO00720]

Battle Royale

[@kaie333]

It can't be metric. A planet is spherical, and every calculation that measures a sphere uses the value π. Ergo to measure a planet's countries one must use π, which is not a factor of 10 or any other integer. I'd guess the number of countries on a planet can simply be any multiple of π (also meaning a minimum of π countries on each planet, including the likes of Pluto), but this might just be wishful thinking to bring simplicity to such a complicated problem.

[@Chelm9]

@@kaie333 Thank you. Henceforth, all planets will be routinely shaved into cubes.

[@CricketEngland]

3:43 loving the use of the Rutland Weekend Television theme

[@kaitlyn__L]

Thank you! I twigged it as one of the old ITV jingles, but I wasnae sure which.

[@RGC_animation]

If you Googled how many countries there were, or went on websites such as Sporcle, the most common consensus is that there are 197 countries. 195 of them are the UN member states and observer states, and the other 2 are Taiwan and Kosovo, who although are not members, are distinct enough (fitting every criteria on that list) with a sizeable enough of UN member recognition to be included.

[@RobinSylveoff]

doubling the length of the video by pausing and reading every slide at 10:12

[@professor-raccoon]

Also, a completely regular MAP MEN intro might just be the most unique intro to date

[@animalsofherewood]

No mention on FIFA and it’s 211. Ah, FIFA. The pinnacle of sporting integrity and geopolitical wisdom. Let's dive into their absolutely flawless membership system, shall we? Welcome to FIFA's Magical Kingdom of Football, where every patch of land with a flag and a few eager souls kicking a ball can become a "country." UN recognition? Psh, who needs it when you've got FIFA's stamp of approval? Joining this illustrious organization is a breeze. All you need is a burning desire to be part of the most transparent sports body in the world, a knack for paperwork, and the patience of a saint. Oh, and don't forget to bring a suitcase of... uh, "goodwill." FIFA's membership list reads like a geopolitical fever dream. The UK gets to be four countries because why have one team when you can have four mediocre ones? And let's not forget the powerhouses of world football like Guam and the Faroe Islands. Move over, Brazil and Germany! But wait, there's more! FIFA, in its infinite wisdom, has solved complex geopolitical issues that have stumped world leaders for decades. Taiwan? Chinese Taipei! Kosovo? Sure, why not! Palestine? Absolutely! FIFA: bringing world peace, one dubiously recognized football association at a time. And let's not overlook FIFA's stringent membership requirements. Got a ball? Check. Got a field? Check. Got a flag that isn't already taken? Perfect! You're practically in! So next time you're scratching your head wondering why Macau is playing against England in a World Cup qualifier, just remember: in FIFA's world, everyone's a country if they believe hard enough (and fill out the right forms). FIFA: Making up countries and rules since 1904. Because who needs logical consistency when you've got football?

[@giuliosicignano1777]

it's fun and we like it, get over it

[@RedXlV]

"in FIFA's world, everyone's a country if they believe hard enough (and fill out the right forms)." And of course, fill the right bank accounts. FIFA, the organization that even the International Olympic Committee looks at and says "damn, you guys are corrupt."

[@PigIA]

0:08 That p is beautifully enunciated

[@AmyThePuddytat]

Or even enunciated. Optionally ejective consonants are a nice feature of English.

[@gmg9010]

I almost choked on my water at 10:32

[@WhiteWulfe]

Oh gawds, the bottles on the desk for the country counter guy is absolutely epic...

[@javen9693]

Least alcoholic UN official

[@DLites151]

If you Had the UK already, but then split it into Eng/Sc/Wa/NI, your total should go from 1 country to 4 countries, so from 195 to 198, no to 199. You can't be counting the UK as well as 4 countries.

[@Liggliluff]

(7:10) Every 3000+ subdivision of the world has an emoji. Most platforms only added England, Scotland and Wales (not Northern Ireland), but the rest are still official.

[@vytah]

Additionally, a Texas emoji is supported by Whatsapp.

[@Fluxwux]

Not all 3000 subdivisions - only territories, unrecognized/disputed sovereign countries like Kosovo/Taiwan, autonomous countries like Scotland or Quebec and some US states.

[@vytah]

@@Fluxwux All of them have emoji defined, even if nothing can display them. Anything in ISO-3166-1 and ISO 3166-2 (except for macroregions and invalid/reserved entries) is theoretically supported, which includes subdivisions of almost every country. There's an emoji for every Japanese prefecture, every British county, and all the 79 municipalities of Estonia.

[@Marcus-nn6js]

Jay saying "ENGLAND!" is something that was so surprising, yet so expected at the same time.

[@vez3834]

I did guess England and friends

[@Palmer_editz]

There is 197 countries

[@Rafa-A-L]

You recognise 197, I Don't

[@angus80w]

I've been binge watching MapMen and Unfinished London lately and I'm so happy there's a new MapMen episode.

[@hernanstrausser9143]

8:00 Why is your spanish pronunciation so good?

[@Rainmaker1O]

I want to know the same thing XD

[@jadeforeman131]

He lived in Paraguay for a while

[@eddyk3]

Rosetta Stone

[@d_a_r_i_x]

FR

[@mofoftriangle]

This channel is awesome ! Im so happy I came across it :)

[@CheestusMcGruber]

I love you guys so much. So glad you're back together and making these again. Keep up the hilarious and interesting work!

[@FloPlaysHD]

I only recognise the countries of Animaniacs 1993 hit song "yakko's nations of the world"

[@kapteinfint]

Asia

[@rateeightx]

Clearly Jay thought they were playing Numberwang in the intro.

[@isooo8175]

First state organization was in Egypt. First multi city states were the Upper and Lower Egypt. United Egypt was around 3000BC. Iran did not even have city states at that time. First states in Mesopotamia were Sumer Cities which were in Iraq not Iran. First multi city state outside Egypt was Akkad starting at 24th century BC. First city state in Iran was Awan (old Elam state) which was after 2700BC. At this time Egypt had a unified kingdom and it started building pyramids (great pyramid was around 2600BC), Sumer Cities were around for at least 400-500 years.

[@scaryfish91]

I’m a little disappointed it didn’t release at 5pm UTC

[@NortOfficial]

It did, well UTC +2

[@edgarvele1875]

UTC +1 bro

[@NortOfficial]

@@edgarvele1875 Summertime makes it 2

[@peterknutsen3070]

My device clock, CET, says 17.52, and the video is 52 minutes old.

[@Mimi.1001]

Slightly unrelated, but I'm somewhat disappointed he didn't say 4pm instead, because that would've lined up with the totally legit news article in the ad which says the world ends at 4:06pm. Almost thought he did, because the ad *does* end shortly after the 6-minute mark, and begins like 90 seconds before.

[@davidlennon6008]

The Montevideo Hilton Hotel at 7:47 is definitely the Linton Travel Tavern from I'm Alan Partridge Season 1

[@WitherBossEntity]

Thank you for recognizing Ma Pona.

[@jan_Eten]

mi pilin sama

[@hanswoast7]

7:50 that scene is hilarious! xDD

[@FuzionBoy]

4:50 some mad lad actually registered the domain

[@michaelchance6125]

I need the link plz

[@Albaraa]

Yes by transip

[@derpincorperated8644]

The presentation and editing style of Mapmen continues to be unmatched. Keep up the good work

[@bensismith]

The tiny detail I appreciate is the use of the sound effects from the game "Freeways" when things pop up on screen like at 2:21. They're good sounds! Great video as ever!

[@hiltonshort]

@bensismith ● 2 mo ago The tiny detail I appreciate is the use of the sound effects from the game "Freeways" when things pop up on screen like at 2:21. They're good sounds! Great video as ever!

[@tabletgenesis3439]

Here's a good one: Who do you pay taxes to? This not only defines a country's existence, but also defines disputed territories like Kashmir.

[@roenais]

i met one of the people who claimed to be king of redonda while living in nearby antigua as a child, and there is nothing like the crushing disappointment of realising that that cool guy who told you he was royalty was not only completely bullshitting, but had likely never even been there, as it's basically a steep, hard to access rock.