It is often said that the time of Kingdoms, empires, and Monarchies is now gone. But, that’s not completely true. Even in many democracies, there are many kings and queens that have their own rights and privileges. In fact, there are still a few countries in which you will find absolute monarchies. In total, there are 43 sovereign states in the world that have monarchs (Kings/ Queens) as heads of the state. In this post, we will talk about the top 10 kingdoms in the world in 2023. We will let you know where are these kingdoms and who is the current head of the Kingdom i.e. King, Queen, Prince, etc.
Top 10 Kingdom in the World in 2023
Now, let’s check the list of the top 10 Kingdoms in the world in 2023. Please note that we have included all kinds of monarchies in the world such as constitutional monarchies, European mixed monarchies, Muslim Monarchies, etc.
1. United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland
- Capital – London
- Official Language – England
- Ethnic Group – 87.1% White, 7.0% Asian, 3.0% Black, 2.0% Mixed, 0.9% Other
- Religion – 59.5% Christianity, 25.7% No religion, 4.4% Islam, 1.3% Hinduism, 0.7% Sikhism, 0.4% Judaism, 0.4% Buddhism, 0.4% Other, 7.2% No answer
- Total Area – 242,495 km sq.
- Country – England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
- Name of the Monarch – Queen Elizabeth II
- Prime Minister – Boris Johnson
- Population – 67,081,000
- Overview – The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is commonly known by the name of Britain or United Kingdom (UK). The kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, north-eastern part of the island of Ireland, and many smaller islands within the British Isles. Queen Elizabeth II is the monarch of the Kingdom since 1952. The Capital and largest city of the Kingdom is London.
Check: World GK questions and answers
2. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
- Capital – Riyadh
- Official Language – Arabic
- Ethnic Group – 90% Arab, 10% Afro – Arab
- Religion – 93% Islam, 4.4% Christianity, 1.1% Hinduism, 0.3% Buddhism, 0.3% Unaffiliated.
- Total Area – 2,149,690 km sq.
- Government – Unitary Islamic Absolute Monarchy
- King – Salman bin Abdulaziz
- Crown Prince – Mohammed Bin Salman
- Population – 34,218,169
- Overview – The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is the fifth largest country in Asia and second-largest in the Arab world. The capital and largest city is Riyadh. This kingdom was founded in the year 1932 by King Abdulaziz. Through a series of conquests, Abdulaziz united the four regions into a single state. Please note that the economy of Saudi Arabia is the largest in the Middle East and the Eighteenth largest in the world.
3. State of Japan
- Capital – Tokyo
- Official Language – Japanese
- Religion – 84% – 96% Shinto as indigenous religion
- Total Area – 377,975 km sq.
- Country – Japan
- Name of the Monarch – Naruhito (Emperor of Japan)
- Prime Minister – Fumio Kishida
- Population – 125,440,000
- Overview – Japan is a constitutional monarchy under the Imperial House of Japan. It is believed that the kingdom was established by Emperor Kinmei in the 6th Century. Please note that the power of Emperor in the Kingdom is limited to a ceremonial role only. The current emperor of Japan is Naruhito. He succeeded his father Akihito upon his accession to the Chrysanthemum Throne in 2019.
Check: Richest families in the world
4. Federation of Malaysia
- Capital – Putrajaya
- Official Language – Malaysian
- Ethnic Group – 69.7% Bumiputera, 22.9% Chinese, 6.6% Indian, 0.8% Others
- Religion – 61.3% Islam (official), 19.8% Buddhism, 9.2% Christianity, 6.3% Hinduism, 3.4% Chinese folk, 0.7% Unknown, 0.5% Others
- Total Area – 330,803 km sq.
- Country – Malaysia
- Name of the Monarch – Sultan Abdullah of Pahang
- Prime Minister – Ismail Sabri Yaakob
- Population – 32,730,000
- Overview – Malaysia has quite a unique system with nine Malay sultans taking turns to get the role of a King after every 5 years. The current king is Sultan Abdullah of Pahang. He was elected on 24th January 2019 at a special meeting of the conference of Rulers. Putrajaya is the administrative capital of the Kingdom and Kuala Lumpur is the largest city. This kingdom has got its independence from the United Kingdom in 1957 took the name the “Federation of Malaya”.
5. Kingdom of Spain
- Capital – Madrid
- Official Language – Spanish
- Ethnic Group – 84.8% Spaniards, 15.2% Others
- Religion – 57.6% Christianity, 37.7% No religion, 2.9% Others, 1.8% Unanswered
- Total Area – 505,990 Km Sq.
- Country – Spain
- Name of the Monarch – King Felipe VI
- Prime Minister – Pedro Sánchez
- Population – 47,450,795
- Overview – Spain follows a constitutional monarchy with a hereditary monarch and a bicameral parliament. The head of the state is the King i.e. Felipe VI. He is in power since 19th June 2014. The kingdom has a high income with fourteenth largest economy by nominal GDP and sixteenth largest economy by PPP in the world. Another good thing about the kingdom is that it has one of the longest life expectancies in the world at 83.5 years in 2019.
6. United Arab Emirates
- Capital – Abu Dhabi
- Official Language – Arabic, English
- Ethnic Group – 59.4% South Asian, 11.6% Emirati Arab, 10.2% Egyptian, 6.1% Filipino, 12.7% Others.
- Religion – 76.0% Islam, 9.0% Christianity, 8.2% Hinduism, 1.8% Buddhism, 5.0% Others
- Total Area – 83,600 km. sq.
- Country – United Arab Emirates
- Name of the Monarch – Sheik Khalifa, Emir of Abu Dhabi
- Crown Prince – Crown Prince Mohammed
- Population – 10,095,355
- Overview – The United Arab Emirates follow an elective monarchy system to form a federation of seven emirates. These seven emirates include Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharjah, and Umm Al Quwain. The current head of the state is Sheik Khalifa, Emir of Abu Dhabi. The Capital of the kingdom is Abu Dhabi.
7. Kingdom of Sweden
- Capital – Stockholm
- Official Language – Swedish
- Legislature – Riksdag
- Religion – 66.8% Christianity, 27% No religion, 5% Islam, 1.2% others
- Total Area – 450,295 Km sq.
- Country – Sweden
- Name of the Monarch – Carl XVI Gustaf
- Prime Minister – Magdalena Andersson
- Population – 10,402,070
- Overview – The political system that is followed in Sweden is Unitary Parliamentary Constitutional Monarchy. We can say that Swedish Kingdom is one of the most developed Kingdoms in the world. The Country has very high standards of living. King Carl XVI Gustaf is the head of state but his role is limited to ceremonial and representative functions. According to the 1974 instrument of Government, the King doesn’t have any political power.
8. Kingdom of Thailand
- Capital – Bangkok
- Official Language – Thai
- Ethnic Group – 86% Thai, 4% Malay, 2% khmer, 8% other
- Religion – 93.5% Buddhism, 5.4% Islam, 1.13% Christianity, 0.02% Hinduism, 0.003% No religion.
- Total Area – 513,120 km2
- Country – Thailand
- Name of the Monarch – Rama X (Vajiralongkorn)
- Prime Minister – Prayut Chan-o-cha
- Population – 69,950,850
- Overview – The historical name of the Kingdom of Thailand is Siam. This country has a constitutional monarchy in which a hereditary monarch serves as head of the state. Currently, Rama X or Vajiralongkorn is the king of the country. Please note that King is the head of the Armed Forces and must be Buddhist as well as the defender of the Faith. The monarchy is the state that is protected by the severe Lese majeste law.
9. State of Kuwait
- Capital – Kuwait City
- Official Language – Arabic
- Ethnic Group – 57.8% Arab, 40.3% Asian, 1.0% African, 0.9% Other
- Religion – 74.6% Islam (official), 18.2% Christianity, 7.2% Others
- Total Area – 17,818 km sq.
- Name of the Monarch – Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
- Crown Prince – Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
- Prime Minister – Sabah Khalid al-Sabah
- Population – 4,420,110
- Overview – The state of Kuwait is a unitary parliamentary semi-constitutional monarchy. Many a time, the political system of Kuwait is also called “Anocratic”. According to a report by Freedom House, the country of Kuwait is “partly free”. The head of the state is called as “Emir”. The Emir has the power to choose the prime minister, who in turn chooses the cabinet of ministers comprising the government.
10. Kingdom of Bhutan
- Capital – Thimphu
- Official Language – Dzongkha
- Religion – 74.8% Buddhism (official), 22.6% Hinduism, 1.9% Bon or Folk, 0.4% Christianity, 0.1% Islam, 0.1% Other
- Total Area – 38,394 km. sq.
- Demonym – Bhutanese
- Name of the Monarch – Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck (Druk Gyalpo)
- Prime Minister – Lotay Tshering
- Population – 754,388
- Overview – The political system of Bhutan is based on a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary form of government. The head of the state is Druk Gyalpo (Dragon King). After a few reforms especially in the year 2008, the country is moving towards more of a democratic system. The representation of minorities is increasing in Bhutan’s government since 2008, including in the cabinet, parliament and local government.
