Countries Never Colonized 2022

Colonization happens when a nation or territory is taken over by another and ruled by its government instead of the one it had before.

There was a time when British monarch George III was in charge of the colonial American colonies, even though indigenous peoples had lived in North America for thousands of years before Europeans arrived.




Colonizing another nation or territory frequently results in exploiting the country or territory for financial benefit. To honor the end of colonial control, several nations have a national Independence Day.

Colonization or colonization by power has occurred in almost every nation on the planet at some point in time (in fact, some countries have been both). Moreover, most of the nations that have not been colonized have had to fight back against efforts to colonize them.

Several failed attempts have been made to colonize Afghanistan due to the country’s harsh terrain and tribalism, for example. Anglo-Nepal War of 1814-1816 saw the British attempt to annex Nepal but was thwarted by the country’s rugged topography.

The British claimed a portion of Nepal’s land, but their efforts to make the nation a British colony were unsuccessful.

Countries Never Colonized

Those countries that have never been colonized.

Colonialization has a variety of meanings for various individuals. As a result of this discrepancy, different sources provide wildly different lists of nations that have never been colonized.




As a result, many lists concentrate on nations not colonized by European countries, which misrepresents those colonized by an Asian or African country. Only one country in the world has never been colonized: Japan.

Several additional nations cut several rankings. According to certain definitions, there are events in their history that define their colonies.

The following countries are often referred to as “never-colonized,” yet in fact, were colonized:

CountryArgument against
AfghanistanNever colonized, but occupied and controlled by U.S. 2001-2021.
BhutanCeded territory to Britain in 1865, became British protectorate in 1866 and British-controlled “princely state” in 1910.
ChinaConquered by Mongols in 1200s, who established Yuan dynasty and ruled until 1368 A.D.; Opium wars entrenched U.K. influence and gave U.K. control over Hong Kong from 1841-1997; portions annexed by Japan during WWII.
EthiopiaAvoided becoming Italian colony due to a treaty mistranslation, but annexed by Italy 1939-1944.
IranConquered by Greece in fourth century B.C., parts occupied by or ceded to Russia during Russo-Persian Wars, oil rights owned by U.K. for many years.
LiberiaNever forcibly colonized, but began as a colony: Founded in 1822 by the American Colonization Society to return freed slaves to their homeland. Recognized as independent in 1862.
MongoliaAbsorbed by China’s Qing dynasty in 1600s, ruled by China until 1921, then because satellite state of Soviet Union until 1924.
NepalAvoided outright colonization by Brits, but ceded significant territory and became British protectorate in 1815. Arguably functioned as British puppet state for some time.
North KoreaNever colonized by European country, but arguably colonized by Japan during WWII.
Saudi ArabiaVarying but significant areas controlled by Ottoman empire from early 1500s-early 1900s.
South KoreaNever colonized by European country, but arguably colonized by Japan during WWII.
ThailandNever colonized by European country, but arguably colonized by Japan during WWII.
TongaBritish protected state 1900-1970, giving Britain preferential trade terms and control over foreign affairs.




The several definitions of colonization.

The term colony refers to countries colonized by a foreign force. For example, some historians argue that the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan from 2001 until 2021 constitutes colonialism.

The Kingdom of Siam (then known as Thailand) was bordered by French Indochina (modern-day Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam) and British Burma (then known as Burma).

To save his country from being wholly colonized, the Siamese monarch embraced numerous pro-European habits and built close ties with the British.

Countries Never Colonized

According to some historians, Japan’s control of Thailand and other Asian countries during World War II constitutes colonialism rather than occupation. Several nations were conquered during World War II, including Italy’s annexation of Ethiopia and the invasion by Germans of Poland.




Like the facto colonialism, many nations have seen their territory and people exploited for financial advantage by a colonizing power without the colonizing power establishing its government in that country.

Also See: Countries in the UN 2022

For example, the United Kingdom controlled almost all of Iran’s oil reserves for much of the twentieth century.

Iran’s policies and operations were heavily influenced by the British government’s ownership of the country’s most precious resource.

Like other colonial nations, China was never officially colonized, but the Opium Wars of 1839-1842 and 1856-1860 were waged to provide British opium traders access to Chinese markets.

Colonization’s impacts may be seen everywhere, from how many Africans speak English or French as their first language to the traditions they practice and the goods they export.




Country2022 Population
China1425887.3370
India1417173.1730
United States338289.8570
Indonesia275501.3390
Pakistan235824.8620
Nigeria218541.2120
Brazil215313.4980
Bangladesh171186.3720
Russia144713.3140
Mexico127504.1250
Japan123951.6920
Ethiopia123379.9240
Philippines115559.0090
Egypt110990.1030
DR Congo99010.2120
Vietnam98186.8560
Iran88550.5700
Turkey85341.2410
Germany83369.8430
Thailand71697.0300
United Kingdom67508.9360
Tanzania65497.7480
France64626.6280
South Africa59893.8850
Italy59037.4740
Myanmar54179.3060
Kenya54027.4870
Colombia51874.0240
South Korea51815.8100
Spain47558.6300
Uganda47249.5850
Sudan46874.2040
Argentina45510.3180
Algeria44903.2250
Iraq44496.1220
Afghanistan41128.7710
Poland39857.1450
Ukraine39701.7390
Canada38454.3270
Morocco37457.9710
Saudi Arabia36408.8200
Angola35588.9870
Uzbekistan34627.6520
Peru34049.5880
Malaysia33938.2210
Yemen33696.6140
Ghana33475.8700
Mozambique32969.5180
Nepal30547.5800
Madagascar29611.7140
Venezuela28301.6960
Ivory Coast28160.5420
Cameroon27914.5360
Niger26207.9770
Australia26177.4130
North Korea26069.4160
Taiwan23893.3940
Burkina Faso22673.7620
Mali22593.5900
Syria22125.2490
Sri Lanka21832.1430
Malawi20405.3170
Zambia20017.6750
Romania19659.2670
Chile19603.7330
Kazakhstan19397.9980
Ecuador18001
Guatemala17843.9080
Chad17723.3150
Somalia17597.5110
Netherlands17564.0140
Senegal17316.4490
Cambodia16767.8420
Zimbabwe16320.5370
Guinea13859.3410
Rwanda13776.6980
Benin13352.8640
Burundi12889.5760
Tunisia12356.1170
Bolivia12224.1100
Belgium11655.9300
Haiti11584.9960
Jordan11285.8690
Dominican Republic11228.8210
Cuba11212.1910
South Sudan10913.1640
Sweden10549.3470
Czech Republic10493.9860
Honduras10432.8600
Greece10384.9710
Azerbaijan10358.0740
Portugal10270.8650
Papua New Guinea10142.6190
Hungary9967.3080
Tajikistan9952.7870
Belarus9534.9540
United Arab Emirates9441.1290
Israel9038.3090
Austria8939.6170
Togo8848.6990
Switzerland8740.4720
Sierra Leone8605.7180
Laos7529.4750
Hong Kong7488.8650
Serbia7221.3650
Nicaragua6948.3920
Libya6812.3410
Bulgaria6781.9530
Paraguay6780.7440
Kyrgyzstan6630.6230
Turkmenistan6430.7700
El Salvador6336.3920
Singapore5975.6890
Republic of the Congo5970.4240
Denmark5882.2610
Slovakia5643.4530
Central African Republic5579.1440
Finland5540.7450
Lebanon5489.7390
Norway5434.3190
Liberia5302.6810
Palestine5250.0720
New Zealand5185.2880
Costa Rica5180.8290
Ireland5023.1090
Mauritania4736.1390
Oman4576.2980
Panama4408.5810
Kuwait4268.8730
Croatia4030.3580
Georgia3744.3850
Eritrea3684.0320
Uruguay3422.7940
Mongolia3398.3660
Moldova3272.9960
Puerto Rico3252.4070
Bosnia and Herzegovina3233.5260
Albania2842.3210
Jamaica2827.3770
Armenia2780.4690
Lithuania2750.0550
Gambia2705.9920
Qatar2695.1220
Botswana2630.2960
Namibia2567.0120
Gabon2388.9920
Lesotho2305.8250
Slovenia2119.8440
Guinea-Bissau2105.5660
North Macedonia2093.5990
Latvia1850.6510
Equatorial Guinea1674.9080
Trinidad and Tobago1531.0440
Bahrain1472.2330
Timor-Leste1341.2960
Estonia1326.0620
Mauritius1299.4690
Cyprus1251.4880
Eswatini1201.6700
Djibouti1120.8490
Reunion974.0520
Fiji929.7660
Comoros836.7740
Guyana808.7260
Bhutan782.4550
Solomon Islands724.2730
Macau695.1680
Luxembourg647.5990
Montenegro627.0820
Suriname618.0400
Cape Verde593.1490
Western Sahara575.9860
Malta533.2860
Maldives523.7870
Brunei449.0020
Bahamas409.9840
Belize405.2720
Guadeloupe395.7520
Iceland372.8990
Martinique367.5070
Vanuatu326.7400
Mayotte326.1010
French Polynesia306.2790
French Guiana304.5570
New Caledonia289.9500
Barbados281.6350
Sao Tome and Principe227.3800
Samoa222.3820
Curacao191.1630
Saint Lucia179.8570
Guam171.7740
Kiribati131.2320
Grenada125.4380
Micronesia114.1640
Jersey110.7780
Seychelles107.1180
Tonga106.8580
Aruba106.4450
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines103.9480
United States Virgin Islands99.4650
Antigua and Barbuda93.7630
Isle of Man84.5190
Andorra79.8240
Dominica72.7370
Cayman Islands68.7060
Bermuda64.1840
Guernsey63.3010
Greenland56.4660
Faroe Islands53.0900
Northern Mariana Islands49.5510
Saint Kitts and Nevis47.6570
Turks and Caicos Islands45.7030
American Samoa44.2730
Sint Maarten44.1750
Marshall Islands41.5690
Liechtenstein39.3270
Monaco36.4690
San Marino33.6600
Gibraltar32.6490
Saint Martin31.7910
British Virgin Islands31.3050
Palau18.0550
Cook Islands17.0110
Anguilla15.8570
Nauru12.6680
Wallis and Futuna11.5720
Tuvalu11.3120
Saint Barthelemy10.9670
Saint Pierre and Miquelon5.8620
Montserrat4.3900
Falkland Islands3.7800
Niue1.9340
Tokelau1.8710
Vatican City0.5100




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