French Guiana French Guiana French Guiana (pronounced or , ; ) is an overseas department and region of France, on the north Atlantic coast of South America in the Guyanas. It borders Brazil to the east and south and Suriname to the west. Since 1981, when Belize became independent, French Guiana has been the only territory of the mainland Americas that is still part of a European country. With a land area of , French Guiana is the second-largest region of France and the largest outermost region within the European Union. It has a very low population density, with only . Half
Suriname (Kingdom of the Netherlands) the constituent country have always been officially known as Surinam or Suriname, in both Dutch and English, the colony was often unofficially and semi-officially referred to as Dutch Guiana (Dutch: "Nederlands Guiana") in the 19th and 20th century, in an analogy to British Guiana and French Guiana. Using this term for Suriname is problematic, however, as historically Suriname was only one of many Dutch colonies in the Guianas, others being Berbice, Essequibo, Demerara, and Pomeroon, which after being taken over by the United Kingdom in 1814 were united into British Guiana in 1831. Before 1814, the term Dutch Guiana did