Czechoslovakia (Country) EnglishCombination of
Czechia and
Slovakia. This was the name of a country that existed between 1918 and 1993, at which time it split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Czechy (Region & Country) PolishPolish form of
Čechy, used to refer both to the region of
Bohemia and the larger Czech Republic.
Daehan (Country) KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
大 (dae) meaning "big, great" and
韓 (han) meaning "Korea". This is the official Korean name for South
Korea.
Dallas (Settlement) EnglishSeveral of the places bearing this name, including probably the city in Texas, were named for the American vice president George M. Dallas (1792-1864). His surname is of Old English origin meaning "valley house".
Danube (River) English, FrenchFrom Latin
Danubius, from Old Celtic *
Danowyos, from an Indo-European root meaning
"river". This is the name of a river that flows east through
Europe to the Black Sea.
Deasmhumhain (Region) IrishFrom Irish
deas "south" and
Mumhain. This was the name of a medieval kingdom in southern
Ireland, created when the kingdom of Munster was partitioned. It is Anglicized as
Desmond.
Deben (River) EnglishMeans
"deep" in Old English. This is the name of a river in Suffolk.
Debenham (Settlement) EnglishFrom the Old English river name
Deben combined with
ham meaning "home, homestead". This is the name of a town in Suffolk, on the River Deben.
Delhi (Settlement) EnglishFrom Sanskrit
दिल्ली (Dillī), possibly from
देहली (dehalī) meaning
"threshold", or possibly from the name of a 1st-century BC king. This is the name of a large city in northern
India, which includes the district of New Delhi, the Indian capital.
Denmark (Country) EnglishFrom Danish
Danmark, derived from the ethnic name
Dane, which is possibly from Germanic
den meaning "low ground", combined with
mark meaning "borderland". This is the name of a country in Northern
Europe.
Derby (Settlement) EnglishMeans
"animal town" in Old Norse. This is the name of a city in
England.
Deutschland (Country) GermanDerived from German
deutsch meaning "German" (ultimately from Germanic *
þeudō "people") and
Land. This is the German endonym for
Germany.
Devon (Political Subdivision) EnglishFrom the name of the Dumnonii, a Celtic tribe. This is the name of a county in
England.
Dibai (Settlement & Political Subdivision) ChineseChinese variant of
Dubai, used primarily in mainland China.
Dogil (Country) KoreanDerived via Japanese from Dutch
Duits meaning "German". This is the Korean name for
Germany.
Doitsu (Country) JapaneseDerived from Dutch
Duits meaning "German". This is the Japanese name for
Germany.
Douglas (River & Settlement) ScottishFrom Gaelic
dubh "dark" and
glais "water, river" (an archaic word related to
glas "grey, green"). This is the name of a tributary of the River Clyde called the Douglas Water, as well as a town that sits upon it in Lanarkshire.
Dubai (Settlement & Political Subdivision) English, Portuguese, Italian, Catalan, Romanian, German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Macedonian, Turkish, Hindi, Bengali, Indonesian, Malay, Tagalog, ChineseFrom Arabic
دبيّ (Dubayy), of uncertain meaning, possibly related to Arabic
دبّ (dabba) meaning
"to creep, to crawl", referring to the slow flow of a creek in the area. This is the name of an emirate and city in the United Arab Emirates.
Dudley (Settlement) EnglishMeans
"Dudda's clearing" in Old English. This is the name of a city in the West Midlands,
England.
Eaton (Settlement) EnglishDerived from Old English
ea "river" and
tun "enclosure, yard, town". This is the name of several English towns.
Eden (Region) Hebrew, BiblicalPossibly from Hebrew
עֵדֶן (ʿeḏen) meaning
"pleasure, delight", or perhaps derived from Sumerian
𒂔 (edin) meaning
"plain". According to the Old Testament the Garden of Eden was the place where the first people, Adam and Eve, lived before they were expelled.
Egypt (Country) EnglishFrom Latin
Aegyptus, itself from Greek
Αἴγυπτος (Aigyptos), which was probably derived from Egyptian
ḥwt-kꜣ-ptḥ, the name of the temple to the god
Ptah in
Memphis, meaning
"the house of the soul of Ptah". Descendants of the Latin name are used in most European languages to refer to the ancient kingdom and modern country of Egypt. However, the name the ancient Egyptians used to refer to the Nile Valley was
Kemet, and the Arabic speakers of modern Egypt call it
Masr.
Éire (Country & Island) IrishPossibly means
"abundant land" in Old Irish. This is the Irish name of the country and island of
Ireland. According to legend the island was named for the goddess
Ériu, though in fact it was she who was named for the island.
Ellada (Country) GreekModern Greek form of Ancient Greek
Ἑλλάδα (Hellada), derived from
Ἕλλην (Hellen) meaning
"Greek", which is of uncertain origin. This is the Greek endonym for
Greece.
Elysium (Region) Roman MythologyLatin form of Greek
Ἠλύσιον (Elysion), which is of unknown origin, perhaps pre-Greek. According to Greek — and later Roman — mythology, Elysium (or the Elysian Fields) was an idyllic afterlife where only the souls of distinguished mortals were admitted.
Endla (Body of Water) EstonianFrom the medieval personal name
Ent or
Endo, which are of uncertain origin, possibly derivatives of the personal name
Hendrik or
Andres. This is the name of an Estonian lake often appearing in folk poetry.
England (Country) English, German, Swedish, Danish, NorwegianFrom Old English
Englaland meaning
"land of the Angles", the Angles being one of the Germanic tribes that settled in the area in the post-Roman period. This is the name of a country (part of the
United Kingdom) on the southern portion of the island of Great
Britain. The United Kingdom is sometimes (inaccurately) referred to as
England.
Esharra (Other) Ancient AssyrianFrom Sumerian
𒂍 (e) meaning "temple, house" and
𒊹 (shar) meaning "totality, world". This was the name of the main temple dedicated to the god Ashur in the city of
Ashur.
Essen (Settlement) German, EnglishFrom older
Astnide, possibly a derivative of Old High German
asc meaning
"ash tree". This is the name of a city in
Germany, founded in the 9th century.
Estonia (Country) English, Italian, Spanish, Indonesian, Malay, Late RomanFrom Estonian
eesti meaning
"Estonian", a word borrowed from Low German in the 17th century. It is of uncertain origin. It could be from a Germanic rendering of the Baltic tribe of the Aesti, mentioned by the Roman historian Tacitus.
Estoniya (Country) Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, UzbekRussian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik and Uzbek form of
Estonia.
Ethiopia (Country) EnglishFrom Latin
Aethiopia, itself from Greek
Αἰθιοπία (Aithiopia), said to derive from
αἴθω (aitho) meaning "to burn" and
ὄψ (ops) meaning "face", referring to the skin colour of the inhabitants (probably a folk etymology). This is the name of a country in East
Africa.
Etiopia (Country) Italian, Polish, Norwegian, Finnish, Georgian, Korean, IndonesianItalian, Polish, Norwegian, Finnish, Georgian, Korean and Indonesian form of
Aethiopia (see
Ethiopia).
Etxeberria (Settlement) BasqueMeans
"the new house", from Basque
etxe "house" and
berri "new". This was the name of a village (and castle) in Navarre where the saint Francis Xavier was born.
Euripos (Body of Water) Ancient GreekPossibly from Greek
εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and
ῥιπή (rhipe) meaning "throw, swing". This was the name of the strait between Euboea and Boeotia.
Europa (Region) Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Catalan, Galician, German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Lithuanian, Polish, Romanian, Croatian, Kazakh, Ancient RomanForm of
Europe in several languages.
Everest (Mountain) EnglishFrom the surname
Everest. This is the English name of the world's highest mountain, located in the Himalayas, which was named after the British surveyor George Everest (1790-1866).
Evropa (Region) Czech, Slovene, Serbian, Bosnian, Albanian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Georgian, Kyrgyz, Armenian, RussianForm of
Europe used in various languages. This is also an alternate transcription of Armenian
Եվրոպա or Russian
Европа (see
Yevropa).
Ewart (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
ea "river" and
worþ "enclosure". This is the name of a town in Northumberland,
England.
Fál (Island) IrishFrom the name of the stone on the Hill of Tara where Irish high kings were crowned, called the "stone of destiny", the
Lia Fáil. This is from Irish
lia meaning "stone" and probably
fál (genitive
fáil) meaning
"enclosure, fence" and figuratively
"king, chief".
... [more] Farnham (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
fearn "fern" and
ham "home" or
ham "water meadow, enclosure". This is the name of several towns in
England, notably in Surrey.
Fátima (Settlement) PortugueseDerived from the Arabic feminine name
Fatima, apparently after a Moorish princess who converted to Christianity during the Reconquista. This is the name of a town in
Portugal, which became an important Christian pilgrimage center after 1917 when three local children reported witnessing repeated apparitions of the Virgin Mary.
Fiji (Country) English, Portuguese, Hindi, Indonesian, MalayEnglish form of Fijian
Viti, of unknown meaning, the name of the largest island (called
Viti Levu meaning "great Viti") of the archipelago. The change from
Viti to
Fiji is reportedly explained by the fact that the British (on an 18th-century expedition of James Cook) first heard it pronounced this way by the neighbouring Tongans.
Flanders (Region) EnglishFrom Middle Dutch
Vlander, from a Germanic root meaning
"waterlogged", referring to the marshy landscape of Flanders. This is the name of the northern portion of Belgium.
Fleury (Settlement) FrenchFrom the Gallo-Roman given name
Florus. This is the name of several French communes.
Florida (Political Subdivision) English, Spanish, German, ItalianA state of the
United States, meaning
"flowery, ornate" in Spanish, so called because in 1513 the explorer Juan Ponce de León landed there during the
Pascua Florida (meaning "flowery Easter", a Spanish name for Palm Sunday).
Foulden (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
fugol meaning "bird" and
dun meaning "hill". This is the name of a town in Norfolk.
France (Country) French, EnglishFrom Latin
Francia meaning
"land of the Franks". The Franks were the Germanic tribe who settled in the region in the 3rd century. They derived their tribal name from the name of a type of spear that they used.
Frankenstein (Settlement) GermanFrom German
Franken, the name of the Germanic tribe of the Franks, and
Steinn meaning "stone". This is the name of a few small towns in
Germany.
Frankreich (Country) GermanDerived from German
Franken, the name of the Germanic tribe of Franks, and
Reich meaning "empire, realm". This is the German name for
France.
Frisia (Region) English, Late RomanFrom the name of the West Germanic Frisian people, called the Frisii in Latin, possibly from Germanic *
frisaz meaning "curly". This is the name of an area along the coast of the North Sea stretching from the
Netherlands to
Germany.
Friuli (Region) Italian, English, SpanishFrom the name of the Roman town of Forum Iulii (now called
Cividale del Friuli) meaning
"forum of Julius". This is the name of a region in northeastern
Italy.
Gabon (Country) English, French, Italian, Romanian, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Turkish, Indonesian, MalayDerived from Portuguese
gabão meaning
"cloak, overcoat", referring to the shape of the Gabon Estuary. This is the name of a country on the western coast of central
Africa.
Gaddesby (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old Norse
gaddr "spike, spur" and
býr "farm, settlement". This is the name of a small town in Leicestershire,
England.
Galicia 1 (Region) Galician, Spanish, EnglishFrom Latin
Gallaecia, named for the Celtic tribe of the Gallaeci, of uncertain meaning. This is the name of a former kingdom in Iberia, now an autonomous region in northwestern
Spain. In Galician it is called both
Galicia and
Galiza.
Galicia 2 (Region) English, Late RomanFrom the name of the Ukrainian city of
Halych. This is the name of a region in southern Poland and western Ukraine. It was historically a principality within Kievan Rus and later an independent kingdom, before being annexed by Poland in the 14th century.
Gallia (Region, Political Subdivision & Country) Ancient Roman, Italian, GreekLatin name for the historical region of
Gaul. It is derived from the Latin ethnic word
Gallus, referring to the Gauls (Celts of continental Europe), probably ultimately derived from the Celtic root *
galn- "be able".
... [more] Gana (Country) Akan, Ewe, Portuguese, Russian, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Albanian, Slovene, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Icelandic, Latvian, Lithuanian, Turkish, Georgian, Armenian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Turkmen, Uzbek, Mongolian, KoreanForm of
Ghana.
Ganga (River) Sanskrit, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi, Nepali, Urdu, Bengali, Assamese, Odia, Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Sinhalese, Mongolian, Czech, Slovak, Latvian, LithuanianForm of
Ganges in several languages.
Gary (Settlement) EnglishCity in Indiana that was named after businessman Elbert Henry
Gary (1846-1927), the founder of U.S. Steel.
Gaul (Region) EnglishFrom French
Gaule, the name of a historical region that was situated approximately in the area of modern
France. In the Roman era it was called
Gallia, which may be the origin of
Gaule, though the evolution of the word would be irregular. It is more likely derived from Frankish
walh meaning
"foreigner, Celt".
Genoa (Settlement) EnglishFrom Latin
Genua, probably derived from
genu meaning
"knee". This is the name of a port city in northwestern
Italy. It is called
Genova in Italian.
Georgia 2 (Political Subdivision) English, Spanish, Italian, German, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, DutchFrom the given name
George, named in honour of the British king George II. This was the name of an American colony, later a state.
Germany (Country) EnglishFrom Latin
Germania, first attested in the writings of Julius Caesar, used to refer to the areas east of the
Rhine and north of the
Danube. The origin of the term is uncertain. This is an English exonym corresponding to German
Deutschland.
Gethsemane (Region) BiblicalFrom
Γεθσημανί (Gethsemani), the Greek form of an Aramaic place name meaning
"oil press". In the New Testament this is the name of the garden where
Jesus was arrested, located on the Mount of Olives near Jerusalem.
Ghana (Country) English, French, German, Dutch, Italian, Spanish, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Arabic, Indonesian, MalayFrom the name of the Ghana Empire, which was located in the southwestern Sahara and existed up to the 13th century.
Ghana, meaning
"warrior" in Mande, was actually the title of the rulers, while the empire itself was more properly known as
Awkar. In 1957 this was adopted as the name of the newly independent country of Ghana, formerly the British colony Gold Coast, despite the fact that the country lies outside the empire's territory.
Gihon (River) BiblicalFrom Hebrew
גִּיחוֹן (Giḥon), derived from
גִּיחַ (giyaḥ) meaning
"to burst forth". According to the Old Testament, this was the name of a river that originated in the Garden of Eden.