Azerbaijan
I remember the first time I ever heard of Azerbaijan. It was the answer to a Jeopardy question about countries that started with the letter "A." My guess is that is was to name one of them that starts with an "A" but doesn't end with one, since I remember there being two possible answers. From that time, I thought that it was a really pretty word, and haven't never forgotten it since. Also interesting that the A's start and end with this...Afghanistan and Azerbaijan. That's right, this is the last A! Quite a while for just one letter, no? Azerbaijan Some history : Was briefly independent from 1918 to 1920, then regained independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union Location : Southwest Asia, a part (referenced in the Armenia post) in Europe Area : 87,000 sq km, slightly smaller than Maine Bordering nations : Armenia, Georgia, Iran, Russia, Turkey Coastline : Technically landlocked, although they border the Caspian Sea Elevation :...