Asian Capitals Quiz
Beijing to Bishkek: 15 questions on the capitals of Asia, from the obvious to the ones that stump everyone.
What is the capital of China?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Beijing
Beijing has been China's capital for most of the time since the Ming dynasty moved the court there in 1421. Shanghai is the larger commercial hub but has never been the national capital.
The name Beijing means Northern Capital, as opposed to Nanjing, the Southern Capital, which held the role earlier in the Ming era.
What is the capital of Nepal?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Kathmandu
Kathmandu sits in a bowl shaped valley at about 1,400 metres (4,600 feet) in the Himalayan foothills. The Kathmandu Valley contains seven groups of monuments listed together as a World Heritage site.
The city is the starting point for most Everest expeditions, which fly from here to the mountain airstrip at Lukla.
What is the capital of Bangladesh?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Dhaka
Dhaka, on the Buriganga River in the Ganges delta, became the capital of East Pakistan in 1947 and of independent Bangladesh in 1971. Chittagong is the country's main port and second city.
Dhaka is one of the most densely populated cities in the world and is nicknamed the City of Mosques.
Kuala Lumpur is the capital of which country?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur grew from a tin mining camp in the 1850s into the capital of Malaysia. Its name means muddy confluence, after the meeting of the Klang and Gombak rivers in the city centre.
Most federal government offices moved to the planned city of Putrajaya in 1999, but Kuala Lumpur remains the official capital and home of Parliament.
What is the capital of North Korea?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Pyongyang
Pyongyang on the Taedong River is North Korea's capital and largest city. Almost completely destroyed in the Korean War, it was rebuilt in Soviet style with wide avenues and huge monuments.
The city's unfinished Ryugyong Hotel, a 105 storey pyramid begun in 1987, has still never opened to guests.
What is the capital of Cambodia?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh stands where the Tonlé Sap river meets the Mekong. It became the royal capital in the fifteenth century after the Khmer Empire abandoned Angkor, which lies near Siem Reap.
The Khmer Rouge forcibly emptied Phnom Penh in April 1975, leaving the capital almost deserted for nearly four years.
What is the capital of Afghanistan?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Kabul
Kabul lies in a high valley at about 1,790 metres (5,870 feet), making it one of the highest capitals in the world. It has been Afghanistan's capital since 1776, when the Durrani rulers moved from Kandahar.
Kabul sits on an ancient trade route and was a stop on the overland hippie trail between Europe and India in the 1960s and 1970s.
What is the capital of Laos?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Vientiane
Vientiane sits on the Mekong River directly across from Thailand. It became the capital of the Kingdom of Lan Xang in the 1560s and remained the administrative capital under French rule and after independence.
Luang Prabang, the former royal capital, stayed the seat of the Lao monarchy until the king was deposed in 1975.
What is the capital of Bhutan?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Thimphu
Thimphu, at about 2,300 metres (7,500 feet) in the Himalayas, has been Bhutan's capital since the mid 1950s, when it replaced Punakha. It is famous for having no traffic lights, with police directing cars by hand instead.
Bhutan's only international airport is not in Thimphu but at Paro, about an hour's drive away through the mountains.
What is the capital of Azerbaijan?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Baku
Baku sits on the Caspian Sea and is the largest city in the Caucasus. At about 28 metres (92 feet) below sea level it is the lowest lying national capital in the world, and the oil boom of the 1870s made it famous.
Baku hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 2012 and has staged a Formula 1 Grand Prix on a street circuit around its old city walls since 2016.
What is the capital of Turkmenistan?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Ashgabat
Ashgabat lies between the Karakum Desert and the Kopet Dag mountains near the Iranian border. Rebuilt in white marble after independence, it holds a Guinness record for the highest density of white marble buildings.
The city was almost entirely destroyed by an earthquake in 1948 that killed a large share of its population.
What is the capital of Brunei?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Bandar Seri Begawan
Bandar Seri Begawan is the capital of the small sultanate of Brunei on the island of Borneo. It is known for the gold domed Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque and Kampong Ayer, a huge stilt village on the river.
The city was renamed in 1970 in honour of the previous sultan, Omar Ali Saifuddien III, after he abdicated in favour of his son.
What is the capital of the Maldives?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Malé
Malé occupies a small island in the Indian Ocean and is one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, with well over 100,000 people packed onto an island little more than a mile (2 km) long.
The main international airport is on a separate island, Hulhulé, now linked to Malé by the Sinamalé Bridge opened in 2018.
What is the capital of Timor-Leste, the country that gained independence in 2002?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Dili
Dili sits on the north coast of the island of Timor. It was the capital of Portuguese Timor from the 1760s and became the capital of independent Timor-Leste, also called East Timor, in 2002.
Timor-Leste was the first new sovereign state of the twenty-first century and uses the US dollar as its currency.
Which Central Asian capital was named Frunze during the Soviet era?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Bishkek
Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, was called Frunze from 1926 to 1991 after the Bolshevik general Mikhail Frunze, who was born there. It reverted to a form of its old name after independence.
Bishkek sits at the foot of the Tian Shan mountains and is one of the greenest cities in Central Asia, with wide tree lined boulevards.
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All Geography quizzes →About the Asian Capitals Quiz
Asia has nearly 50 countries and some of the most memorable capital names on the planet. Beijing has been China's seat of power for most of six centuries, Kathmandu sits in a Himalayan valley with eight World Heritage sites, and Bishkek was called Frunze until the Soviet Union collapsed.
These 15 questions start with the capitals most people know and work through South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Caucasus and Central Asia to the ones that trip up even seasoned travellers: Thimphu, Vientiane, Bandar Seri Begawan and Dili. It suits geography students, backpackers planning a route and quizzers who already aced the World Capitals and European Capitals rounds and want the next challenge.
You will find 15 multiple choice questions here, each with four options. Difficulty: Medium. Most people finish in about 6 minutes, and every answer comes with a short explanation and one extra fact worth keeping.
How to play
Read the question and pick one of the four answers. The correct answer is revealed straight away with a short explanation, then press Next question to keep going. At the end you get your score out of 15 and a full review of your round. Play again any time and the questions arrive in a fresh order. There is no timer and no account.
Good to know before you play
Which Asian capitals are the hardest to remember?
Players most often miss Thimphu in Bhutan, Vientiane in Laos, Bandar Seri Begawan in Brunei, Dili in Timor-Leste and the Central Asian capitals Bishkek, Dushanbe and Ashgabat.
Are Middle Eastern capitals included?
Not in this quiz. The Middle East has its own geography quiz on the site, so this round focuses on East, South, Southeast and Central Asia plus the Caucasus.
Does this quiz repeat the World Capitals quiz?
No. Capitals already asked there, such as Tokyo, New Delhi, Bangkok, Seoul and Islamabad, are left out so you get 15 fresh cities.
Answer key: all 15 questions with explanations
- What is the capital of China?
Beijing Beijing has been China's capital for most of the time since the Ming dynasty moved the court there in 1421. Shanghai is the larger commercial hub but has never been the national capital. The name Beijing means Northern Capital, as opposed to Nanjing, the Southern Capital, which held the role earlier in the Ming era. - What is the capital of Nepal?
Kathmandu Kathmandu sits in a bowl shaped valley at about 1,400 metres (4,600 feet) in the Himalayan foothills. The Kathmandu Valley contains seven groups of monuments listed together as a World Heritage site. The city is the starting point for most Everest expeditions, which fly from here to the mountain airstrip at Lukla. - What is the capital of Bangladesh?
Dhaka Dhaka, on the Buriganga River in the Ganges delta, became the capital of East Pakistan in 1947 and of independent Bangladesh in 1971. Chittagong is the country's main port and second city. Dhaka is one of the most densely populated cities in the world and is nicknamed the City of Mosques. - Kuala Lumpur is the capital of which country?
Malaysia Kuala Lumpur grew from a tin mining camp in the 1850s into the capital of Malaysia. Its name means muddy confluence, after the meeting of the Klang and Gombak rivers in the city centre. Most federal government offices moved to the planned city of Putrajaya in 1999, but Kuala Lumpur remains the official capital and home of Parliament. - What is the capital of North Korea?
Pyongyang Pyongyang on the Taedong River is North Korea's capital and largest city. Almost completely destroyed in the Korean War, it was rebuilt in Soviet style with wide avenues and huge monuments. The city's unfinished Ryugyong Hotel, a 105 storey pyramid begun in 1987, has still never opened to guests. - What is the capital of Cambodia?
Phnom Penh Phnom Penh stands where the Tonlé Sap river meets the Mekong. It became the royal capital in the fifteenth century after the Khmer Empire abandoned Angkor, which lies near Siem Reap. The Khmer Rouge forcibly emptied Phnom Penh in April 1975, leaving the capital almost deserted for nearly four years. - What is the capital of Afghanistan?
Kabul Kabul lies in a high valley at about 1,790 metres (5,870 feet), making it one of the highest capitals in the world. It has been Afghanistan's capital since 1776, when the Durrani rulers moved from Kandahar. Kabul sits on an ancient trade route and was a stop on the overland hippie trail between Europe and India in the 1960s and 1970s. - What is the capital of Laos?
Vientiane Vientiane sits on the Mekong River directly across from Thailand. It became the capital of the Kingdom of Lan Xang in the 1560s and remained the administrative capital under French rule and after independence. Luang Prabang, the former royal capital, stayed the seat of the Lao monarchy until the king was deposed in 1975. - What is the capital of Bhutan?
Thimphu Thimphu, at about 2,300 metres (7,500 feet) in the Himalayas, has been Bhutan's capital since the mid 1950s, when it replaced Punakha. It is famous for having no traffic lights, with police directing cars by hand instead. Bhutan's only international airport is not in Thimphu but at Paro, about an hour's drive away through the mountains. - What is the capital of Azerbaijan?
Baku Baku sits on the Caspian Sea and is the largest city in the Caucasus. At about 28 metres (92 feet) below sea level it is the lowest lying national capital in the world, and the oil boom of the 1870s made it famous. Baku hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 2012 and has staged a Formula 1 Grand Prix on a street circuit around its old city walls since 2016. - What is the capital of Turkmenistan?
Ashgabat Ashgabat lies between the Karakum Desert and the Kopet Dag mountains near the Iranian border. Rebuilt in white marble after independence, it holds a Guinness record for the highest density of white marble buildings. The city was almost entirely destroyed by an earthquake in 1948 that killed a large share of its population. - What is the capital of Brunei?
Bandar Seri Begawan Bandar Seri Begawan is the capital of the small sultanate of Brunei on the island of Borneo. It is known for the gold domed Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque and Kampong Ayer, a huge stilt village on the river. The city was renamed in 1970 in honour of the previous sultan, Omar Ali Saifuddien III, after he abdicated in favour of his son. - What is the capital of the Maldives?
Malé Malé occupies a small island in the Indian Ocean and is one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, with well over 100,000 people packed onto an island little more than a mile (2 km) long. The main international airport is on a separate island, Hulhulé, now linked to Malé by the Sinamalé Bridge opened in 2018. - What is the capital of Timor-Leste, the country that gained independence in 2002?
Dili Dili sits on the north coast of the island of Timor. It was the capital of Portuguese Timor from the 1760s and became the capital of independent Timor-Leste, also called East Timor, in 2002. Timor-Leste was the first new sovereign state of the twenty-first century and uses the US dollar as its currency. - Which Central Asian capital was named Frunze during the Soviet era?
Bishkek Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, was called Frunze from 1926 to 1991 after the Bolshevik general Mikhail Frunze, who was born there. It reverted to a form of its old name after independence. Bishkek sits at the foot of the Tian Shan mountains and is one of the greenest cities in Central Asia, with wide tree lined boulevards.
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