THE PAGE TURNS

April 24, 2026April 24, 2026

U is for Uruguay

Uruguay on the southeast coast of South America, nestled between Brazil and Argentina. Graphic from worldatlas.

Fast Facts

Named for: The full name is the Oriental Republic of Uruguay because it is the country called “bird-river” east of the “bird-river” river. Is that River cubed?
Capital: Montevideo
Long/Lat: 34.5 S/56.1 E, 6,000 miles east of Castro Valley, 10 hours.
Population: 3.5 million or 53 Castro Valleys
Size: 68,000 sq mi or 3700 Castro Valleys
Avg temp in April: 75 F/22 C, getting cooler since winter is coming in June
Median income: $25,000 annual
Ethnicity: 86% white, 10% Black, 6% indigenous (White ~ probably mixed)
Main industries: Cattle & Sheep, telecom, energy production

Uruguay is the South American country that I always forget. It’s neither land-locked nor mountainous, like Paraguay or Bolivia. It wasn’t the site of ancient pyramids or the discovery of the potato, like Peru. It’s just hanging out there between those giants, Brazil and Argentina. As we’ve seen with many of these small countries, they often act as a buffer zone, a between area that is influenced by its giant neighbors.

The early Uruguay people included extensive settlements built by the Charrúa, Chaná, and Guaraní tribes, whose villages dated back at least 13,000 years. There are barrows called tumuli sprinkled throughout the country, which has rolling hills and greenery. The people lived in lands of plenty, but lacking gold or ores which Europeans sought. When the Spanish and Portuguese came–with they both did–the colonizers focused more on Brazil and Argentina.

Still, they did establish colonies in Uruguay. The first European to get credit was Juan Díaz de Solís. Curiously, there are debates about whether he was Spanish or Portuguese; both countries claim him and spell his name two different ways. One story also suggests that when his ship left home, his wife was found dead, so maybe he was using an alias.

April 23, 2026April 23, 2026

T is for Tajikistan

The seven “stans” with Tajikistan highlighted. Generated from Mapchart.

Fast Facts:

Named for: Persian: تاجیک, romanized: tājīk, the Tayy tribe, whose first member may have been named “he who plastered the well”
Capital: Dushanbe
Long/Lat: 38.30 N/68.5 E , 7100 miles or 13 hours east of Castro Valley
Population: 10.8 million or 164 CVs
Size: 55,300 sq mi,or 3100 CVs
Avg temp in April: 68 F/ 20 F
Median income: $1,100 annually
Ethnicity: 86% Tajiks, 11% Uzbeks
Main industries: Aluminum, cotton, immigrant remittances (workers in other countries sending $$ home)

Like many of you, I have always been confused with the “-stans,” the seven Central Asian countries whose suffix means “land.” Everyone jokes about being unable to tell them apart–well, “everyone” who doesn’t live anywhere near there. I am sure that Tajikistanis would look at the USA and laugh at us creating Colorado and Wyoming. Squares? Americans have no imaginations! Why does Florida look like a man’s–

In the ongoing A-Z spirit of educating ourselves, I decided to make “T” Tajikistan, even though it’s not an especially small country. It’s 94th in size, which is in the middle of the list; it’s in the middle of the -stans, and the middle of Asia, the middle of what was once Persia, the middle of the Silk Road. It is in the middle.

April 22, 2026April 22, 2026

S is for Singapore

Fast Facts:

Named for: Siṃhapura, Sanskrit for “lion city”
Capital: It’s a “city-state,” i.e., Singapore is its own capital.
Long/Lat: 1.17 N/103.5 E, 17 hours and 8500 miles west of Castro Valley.
Population: 6.1 million or 100 Castro Valleys. Third most densely populated region in the world, after Macau and Monaco.
Size: 287 sq mi or 16 Castro Valleys
Avg temp in April: 90 F/30 C, close to the equator
Median income: $150,000, close to Castro Valley
Ethnicity: 74% Chinese, 14% Malay, 9% Industries
Main industries: Trade. Trade. Trade. Their economy is “free, innovative, dynamic, and business-friend.” Surprisingly, not especially corrupt.

One of the key architects of what Singapore has become was Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles. I know, the name sounds made up. That, too, is a metaphor for Singapore, a place of such contrast that it’s hard to believe.

Singapore is tiny, but huge in population. The 3rd most densely populated in the world, the 176th smallest land base for a country. It’s both island and city, near the sweltering jungles at the equator, but a futuristic high-tech sparkling megalopolis. It’s surrounded by Malaysia, also islands and cities, both rural and urban simultaneously. Singapore means “Lion City” though apparently there’s never been a lion, other than in a zoo. Its symbol is the Merlion, half-fish and half-lion. Perhaps Singapore’s success has been in taking on multiple identities.

Encyclopedias on Singapore begin its history with the 14th century, though surely there were people before that. The Malay people who predated the Kingdom of Singapore called it Pulau Ujong, meaning “island at the end of the peninsula.” But that’s a geographic description and not great for creating the image of a city-state. It was called Temasek, a trading port, a mix of Malay, Indian, South Asian, and Chinese people. Lion City seems a more intriguing name even if there never were lions. A Palembang prince in the 14th century reportedly spotted what he believed was a lion but it was really a tiger. Yet, he gets credit for suggesting its name, Siṃhapura.