Afrika (Region) German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Lithuanian, Russian, Czech, Slovak, Croatian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, UzbekForm of
Africa in several languages.
Amerika (Region & Country) German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Luxembourgish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Russian, Czech, Slovak, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Hungarian, Hebrew, Albanian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Armenian, Georgian, Kazakh, Uzbek, Tatar, Bashkir, Chechen, Indonesian, Malay, JapaneseForm of
America, used to refer to the continents and sometimes to the
United States of America.
Amsterdam (Settlement) Dutch, English, German, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, French, Italian, Spanish, PolishMeans
"dam on the Amstel" in Dutch. This is the name of the capital city of the
Netherlands, first mentioned with this name in the 13th century.
Angola (Country) Portuguese, English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Albanian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Turkish, Georgian, Armenian, Indonesian, MalayPortuguese form of
Ngola, the royal title of the kings of Ndongo, an African kingdom that was conquered by the Portuguese in the 17th-century. It was a Portuguese colony until 1975, when it became an independent country.
Antwerpen (Settlement) Dutch, German, Luxembourgish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Hungarian, Slovene, Croatian, BosnianDutch form of
Antwerp, as well as the form in several other languages.
Argentina (Country) Spanish, English, Portuguese, Italian, Russian, Romanian, Czech, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Macedonian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Lithuanian, Hebrew, Georgian, Azerbaijani, Indonesian, MalayFrom Latin
argentinus meaning
"silvery", a derivative of
argentum meaning "silver". This is the name of a country in South
America, arising from a Latinized form of Spanish
Río de la Plata meaning "river of silver".
Bahrain (Country & Island) Arabic, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Romanian, Catalan, Indonesian, Malay, TagalogMeans
"two seas" in Arabic, derived from
بحر (baḥr) meaning "sea" combined with the dual suffix
ين (ayn). This is the name of a small island country in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Saudi Arabia. In Arabic it is properly written with the definite article:
البحرين (al-Baḥrayn).
Bangladesh (Country) Bengali, Assamese, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Telugu, English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Estonian, Russian, Bulgarian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, Mongolian, Armenian, Hebrew, Persian, Indonesian, MalayFrom Bengali
বাংলাদেশ (Bānglādesh) meaning
"country of the Bengali people", from the name of the Bengali people
বাংলা (Bānglā) combined with
দেশ (desh) "country, state". The ethnic name is derived from that of the ancient kingdom of
Vanga. This is the name of a country in south
Asia.
Belize (Country & River) English, Italian, Portuguese, French, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Polish, Hungarian, Romanian, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Turkish, Indonesian, MalayFrom Spanish
Belice, earlier
Balis, from the name of the Belize River, which may itself be from Mayan
beliz meaning
"muddy water". This is the name of a country on the Atlantic coast of Central
America.
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, MalayFrom 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).
Berlin (Settlement) German, English, French, Polish, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Hungarian, Romanian, Croatian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Russian, Ukrainian, TurkishCity in
Germany, the name of which is of uncertain meaning. It is possibly derived from an Old Slavic stem
berl- meaning
"swamp".
Botswana (Country) Tswana, English, Shona, German, French, Italian, Catalan, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, RomanianMeans
"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 the south of
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.
Brunei (Country) Malay, Indonesian, English, German, Dutch, French, Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, Albanian, Georgian, Turkish, Hindi, TagalogPossibly from Sanskrit
वरुण, the Hindu god
Varuna or figuratively meaning
"water, ocean". However, according to tradition,
Brunei was from the Malay phrase
baru nah meaning "there!" or "that's it!", which was supposedly declared by Brunei's first sultan Muhammad Shah when he discovered it in the 14th century.
... [more] Chile (Country) Spanish, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Polish, Hungarian, Czech, Portuguese, Romanian, GeorgianThe name of a country in South
America, possibly from Quechua
chiri meaning
"cold" or Mapuche
chülle meaning
"seagull". This name was applied to the region by the conquistador Diego de Almagro.
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.
El Salvador (Country) Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, English, German, Dutch, Afrikaans, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Estonian, Finnish, Bosnian, Macedonian, Greek, Hebrew, Turkish, Indonesian, Malay, TagalogForm of
Salvador with the Spanish definite article, which was officially added to the name in 1915. Some languages include the untranslated article, some do not, and some use both forms.
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.
Eritrea (Country) Italian, English, Spanish, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, CzechFrom the Italian name for one of their colonies in Africa, derived from the Latin name for the Red Sea
Erythraeum Mare, itself of Greek origin (see
Erythra). This is the name of country in East Africa. It became independent from
Ethiopia in 1993.
Europa (Region) Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Catalan, Galician, German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Lithuanian, Polish, Romanian, Croatian, Kazakh, Ancient RomanForm of
Europe in several languages.
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.
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.
Guatemala (Country) Spanish, English, Portuguese, French, Italian, Catalan, German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian, TurkishFrom Nahuatl
Cuauhtemallan meaning
"place of the woodpile". This is the name of a country in Central
America.
Hongkong (Political Subdivision, Settlement & Island) German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Slovene, Macedonian, Korean, KhmerForm of
Hong Kong used in various languages.
Irak (Country) German, French, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Croatian, Serbian, Slovak, Greek, Turkish, Armenian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Thai, Lao, Mongolian, IndonesianForm of
Iraq in several languages.
Iran (Country) Persian, Arabic, English, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian, Polish, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Greek, Hebrew, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Urdu, Hindi, Indonesian, Malay, Burmese, Thai, Tagalog, Japanese, Korean, MongolianDerived from Middle Persian
Eran, related to Old Iranian
Arya meaning
"Iranian, Aryan". This is the name of a country in western
Asia, formerly called
Persia in the West.
Israel (Country) English, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Indonesian, Malay, Biblical, Biblical GreekFrom the name of the Old Testament hero Jacob, who was also called
Israel. This was the name of an ancient kingdom that existed until the 8th century BC. The modern country of Israel is named for it.
Jakarta (Settlement) Indonesian, Malay, Javanese, Acehnese, Balinese, Minangkabau, Sundanese, English, German, French, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Arabic, HindiFrom Sanskrit
जयकर्ता (Jayakartā) meaning
"victory accomplished", from
जय (jaya) meaning "victory, conquest" and
कृत (kṛta) meaning "done, accomplished". This is the name of the capital city of
Indonesia. It was known as
Batavia during the colonial (Dutch) era.
Japan (Country) English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Hindi, BurmeseFrom Portuguese
Japão, which was derived from a Malay form of
Riben, the Chinese reading of
Nippon.
Jemen (Country) German, Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Dutch, Afrikaans, Finnish, Hungarian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, MacedonianForm of
Yemen in several languages.
Jerusalem (Settlement) English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Luxembourgish, Afrikaans, Catalan, Bosnian, BiblicalFrom Hebrew
יְרוּשָׁלַיִם (Yerushalayim), from an earlier Canaanite form like
Urushalim, probably meaning
"established by (the god) Shalim". This is the name of a city in
Israel and
Palestine. Originally a Canaanite city, it was conquered by the Israelites under King
David at the beginning of the 10th century BC. It is now regarded as a holy city by Jews, Christians and Muslims.
Jordan (River & Country) English, Danish, Norwegian, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Macedonian, German, Swedish, Finnish, Estonian, Polish, Slovene, BiblicalRiver that flows between the countries of Jordan and
Israel. The river's name in Hebrew is
יַרְדֵן (Yarḏen), and it is derived from
יָרַד (yaraḏ) meaning
"descend, flow down". The river has lent its name to the country to the east (in German, Swedish, Finnish, Estonian, Polish and Slovene this is only the name of the river, with the name of the country taking a different form).
Kamerun (Country) German, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Estonian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Russian, Ukrainian, Turkish, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, Tajik, Indonesian, KoreanForm of
Cameroon in several languages.
Kanada (Country) German, Swedish, Icelandic, Finnish, Estonian, Lithuanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Russian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Georgian, Uzbek, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Turkmen, Indonesian, Malay, JapaneseForm of
Canada in several languages.
Kenya (Country & Mountain) English, Kikuyu, Swahili, French, Italian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Romanian, Greek, TurkishThe country is named for Mount Kenya, which in the Kikuyu language is called
Kĩrĩnyaga meaning
"the one having stripes".
Kongo (Region, River & Country) Kongo, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Russian, Bulgarian, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Macedonian, Turkish, GeorgianForm of
Congo in many languages.
Korea (Country) English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Greek, Georgian, Armenian, Indonesian, Malay, TagalogFrom medieval Latin
Corea, itself derived from
Goryeo, the name of a kingdom that ruled most of the Korean Peninsula from the 10th to 14th centuries. This is the name of two countries, North and South Korea.
Hanguk and
Joseon are the Korean names for the countries.
Kurdistan (Region) Kurdish, Arabic, English, French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, RussianFrom Kurdish
کوردستان (Kurdistan), from the Persian ethnic name
کرد (Kord) meaning "Kurd" combined with the Persian suffix
ستان (stān) meaning "land of". This is the name of the region in the midst of
Iran,
Iraq and
Turkey that is primarily inhabited by the Kurdish people.
Laos (Country) French, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Estonian, Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, Romanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Uzbek, Turkmen, Greek, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Armenian, Hebrew, Hindi, Nepali, Malay, Indonesian, TagalogThe name of a country in southeastern
Asia, derived from the Lao people, the majority ethnic group. Their name may be derived from an Austroasiatic root meaning "human". The name
Laos was originally applied to the region by
France, who established it as a colony in 1893. It achieved independence in 1953.
London (Settlement) English, German, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Estonian, Russian, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, IndonesianFrom Latin
Londinium, of unknown meaning. This is the capital city of the
United Kingdom.
Madrid (Settlement & Political Subdivision) Spanish, Asturian, Catalan, Galician, Portuguese, French, Italian, English, German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Romanian, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Russian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Uzbek, Turkmen, Mongolian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Armenian, Hebrew, Arabic, Persian, Hindi, Indonesian, Malay, TagalogFrom Old Spanish
Magerit, itself from Arabic
مجريط (Majrīṭ), of uncertain meaning. It may be derived from Arabic
مجرى (majrā) meaning
"watercourse, channel" or from Latin
matrix meaning
"source, origin (of a river)". This is the name of the capital city of
Spain as well as an autonomous community surrounding it.
Makedonien (Region, Political Subdivision & Country) German, Danish, SwedishGerman, Danish and Swedish form of
Macedonia. In German this refers only to the region, while the modern country is called
Mazedonien or
Nordmazedonien.
Malawi (Country) Chewa, English, Swahili, French, Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Estonian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian, Turkmen, ArabicPossibly from Chewa
malawi meaning
"flame, fire". This is the name of a landlocked country in the south of
Africa. It was renamed from Nyasaland when the country gained independence from
Britain in 1964. Hastings Banda, the country's first president and the man who chose the name, claimed to have seen it on an old map in the form
Maravi, referring to a lake.
Malaysia (Country) Malay, English, German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Italian, Romanian, Indonesian, TagalogFrom the name of the Malay people, of uncertain origin. It is possibly from the name of a river, itself derived from Malay
melaju or Javanese
mlayu meaning
"to run, to go fast". This is the name of a country in
Asia.
Mali (Country) Manding, Fula, Arabic, French, Portuguese, Italian, Catalan, English, German, Dutch, Afrikaans, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Romanian, Hungarian, Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Albanian, Greek, Hebrew, Armenian, Georgian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Uzbek, Persian, Urdu, Sinhalese, Hindi, Chinese, Mongolian, Burmese, Thai, Lao, Indonesian, Malay, TagalogA landlocked country in West
Africa, named after an empire that lasted until the 17th century. The empire's name is possibly from a dialectal variant of the name of the Mande peoples. Alternatively, it could be from the name of the empire's capital (which has not been located) or from a Mande word meaning "hippopotamus".
Marrakech (Settlement) French, Italian, Spanish, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, CroatianFrench, Italian, Spanish, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish and Croatian form of Arabic
مرّاكش (see
Marrakesh).
Mexico (Country & Settlement) English, French, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, DutchFrom Spanish
México, itself derived from Nahuatl
Mehxico. There are many theories regarding the ultimate origin, including Nahuatl
metztli meaning "moon" combined with
xictli meaning "navel". This is the name of a country in North
America, as well as its capital city (the country is named after the city). In French and Swedish
Mexico is the name of the capital city, while the country is called
Mexique in French and
Mexiko in Swedish.
Moldavien (Country & Region) Swedish, DanishSwedish form of
Moldova (the country). In Danish this refers only to the former principality and the region in northeastern Romania.
Myanmar (Country) English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, German, Dutch, French, Czech, Romanian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Turkish, HindiFrom Burmese
မြန်မာ (Myanma), the name of the main Burmese ethnic group (also called the Bamar), which is of unknown origin. This is the name of a country in southeastern
Asia. It was formerly called
Burma, derived from a variant of this term.
Nairobi (Settlement) English, Swahili, Kikuyu, French, Italian, Spanish, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Hungarian, Romanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Turkish, Japanese, KoreanFrom Maasai
enkare nyrobi meaning
"cold water", referencing a nearby river. This is the name of the capital city of
Kenya. It was founded in 1899 by the British colonial authorities.
Namibia (Country) English, German, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, Polish, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Albanian, Georgian, Armenian, Swahili, Indonesian, Malay, Japanese, KoreanFrom the name of the Namib Desert, meaning
"desert, vast place" in Khoekhoe. This is a country in southwestern
Africa.
Nepal (Country) Nepali, Hindi, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Estonian, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Ukrainian, Polish, Romanian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, Macedonian, Bulgarian, Greek, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Armenian, Indonesian, Malay, SanskritFrom Sanskrit
नेपाल (Nepāl), of unknown meaning. This is the name of a landlocked country in south
Asia.
Niger (River & Country) English, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Croatian, Serbian, Late RomanMeaning unknown, possibly of Berber origin, though influenced by Latin
niger "black". This is the name of a river in West
Africa (and a country that is named after it).
Nigeria (Country) English, French, Italian, Spanish, German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Polish, Romanian, Albanian, GeorgianFrom the name of the
Niger River, applied in the 19th century to the British colonial territory in West
Africa. It continued to be used after the territory became an independent country in 1960.
Oman (Country) English, French, Italian, Catalan, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Polish, Romanian, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Greek, Russian, Ukrainian, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Turkmen, Mongolian, Hindi, Bengali, Thai, Indonesian, Malay, Korean, TagalogFrom Arabic
عمان (ʿUmān), probably from the name of an ancient town called
Omana by the Roman author Pliny the Elder in the 1st century. It can probably be identified with the modern city of Suhar, and is from an Arabic root meaning
"to settle, to remain, to dwell". This is the name of a country on the southeastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula.
Pakistan (Country) Urdu, Punjabi, English, Italian, French, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Polish, Slovak, Russian, Bulgarian, Croatian, SerbianFrom Persian
پاک (pāk) meaning "pure" and the suffix
ستان (stān) meaning "land of". The name was coined in 1933 by the Pakistani nationalist Choudhry Rahmat Ali who justified it as an acronym of Punjab, Afghania, Kashmir and Sindh, plus the final three letters of Baluchistan.
Palestina (Country & Region) Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Romanian, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch, Afrikaans, Russian, Czech, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Indonesian, Tagalog, HebrewForm of
Palestine in several languages. In modern Hebrew this refers to the region, with
פָלַסְטִין (Falastin) used for the country.
Panama (Country & Settlement) English, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Ukrainian, Russian, Belarusian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Armenian, Georgian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Uzbek, Persian, Urdu, Hindi, Bengali, Burmese, Thai, Lao, Khmer, Indonesian, Malay, Tagalog, Japanese, KoreanFrom Spanish
Panamá, of uncertain meaning. It may be derived from the name of a tree commonly found in the area (species Sterculia apetala). Alternatively it could be related to Guaraní
panambi meaning
"butterfly" or Kuna
bannaba meaning
"distant, far away". This is the name of a country in Central
America. It is also the name of its capital, usually called
Panama City in English.
Paraguay (Country, River & Settlement) Spanish, English, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Czech, GuaraniThe name of a landlocked country in South
America. It is derived from a river of the same name, of uncertain meaning. It possibly means
"water from the sea" in Guaraní, from
para "sea",
gua "from" and
y "water". In Guaraní
Paraguái is the name of the country and the river, with
Paraguay the name of the capital city Asunción.
Paris (Settlement) French, English, Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Romanian, Turkish, Persian, HausaFrom the ancient Celtic tribe known as the Parisii. This is the capital city of
France.
Peking (Settlement) German, Dutch, Luxembourgish, Swedish, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, English (Archaic)Form of
Beijing in various languages, as well as an older English form.
Peru (Country) English, Portuguese, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Russian, Ukrainian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Hungarian, Croatian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Georgian, HindiFrom Spanish
Perú, older
Birú, which was possibly derived from the name of a chieftain (who nevertheless resided in modern-day Panama).
Portugal (Country) Portuguese, English, French, Spanish, Galician, Catalan, German, Dutch, Luxembourgish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Indonesian, MalayFrom
Portugale, which was derived from
Portus Cale, the old name of the city of Porto. The name of the city was later applied to the entire country.
Prag (Settlement) German, Swedish, Danish, Icelandic, Luxembourgish, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, TurkishGerman, Swedish, Danish, Icelandic, Luxembourgish, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian and Turkish form of
Praha (see
Prague).
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.
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.
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.
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.
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).
Tanzania (Country) Swahili, English, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Romanian, Greek, Armenian, Georgian, Indonesian, MalayFrom a combination of
Tanganyika and
Zanzibar, the names of the two countries that were united to create the East African country of Tanzania in 1964.
Teheran (Settlement) German, Dutch, Italian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Polish, Romanian, Croatian, SerbianForm of
Tehran in several languages.
Tokyo (Settlement) Japanese, English, French, Italian, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Estonian, Turkish, Hindi, IndonesianFrom Japanese
東 (tō) meaning "east" and
京 (kyō) meaning "capital city". This is the name of the capital of
Japan.
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.
Ukraina (Country) Polish, Russian, Macedonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Estonian, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, Turkmen, Albanian, Armenian, Georgian, Hebrew, IndonesianForm of
Ukraine in several languages.
Uruguay (Country & River) Spanish, English, French, Italian, Romanian, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Czech, TurkishThe name of a country in South
America, derived from a river of the same name. It is possibly from Guaraní
uruguá, referring to a type of water snail. Alternatively it could come from
uru "quail",
gua "from" and
y "water".
Venezuela (Country) Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian, Slovene, Croatian, Albanian, Turkish, Indonesian, MalayPossibly 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.
Vietnam (Country) English, French, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Italian, Spanish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Greek, Indonesian, MalayFrom
Việt Nam, meaning
"southern Yue", derived from Sino-Vietnamese
越 (việt), referring to the Yue people, and
南 (nam) meaning "south". This is the name of a country in southeastern
Asia.
Zambia (Country) Chewa, Bemba, Tonga, English, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Slovak, Hungarian, RomanianFrom the name of the
Zambezi River. It was adopted as the name of the African country of Zambia, formerly called Northern
Rhodesia, when it became independent of the United Kingdom in 1964.
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.
Zimbabwe (Country & Settlement) Shona, Ndebele, English, French, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, RomanianFrom the Shona language, possibly from
dzimba "houses" and
ibwe "stone". Great Zimbabwe was an ancient city, falling into ruin in the 15th century. It was located in the country of Zimbabwe, which was named after the ancient city in 1980 when it gained independence from the United Kingdom. It was formerly called Southern
Rhodesia by the British.