Longitude 20 East Trivia Quiz

Answer: Krakow

During WWII, the Nazi extermination camp, Auschwitz, was not far from Krakow. The Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum now stands on the site. Also, the famous Wieliczka Salt Mines are just outside Krakow, which has been named as one of the most beautiful cities in Europe.

In 1596, Sigismund III Vasa moved the capital to its present location in Warsaw, which is closer to the centre of the country. Krakow is well to the south, not far from the border with Slovakia.

Lodz was installed as the capital by the Germans for a short period during WWII. Katowice and Gdansk are both Polish cities, but were never capitals.

Answer: Libya

Benghazi is the second largest city in Libya, behind the capital, Tripoli. It is in the eastern part of the country and has a 2023 population in excess of 850,000.

During WWII, the city changed hands several times as Rommel's German army and Montgomery's British army ebbed and flowed across the north African landscape, before the Germans were forced into retreat, and driven out of Africa, in 1943.

Answer: Dutch navigator

Willem Barentsz (in English, Barents) tried to find a northeastern sea route from Europe, across the top of Russia, without success. On his third attempt, in 1597, he died of scurvy after surviving being icebound for many months.

Answer: Namibia

The meridian forms part of the border with neighbouring Botswana. Namibia is dominated by deserts - the Namib is the desert on the country's Atlantic Ocean coast, while the Kalahari occupies the eastern part.

From 1884 to 1915, the country was known as German South West Africa. After WWI, it was governed by South Africa, before declaring independence in 1990.

The wrong answers were all German colonies at one stage, but none are on the 20th meridian.

Answer: Norway

The fjord is over 80 kms long and well to the north of the Arctic Circle, and is bordered by the Lyngen Alps mountain range. The Russian border is about 500 kilometres to the east.

Portugal and Yemen are both much warmer than Arctic Norway, and neither country is known for their fjords.

Answer: Tirana

Chisinau is the capital of Moldova, which is a small country sandwiched between Ukraine and Romania, and is slightly larger than Albania.

Albania is on the Adriatic Sea, and has a 2023 population of about 2.4 million, half of which are Islamic faith.

Answer: Spitsenberg

Nordaustlandet and Edgeřya are the other two main islands. The island group is well to the north of the Arctic Circle and supports a population of around 2,000 very brave souls.

Did you know that burials are not allowed on the islands, because bodies do not decay in the cold climate? Seriously ill people are requested to go to mainland Norway to die and be buried.

Grimsey is an island of Iceland, Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province and Inaccessible Island is part of the British territory of Tristan da Cunha, in the southern Atlantic.

Answer: It was a British colony until 1960

Chad was a French colony from 1900 until independence in 1960.

It is in the northern part of central Africa, separated from the Mediterranean by Libya, and separated from the Atlantic Ocean by Cameroon. The capital, N'Djamena, is very close to the Cameroon border.

Chad is one of the poorest countries in the world, and much of its roughly 20 million citizens rely on subsistence farming.

Answer: Norway

Norway claimed the land in 1939, mainly because of their whaling industry. It occupies about 20 percent of the continent and borders lands claimed by UK and Australia.

Queen Maud was the daughter of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom, who married King Haakon VII of Norway in 1896.

Answer: Lithuania

Prior to 1945, the city was known as Königsberg, and was part of Germany. It was renamed after Soviet politician, Mikhail Kalinin, and most of the German population was expelled after WWII.

The Seven Bridges of Königsberg logic puzzle, devised by artist Leonhard Euler, was based on this Russian city in 1736.

Ukraine, Belarus, and Georgia are all nearer to the Europe/Asia border than Kaliningrad.

Answer: Ionian Sea

Corfu, (known as Kerkyra in Greek), is just off the northwestern corner of the Greek mainland. The island has a very long history, and these days is regarded as a holiday destination, with sun, sand and surf.

The Levantine Sea is the easternmost sea in the Mediterranean and the Celebes Sea borders the Philippines. The Arafura Sea separates northern Australia and Indonesia.

Answer: Belgrade

In 1918, Serbia combined with several other Slavic countries to form Yugoslavia, but it was not always a happy alliance. In 1991, Yugoslavia resorted to its component countries, with Serbia forming a union with neighbouring Montenegro, until 2006, when it became totally independent.

Skopje is the capital of the newly created country of North Macedonia, Tirana is the capital of Albania. Sarajevo is the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia's western neighbour.

Answer: Portugal

The Portuguese settled on the coast, in what would become Luanda, the capital, in 1575. There was regular trading between the two countries, but, as with many other African countries, the middle of the 20th century saw a concerted push for independence. The first leader of the new country was President Agostinho Neto, in office from 1975-79.

Answer: Gulf of Bothnia

The island group covers an area of 1,500 sq kms, and has a population of around 30,000. The 20E line neatly bisects the main island, and its capital, Mariehamn. The Gulf of Bothnia is to its north, the Gulf of Finland is to the east, and the Baltic Sea is south.

As for the wrong answers, the North Sea and the Norwegian Sea are both well to the west of the area, and the Gulf of Lion is south of France, in the Mediterranean.

Answer: Cape Town

Cape Town is about 100kms west of the line of longitude. It is the legislative capital and home to the national Parliament. Bloemfontein, the judicial capital, is 1,000 kms to the north east, and Pretoria is even further north and east. Johannesburg is not a capital, but is the most populated city, by far.

Answer: Hungary

Szolnok is in central Hungary, not far from the capital, Budapest. It is situated in one of Europe's major agricultural areas, the Great Hungarian Plain. The Tisza River, which crosses Hungary from north to south, flows past the city.

Answer: North

CAR is about 150kms north of the Equator, mostly between the latitudes of 5 and 10 degrees north. In the 19th century European 'Scramble for Africa', it fell under French colonisation, until declaring independence in 1960. It is rated as one of the poorest countries in Africa, and the world.

Answer: Turkey

Kosovo, North Macedonia, Serbia and Bulgaria all separate Turkey from Montenegro, a road distance of over 800 kilometres.

The Balkans area has constantly changed borders. In 1929, Montenegro became part of Yugoslavia, staying there until the people voted for independence in 2006.

Answer: 2

Götaland is the southern province, and also the most populous, and Svealand is between them, and contains the capital, Stockholm. Despite being the largest area, Norland only has a small fraction of the population. Most of the land is pristine forest and rivers, which supply much of Sweden's hydro-electric power.

Answer: Equator

As can be expected, given its location, Boende is hot and wet year-round.

Democratic Republic of Congo is the second largest country in Africa, just behind Algeria, and is the eleventh largest on Earth. It has a population of over 100 million, with its capital, Kinshasa, accounting for 17 million people. It is almost landlocked, with a tiny ocean frontage of just 37 kilometres.