Uganda (Country) English, Ganda, Swahili, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Hungarian, Romanian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Turkish, Georgian, Armenian, Hebrew, Persian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, MalayFrom
Buganda, the name of a kingdom within Uganda, which means
"land of the Ganda" in the Luganda language. The
Ganda are an ethnic group, their name possibly deriving from a Bantu word meaning "family". Uganda is a landlocked country in East Africa.
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).
Upton (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
upp "up" and
tun "enclosure, yard, town". This is the name of various towns in England.
Ural (Region & River) Russian, English, German, Turkish, BashkirMeaning unknown, possibly from Turkic
aral meaning
"island, boundary". This is the name of a mountain range and a river in western Russia.
Uruk (Settlement) Akkadian, EnglishFrom Sumerian
𒌷 (uru) meaning
"city". This was the name of a city-state of ancient Sumer (later Akkad and Babylonia). It was inhabited until the time of the Islamic conquest of the area.
Uzbekistan (Country) English, Russian, Slovak, Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian, SwedishFrom Uzbek
O'zbekiston, derived from the ethnic name
O'zbek (which is probably in part from Turkic
beg meaning "chieftain, master") combined with the Persian suffix
ستان (stan) meaning "land of". This is the name of a country in central Asia.
Valhalla (Other) Norse MythologyFrom Old Norse
Valhǫll meaning
"hall of the battle-dead", from
valr meaning "those slain in battle" and
hǫll meaning "hall, manor". In Norse mythology this is the name of Odin's enormous hall where half of all warriors go after they die.
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.
Wakefield (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
wacu "wake, vigil" and
feld "field". This is the name of a city in England.
Walmersley (Settlement) EnglishMeaning uncertain. The final element is Old English
leah "woodland, clearing". The first element may be a given name such as
Wealdmær or
Wealhmær. This is the name of a town near Manchester.
Warwick (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
wer "weir, dam" and
wic "village, town". This is the name of a town in England.
Washington (Settlement & Political Subdivision) English, German, Dutch, French, Italian, Spanish, PortugueseMeans
"settlement belonging to Wassa's people", from the given name
Wassa and Old English
tun meaning "enclosure, yard, town". This is the name of a town in northern England. It is also the name of the capital city and a state in the United States, both named after the president George Washington (1732-1799), whose surname was derived from the name of the English town.
Wembley (Settlement) EnglishMeans
"Wemba's clearing" in Old English. This was the name of a town that is now part of Greater London.
Westley (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
west "west" and
leah "woodland, clearing". This is the name of a few small English towns.
Weston (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
west "west" and
tun "enclosure, yard, town". This is the name of several towns in England.
Whitney (Settlement) EnglishProbably from Old English
hwit "white" and
ieg "island". This is the name of a small town in Herefordshire.
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.
Willey (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
welig "willow" or
weoh "idol, image" combined with
leah "woodland, clearing". This is the name of a few towns in England.
Willoughby (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
welig meaning "willow" and Old Norse
býr "farm, settlement". This is the name of several towns in England.
Wilton (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
welig meaning "willow",
wille meaning "well, spring, water hole", or the name of the River
Wylye, combined with
tun "enclosure, yard, town". This is the name of various towns in England.
Winchester (Settlement) EnglishDerived from
Venta, of Celtic origin, and Latin
castrum meaning "camp, fortress". This is the name of a city in southern England.
Winslow (Settlement) EnglishMeans
"Wine's hill" in Old English. This is the name of a town in Buckinghamshire.
Winthrope 1 (Settlement) EnglishMeans
"Wine's village", from the given name
Wine and Old English
þrop "village". This is the name of a town in Lincolnshire.
Winthrope 2 (Settlement) EnglishMeans
"Wigmund's village", from the given name
Wigmund and Old English
þrop "village". This is the name of a town in Nottinghamshire.
Winton (Settlement) EnglishMeans
"Wine's enclosure" in Old English. This is the name of various towns in England.
Wortham (Settlement) EnglishFrom Old English
worþ "enclosure" and
ham "home, settlement". This is the name of a town in Suffolk.
Wymondham (Settlement) EnglishFrom the given name
Wigmund combined with Old English
ham "home, settlement". This is the name of a town in Norfolk.
Wyrzyki (Settlement) PolishMeaning uncertain, possibly from the Polish prefix
wy "away from" and
rzek "river". This is the name of a few small Polish towns.
Yamato (Country) JapanesePossibly related to Japanese
山 (yama) meaning
"mountain". This was the old name for the area around the city of Nara, though it was later applied to the entire country of Japan. Chinese scribes originally wrote this name using the character
倭 meaning "short". However, this was revised to the more favourable
和 meaning "harmony" in the 8th century. The prefixed character
大 means "great".
Yazhou (Region) ChineseFrom a short form of
Yaxiya combined with
洲 (zhōu) meaning "continent, island". This is the modern Chinese name for
Asia.
Yoxall (Settlement) EnglishDerived from Old English
geoc "oxen yoke" and
halh "nook, recess". This is the name of a town in Staffordshire.
Zaire (River & Country) Portuguese, EnglishOlder name of the
Congo River, said to be derived via Portuguese from Kikongo
nzadi o nzere meaning
"river swallowing rivers". This was also the former name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Zealand (Country) English, Danish, Norwegian, SwedishFrom Dutch
Zeeland, from Middle Dutch
Seelant, derived from
see "sea" and
lant "land". This is the name of a province in the western Netherlands (now typically called
Zeeland in many languages). It is also borne by the country of New Zealand in the South Pacific, which was named by the Dutch in the 17th century.
Zhongguo (Country) ChineseMeans
"middle kingdom", from Chinese
中 (zhōng) meaning "middle" and
国 (guó) meaning "country, state". This is the Chinese name for
China. The name originally referred to China's central regions, as opposed to the territory on the fringes.