A federal republic is a federation

Federation

A federation , also known as a federal state, is a type of sovereign state characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central government...

 of states with a republic

Republic

A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...

an form of government. A federation is the central government. The states in a federation also maintain the federation. Usage of the term republic is inconsistent but, as a minimum, it means a state or federation of states that does not have a monarch

Monarch

A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...

.

In a federal republic, there is a division of powers between the national ("federal") government, and the government of the individual subdivisions. While each federal republic manages this division of powers differently, national security and defense, monetary policy, and other issues of a "national" scope are handled at the "federal" level while more local issues such as road and infrastructure maintenance and education policy are handled at the local level. In other words, while the federal government has ultimate sovereignty, there is a limited sovereignty granted to the subdivisions, where the federal government does not have jurisdiction. This is in contrast to a unitary republic whereby the national government has complete sovereignty over all aspects of political life, with purely administrative subdivisions, and a confederation

Confederation

A confederation in modern political terms is a permanent union of political units for common action in relation to other units. Usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution, confederations tend to be established for dealing with critical issues such as defense, foreign...

 whereby the constituent states retain ultimate sovereignty. The form of government is used by many countries around the world.

Contemporary

Nation	Official Name and Style Style (manner of address) A style of office, or honorific, is a legal, official, or recognized title. A style, by tradition or law, precedes a reference to a person who holds a post or political office, and is sometimes used to refer to the office itself. An honorific can also be awarded to an individual in a personal...	Subdivisions	Head of state Head of State A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
Argentina	Argentine Republic Republic A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...	Provinces Provinces of Argentina Argentina is subdivided into twenty-three provinces and one autonomous city...	President President of Argentina The President of the Argentine Nation , usually known as the President of Argentina, is the head of state of Argentina. Under the national Constitution, the President is also the chief executive of the federal government and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.Through Argentine history, the...
Austria	Republic of Austria	States States of Austria Austria is a federal republic made up of nine states, known in German as Länder . Since Land is also the German word for a country, the term Bundesländer is often used instead to avoid ambiguity. The Constitution of Austria uses both terms...	Federal President
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Entities Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina The political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina were created by the Dayton Agreement, which recognized a second tier of government in Bosnia and Herzegovina comprising two entities—a joint Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republika Srpska -- each presiding over roughly one half of...	Collective Presidency Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the head of state of Bosnia and Herzegovina.-Overview:...
Brazil	Federative Republic of Brazil	States	President President of Brazil The president of Brazil is both the head of state and head of government of the Federative Republic of Brazil. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the Brazilian Armed Forces...
Comoros	Union Political union A political union is a type of state which is composed of or created out of smaller states. Unlike a personal union, the individual states share a common government and the union is recognized internationally as a single political entity...  of the Comoros	Autonomous islands	President
Ethiopia	Federal Democratic Republic Democratic republic A democratic republic is a country which is both a republic and a democracy. However, in practice countries which describe themselves as democratic republics do not always hold free or fair elections. An example of this was the German Democratic Republic, a communist state commonly known as East...  of Ethiopia	Regions Regions of Ethiopia ||Ethiopia is divided into 9 ethnically-based administrative regions and two chartered cities...	President
Germany	Federal Republic of Germany	States States of Germany Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...	Federal President President of Germany The President of the Federal Republic of Germany is the country's head of state. His official title in German is Bundespräsident . Germany has a parliamentary system of government and so the position of President is largely ceremonial...
India	Republic Republic A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...  of India	States States and territories of India India is a federal union of states comprising twenty-eight states and seven union territories. The states and territories are further subdivided into districts and so on.-List of states and territories:...	President President of India The President of India is the head of state and first citizen of India, as well as the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. President of India is also the formal head of all the three branches of Indian Democracy - Legislature, Executive and Judiciary...
Iraq	Republic of Iraq	Regions	President President of Iraq The President of Iraq is the head of state of Iraq and "safeguards the commitment to the Constitution and the preservation of Iraq's independence, sovereignty, unity, the security of its territories in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution." The President is elected by the Council of...
Mexico	United Mexican States	States	President President of Mexico The President of the United Mexican States is the head of state and government of Mexico. Under the Constitution, the president is also the Supreme Commander of the Mexican armed forces...
	Federated States of Micronesia	States	President President of the Federated States of Micronesia The following is a list of the Presidents of the Federated States of Micronesia:-See also:*High Commissioner of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands...
Nepal	Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal	Yet to decide by the constituent assembly	President President of Nepal The position of President of Nepal constitutes the head of state of Nepal and was created after the country was declared a republic in May 2008. Girija Prasad Koirala was the first head of state of Nepal elected by the major parties on 19 May 2006. The current head of state of Nepal is President...
Nigeria	Federal Republic of Nigeria	States States of Nigeria Nigeria is currently divided into 36 states and Abuja, the federal capital territory. The states are further divided into 774 Local Government Areas....	President President of Nigeria The President of Nigeria is the Head of State and head of the national executive. Officially styled President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces. The current President of Nigeria is Goodluck Jonathan.-History:On October 1, 1960, Nigeria gained...
Pakistan	Islamic Republic Islamic republic Islamic republic is the name given to several states in the Muslim world including the Islamic Republics of Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, and Mauritania. Pakistan adopted the title under the constitution of 1956. Mauritania adopted it on 28 November 1958. Iran adopted it after the 1979 Iranian...  of Pakistan	Provinces and Tribal areas Subdivisions of Pakistan The administrative units of Pakistan consist of four provinces, one federal capital territory, and a group of federally-administered tribal areas...	President President of Pakistan The President of Pakistan is the head of state, as well as figurehead, of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Recently passed an XVIII Amendment , Pakistan has a parliamentary democratic system of government. According to the Constitution, the President is chosen by the Electoral College to serve a...
Russia	Russian Federation Federation A federation , also known as a federal state, is a type of sovereign state characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central government...	Federal subjects Federal subjects of Russia Russia is a federation which, since March 1, 2008, consists of 83 federal subjects . In 1993, when the Constitution was adopted, there were 89 federal subjects listed...	President
	Republic of South Sudan	States	President
Sudan	Republic of the Sudan	States States of Sudan Below is a list of the 15 states of Sudan, organized by their original provinces during the period of Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. Arabic language versions are, as appropriate, in parentheses. States that were not provinces before 1994 are marked with . Transliterations from Arabic to English may vary;...	President
Switzerland	Swiss Confederation Confederation A confederation in modern political terms is a permanent union of political units for common action in relation to other units. Usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution, confederations tend to be established for dealing with critical issues such as defense, foreign...	Cantons Cantons of Switzerland The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...	Federal Council Swiss Federal Council The Federal Council is the seven-member executive council which constitutes the federal government of Switzerland and serves as the Swiss collective head of state....
United States	United States of America	States U.S. state A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...	President President of the United States The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Venezuela	Bolivarian Republic Republic A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...  of Venezuela	States States of Venezuela Venezuela is divided into 23 states , 1 Capital District and the Federal Dependencies that consist of a large number of Venezuelan islands...	President

Historic

Federation	Official Name and Style Style (manner of address) A style of office, or honorific, is a legal, official, or recognized title. A style, by tradition or law, precedes a reference to a person who holds a post or political office, and is sometimes used to refer to the office itself. An honorific can also be awarded to an individual in a personal...	Period	Subdivisions
Dutch Republic	Republic of the Seven United Netherlands	1581–1795	Provinces
	Republic of Colombia Gran Colombia Gran Colombia is a name used today for the state that encompassed much of northern South America and part of southern Central America from 1819 to 1831. This short-lived republic included the territories of present-day Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Panama, northern Peru and northwest Brazil. The... United States of Colombia United States of Colombia The United States of Colombia was the name adopted in 1861 through the Rionegro Constitution for the nation which had been known as the Republic of New Granada since the dissolution of the federation of Gran Colombia in 1830-1831....	1819-1831 1863–1886	States States of Colombia States of Colombia existed from February 27, 1855 in the Republic of New Granada and the Granadine Confederation, were they were called "federal states"...
Federal Republic of Central America Federal Republic of Central America The Federal Republic of Central America, known as the United Provinces of Central America in its first year of creation, was a sovereign state in Central America, which consisted of the territories of the former Captaincy General of Guatemala of New Spain...	United Provinces of Central America Federal Republic of Central America	1823–1838
	German Reich (Weimar Republic Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government... ) Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany West Germany West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990.... )	1919-1933 1949-1990	States States States of Germany Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
Soviet Union	Union of Soviet Socialist Republics	1922-1991	Republics Republics of the Soviet Union The Republics of the Soviet Union or the Union Republics of the Soviet Union were ethnically-based administrative units that were subordinated directly to the Government of the Soviet Union...
Kingdom of Yugoslavia	Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia	1945-1963 1963-1992	Republics
Serbia and Montenegro	Federal Republic of Yugoslavia State Union of Serbia and Montenegro	1992-2003 2003-2006	Republics
Myanmar	Union of Burma	1948-1962	States
Indonesia	Republic of the United States of Indonesia Republic of the United States of Indonesia The Republic of the United States of Indonesia , also abbreviated as RUSI, was a federal state to which the Netherlands formally transferred sovereignty of the Dutch East Indies on 27 December 1949 following the Dutch-Indonesian Round Table Conference...	1949-1950The states lived on until a final treaty in 1956 in which Republic of South Maluku and the State of Eastern Sumatra agreed to devolve into the Republic of Indonesia.	States
Cameroon	Federal Republic of Cameroon	1961-1972
Czechoslovakia	Czechoslovak Socialist Republic Czechoslovak Socialist Republic The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was the official name of Czechoslovakia from 1960 until end of 1989 , a Soviet satellite state of the Eastern Bloc.... Czech and Slovak Federative Republic	1969-1990 1990-1993	Socialist Republics