Marche (Political Subdivision) Italian, EnglishFrom the plural of Late Latin
marca meaning
"borderland, march", of Germanic origin. This is the name of a region in central Italy, named for the March of Ancona, a frontier region in the Carolingian Empire.
Maxwell (Settlement) ScottishMeans
"Mack's stream", from the name
Mack, a short form of the Scandinavian name
Magnus, combined with Old English
wille "well, stream". This is the name of a place in Roxburghshire, Scotland.
Meirionnydd (Political Subdivision) WelshProbably from the Roman name
Marianus. This is the name of a Welsh county (Anglicized as
Merioneth).
Mérida (Settlement) SpanishFrom Latin
Emerita Augusta meaning "veterans of
Augustus". This was a colony founded by the emperor Augustus for his veterans, and it is now a city in Extremadura, Spain. There are other cities named after it in Mexico and Venezuela.
Milan (Settlement) English, FrenchFrom Latin
Mediolanum, perhaps derived from Celtic elements meaning
"middle of the plain". This is the name of a major city in Italy.
Miranda (Settlement & Political Subdivision) Spanish, PortuguesePossibly a derivative of Latin
mirandus "admirable, wonderful". This is the name of several towns in Spain, Portugal and the Americas. It is also the name of a Venezuelan state.
Montana (Political Subdivision) EnglishDerived from Latin
montanus "mountainous". This is the name of an American state.
Montgomery (Settlement) FrenchMeans
"Gumarich's mountain" in Norman French. This is the name of communes in Calvados, France.
Neuville (Settlement) FrenchMeans
"new town" in French. This is the name of various towns in France.
Niger (River & Country) English, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Croatian, Serbian, Late RomanMeaning unknown, possibly of Berber origin, though influenced by Latin
niger "black". This is the name of a river in Western Africa (and a country that is named after it).
Nigeria (Country) English, French, Italian, Spanish, German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Polish, Romanian, Albanian, GeorgianFrom the name of the
Niger River, applied in the 19th century to the British colonial territory in Western Africa. It continued to be used after the territory became an independent country in 1960.
Nubia (Region) English, Late RomanPossibly derives from the Egyptian word
nbw meaning
"gold". This was the name of an ancient region and kingdom in Africa, south of Egypt.
Orléans (Settlement) FrenchFrench form of
Aurelianum, the name of a city in central France. The city in Louisiana,
La Nouvelle-Orléans or
New Orleans, was named after Philippe II, the Duke of Orléans.
Orleans (Settlement) EnglishEnglish form of
Orléans. This is the name of several towns in the Americas, notably the city of New Orleans in Louisiana.
Padua (Settlement) English, German, Spanish, DutchFrom Italian
Padova, Latin
Patavium, of unknown meaning. This is the name of a city in northern Italy.
Pavia (Settlement) Italian, EnglishFrom Late Latin
Papia, of unknown meaning. This is the name of a city in northern Italy. In classical Latin it was called
Ticinum.
Pays-Bas (Country) FrenchFrom French
pays "country, land" and
bas "low". This is the French name for the
Netherlands (for which it is also a translation).
Pesaro (Settlement) Italian, EnglishFrom Latin
Pisaurum, of uncertain meaning. This is the name of a city in central Italy.
Portugal (Country) Portuguese, English, French, Spanish, Galician, Catalan, German, Dutch, Luxembourgish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Indonesian, MalayFrom
Portugale, which was derived from
Portus Cale, the old name of the city of Porto. The name of the city was later applied to the entire country.
Princeton (Settlement) EnglishThe name of a town in New Jersey, originally called
Princetown when it was established in the early 18th century. It is said to have been named for William III, the Prince of Orange.
Provence (Region) French, English, GermanFrom Latin
provincia meaning
"province", a Roman territorial division. This is the name a region in southern France, originally acquiring its name because it was the first Roman province beyond the Alps.
Romagna (Region & Political Subdivision) Italian, English, GermanFrom Latin
Romania, in this case the name of a historic region on the Adriatic coast of Italy (part of the modern administrative region of Emilia-Romagna).
Romania (Country & Region) English, Italian, Ancient RomanFrom Latin meaning
"land of the Romans" (see
Rome). This is the name of a country in Eastern Europe, so named in the 16th century because of its historic and linguistic connections to the Roman Empire.
... [more] Rome (Settlement) English, French, DutchMeaning uncertain, from Latin
Roma. It is possibly of Etruscan origin. This is the name of the capital city of Italy, formerly the capital of the Roman Kingdom, Republic and Empire. According to legend the city was named for
Romulus.
Romilly (Settlement) FrenchFrom the Latin name
Romilius, a derivative of
Romulus. This is the name of several communes in northern France.
Saint Clair (Settlement) FrenchName commemorating Saint
Clair. This is the name of several communes in France.
Saint Denis (Settlement) FrenchName commemorating Saint
Denis. This is the name of several communes in France.
Saint Maur (Settlement) FrenchName commemorating Saint
Maurus. This is the name of several communes in France.
Saint Pierre (Settlement & Island) FrenchName commemorating Saint
Peter. This is the name of several communes in France as well as a French island near Newfoundland.
Santa Ana (Settlement) SpanishThe name of several places in the Spanish-speaking world, in honour of Saint
Anna.
Santana (Settlement) PortugueseThe name of several places in the Portuguese-speaking world, in honour of Saint
Anna.
Santiago (Settlement) Spanish, PortugueseThis is the name of several cities in Spain and Portugal, so named for Saint
James (see the given name
Santiago for more information). It is also used for many other cities in the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking worlds, notably the capital city of Chile.
Scotland (Country) EnglishMeans
"land of the Scots", from Latin
Scoti meaning "Gaelic speaker". This is the name of a country (part of the
United Kingdom) in the north of the island of Great Britain.
Spain (Country) EnglishDerived from
Hispania, the Latin name of the Iberian Peninsula, which is of uncertain origin. It could be derived from Punic
I-Shaphan meaning
"land of the rabbits".
St John (Settlement) EnglishName commemorating Saint
John. This is the name of several towns in England.
Sydney (Settlement) EnglishCity in Australia that was named after Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney (1733-1800). His title originally came from the name of its first holder, Robert
Sidney (1563-1626).
Tracy (Settlement) FrenchDerived from the given name
Thracius. This is the name of communes in Calvados, France.
Turkey (Country) EnglishFrom Latin
Turcia, derived from the ethnonym
Turk, which is from Old Turkic possibly meaning "ancestry". This is the name of a country situated on the Anatolian peninsula.
United Kingdom (Country) EnglishThe name of a Western European island country, composed of the smaller countries of
England,
Wales,
Scotland and Northern Ireland. It is almost always written with the definite article
the. This name came into use in the year 1801, when the realm was officially renamed from the
Kingdom of Great Britain to the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. After
Ireland became independent in 1922 it was formally renamed the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
United States (Country) EnglishThe name of a country in North America, almost always written with the definite article
the. The country is officially named the
United States of America, and is also commonly called
America or the
USA. It was selected in 1776 when 13 British colonies on the eastern coast united to declare their independence from Britain. Etymologically, the English words in the name are both of Latin origin (
unitus and
status).
Valencia (Settlement & Region) Spanish, Italian, English, GermanThe name of a city and surrounding region in eastern Spain, originally named in Latin
Valentia (Edetanorum) meaning
"strength (of the Edetani people)", and derived from Latin
valentius "strength, vigour", from
valens "strong, vigorous". Besides the city in Spain, this is also the name of a city in Venezuala.
Venetia (Region & Settlement) Ancient Roman, Late Roman, GreekFrom the name of the Veneti people who inhabited northeastern Italy in ancient times. Their tribal name possibly meant something like "kinfolk" or "friendly". This was the Latin name for the region now called
Veneto, and later the Latin name for the city of
Venice (which did not exist in the classical period).
Veneto (Political Subdivision) Italian, EnglishThe name of a region in northeastern Italy, called
Venetia in Latin, named after the Veneti people who lived there in ancient times.
Venezuela (Country) Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian, Slovene, Croatian, Albanian, Turkish, Indonesian, MalayPossibly from Italian
Veneziola meaning
"little Venice". This is the name of a country on the northern coast of South America. The region was supposedly named this in 1499 by a Spanish expedition (which included Amerigo Vespucci) because an indigenous town on Lake Maracaibo was built on stilts over the water, reminiscent of the Italian city. Another theory suggests that the country's name comes from
Veneciuela, the name of a local people.
Venice (Settlement) EnglishFrom Italian
Venezia, derived from Latin
Venetia. This is the name of a city of northeastern Italy, the capital of the Veneto region, famous for its canals.
Victoria (Political Subdivision, Settlement & Body of Water) EnglishFrom the given name
Victoria. It has generally been bestowed in honour of Queen Victoria (1819-1901). This is the name of many places in the former British Empire, including an Australian state and a Canadian city.
Vienna (Settlement) English, ItalianMeaning uncertain. It could be from Celtic
vedunia meaning
"forest stream", or possibly from the name of an earlier Roman settlement
Vindobona. This is the name of the capital of Austria.
Vindobona (Settlement) Ancient RomanFrom Celtic
windos "white" and
bona "foundation, fort". This was a Roman military town on the site of the Austrian city of
Vienna.
Warwick (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
wer "weir, dam" and
wic "village, town". This is the name of a town in England.
Wickham (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
wic "village, town" (of Latin origin) and
ham "home, settlement". This is the name of a few towns in England.