Date
Meaning & History
From Russian Калмыкия (Kalmykiya) ultimately from хальмг (xal'mg), the native name of the Kalmyk people. The ethnic name is of probably Mongolian origin meaning "the people moving away", from Mongolian халих (khalikh) meaning "overflow, flood", referring to how the Kalmyk people were originally Mongolians who "leaked away" from their ancestral homeland. Alternately, the Russian name could have been derived from Turkic kalmak meaning "to remain, to be left". This is the name of a republic of Russia.