18 interesting facts about Paraguay

The most interesting facts about Paraguay we learnt during our visit to the country

American essayist P.J. O’Rourke once quipped that Paraguay was “nowhere and famous for nothing.” He then took a business trip there, fell in love with the country and promptly moved there.

While we can’t say we felt the same striking attraction, we certainly appreciated Paraguay’s history and authenticity. The small and struggling country is a steamy subtropical land of remarkable contrasts with a tragic and torrid history filled with violence and loss.

Despite our relatively short stay, we came across a wide range of interesting facts about Paraguay, the best of which we share below.

Interesting facts about Paraguay

1. More than 80% of Paraguayans are mestizos: people of mixed Spanish and Native American ancestry.
(Source: BBC)

2. Paraguay is a bilingual nation: Guaraní is its first language and Spanish, its second. It is also one of few South-American countries to retain its native tongue as an official language.
(Source: CIA World Factbook)

3. Guaraní is an onomatopoeic language. Many of its words, like its music, imitate the natural sounds of animals and the natural environment.
(Source: The Guardian)

4. The first of many geographically interesting facts about Paraguay is that it’s one of three countries sharing La Triple Frontera (The Triple Frontier), a tri-border along the intersection of Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil.
(Source: BBC)

5. Due to the country’s central location in South America, it is sometimes referred to as Corazón de Sudamérica (Heart of South America).
(Source: Huffington Post)

6. The Asunción-Encarnación railway line was the first railway line in South America. It was constructed by British engineers from 1858-1861.
(Source: Lonely Planet)

7. In Paraguay, pistol duelling is still legal as long as both parties are registered blood donors. Naturally, this is one of my favourite interesting facts about Paraguay.
(Source: Chicago Tribune)

8. In 1811, Paraguay gained independence from Spain. However, three dictators governed it during the first 60 years of independence.
(Source: InfoPlease)

9. The country’s third dictator, Francisco López, waged war against Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina from 1865 to 1870. During the conflict (known as the War of the…