20 Amazing Facts You Did Not Know About Guyana
October 23, 2014, Posted by , Source - Atlanta Black Star.
1. According to the Worldwide Waterfall Database’s rankings of the top waterfalls in the world, Guyana is home to the No. 2 waterfall – Kaieteur Falls. This waterfall has a single drop of 741 feet. In comparison, Niagara Falls is 167 feet. It is considered to be the largest single-drop waterfall by volume in the world.
2. Guyana is the only English-speaking country in South America.
3. In size, Guyana is larger than New York state but smaller than Idaho.
4. In Guyana’s total population, 36 percent of the residents are of African descent, while half of the people are of East Indian origin.
5. The country gained fame in the world in the wrong way when Jim Jones, the religious cult leader, and his 900 supporters committed suicide in Guyana in 1978.
6. The major languages of Guyana are English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi and Urdu.
7. The major religions of Guyana are Christianity, Hinduism and Islam.
8. The country also has some unique endemic species of animals and plants.
9. The official name of Guyana is the “Co-operative Republic of Guyana.”
10. Guyana gained independence in 1966. Since then, it has been supporting a parliamentary system.
11. The highest point in Guyana is Mount Roraima (2,835 meters).
12. The national motto of Guyana is “One People, One Nation, One Destiny.”
13. About 70 percent of the total area of Guyana is covered with rain forests, reportedly it has the largest rain forests in the world.
14. Guyana is an Amerindian word meaning “land of many waters.” The longest river in Guyana is the Essequibo River, which is 627 miles long. This is ¼th the size of the Mississippi River.
15. Guyana is the only nation state of the Commonwealth of Nations on the mainland of South America.
16. Guyana is the third-smallest country on the mainland of South America.
17. The Omai Gold Mine in Guyana is one of the largest open-pit gold mines in South America.
18. Victoria Amazonica is the national flower of Guyana, while its national bird is the hoatzin, locally known as Canje Pheasant.
19. There was a great demand for plantation workers after slavery in Guyana, which led to the immigration of the East Indians into the nation.
20. Slavery in the state was banned in 1834.
Source - http://atlantablackstar.com/20...t-know-about-guyana/
