The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word GUATEMALA
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
G
U
A
T
E
M
A
L
A
More clues leading to the result GUATEMALA
- Strangely mute, a gala in the country
- Came across gold during a delay up country
- A weak little boat reversing around a country
- United team playing in festive event for country
- Note in Pacific Island what’s in the style of Latin American place
- Country with university team represented in festival
- Country fair gatecrashed by United team after training
- Country festivity captivated university mate when drunk
- A distraught mate held in unfinished prison camp in part of America
- Bit of unusual meat cooked in festivity in foreign land
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "country" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case country = guatemala.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.