Beyond the answers - interesting background to this quiz

The two capitals of Bolivia

Bolivia is one of the few countries in the world with more than one capital city, and the arrangement often trips people up. Sucre is the constitutional capital, where the country's Supreme Court still sits and where independence was declared in 1825. La Paz, meanwhile, functions as the seat of government, housing the presidency, congress and most ministries. The split dates back to a late 19th century power struggle between the two cities, and it has never been fully resolved.

Somalia and the invisible line

The Equator slices through Somalia, passing just south of the capital, Mogadishu. It is one of only a handful of countries the line crosses in Africa, alongside Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Kenya. Mauritania and Libya, by contrast, sit entirely north of it - Libya's southern desert reaches roughly 20 degrees north, well clear of the equatorial zone.

Riga and the Baltic neighbours

Riga, the capital of Latvia, is the largest city in the Baltic states, with a historic centre famous for its Art Nouveau architecture. The confusion with Tallinn and Vilnius is understandable: the three Baltic capitals sit within a few hundred kilometres of each other and share a similar medieval heritage. Tallinn belongs to Estonia and Vilnius to Lithuania, and all three were once part of the Russian Empire and later the Soviet Union before regaining independence in the early 1990s.

What exactly is a frigate?

A frigate is a warship, but the term has shifted meaning over centuries. In the Age of Sail, frigates were fast, manoeuvrable vessels used for scouting and escort duty rather than the heaviest fighting. Today the name describes modern escort ships, typically smaller than destroyers, used for anti-submarine warfare and patrols. The word itself entered English from the Italian "fregata" in the 16th century.

Vodka's surprising raw materials

Vodka can be distilled from almost anything fermentable, and while grains such as wheat and rye dominate, the potato is a classic alternative - particularly in Poland and parts of Eastern Europe. Potato vodka tends to have a slightly creamier texture than grain-based versions. Grapes are used too, mainly in France, but eggplant is not a serious contender.