Guyana

Learn a little about the geography, history and culture of this unique country, Guyana. We also have a full set of our useful flag printables here - just scroll down.

The peculiar landscape of Mount Roraima, Guyana

Learn About Guyana

A Little Geography:

• The Cooperative Republic of Guyana is a very unique country. It is the only Caribbean nation on the continent of South America and the only English speaking nation in that region.
• Located between Brazil, Suriname and Venezuela, Guyana offers a wide range of eco-systems with over 75% of the country covered by forest habitats providing a biodiversity of flora and fauna. An impressive 8000 different plants have been discovered, half of which are only found here!
• The name Guyana means the land of many waters. The Kaieteur Waterfall, which plunges off the Pakaraima Plateau, is almost five times as high as Niagara Falls!

Guyana on map of South America. Find a printable version here.

• The sparse population of 760,000 people mainly congregate along the narrow coastal plain, where sugar and rice are grown for export. Inland is a vast area of grassland plateaus and mountain ranges. The Kanaku Mountains, for example, are a wildlife haven, home to 350 species of bird including the harpy eagles and black caimans.
• At Iwokrama rain forest near Turtle Mountain, exotic jaguars and giant anaconda attract tourists and naturalists. Amerindian villages share their Makushi indigenous culture with visitors, demonstrating the use of curare sap to make poisoned arrows for hunting.
• An impressive 8000 different plants have been discovered, half of which are only found here.

A Little History:

• The land of Guyana was originally settled by the Arawak and Carib tribes. These groups are thought to have arrived in modern-day Guyana from farther south in South America.
• Spotted by Columbus in 1499, Guyana was explored by Sir Francis Drake whilst searching for the legendary golden city of Manoa in 1595.
• Guyana was settled by Dutch colonists in 1616 until the British took control in 1814. East Indians, Africans, Portuguese and Chinese joined the indigenous population to create a country also called the 'land of six people'.
• Modern Guyana gained independence in 1966 and became a republic in 1970.

And Some Interesting Facts:

• Guyanese food reflects the diversity of the country in dishes like metemgie, a stew containing fish, cassava and coconut. Spicy foods such as curry and pepperpot stew are also popular.
• Musician Eddie Grant is Guyanese as are most of Rhianna's family, although she was born in Barbados.
• Guyana is famous for locally made craft which includes paintings, hats, costume jewellery and many other items. 
• Mauby is a famous drink made from tree bark which is available throughout the country. 
• Guyana hosted international cricket matches as part of the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

The Guyana Flag

The flag of Guyana is a black-edged red triangle over a larger white-edged gold triangle, on a green background. The colours on the flag are symbolic; green for agriculture and forests, white for water, gold for mineral wealth, black for endurance and red for dynamism. The flag was designed by Whitney Smith and it has been the national flag since May 1966 when the country gained independence from the United Kingdom.

Our Guyana Resources