This is the updated rank of countries by happiness of the Gallup World Poll published by Forbes for the period 2005 – 2009. Forbes said that it corresponds to 155 countries between 2005 and 2009 and it concludes seriously that quantifying happiness isn’t an easy task. We are completely agree and more that we are more suspicious of it with the results that changed so dramatically from the 2007 to the 2010 results. In the 1995 – 2007 World Values Surveys, as an example, Colombia ranked 3rd world happiest country, but in this result it failed to 26th! Now the Gallup researchers were carefully trained to put at the top of happiness the richest nations: ‘The Scandinavian countries do really well,’ says Forbes citing Jim Harter, a chief scientist at Gallup, which developed the poll.
Photo ‘Cheers’ by See-ming Lee from New York, NY, USA
I wonder how embarrass industrialized countries were with the previous polls showing for example that US was the 16th world nation in happiness (now it made 14th) and UK the 21rst (now 17th). No! It is necessary to keep the face: poor is unhappy and rich is happy, according with their schemes. Saying the contrary can attend against the laws of global markets and it is necessary to keep migration, although we play around with nationalistic and hypocritical laws against migration. Then, let move this Ireland that was 6th (happiest than UK) to 22… and… Colombia… that was 3 (three! that mafia country!) to… mmm… to 26… that’s better.
Well, let’s put Israel that was 45 (poor… our dear friend and main ally in Middle East) to 8. Yes, 8th happiest country of the world, even if they are daily terrified by the evil Palestinian child terrorist… Forbes continues with its great analysis of existence, as a Greek philosopher and says: ‘The Gallup researchers found evidence of what many have long suspected: money does buy happiness–at least a certain kind of it.‘ Waw.
It makes me remember a friend of mine from the Netherlands. He was escaping from his country to take refuge in New Zealand. He did not do wrongs in the rich Gallup-world-happiest country of Holland, but he just was tired of how materialistic his country became, where much people think only in buying things at the mall, according with his words (and I ask sorry to my Dutch friends.) Then comparing Holland with Spain in happiness and establishing that Holland is happiest than Spain is completely astonishing.
Then you find countries like India or Cambodia at the bottom of the list! Poor but happy, it would be said by an American friend of mine that knew Colombia and discovered that factual reality there, not in Holland or Denmark. I would invite Gallup to visit Colombia, Venezuela, Cambodia, India, Vietnam, Congo… and by sure, its research will lose its balance. Here the Gallup rank. I underlined the Hispanic American countries plus Spain. Puerto Rico is also contemplated, to answer to one of my Puerto Rican readers that even called me ignorant for mentioning it as a country. Well, Puerto Rico is normally placed in global ranks by Gallup, Forbes and many other international organization and not just our Colombia Passport website. I let also the previous rank, so you can compare the arranges of Gallup 
Previous ranks for the period 1995 – 2005
This is the list of the subjective well-being in 97 countries based on reported happiness and life satisfaction, equally weighted. The rank is stated from happiest to least happy. Negative scores indicates that a majority of the population is unhappy/dissatisfied with life.
It comes from a combined data from 1995 – 2007 World Values Surveys.
The score only showing the American nations:
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my ,my, i love the fanfare, but nobody can name even one country which recognizes puerto rico, USA as a country. why? because it is not a country! there are but 195 countries in the world today and puerto rico, USA does not make the list. those wishing to ignore the FACTS only fool themselves and the FACT remains: puerto rico is not now nor ever has been a country no matter how much any one of us personally wants it to be. r.i.p.
You omitted Israel, and it’s listed as 8th happiest in the world (despite the warring neighbors) and Israel is #8 in life expectancy.
I believe your list has to be revised and updated for accuracy.
We may not be an Independent Country or State as define by Political Science, but we are definitely a Nation by all the different definitions that has been given. We have a distinct culture that defines us differently from the political relation that we have been submitted. I have no quarrels with the United States. However, our status should be defined once and for all. For all the people that posted something to pursue their political agenda, that feel less if we are not sucking from the boob of the Megalopolis, that believe only in statehood and cant acknowledge that given the opportunity and the tools we could be a fine Country, just leave the Island. However, I still believe that the study is correct. No matter what, we are a very hospitable, passionate, happy people. If we only watch the news, yes we see a lot of criminality, because violence’s sells. However, I believe that we are happy people trying to find a way to progress on Earth.
By the way, educate yourself about the different governmental systems. A State (which in Political Science is the supreme public power within a sovereign political entity), can have many different political system. It could be a Republic, Communism, City-state, Dictatorship, Directorial, Feudalism, Monarchy, and Parliamentary, Presidential, Semi-presidential. Some of these do not have a President as Head of State. But, they are still regarded as independent State systems.
Furthermore, the US Dollar is the official currency of Zimbabwe, Palau Marshall Islands, El Salvador, British Virgin Islands, Ecuador and the Federated States of Micronesia. And, except for British Virgin Islands, they are all sovereign states. In simpler words, a Country does not need to have its own currency to be independent.
Another fact that should be revised is your last point about the necessity of a military organ to be a Sovereign State; there are at least a couple of treaties of common or reciprocal defense in case of military action against nation that enjoined the agreement. NATO, the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, the Collective Defense Treaty of Southeast Asia and the European Union, which in 2000, France, the UK, Spain and Germany accounted for the 97% of the total military budget of the European Union member state. This tells us that a country does not need an acting military to be part of this reciprocal military defense as long as it can provide logistical and other means to support the other members of the agreement. So, an independent country can enter a pact of common defense with another nation, without losing its independent status.
Yes, we have never been independent, however, by the nineteenth century, Puerto Ricans were a distinct people, aspiring to achieve independence from Spanish rule and establish their own nation. On September 23, 1868, independence fighters struck out in the “Grito de Lares” (Cry of Lares) and declared a democratic republic. Although this uprising was not successful for long, it did win a series of concessions, including a process for achieving full independence from Spain. On July 17, 1898, an independent government was officially installed in Puerto Rico. A week later, however, the island was invaded by U.S. forces. After 400 years of Spanish domination, the island was now under the control of the United States.
I hate blogging and ignorant bloggers, who state there points as if they were an authority in the matter, when most of the post something as an emotional and not rational reaction to whatever they have been exposed. Those who further there ideologies or agendas, forget that for every action there is a reaction and there is no absolute truth. At least, really educate yourself, before you go out and blog. I understand that people have different opinions but at least, state entire facts and not tidbits that conform to your opinion. Ignorance for some, it’s a virtue!
WHO AMONG YOU IS AN UNEDUCATED IDIOT TO THINK PUERTO RICO IS A COUNTRY? NEVER IN HISTORY HAS PUERTO RICO BEEN A COUNTRY.
HINTS: WHAT COUNTRY IN THE WORLD HAS EVER ACKNOWLEDGED PUERTO RICO AS A COUNTRY?
WHO IS THE PRESIDENT OF PUERTO RICO?
WHERE IS THE PUERTO RICO MILITARY?
WHERE IS THE PUERTO RICO CURRENCY?….
PUERTO RICO DOES NOT, NOR EVER HAS MET THE CRITERIA FOR “COUNTRY”.
PLEASE BECOME EDUCATED AND ENLIGHTENED AND STOP INSULTING THE INTELLIGENCE OF PUERTO RICAN AMERICANS! WE, WHO ARE EDUCATED, KNOW PUERTO RICO IS A COMMONWEALTH OF THE USA – A COLONLY CEDED FROM SPAIN IN 1898.
PLEASE STOP SHOWING YOUR IGNORANCE!
These lists make a big mistake naming “Puerto Rico” when the correct is “COSTA RICA”. Puerto Rico is not even a country, but rather, a “free associated state” of the United States. Besides, people always tend to confuse both names. This should be ammended on the list.
Puerto Rico is mentioned in many international list as a country, though it is not politically a country. It is not a mistake.
A country can be compared to an individual person, that being rich is not synonymous with happiness.
i dont think that colombia is the #3 this list is wrong there is a lot of crime and drugs in co having the most dangerous city in the world bogota this list is very bad and italians at 46 italians live a lot better than colombians and nigerians nigeria at 29 one of the worst countrie in the world woerever make this list is crazy.
Fran, this is not the 80′s. Get your facts straight and document yourself about the current and real situation of Colombia. There are drugs and Crime, but Colombia is not more dangerous than other countries or even cities like New York and Los Angeles in the US.
I want to thank the blogger very much not only for this post but also for his all previous efforts. I found colombiapassport.com to be greatly interesting. I will be coming back to colombiapassport.com for more information.
[...] against a number of different metrics for societal well-being, specifically life expectancy, self-reported happiness rank, GDP purchasing power parity, and income equality (richest 10% vs poorest 10% ratio). There were [...]
and Cambodia ?
[...] List of ranked happiest countries by World Values Surveys [...]
[...] List of ranked happiest countries by World Values SurveysThis is the list of the subjective well-being in 97 countries based on reported happiness and life satisfaction, equally weighted. The rank is stated from happiest to least happy. Negative scores indicates that a majority of the … [...]
[...] List of ranked happiest countries by World Values SurveysThis is the list of the subjective well-being in 97 countries based on reported happiness and life satisfaction, equally weighted. The rank is stated from happiest to least happy. Negative scores indicates that a majority of the … [...]