Ancient Origin Place Names

This is a list of place names in which the origin is Ancient.
type
usage
origin
Venezia (Settlement) Italian, Norwegian
Italian form of Venetia, referring to the city of Venice.
Venezouela (Country) Greek
Greek form of Venezuela.
Venezuela (Country) Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian, Slovene, Croatian, Albanian, Turkish, Indonesian, Malay
Possibly 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.
Vengrija (Country) Lithuanian
Lithuanian form of Hungary.
Vengriya (Country) Russian
Russian form of Hungary.
Venice (Settlement) English
From 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.
Venise (Settlement) French
French form of Venice.
Venkata (Mountain) Hindi, Sanskrit
Possibly means "self-born" in Sanskrit. This is the name of a sacred hill in southern India.
Vereinigtes Königreich (Country) German
German calque of United Kingdom (using the adjective vereinigt meaning "united"). It is written with the definite article das.
Vereinigte Staaten (Country) German
German calque of United States (using the adjective vereinigt meaning "united"). It is written with the definite article die.
Verenigde Staten (Country) Dutch
Dutch calque of United States (using the adjective verenigd meaning "united"). It is written with the definite article de.
Verona (Settlement) Italian, Spanish, English, Ancient Roman
Meaning unknown, possibly of Latin, Gallic or Etruscan origin. This is the name of a city in northern Italy.
Vérone (Settlement) French
French form of Verona.
Victoria (Political Subdivision, Settlement & Body of Water) English
From 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, Italian
Meaning 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.
Vienne (Settlement) French
French form of Vienna.
Vindobona (Settlement) Ancient Roman
From Celtic windos "white" and bona "foundation, fort". This was a Roman military town on the site of the Austrian city of Vienna.
Vitryssland (Country) Swedish
Means "white Russia", a Swedish calque of Belarus.
Voshingtan (Settlement & Political Subdivision) Hindi
Hindi form of Washington.
Wakefield (Settlement) English
From Old English wacu "wake, vigil" and feld "field". This is the name of a city in England.
Wales (Country) English, German, Dutch
From Old English Wealas, derived from wealh meaning "foreigner, Celt". This is the name of a country (part of the United Kingdom) in the west of the island of Great Britain. In Welsh it is called Cymru.
Walmersley (Settlement) English
Meaning 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.
Warsaw (Settlement) English
From Polish Warszawa, derived from the given name Warsz, a short form of Warcisław. This is the name of the capital city of Poland.
Warschau (Settlement) German, Dutch
German and Dutch form of Warszawa (see Warsaw).
Warszawa (Settlement) Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Polish form of Warsaw.
Warwick (Settlement) English
From 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, Portuguese
Means "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.
Washinton (Settlement & Political Subdivision) Japanese
Japanese form of Washington.
Washintun (Settlement & Political Subdivision) Arabic
Arabic form of Washington.
Waszyngton (Settlement & Political Subdivision) Polish
Polish form of Washington.
Wealas (Region) Anglo-Saxon
Old English form of Wales.
Węgry (Country) Polish
Polish form of Hungary.
Weißrussland (Country) German
Means "white Russia", a German calque of Belarus.
Wembley (Settlement) English
Means "Wemba's clearing" in Old English. This was the name of a town that is now part of Greater London.
Wenezuela (Country) Polish
Polish form of Venezuela.
Weosingteon (Settlement & Political Subdivision) Korean
Korean form of Washington.
Westcott (Settlement) English
From Old English west "west" and cot "cottage". This is the name of several towns in England.
Westley (Settlement) English
From Old English west "west" and leah "woodland, clearing". This is the name of a few small English towns.
Weston (Settlement) English
From Old English west "west" and tun "enclosure, yard, town". This is the name of several towns in England.
Whitney (Settlement) English
Probably from Old English hwit "white" and ieg "island". This is the name of a small town in Herefordshire.
Wickham (Settlement) English
From Old English wic "village, town" (of Latin origin) and ham "home, settlement". This is the name of a few towns in England.
Wien (Settlement) German
German form of Vienna.
Willey (Settlement) English
From 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) English
From Old English welig meaning "willow" and Old Norse býr "farm, settlement". This is the name of several towns in England.
Wilton (Settlement) English
From 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.
Winslow (Settlement) English
Means "Wine's hill" in Old English. This is the name of a town in Buckinghamshire.
Winthrope 1 (Settlement) English
Means "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) English
Means "Wigmund's village", from the given name Wigmund and Old English þrop "village". This is the name of a town in Nottinghamshire.
Winton (Settlement) English
Means "Wine's enclosure" in Old English. This is the name of various towns in England.
Wiśniewo (Settlement) Polish
Derived from Polish wiśnia meaning "sour cherry". This is the name of several towns in Poland.
Wit-Rusland (Country) Dutch
Means "white Russia", a Dutch calque of Belarus.
Włochy (Country) Polish
From Old Slavic volxŭ meaning "foreigner, Roman". This is the Polish name for Italy.
Wortham (Settlement) English
From Old English worþ "enclosure" and ham "home, settlement". This is the name of a town in Suffolk.
Wymondham (Settlement) English
From the given name Wigmund combined with Old English ham "home, settlement". This is the name of a town in Norfolk.
Yəmən (Country) Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani form of Yemen.
Yaman (Country) Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Hindi, Uzbek, Indonesian, Malay
Arabic form of Yemen, properly written with the definite article: اليمن (al-Yaman).
Yamuna (River) Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Sanskrit
Name of an Indian river, a major tributary of the Ganges, derived from Sanskrit यम (yama) meaning "twin".
Yarden (River & Country) Biblical Hebrew, Hebrew
Hebrew form of Jordan.
Yaxiya (Region) Chinese (Archaic)
Chinese form of Asia.
Yazhou (Region) Chinese
From a short form of Yaxiya combined with (zhōu) meaning "continent, island". This is the modern Chinese name for Asia.
Yémen (Country) French
French form of Yemen.
Yemen (Country) English, Danish, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Turkish, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Chinese, Korean, Thai, Tagalog
From Arabic يمن (Yaman), probably derived from يمين (yamīn) meaning "right hand, south". This is the name of a country at the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula.
Yemeni (Country) Greek
Greek form of Yemen.
Yericho (Settlement) Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew form of Jericho.
Yevraziya (Region) Russian, Ukrainian
Russian and Ukrainian form of Eurasia.
Yevropa (Region) Russian, Ukrainian, Armenian
Russian, Ukrainian and Armenian form of Europe.
Yindu (Country) Chinese
Chinese form of India.
Yisra'el (Country) Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew form of Israel.
Yordaniya (Country) Bulgarian, Ukrainian
Bulgarian and Ukrainian form of Jordan (the country).
York (Settlement & Political Subdivision) English
From Jórvík, the Norse form of Old English Eoforwic, which was from the Brythonic name Eburacon meaning "yew". The Old English form Eoforwic was altered based on eofor "boar" and wic "village".... [more]
Yoxall (Settlement) English
Derived from Old English geoc "oxen yoke" and halh "nook, recess". This is the name of a town in Staffordshire.
Zangibar (Island) Persian
Persian form of Zanzibar.
Zanjibar (Island) Arabic
Arabic form of Zanzibar.
Zanzibar (Island) Swahili, English
From Arabic زنجبار (Zanjibār), from Persian زنگبار (Zangibār), derived from زنگی (zangī) meaning "black, dark-skinned" and بار (bār) meaning "shore, coast". This is the name of an island, part of Tanzania.
Zealand (Country) English, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
From 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.
Zeeland (Political Subdivision & Country) Dutch, English, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
Dutch form of Zealand. Several other languages, including English, use this spelling to refer to the Dutch province (but not the country of New Zealand).
Zelanda (Political Subdivision & Country) Italian, Spanish
Italian and Spanish form of Zealand.
Zélande (Political Subdivision & Country) French
French form of Zealand.
Zelândia (Political Subdivision & Country) Portuguese
Portuguese form of Zealand.
Zelandia (Political Subdivision & Country) Polish
Polish form of Zealand.
Zweden (Country) Dutch
Dutch form of Sweden.
Zypern (Island & Country) German
German form of Cyprus.