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Countries with the Most Major Earthquakes

Can you name the 10 modern-day countries who have suffered the most earthquakes of magnitude 7.5 or higher since 1900?
Through January 8, 2023
Manually counted from Wikipedia's list of earthquakes
Quiz by Quizmaster
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Last updated: January 8, 2023
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First submittedApril 2, 2014
Times taken87,985
Average score80.0%
Rating4.95
3:00
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#
Country
28
Indonesia
21
Chile
21
United States
16
Japan
16
Peru
#
Country
14
Russia
12
Mexico
11
Papua New Guinea
9
China
8
Philippines
+36
Level ∞
Apr 2, 2014
The vast majority of major US earthquakes happen in Alaska.
+5
Level 74
Apr 3, 2014
That must be why hardly anyone lives there :-)
+36
Level 67
May 2, 2014
I can think of a few other reasons too.
+4
Level 59
Jan 21, 2023
No, no, It must only be the earthquakes. Not like the cold temp matters at all....
+1
Level 17
Mar 13, 2024
Also its very cold there.
+30
Level 86
May 2, 2014
And it is called the "pacific" ocean ^^.
+1
Level 70
May 3, 2014
:D
+3
Level 45
Oct 23, 2018
pacific means calm XD
+3
Level 90
Oct 14, 2020
Not sure if building on the sarcasm or missing it completely - insert Futurama stare meme
+2
Level 83
May 2, 2014
8/8, great quiz. It helps to have some knowledge of plate boundaries.
+11
Level 63
May 2, 2014
All part of the Ring of Fire. Very interesting.
+2
Level 38
Jan 31, 2023
Tectonic Plates go shaky shaky
+6
Level 28
May 2, 2014
I don't know why I didn't add this on my last comment, but I can't believe I forgot Mexico. I can't believe that because I visited a beach near Mexicali in April 2010, and they got hit by a 7.0 quake when I was there. Since I was on a poorly made beach hotel, the whole building swayed, and it was freaking scary.
+1
Level 62
Jan 21, 2023
Isn’t the building supposed to sway? It may not have been a well built building but I’m pretty sure well built buildings are meant to sway.
+1
Level 43
May 21, 2014
100% within 1:33
+2
Level 68
Jun 25, 2014
wow, I think Indonesia is the country (of these listed) in which I would least like to experience an earthquake too... an earthquake is bad enough on a large continent, but on some little island... scary!
+22
Level 84
Sep 12, 2016
Indonesia has some rather large islands.
+1
Level 44
Jan 24, 2021
I know how that feels like. I've experienced M7,6 earthquake and tsunami in my own city.
+4
Level 35
Jul 28, 2016
Where is New Zealand? Us here in New Zealand have a fair amount of strong earthquakes.
+6
Level 79
Mar 10, 2020
We*
+2
Level 47
Nov 3, 2022
You*
+3
Level 67
Sep 7, 2016
Most earthquakes happen at sea, in international waters.
+1
Level 55
Sep 7, 2016
Does anyone remember the miniquake when Leicester fans celebrated scoring a goal last year? I think that got to a magnitude of 0.5 or something like that.
+3
Level 76
Mar 10, 2020
Magnitude 0.5 would be impossible to feel, that would be more of a magnitude 3
+1
Level 77
May 7, 2021
No, but i remember the earthquake from when Seahawks fans cheered for a TD run by Marshawn Lynch.
+1
Level 46
Sep 7, 2016
I often guess Malaysia, Philippines and Bangladesh - and forget about Indonesia.
+3
Level 60
Mar 10, 2020
Bangladesh would have been on the list if it was for Floods instead of Earthquakes
+1
Level 45
Sep 7, 2016
good quiz, I'm surprised how little time took me to solve it, 2:05 left
+8
Level 81
Sep 8, 2016
Well whose fault is that??
+3
Level 68
Sep 11, 2016
Hehe. I grew up on a fault line in Wellington, felt lots of earthquakes, we used to have earthquake drills at school every year.
+1
Level 57
Dec 3, 2020
I live in a part of the US not earthquake prone (I’ve never felt one) and we have earthquake drills every year too.
+2
Level 44
Feb 18, 2017
6/8! I'm surprised not to see countries such as Nepal, India, Ecuador, Philippines, Pakistan and so on and so forth
+3
Level 82
Feb 18, 2017
The countries on this quiz all have two things in common. 1. They border the "ring of fire" in the Pacific Ocean. 2. They are very large, with lots of area within which for earthquakes to occur. The Philippines and Ecuador might make the cut if they were substantially larger in area, but they're not. India would probably make the cut if the subduction zone along the Himalayas saw as much tectonic activity as the ring of fire, but it doesn't. I think it's probably close, though.
+1
Level 82
Feb 18, 2017
Then again, this Wikipedia page lists 16 major earthquakes (above a 7.0) to have affected India since 1900.
+1
Level 82
Feb 18, 2017
Oops. Above a 7.5 there are 11.
+2
Level 82
Feb 18, 2017
and maybe QM wasn't counting them because the epicenter of several were in Nepal, Myanmar, the Andaman Sea or elsewhere.
+1
Level ∞
Jan 16, 2020
In the Andaman Sea yes, but not if the epicenter was in Nepal or Myanmar.
+1
Level 45
Jul 11, 2018
I answer all the right ones because all of them are on the ring of fire.
+2
Level 69
Jul 11, 2018
In which part o f Russia does occurs so many earthquakes? In the pacific coast I guess, maybe in Kamchatka peninsula.
+4
Level 42
Dec 16, 2018
Yes, because that part lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire. There are several volcanoes round there, too.
+1
Level 50
Mar 17, 2019
I was surprised by Russia as well, but I guess it's such a big country there were bound to parts of it on a subduction zone.
+4
Level 52
Dec 20, 2019
Usually, Kamchatka and Kuril islands. Also, sometimes around Baikal and sometimes in Caucasus. Thankfully, not many people live there. After all, the most powerful earthquake in Russia, in 1952, only had any fatalities due to resulting tsunami destroying fishing town, killing a third of its' residents. That's why you usually don't hear about earthquakes in Russia.
+3
Level 40
Oct 26, 2019
surprised there's no new zealand
+1
Level 52
Mar 10, 2020
Thought of Papua New Guinea, but it seemed to out there to be on this quiz. I was wrong.
+1
Level 28
Mar 10, 2020
Wait what, Russia has many earthquakes, I never heard of any

🤣

+2
Level 82
Mar 10, 2020
I'm guessing most of them are far in the east where few people live.
+3
Level 77
May 7, 2021
In Soviet Russia...earth quakes YOU
+1
Level 69
Mar 12, 2020
when will i ever learn? always, always try philippines in quizzes like these. never, i guess.
+1
Level 16
Nov 17, 2020
9-10, forgot Mexico 🤬
+2
Level 46
Apr 6, 2021
As soon as I started this quiz, I immediately started naming countries that were in the Pacific Ring of Fire, since I knew a lot about tectonic plates, but not a lot about earthquakes.
+2
Level 65
May 21, 2021
It's not a good idea.I live in Taiwan,and here will have a 4.0+ earthquake per month!
+1
Level 59
Jul 10, 2021
got only 3. Why just 1 and a half minute?
+1
Level 67
Mar 17, 2023
I'm surprised no countries in the middle east are in here (Turkey, Afghanistan, etc) considering they get quite a few strong and devastating earthquakes. I'm guessing most are in the 7.0-7.4 range
+1
Level 63
Apr 20, 2023
This wasn't difficult at all.
+1
Level 23
Jun 1, 2023
I can't believe i got Papua New Guinea, Peru and Philippines but forgot Chile.