Venezuela is a country on the northern tropical Caribbean coast of South America. Venezuela borders Brazil to the south, Guyana to the east, and Colombia to the west. North of the Venezuelan coast lie the islands of Aruba, the Netherlands Antilles, and Trinidad and Tobago. A former Spanish colony, Venezuela is a Federal Republic.

SUBDIVISIONS

Venezuela is subdivided into 23 states (estados), a Capital District (Distrito Capital) correspondent to the city of Caracas, and the Federal Dependencies (Dependencias Federales). The country is also divided into ten administrative regions (regiones administrativas), which were established by presidential decrees. States # State Capital # State Capital 1. Amazonas Puerto Ayacucho 13. Mérida Mérida 2. Anzoátegui Barcelona 14. Miranda Los Teques 3. Apure San Fernando de Apure 15. Monagas Maturín 4. Aragua Maracay 16. Nueva Esparta La Asunción 5. Barinas Barinas 17. Portuguesa Guanare 6. Bolívar Ciudad Bolívar 18. Sucre Cumaná 7. Carabobo Valencia 19. Táchira San Cristóbal 8. Cojedes San Carlos 20. Trujillo Trujillo 9. Delta Amacuro Tucupita 21. Yaracuy San Felipe 10. Falcón Coro 22. Vargas La Güaira 11. Guárico San Juan De Los Morros 23. Zulia Maracaibo 12. Lara Barquisimeto 24. Federal Dependencies n/a Note: The Venezuelan Federal Dependencies are not a real state, but a special territorial subdivision. Regions Administrative Region States Andean Barinas, Mérida, Táchira, Trujillo; Páez Municipality of Apure Capital Miranda, Vargas, Capital District (Caracas) Central Aragua, Carabobo, Cojedes Central-Western Falcón, Lara, Portuguesa, Yaracuy Guayana Bolívar, Amazonas, Delta Amacuro Insular Nueva Esparta, Federal Dependencies Llanos Apure (excluding Paez Municipality), Guárico North-Eastern Anzoátegui, Monagas, Sucre Zulian Zulia.