Independence (2008) | Independence (2004) | ||
Albania | 28 November 1912 (from the Ottoman Empire) | 28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire) | |
Andorra | 1278 (formed under the joint suzerainty of the French Count of Foix and the Spanish Bishop of Urgel) | 1278 (was formed under the joint suzerainty of the French count of Foix and the Spanish bishop of Urgel) | |
Austria | 976 (Margravate of Austria established); 17 September 1156 (Duchy of Austria founded); 11 August 1804 (Austrian Empire proclaimed); 12 November 1918 (republic proclaimed) | 1156 (Duchy of Austria founded); 12 November 1918 (republic proclaimed) | |
Belgium | 4 October 1830 (a provisional government declared independence from the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King LEOPOLD I ascended to the throne) | 4 October 1830 (a provisional government declares independence from the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King Leopold I ascends to the throne) | |
Bhutan | 1907 (became a unified kingdom under its first hereditary king) | 8 August 1949 (from India) | |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 1 March 1992 (from Yugoslavia; referendum for independence completed 1 March 1992; independence declared 3 March 1992) | 1 March 1992 (from Yugoslavia; referendum for independence was completed 1 March 1992; independence was declared 3 March 1992) | |
Canada | 1 July 1867 (union of British North American colonies); 11 December 1931 (recognized by UK) | 1 July 1867 (union of British North American colonies); 11 December 1931 (independence recognized) | |
Cuba | 20 May 1902 (from Spain 10 December 1898; administered by the US from 1898 to 1902); not acknowledged by the Cuban Government as a day of independence | 20 May 1902 (from Spain 10 December 1898; administered by the US from 1898 to 1902) | |
East Timor | - | 28 November 1975 (date of proclamation of independence from Portugal); note - 20 May 2002 is the official date of international recognition of East Timor's independence from Indonesia | |
France | 486 (Frankish tribes unified); 843 (Western Francia established from the division of the Carolingian Empire) | 486 (unified by Clovis) | |
French Guiana | - | none (overseas department of France) | |
French Polynesia | none (overseas lands of France) | none (overseas territory of France) | |
Greenland | none (extensive self-rule as part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland) | none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland) | |
Guadeloupe | - | none (overseas department of France) | |
Guinea-Bissau | 24 September 1973 (declared); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) | |
Hungary | 25 December 1000 (crowning of King STEPHEN I, traditional founding date) | 1001 (unification by King Stephen I) | |
Indonesia | 17 August 1945 (declared)
note: recognized by the Netherlands on 27 December 1949; in August 2005, the Netherlands announced it recognized de facto Indonesian independence on 17 August 1945 |
17 August 1945 (independence proclaimed); 27 December 1949 (Netherlands recognizes Indonesian independence) | |
Iraq | 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration); note - on 28 June 2004 the Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi-controlled Government | 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration); note - on 28 June 2004 the Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government | |
Japan | 660 B.C. (traditional founding by Emperor JIMMU) | 660 BC (traditional founding by Emperor Jimmu) | |
Latvia | 18 November 1918 (from Soviet Russia) | 21 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | |
Libya | 24 December 1951 (from UN trusteeship) | 24 December 1951 (from Italy) | |
Lithuania | 11 March 1990 (declared); 6 September 1991 (recognized by Soviet Union) | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) | |
Macedonia | 8 September 1991 (referendum by registered voters endorsed independence from Yugoslavia) | 8 September 1991 (referendum by registered voters endorsing independence from Yugoslavia) | |
Martinique | - | none (overseas department of France) | |
Mayotte | none (territorial overseas collectivity of France) | none (territorial collectivity of France) | |
Mexico | 16 September 1810 (declared); 27 September 1821 (recognized by Spain) | 16 September 1810 (from Spain) | |
Micronesia, Federated States of | 3 November 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) | 3 November 1986 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship) | |
Monaco | 1419 (beginning of rule by the House of Grimaldi) | 1419 (beginning of the rule by the House of Grimaldi) | |
Montenegro | 3 June 2006 (from Serbia and Montenegro) | - | |
Nepal | 1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan SHAH) | 1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan Shah) | |
Netherlands | 23 January 1579 (the northern provinces of the Low Countries conclude the Union of Utrecht breaking with Spain; on 26 July 1581 they formally declared their independence with an Act of Abjuration; however, it was not until 30 January 1648 and the Peace of Westphalia that Spain recognized this independence) | 23 January 1579 (the northern provinces of the Low Countries conclude the Union of Utrecht breaking with Spain; it was not until 1648 that Spain recognized their independence) | |
Pakistan | 14 August 1947 (from British India) | 14 August 1947 (from UK) | |
Palau | 1 October 1994 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) | 1 October 1994 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship) | |
Philippines | 12 June 1898 (independence proclaimed from Spain); 4 July 1946 (from the US) | 12 June 1898 (from Spain) | |
Poland | 11 November 1918 (republic proclaimed) | 11 November 1918 (independent republic proclaimed) | |
Portugal | 1143 (Kingdom of Portugal recognized); 5 October 1910 (republic proclaimed) | 1143 (Kingdom of Portugal recognized); 5 October 1910 (independent republic proclaimed) | |
Puerto Rico | none (territory of the US with commonwealth status) | none (commonwealth associated with the US) | |
Reunion | - | none (overseas department of France) | |
Romania | 9 May 1877 (independence proclaimed from the Ottoman Empire; independence recognized 13 July 1878 by the Treaty of Berlin); 26 March 1881 (kingdom proclaimed); 30 December 1947 (republic proclaimed) | 9 May 1877 (independence proclaimed from Turkey; independence recognized 13 July 1878 by the Treaty of Berlin; kingdom proclaimed 26 March 1881); 30 December 1947 (republic proclaimed) | |
Saint Barthelemy | none (overseas collectivity of France) | - | |
Saint Martin | none (overseas collectivity of France) | - | |
San Marino | 3 September AD 301 | 3 September 301 | |
Senegal | 4 April 1960 (from France); note - complete independence achieved upon dissolution of federation with Mali on 20 August 1960 | 4 April 1960 (from France); note - complete independence was achieved upon dissolution of federation with Mali on 20 August 1960 | |
Serbia | 5 June 2006 (from Serbia and Montenegro) | - | |
Serbia and Montenegro | - | 27 April 1992 (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia or FRY - now Serbia and Montenegro - formed as self-proclaimed successor to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia or SFRY) | |
South Africa | 31 May 1910 (Union of South Africa formed from four British colonies: Cape Colony, Natal, Transvaal, and Orange Free State); 31 May 1961 (republic declared) 27 April 1994 (majority rule) | 31 May 1910 (from UK); note - South Africa became a republic in 1961 following an October 1960 referendum | |
Spain | the Iberian peninsula was characterized by a variety of independent kingdoms prior to the Muslim occupation that began in the early 8th century A.D. and lasted nearly seven centuries; the small Christian redoubts of the north began the reconquest almost immediately, culminating in the seizure of Granada in 1492; this event completed the unification of several kingdoms and is traditionally considered the forging of present-day Spain | the Iberian peninsula was characterized by a variety of independent kingdoms prior to the Moslem occupation that began in the early 8th century A. D. and lasted nearly seven centuries; the small Christian redoubts of the north began the reconquest almost immediately, culminating in the seizure of Granada in 1492; this event completed the unification of several kingdoms and is traditionally considered the forging of present-day Spain | |
Suriname | 25 November 1975 (from the Netherlands) | 25 November 1975 (from Netherlands) | |
Timor-Leste | 28 November 1975 (independence proclaimed from Portugal); note - 20 May 2002 is the official date of international recognition of Timor-Leste's independence from Indonesia | - | |
Virgin Islands | none (territory of the US) | - | |
Yemen | 22 May 1990 (Republic of Yemen was established with the merger of the Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and the Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen]); note - previously North Yemen became independent in November 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and became a republic with the overthrow of the theocratic Imamate in 1962; South Yemen became independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK) | 22 May 1990 (Republic of Yemen established with the merger of the Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and the Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen]); note - previously North Yemen had become independent in November of 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and South Yemen had become independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK) |