Travelling around the world, you’ll find that people generally have a good perception of our country. As Canadians, we pride ourselves in calling home a part of the world that’s not only breathtakingly beautiful, diverse (and tolerantly so), and economically strong, but also peaceful. But how true is the latter? Would it surprise you to know that according to the Global Peace Index, countries such as Japan and Ireland outrank us? Which nation ranked #1? You’ll find that the top three countries are clustered in a very small part of the world (Clue: Mad Morten won’t stop bragging about it). And the United States of America? Well, let’s just say they barely made it into the top 100 most peaceful countries. Click on for the full details!

Global Peace Index Rankings

The table below provides the GPI rankings for the 140 countries analysed in 2008 and the 121 countries analysed in 2007. Countries most at peace are ranked first. A lower score indicates a more peaceful country.

To see the details of each country’s peace indicators and drivers, scroll down and click on the name of the country you’d like to see more information on.

Click on any country below for details on the peace indicators and drivers that affected its 2008 ranking on the Global Peace Index:

1. Iceland 2. Denmark 3. Norway 4. New Zealand 5. Japan 6. Ireland 7. Portugal 8. Finland 9. Luxembourg 10. Austria 11. Canada 12. Switzerland 13. Sweden 14. Germany 15. Belgium 16. Slovenia 17. Czech Republic 18. Hungary 19. Chile 20. Slovakia 21. Uruguay 22. Netherlands 23. Hong Kong 24. Romania 25. Oman 26. Bhutan 27. Australia 28. Italy 29. Singapore 30. Spain 31. Poland 32. South Korea 33. Qatar 34. Costa Rica 35. Estonia 36. France 37. Vietnam 38. Malaysia 39. Latvia 40. Ghana 41. Lithuania 42. United Arab Emirates 43. Madagascar 44. Taiwan 45. Kuwait 46. Botswana 47. Tunisia 48. Panama 49. United Kingdom 50. Mozambique 51. Laos 52. Cyprus 53. Zambia 54. Greece 55. Gabon 56. Argentina 57. Bulgaria 58. Tanzania 59. Nicaragua 60. Croatia 61. Libya 62. Cuba 63. Morocco 64. Equatorial Guinea 65. Jordan 66. Bosnia and Herzegovina 67. China 68. Indonesia 69. Egypt 70. Paraguay 71. Senegal 72. Kazakhstan 73. Malawi 74. Bahrain 75. Syria 76. Rwanda 77. Namibia 78. Bolivia 79. Albania 80. Peru 81. Burkina Faso 82. Dominican Republic 83. Moldova 84. Ukraine 85. Serbia 86. Bangladesh 87. Macedonia 88. Mongolia 89. El Salvador 90. Brazil 91. Cambodia 92. Cameroon 93. Mexico 94. Belarus 95. Papua New Guinea 96. Jamaica 97. United States of America 98. Trinidad and Tobago 99. Mali 100. Ecuador 101. Azerbaijan 102. Turkmenistan 103. Guatemala 104. Honduras 105. Iran 106. Yemen 107. India 108. Saudi Arabia 109. Haiti 110. Angola 111. Uzbekistan 112. Algeria 113. Philippines 114. Uganda 115. Turkey 116. South Africa 117. Congo (Brazzaville) 118. Thailand 119. Kenya 120. Mauritania 121. Ethiopia 122. Cote d’Ivoire 123. Venezuela 124. Zimbabwe 125. Sri Lanka 126. Myanmar 127. Pakistan 128. Democratic Republic of Congo 129. Nigeria 130. Colombia 131. Russia 132. Lebanon 133. North Korea 134. Central African Republic 135. Chad 136. Israel 137. Afghanistan 138. Sudan 139. Somalia 140. Iraq