Benin(Settlement, Body of Water & Country)English, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Russian, Ukrainian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Romanian, Indonesian, Malay From Portuguese Benim, derived from Itsekiri Ubinu, the name of the capital city of the historical Benin Kingdom (present-day Benin City in Nigeria). Allegedly it was initially named Ile-Ibinu meaning "land of anger" because of disputes between different factions. The Bight of Benin (a large bay) was named after the Benin Kingdom, and the modern country of Benin, west of Nigeria, was named after the bay in 1975 (formerly named Dahomey).
Botswana(Country)Southern African, Tswana, English, Shona, German, French, Italian, Catalan, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian Means "place of the Tswana people" in the Tswana language, from the locative prefix bo- combined with the name of Tswana people, itself of uncertain origin, possibly from tswa "to go out" or tshwana "to resemble". This is the name of a country in southern Africa. During the British colonial period the region was called Bechuanaland, which was more accurately rendered as Botswana when the country achieved independence in 1966.
Chad(Body of Water & Country)English, Spanish, Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Indonesian, Malay From Arabic تشاد (Tshad), derived from a Kanuri word meaning "lake, large expanse of water". This is the name of a lake in central Africa, as well as the country that is named after it. The lake also borders Niger, Nigeria and Cameroon.
Congo(River & Country)English, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Danish From Kongo, of uncertain origin, the name of a kingdom in central Africa that existed from the 14th to 19th century. The Congo River (also called the Zaire River) was named after the kingdom. Belgian and French colonies were established in the 19th century, named after the river, which eventually led to two African countries, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire) and the Republic of the Congo.
Egypt(Country)English From 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.
Ethiopia(Country)English From 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 eastern Africa.
Ghana(Country)English, French, German, Dutch, Italian, Spanish, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Arabic, Indonesian, Malay From 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.
Morocco(Country)English The name of a country in North Africa, named after the city Marrakesh. In Arabic the country is named al-Maghrib (see Maghrib).
Mozambique(Island & Country)English, French, Spanish, Dutch, Danish From the name of an island off the southeastern coast of Africa, named Moçambique by the Portuguese after the 15th-century local sultan موسى بن بيك (Musa bin Bik). This island became the region's Portuguese colonial capital in the 16th century, and the name was eventually applied to a large area of mainland Africa. Mozambique gained independence from Portugal in 1974.
Niger(River & Country)English, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Croatian, Serbian, Late Roman Meaning unknown, possibly of Berber origin, though influenced by Latin niger"black". This is the name of a river in western Africa (and a country that is named after it).
Zaire(River & Country)Portuguese, English Older 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.