Abra(Political Subdivision)Filipino, Ilocano, Tagalog From Spanish abra meaning "opening, gap", so named for a topographic feature in the region. This is the name of a province of the Philippines.
Abruzzo(Political Subdivision)Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese From Late Latin Aprutium, itself probably from Praetūtium, which defined the territory in which the tribe of the Praetutii lived. This is the name of a region in southern Italy.
Aceh(Political Subdivision)Indonesian From Acehnese Acèh of uncertain meaning. A popular belief is that it is derived from the backronym Arab, Cina, Eropa, Hindia meaning "Arab, China, Europe, Indies", referring to the major regions that have historically influenced Aceh... [more]
Açores(Political Subdivision & Region)Portuguese, Catalan, French Portuguese form of Azores, which has been adopted into Catalan and French.
Acre(Political Subdivision & River)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese Most likely from Aquiri, a transliteration by European explorers of the Ipurinã term Umákürü or Uakiry. Other theories include the name originating from Tupi a'kir ü ("green river") or a'kir ("to sleep"), or from Yasi'ri, or Ysi'ri, meaning "flowing or swift water"... [more]
Adana(Settlement & Political Subdivision)Turkish City and province in Turkey.
Adygea(Political Subdivision)English From Russian Адыгея (Adygeya), which is from Adyghe адыгэ (adyge), the endonym of the Circassian (Adyghe) people. The ethnic name is of uncertain meaning, though it may mean "mountain between seas" or "mountain by the sea"... [more]
Adygeycho(Political Subdivision)Chechen From адыгей (adygey), the Chechen name for the Circassian (Adyghe) people, combined with the suffix -чоь (-cho) meaning "place of". This is the Chechen name for Adygea.
Aguascalientes(Political Subdivision)Spanish Means "hot waters" in Spanish, so named for the many hot springs in the region. This is the name of a state of, as well as a city in, Mexico.
Agusan(Political Subdivision & River)Filipino, Cebuano, Tagalog Derived from Manobo agusan meaning "where the water flows". This is the name of two provinces of the Philippines (Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur), as well as a the name of a former province and a river.
Aichi(Political Subdivision)Japanese Means "knowledge of love" in Japanese.
Aichi(Political Subdivision)Japanese From Japanese 愛 (ai) meaning "love, affection" and 知 (chi) meaning "wisdom". This is the name of a prefecture of Japan.
Akershus(Political Subdivision)Norwegian From the name of Akershus Fortress, composed of Aker (from Old West Norse akr "acre, field") and hús "house, castle, fortress". Aker used to be a Norwegian municipality, but it is now an area in Oslo... [more]
Akita(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Japanese From Japanese 秋 (aki) meaning "autumn" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy". This is the name of a city in Japan, as well as the prefecture in which the city is located.
Aklan(Political Subdivision & River)Filipino, Hiligaynon, Tagalog Derived from Aklanon akean meaning "where there is boiling or frothing", in reference to the flow of water at the shallow mouth of the Aklan River. This is the name of a province of, as well as a river in, the Philippines.
Aktobe(Political Subdivision & Settlement)English, Russian From Kazakh Ақтөбе (Aqtobe) meaning "white hill", derived from ақ (aq) meaning "white" and төбе (töbe) meaning "hill". This is the name of a region of, as well as a city in, Kazakhstan.
Alabang(Political Subdivision)Filipino Alabang is a lively business district and transport hub, with stations for commuter trains and intercity buses around Starmall shopping center. The long-standing Festival Supermall houses mid-range boutiques and department stores, plus indoor amusement parks and a multiplex movie theater... [more]
Alagoas(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese Plural form of Portuguese alagoa, a variant of lagoa ("lagoon"), referring to the Manguaba (the "southern lagoon") and Mundaú (the "northern lagoon") estuarine lagoons... [more]
Alaska(Political Subdivision)English Derived from Russian Аляска (Alyaska), which in turn is derived from Aleut alaxsxaq meaning "object to which the action of the sea is directed". Alaska is the largest of the 50 American states, located northwest of the United States mainland and bordering Canada.
Albay(Political Subdivision)Filipino, Central Bikol, Tagalog From Spanish al baye meaning "the bay", shortened from the former names La Baye la baye and Bay la Bay. This is the name of a province of the Philippines.
Alberta(Political Subdivision)English Name of one of the 12 provinces in Canada, named after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta (1848–1939), the fourth daughter of Victoria, Queen of Canada, and Albert, Prince Consort.
Alborz(Political Subdivision & Mountain)Persian Persian form of Hara Berezaiti, used as the name of a mountain and province in Iran.
Ålesund(Political Subdivision)Norwegian Means "eel strait" in Norwegian. Ålesund is the name of a town, a municipality and a region in Norway. It is also the name of a settlement (Ny-Ålesund) on Svalbard.
Alsace(Political Subdivision & Region)French, English, English (American) From Old High German Ali-saz or Elisaz, meaning "foreign domain". Alternatively, from Germanic Ell-sass, meaning "seated on the Ill", a river in Alsace.... [more]
Altai(Political Subdivision & Mountain)Altai, Russian, Mongolian, Kazakh, English From the Turkic roots altun meaning "gold" and tag meaning "mountain". This is the name of a mountain range in Central and East Asia as well as two territories of Russia.
Altay(Political Subdivision & Mountain)Altai, Russian, Mongolian, Kazakh, English Altai, Russian, Mongolian and Kazakh alternate transcription of Altai as well as an English variant.
Amani(Settlement & Political Subdivision)Georgian Georgian form of Amman.
Amapá(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian) Of uncertain origin. It may come from Tupi amapá, meaning "the place of the rain"; from a Nheengatu term meaning "island" or "land that ends", or from an Arawak term denoting the Hancornia amapa, a local species of tree; or from a Northern Geral term indicating a local species of tree... [more]
Amazonas(Political Subdivision & River)Portuguese (Brazilian), Spanish (Latin American), Spanish Reportedly named this way after the warriors, led by women, that attacked Francisco de Orellana's expedition, reminding him of the Amazons of Greek mythology. The word Amazon may come from Iranian *ha-maz-an- ("(one) fighting together") or *ha-mazan- ("warriors").... [more]
Ammāna(Settlement & Political Subdivision)Latvian Latvian form of Amman.
Amnat Charoen(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Thai From Thai อำนาจ (amnat) meaning "authority, power" and เจริญ (charoen) meaning "prosper, grow". This is the name of a province of, as well as a district and city in, Thailand.
Anadyr(Political Subdivision)Russian (Archaic) Although the town itself has only been in existence for just over a century, the origins of the name Anadyr are much older. The name initially derives from the Yukaghir word "any-an" meaning "river"
An Clár(Political Subdivision)Irish The Irish form of Clare, from the Irish word clár, meaning "plank", after a board that was placed across the River Fergus outside Clarecastle.... [more]
Andhra Pradesh(Political Subdivision)Indian "Andhra Pradesh" is a state in southern India. The name "Andhra" is believed to have originated from the Andhra people, an ancient Dravidian-speaking ethnic group who once inhabited the region. "Pradesh" is a Hindi word meaning "province" or "region," so "Andhra Pradesh" translates to "Land of the Andhras" or "Province of the Andhras."
An Giang(Political Subdivision)Vietnamese From Sino-Vietnamese 安 (an) meaning "safe" and 江 (giang) meaning "river".
An Giang(Political Subdivision)Vietnamese From Sino-Vietnamese 安 (an) meaning "safe, secure" and 江 (giang) meaning "river". This is the name of a province of Vietnam.
Ang Mo Kio(Political Subdivision & Settlement)English, Malay Meaning uncertain, possibly from Hokkien 紅毛 (Âng-mô͘) meaning "white person, Caucasian" (literally "red-haired") and 橋 (kiô) meaning "bridge". This is the name of a planning area and town in Singapore.
Ang Thong(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Thai Means "golden basin" from Thai อ่าง (ang) meaning "basin, bowl" and ทอง (thong) meaning "gold". This is the name of a province of, as well as a district and city in, Thailand.
An Iarmhí(Political Subdivision)Irish The Irish name for Westmeath, which was named after its split with County Meath, in Irish An Mhí, meaning "middle"... [more]
An Lú(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Irish The Irish name for Louth, from Lú, the modern Irish form of Lugh, a god from Irish mythology associated with skill in many disciplines, kingship and oaths.... [more]
Ansonia(Political Subdivision)English An eponymous city in Connecticut's Naugatuck River Valley named for founder Anson Green Phelps. In the 19th and early 20th centuries Ansonia was an manufacturing hub; one successful business was the Ansonia Clock Company, which sold world-wide... [more]
Antique(Political Subdivision)Filipino, Kinaray-a, Hiligaynon, Tagalog Hispanicized form of Kinaray-a hamtik or Hiligaynon hantik both referring to a species of large red ant. This is the name of a province of the Philippines.
Antrim(Political Subdivision)Irish County in Northern Ireland, meaning 'lone ridge'.
Anzio(Political Subdivision)Italian City on the shore of Italy. In Roman times it was known as Antium.
Aoba(Political Subdivision)Japanese From Japanese 青 (ao) meaning "blue, green" and 葉 (ha) meaning "leaf".
Aomen(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Chinese Means "bay gate" from Chinese 澳 (ào) meaning "inlet, bay, deep cove" and 门 (mén) meaning "gate, door". This is the Chinese name for Macau.
Aomori(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Japanese From Japanese 青 (ao) meaning "green, blue" and 森 (mori) meaning "forest". This is the name of a city in Japan, as well as the prefecture in which the city is located.
Aosetiya(Political Subdivision & Region)Taiwanese Chinese form of Ossetia chiefly used in Taiwan.
Apayao(Political Subdivision & River)Filipino, Itawit, Ilocano, Tagalog Derived from the word apa'yaw meaning "overtaking" in numerous Cordilleran languages, referring to the swift-flowing waters of the Apayao River. This is the name of a province of, as well as a river in, the Philippines.
Apulia(Political Subdivision)English, Ancient Roman, Polish, Spanish From Latin Apulia, itself of unknown origin, perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ep-, meaning "water". This is the name of a region in southern Italy.
Arkansas(Political Subdivision)English (American) Name of a state in the United States, from the French pronunciation of the Quapaw people who lived on the Arkansas River.
Artsakh(Political Subdivision)Armenian The Republic of Artsakh (Armenian: Արցախի Հանրապետություն, Artsakhi Hanrapetut'yun), or simply Artsakh, also known by its second official name, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, is a breakaway de facto state in the South Caucasus that is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan... [more]
Arunachal Pradesh(Political Subdivision)Indian "Arunachal Pradesh" is a state in northeastern India. The name "Arunachal" is derived from the Sanskrit words "Aruna" meaning "dawn" and "Achal" meaning "land," so "Arunachal" translates to "Land of the Dawn-Lit Mountains" or "Land of the Rising Sun." This name references the fact that the state is located in the easternmost part of India where the sun rises first.
Assam(Political Subdivision)English Most likely related to the name of the Ahom people, itself of unclear origin. This is the name of a state in northeastern India.
Athlacca(Settlement, Political Subdivision & Other)English From Irish An tÁth Leacach, meaning "the flagstone ford." It is the name of a settlement, ford, civil parish, and electoral division in County Limerick, Ireland.
Attapeu(Political Subdivision)Lao From Lao ອິດກະບຸເອັ (idkabue) meaning "buffaloes".
Attapeu(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Lao From a French corruption of the name Idkabue meaning "buffalo droppings", so named for the many wild buffaloes that roamed the area. This is the name of a province of, as well as a city in, Laos.
Aust-Agder(Political Subdivision)Norwegian From the Nynork word aust "east" and the place name agder. It means "the eastern part of Agder."... [more]
Auvergne(Political Subdivision & Region)French From the ethnonym of a Celtic tribe, the Arverni, a Latinised form of Gaulish *Aruernoi. Its etymology remains unclear; proposed origins include *ar(e)-uer-no-, meaning "those who are above", or *uernā-, meaning "alder".... [more]
Azerbaijan(Country, Political Subdivision & Region)English, Basque, Indonesian, Malay From Persian آذربایجان (azarbayjan), which is from Middle Persian Ādurbādagān referring to Atropates, an ancient Persian governor under the Achaemenid Empire... [more]
Azores(Political Subdivision & Region)English, Greek, Spanish From Portuguese Açores meaning "goshawks", the plural of açor meaning "goshawk". This is the name of an archipelago located in the North Atlantic Ocean and one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal.
Ba Bể(Body of Water, Political Subdivision & Other)Vietnamese From Vietnamese ba meaning "three," and bể meaning "lake" or "sea"; literally "three lakes/seas." It is the name of a lake, a county, and a national park in northeast Vietnam.
Bạc Liêu(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Vietnamese From Teochew 薄遼 (po liaw) meaning "meagre hamlet".
Bạc Liêu(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Vietnamese Perhaps from Sino-Vietnamese 薄 (bạc) meaning "miserable, poor" and 寮 (liêu) meaning "neighbourhood, village". Alternately it may be derived from Khmer ប៉ុស្តិ៍ (poh) meaning "post, station" or ពល (pol) meaning "troops, forces" and លាវ (leav) meaning "Lao"... [more]
Baen(Settlement & Political Subdivision)Thai Thai form of Bern.
Bago(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Burmese Most likely derived from Old Mon ဗဂေါ (bagaw) meaning "beautiful city" or "beautiful town". This is the name of a region of, as well as a city in, Myanmar.
Bahia(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese, English Literally "bay" in Portuguese, this name comes from the Bay of All Saints (Baía de Todos os Santos), for which a Portuguese captaincy was named. This is the name of a state in Brazil.
Bali(Political Subdivision & Island)Indonesian, Balinese, Javanese, English Derived from Sanskrit बलि (bali) meaning "offering, tribute". This is the name of an island and province in Indonesia.
Balochistan(Political Subdivision & Region)Balochi, Urdu, Pashto, English From the ethnic name بلۏچ (Baloch) referring to the Baloch people (itself of uncertain meaning) combined with the Persian suffix ستان (stan) meaning "land of"... [more]
Bangsamoro(Political Subdivision)Filipino, Tagalog From Malay bangsa meaning "nation, country, race" combined with Moro, the collective term for the thirteen predominantly Muslim ethnic groups of the Philippines, which is ultimately of Spanish origin... [more]
Banteay Meanchey(Political Subdivision)Khmer From Khmer បន្ទាយ្ (banteay) meaning “fortress” and from Sanskrit जय (jaya) meaning “victory”.
Banteay Meanchey(Political Subdivision)Khmer Means "fortress of victory" in Khmer, from បន្ទាយ (banteay) meaning "fort, fortress", មាន (mean) meaning "have, possess, own" and ជ័យ (chay) meaning "victory"... [more]
Banten(Country & Political Subdivision)Indonesian, Sundanese, Javanese Meaning uncertain. It may be derived from the Sundanese and Bantenese phrase katiban inten meaning "struck down by diamonds", which was used to describe the spead of Islam in the region in the 15th century... [more]
Bashkiria(Political Subdivision)English From Russian Башкирия (Bashkiriya) which is from башкир (bashkir), the Russian name for the Bashkir people. This is another name for Bashkortostan, a republic in Russia.
Bashkortostan(Political Subdivision)Russian From Bashkir Башҡортостан (Bashqortostan), which is from башҡорт (bashqort), the name of the people, combined with the Persian suffix ستان (stan) meaning "land of"... [more]
Basilan(Island & Political Subdivision)Filipino, Tausug, Cebuano, Tagalog, English Probably from Tausug basi'-lan meaning "iron way, iron road" or basi'-balan meaning "magnetic iron". This is the name of an island province of the Philippines.
Basilicata(Political Subdivision)Italian, English, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese The origin of the name is uncertain: it may come from the Greek term βασιλικός (basilikos), a title given to the Byzantine governors of the region; it may be derived from the church of Acerenza, whose bishop had jurisdiction over the territory; or it may be connected to Basil II Porphyrogenitus, Byzantine emperor from 976 to 1025.... [more]
Bataan(Political Subdivision)Filipino, Tagalog, English From the word batan of unclear indigenous origin, which was used to refer to the peninsula across Manila Bay. It may be related to the Malayo-Polynesian root bataŋ meaning "tree trunk, log"... [more]
Batanes(Political Subdivision)Filipino, Ivatan, Ilocano, Tagalog Most likely from a Hispanicized plural form of the Ivatan endonym Ibatan or Batan, which is of uncertain meaning. This is the name of a province of the Philippines.
Batangas(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Filipino, Tagalog, English Derived from Tagalog batangan meaning "timberland, place of wooden rafts", itself from batang meaning "log" combined with the place marker suffix -an. This is the name of a province of, as well as a city in, the Philippines.
Batdambang(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Khmer Alternate transcription of Khmer បាត់ដំបង (see Battambang).
Baton Rouge(Political Subdivision & Settlement)English From French le bâton rouge ("the red stick"), itself from Choctaw iti humma ("red pole") through Istrouma, a possible corruption; the name ultimately comes from a red pole marking the hunting boundaries for the Houma and Bayagoula tribes... [more]
Battambang(Political Subdivision)Khmer Means “loss of stick”, referring to the local legend, Preah Bat Dambang Kranhoung.
Battambang(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Khmer Means "lost stick" in Khmer, from បាត់ (bat) meaning "lost, gone, missing" and ដំបង (dambang) meaning "stick, staff", named in reference to a local legend of a king who lost a stick in the area... [more]
Bắc Giang(Political Subdivision)Vietnamese From Sino-Vietnamese 北 (bắc) meaning "north, northern" and 江 (giang) meaning "river". This is the name of a province and city in Vietnam.
Bắc Kạn(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Vietnamese From Sino-Vietnamese 北 (bắc) meaning "north" and Vietnamese � (cạn) meaning "arid, dry". This is the name of a city in Vietnam as well as the province in which the city is located.
Bắc Ninh(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Vietnamese From Sino-Vietnamese 北 (bắc) meaning "north" and 寧 (ninh) meaning "peaceful".
Bắc Ninh(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Vietnamese From Sino-Vietnamese 北 (bắc) meaning "north, northern" and 寧 (ninh) meaning "peaceful, tranquil, serene". This is the name of a province of, as well as a city in, Vietnam.
Bedfordshire(Political Subdivision & Region)English From Old English Bedanfordscir, meaning the shire or county of Bedford, itself meaning "Beda's river crossing".... [more]
Beersheba(Political Subdivision & Settlement)English Beersheba is a city in Israel, whose name is derived from the Hebrew Be'er Sheva, which means “Well of the Oath”.
Belgorod(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Russian Means "white city" from Russian белый (beliy) meaning "white" and город (gorod) meaning "city, town". This is the name of an oblast (a type of administrative division) of, as well as a city in, Russia.