Ravenna (Settlement) ItalianMeaning unknown, probably of Etruscan origin. This is the name of a city in
Italy.
Rayne (Settlement) EnglishPossibly from an Old English word meaning
"shelter". This is the name of a town in Essex.
Rennes (Settlement) French, EnglishFrom Latin
(Condate) Riedonum, derived from the name of the Gaulish tribe of the Redones. This is the name of a town in Brittany,
France.
Rhine (River) EnglishUltimately from Gaulish
Renos, derived from a Celtic root meaning
"expanse of water, waterway". This is the name of a European river that runs from
Switzerland to the
Netherlands, emptying into the North Sea.
Rhodesia (Region) EnglishFrom the surname
Rhodes. This was a British-controlled region of the south of
Africa, named after the politician and imperialist Cecil Rhodes (1853-1902). It is now the independent countries of
Zimbabwe and
Zambia.
Roe (River) IrishPossibly from Irish
rua meaning
"red". This is the name of a river in
Ireland.
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.
Romiley (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
rum "roomy, spacious" and
leah "woodland, clearing". This was the name of a town that is now part of Greater Manchester.
Romilly (Settlement) FrenchFrom the Latin name
Romilius, a derivative of
Romulus. This is the name of several communes in northern
France.
Ross (Region & Settlement) ScottishFrom Scottish Gaelic
ros meaning
"promontory". This is the name of a historic region in northern
Scotland, as well as towns in Scotland and northern
England.
Rossum (Settlement) DutchFrom the older
Rotheheim, derived from Dutch
rothe "cleared area in a forest" and
heim "home". This is the name of a town in Gelderland in the
Netherlands.
Royston (Settlement) EnglishMeans
"Royse's town" in Old English. The given name
Royse was a medieval variant of
Rose. This is the name of a town in Hertfordshire.
Ruanda (Country) German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Catalan, Finnish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Hungarian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Russian, Ukrainian, Georgian, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Turkish, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, English, FrenchForm of
Rwanda in several languages, as well as a variant spelling in other languages.
Ruotsi (Country) FinnishProbably borrowed from Old Norse
róðr meaning
"rowing", referring to people from the coastal region of Roslagen in Sweden. This is the Finnish name for
Sweden.
Rus (Region) Russian, Ukrainian, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, DanishProbably of Old Norse origin, possibly from
róðr meaning
"rowing", referring to the Norse Varangians and their main mode of transportation. This was the name of a medieval Slavic state of Eastern
Europe (around
Belarus,
Ukraine and western
Russia), originally founded by the Varangians in the 9th century.
Russia (Country) English, Italian, Late RomanDerived from the name of the medieval state of
Rus. The modern country of Russia includes the eastern portions of Rus, and has also expanded far to the east across
Asia.
Rwanda (Country) Rwandan, English, French, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Czech, Slovak, SwahiliOf Kinyarwanda origin, of uncertain meaning. This is the name of a small landlocked country in central
Africa.
Ryley (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
ryge "rye" and
leah "woodland, clearing". This is the name of a town in Lancashire,
England.
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.
Sakartvelo (Country) GeorgianFrom Georgian
ქართველი (kartveli), a term referring to a Georgian person, itself derived from the central region of
ქართლი (Kartli). It is prefixed with
სა (sa), indicating a place. This is the Georgian name for the country of
Georgia.
Salem (Settlement) English, BiblicalFrom Hebrew
שָׁלֵם (shalem) meaning
"complete, safe, peaceful". This is the name of a town in the Old Testament where Melchizedek was king. It is usually identified with
Jerusalem. Several places are named after the biblical town, mostly in
America.
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.
Sárköz (Region) HungarianDerived from Hungarian
sár "mud" and
köz "margin, lane". This is the name of a region in Hungary.
Saudi Arabia (Country) EnglishFrom the family name
Al Su'ud combined with
Arabia, referring to the Arabian Peninsula. This is a kingdom in the Middle East on the Arabian Peninsula. It was named by its founder Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud in 1932.
Saxony (Region & Political Subdivision) EnglishFrom the name of the Germanic tribe of the Saxons, ultimately derived from Germanic *
sahsą meaning "knife". This is the name of a historical region in
Germany, and appears in the names of the German states of Saxony, Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt.
Schoorl (Settlement) DutchFrom older
Scoronlo, meaning
"forest by the shore" in Dutch. This is the name of a town in the province of Noord-Holland in the
Netherlands.
Schwyz (Settlement & Political Subdivision) German, English, SpanishMeaning uncertain, possibly related to Old High German
suedan "to burn" or possibly of Celtic origin. This is the name of a town (and a canton named for it) in central
Switzerland.
Sciacca (Settlement) ItalianMeaning uncertain, perhaps of Arabic origin. This is the name of a town on Sicily.
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.
Seabrook (Settlement) EnglishFrom the old name of a river combined with Old English
broc "stream". This is the name of a town in Buckinghamshire,
England.
Sela (Settlement) BiblicalMeans
"rock" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of a city, the capital of Edom. In the Greek and Latin Old Testament the name is translated as
Petra, though it may be distinct from the Nabataean city.
Senegal (River & Country) Portuguese, English, Spanish, Italian, German, Swedish, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Estonian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Romanian, Turkish, Armenian, Persian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Uzbek, Turkmen, Mongolian, Hindi, Bengali, Korean, Indonesian, Malay, TagalogFrom Portuguese, possibly from the name of the Berber Zenaga people of northern Senegal. This is the name of a river in West
Africa, and a country named after it. It gained independence from
France in 1960.
Shannon (River) IrishFrom Irish
Sionainn, probably from Old Irish
sen meaning
"old, ancient". This is the name of a river in
Ireland. It is personified by the mythological figure
Sionann.
Sherwood (Region) EnglishFrom Old English
scir "shire, district" and
wudu "wood". This is the name of a forest near Nottingham. It is known in English folklore as the home of the outlaw hero Robin Hood.
Shiraz (Settlement) PersianMeaning unknown. The name is recorded in Elamite as
Tiraziš. This is the name of a city in southern
Iran.
Shqipëri (Country) AlbanianFrom Albanian
shqip meaning
"Albanian", which is of uncertain origin. It is possibly from
shqipe, a variant of
shkabë meaning "eagle". It could also be from
shqipoj meaning "to say clearly". This is the modern Albanian name for
Albania, replacing
Arbënia around the 18th century. It is usually written with the definite article suffixed:
Shqipëria.
Sicily (Island & Political Subdivision) EnglishFrom Latin
Sicilia, itself from Greek
Σικελία (Sikelia), named for the the ancient tribe of the Sicels (
Σικελοί). They were probably of Italic origin, but the meaning of their tribal name is unknown. This is the name of a large island in the Mediterranean, part of
Italy.
Sidney (Island) EnglishMeans
"wide island", from Old English
sid "wide" and
eg "island". This is the name of a place in Surrey.
Sin (Country) Arabic, HebrewArabic and Hebrew form of
China. In Arabic it is properly written with the definite article:
الصين (al-Ṣīn).
Singapur (Country, Settlement & Island) Hindi, Urdu, Spanish, German, Estonian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Bulgarian, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Macedonian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Turkmen, Uzbek, Turkish, ArmenianForm of
Singapore in several languages.
Skye (Island) ScottishAnglicized form of Scottish Gaelic
Sgitheanach, meaning unknown. This is the name of an island off the west coast of
Scotland.
Slane (Settlement) IrishFrom the given name
Sláine. This is the name of a town in
Ireland, said to be named for the legendary high king Sláine.
Ślęża (Mountain) PolishPossibly named after the Germanic tribe the Silingi or from a Slavic root meaning
"humid, damp". This is the name of a mountain in
Silesia,
Poland.
Somalia (Country) English, Italian, Spanish, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Polish, Romanian, Greek, Albanian, Indonesian, MalayFrom the ethnic name
Somali, of uncertain meaning. The Somali people connect it to their mythical ancestor
Samaale. Italian and British colonists applied the ethnic name to the Horn of
Africa region in the 19th century. It became an independent country in 1960.
Sousa (River) PortuguesePossibly derived from Latin
salsus "salty" or
saxa "rocks", but likely of pre-Latin origin. This is the name of a river in
Portugal.
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".
Sri Lanka (Country & Island) English, German, Dutch, Afrikaans, French, Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Polish, Romanian, Albanian, Greek, Turkish, Malay, IndonesianFrom Sinhalese
ශ්රී ලංකා (Shrī Lankā), derived from the Sanskrit honorific
श्री (śrī) meaning "holy, sacred" combined with the name of the legendary island of
Lanka. This is an island nation in southern
Asia. Formerly known as
Ceylon when it was a colony of the Portuguese, Dutch and English, the country adopted the name
Sri Lanka when it became a republic in 1972.
Sudan (Country) English, Arabic, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Italian, Russian, Ukrainian, Polish, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Romanian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Indonesian, Malay, Chinese, ThaiFrom Arabic
سود (sūd) meaning
"black", referring to the darker skin of the inhabitants. This is the name of a country in
Africa. In Arabic it is properly written with the definite article:
السودان (al-Sūdān).
Suomi (Country) FinnishPossibly from the Balto-Slavic root
zeme meaning
"ground, earth". This is the Finnish name for
Finland.
Suriye (Political Subdivision & Country) TurkishTurkish form of
Syria. This was the name of a province of the Ottoman Empire.
Sweden (Country) English, Medieval DutchFrom Middle Dutch, ultimately from the Old Norse ethnic name
Svíar "Swede", itself possibly from Proto-Norse
Swihoniz meaning "one's own tribe". This is the name of a country in Northern
Europe.
Switzerland (Country) EnglishFrom
Switzer, a word meaning "Swiss", ultimately derived from the name of the Swiss town and canton of
Schwyz, plus
land. This is the name of a country in central
Europe.
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).
Syria (Country & Region) English, Polish, Norwegian, Greek, Ancient Roman, Ancient GreekFrom Greek
Συρία (Syria), which was probably a variant of
Assyria, used in an expanded sense to refer to the northern Levant. This was the name of a province of the Roman Empire. It is now the name of a country in western
Asia, having gained independence from the Ottoman Empire early in the 20th century.