Guyana Facts

Interesting Facts for Kids

Here are some interesting Guyana Facts which were chosen and researched by kids especially for kids.

Guyana for Kids

Guyana Flag

Population: about 800,000 people live in Guyana (2023)
Capital: Georgetown with 200,000 inhabitants
Name: Guyana, formerly British Guiana
Government: Parliamentary Republic
Official Language: English
Literacy: More than 88% of the people can read and write.
Religion: mainly Christian (63%) Hindu (25%) and Muslim (7%)

Jaguar

Currency: Guyanese dollar
National Symbols: Waterlily (national flower), jaguar (national animal)
Motto: "One people, one nation, one destiny"
National Holiday: 23 February (Republic Day)
National Anthem: "Dear Land of Guyana, of Rivers, of Plains"

Guyana Anthem

History: Guyana has been settled by indigenous peoples for a long time before the Dutch and British colonies arrived at the shores of the country from the 16th century. The Dutch were the first to establish colonies for 1581, the colonies were ceded to the British in 1814 and the colony became known as British Guiana. In 1966, the country gained independence from Britain and then became a republic in 1970. The current president is Mohamed Irfaan Ali (since 2020). He is the first Muslim in the country to hold this office.

Guyana Geography

Where is Guyana? Guyana is located on the South American continent bordering the North Atlantic Ocean.

Guyana is one of four South American countries located completely in the Northern Hemisphere. The capital city is called Georgetown.

Below you see a map of Guyana with the three neighbouring countries Venezuela - to the West, Suriname - to the East and Brazil - in the South.

Map of Guyana

Guyana is roughly double the size of the state of Tennessee/ USA and about the same size as Great Britain, the largest isle of the UK.

To reach Guyana, it takes a 11-hour-flight from London/UK and from New York/USA, a flight takes about 14 hours to reach Cheddi Jagan International airport in Georgetown.

Views over the Guyana rainforest from Turtle Mountain

Guyana is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world and more than 75% of the land area are covered by forests.

The landscape is dominated by dense rainforest in the north, west and the south. There are some desert and savanna areas in extreme western parts as well as coastal plains along the coastline where most of the people live.

Guyana Geo Superlatives

Here are some fascinating facts about Guyana:

Guyana is the third smallest independent country in South America - after Suriname and Uruguay.
This is the only South American country where English is the official language.
Guyana's largest city is the capital city Georgetown.
The country's name 'Guyana' derives from the indigenous world 'Guiana' that means 'land of many waters'

Rainforest in Guyana

The longest river is the Essequibo which is 1,010 km / 628 miles long.
The highest mountain in Guyana is Mount Roraima with a hight of 2,772 m/ 9,094 ft. Mount Roraima is located at the border with Brazil and Venezuela.
The majestic Kaieteur Falls are the world’s largest single drop water falls with a width of 113 m / 371 ft and a hight of 226 m/ 741 ft. The Kaieteur waterfalls are more than four times higher than the Niagara Falls!

Kaieteur Falls

Guyana is one of only four South American countries located completely in the Northen Hemisphere, - the others are Venezuela, Suriname and French Guiana.

Guyana Facts | Guyana Landmarks

Georgetown City Hall

Stabroekmarket

Iwokrama Canopy walk

Fort Zeelandia

People in Guyana

The vast majority of the Guyanese people live along the country’s Atlantic coastline and around the capital city Georgetown.

Georgetown

Guyana Facts: The biggest ethnic groups in Guyana are the Indo-Guyanese and Afro-Guyanese people. Guyanese people have ancestors and family links in many countries. There are:

Indians: their ancestors came from northern India
Africans: their ancestors came from Africa
Creole, means mixed white and black
Amerindians
Europeans

Schoolgirls in Guyana

About half the Guyanese are Christians and one quarter are Hindu, while Muslims make up less than one tenth of the population.

Folk religions are also practised, often also with the predominant religions. The most celebrated holidays include the Christian holidays Christmas and Easter, the Hindu festival Holi and the colourful national holiday referred to as 'Mash' or 'Mashramani' that celebrates the anniversary of Guyana becoming a republic.

The people mainly communicate in English and Guyanese Creole, which is a language that includes words from English as well as various Indian and African languages. Indigenous languages such as Wai Wai, Macushi or Akawaio are only spoken by few people nowadays.

The most common sports are cricket, soccer and basketball. Guyana rodeo is a popular annual event as much as the Rupununi Music and Arts Festival, an outdoor camping and music event, that usually takes place every March/April over the Easter weekend.

Guyana Facts
Guyana Economy

Guyana has precious natural resources such as gold, diamonds, bauxite and aluminium ores. In recent years, large oil and gas deposits have been found off the Guyana coast.

Rice, sugar cane and timber are the main agricultural products and are exported to a large part.

Fields near Georgetown

The country's most important trading partners are Trinidad and Tobago, the USA, Canada and Portugal.

Guyana Facts
Typical Food in Guyana

The Guyanese cuisine is heavily influenced by the various cooking styles of the Indians, Amerindians and African immigrants. The typical dishes in Guyana contain rice, leafy greens, cassava as well as meats and seafood including shrimps or crabs.

Typical Guyanese food and drinks include:

Pepperpot: stew made with pork, lamb or beef cubes and most commonly eaten at Christmas. The stew is spiced with peppers, cinnamon and eaten with rice or bread.

Guyanese Pepperpot

Metemgee: a plantains and cassava stew that includes salted fish or meat in a coconut milk
Egg balls: hard-boiled eggs that are coated with spicy cassava dough, rolled in flour and deep fried
Cassava bread: flat bread made with shredded cassava roots, flattened in a pan or cooked on banana leaf
Plantain chips: fried plantain slices are a popular street food

Animals in Guyana

The national animal of Guyana is the jaguar. Other fascinating wildlife are leatherback turtles, caimans, tapirs, tamanduas (anteaters) and pacas (large rodents which are common in Central America too).

Guyana also is home to rare giant otters as well as giant anteaters, that are the largest ant eater species in the world.

Giant anteater

Guyana is known for its pristine rainforests and very high biodiversity. Over 2,700 plants have been identified in Guyana and a vast number of jungle plants are still unrecorded.

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Useful Resources for Guyana Facts

Central Intelligence Agency. "Guyana" The World Factbook. Last updated 22 March 2023. Accessed 29 March 2023
Explore Guyana. "Guyana Undiscovered." ExploreGuyana.org. Last accessed 29 March 2023

Images on Guyana facts page: Schoolgirls by Natalia Gornyakova/shutterstock.com; various (Georgetown Aerial, Demerara Bridge, Fields, FortZeelandia) by Victor1153/shutterstock.com and own images

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