Polynesia(Region)English From Ancient Greek πολύς (polys) meaning "much, many" and νῆσος (nesos) meaning "island". This is the name of a subregion in Oceania.
Pomerania(Region)Medieval Slavic The name "Pomerania" comes from the Slavic words meaning "by" or "along" and one meaning "sea". So, "Pomerania" essentially means "land by the sea". ... [more]
Pomme De Terre(River)English (American) A river in Minnesota, from French pomme de terre meaning "potato, root vegetable", but in this case referring to the prairie turnip commonly grown in the area by the Dakota people.
Pompeii(Settlement)Ancient Roman Possibly derived from the Oscan pompe "five", becoming the Latin second declension plural, pompeii. This may be because the community formerly consisted of five hamlets, or was perhaps settled by a family group (gens Pompeia).... [more]
Pondicherry(Political Subdivision & Settlement)English Derived from Tamil புதுச்சேரி (putuccēri) meaning "new town". Pondicherry (Puducherry) is the capital city of an Indian state of the same name.
Pontefract(Settlement)English From Latin ponte fracto, meaning 'broken bridge'.
Pontiac(Settlement)English Various cities in Canada and the United States. After the Odawa chief Pontiac, also known as Obwaandi'eyaag.
Pontianak(Settlement)Indonesian From the name of a female ghost in Indonesian folklore that is said to be the spirit of a woman who died pregnant. This is the name of a city in Indonesia, so named because the region was once believed to be inhabited by pontianaks.
Poquoson(Settlement)English (American) A city in Virginia. From the English word "pocosin", which refers to a type of wetland and is derived from an unknown Algonquian word, possibly Abenaki pôgwaso meaning “very shallow”.
Portage La Prairie(Political Subdivision & Settlement)French The name "Portage la Prairie" comes from French, meaning "portage of the prairie" (portage = "carrying of boats between waterways," prairie = "grassland"). It was named by French fur traders who had to carry their canoes overland between the Assiniboine River and nearby waterways... [more]
Port Dalhousie(Political Subdivision)English (Canadian) Port Dalhousie is named after George Ramsay, 9th Earl of Dalhousie, Governor General of British North America.... [more]
Posyolok Central'noj Usad'by` Sovxoza Imeni Sorok-letiya Velikogo Oktyabrya(Settlement)Russian Posyolok Central'noj usad'by` sovxoza imeni 40-letiya Velikogo Oktyabrya is a settlement in Russia. It translates to "A settlement of The Central Farmstead of the Sovkhoz named after the 40-years Anniversary of the Great October" from Russian.
Potenza(Settlement)Italian, English, French From Latin Potentia, itself from the Latin adjective potens, meaning "powerful", "mighty". This is the name of the capital city of the southern Italian region of Basilicata.
Poti(Settlement)Georgian The name of a city in Georgia, meaning uncertain. It is most likely related to Phasis (Φᾶσις), the ancient Greek name for the Rioni River (which flows through Georgia) as well as an ancient city along that river... [more]
Potomac(Settlement)English A river and various cities in the United States. From the name of the Patawomeck people, who are indigenous to the river area.
Prasino Akrotirio(Country)Greek Greek form of Cape Verde. It is literally a direct translation of the country's name, since it consists of the Greek adjective πράσινος (prasinos) meaning "green" combined with the Greek noun ακρωτήριο (akrotirio) meaning "cape".
Prater(Settlement)English Taken directly from the surname Prater. This is the name of a community in Virginia.
Prato(Settlement)Italian, English, French, Esperanto, German, Spanish, Dutch Italian for "meadow". This is the name of a city in northern Italy, which was probably chosen because the city was founded on a meadow.
Preah Sihanouk(Political Subdivision)Khmer Means “province of the holy Sihanouk (former king)” in Khmer.
Preah Sihanouk(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Khmer Named in honour of Cambodian king Norodom Sihanouk (1922-2012), who reigned from 1941-1955 and again from 1993-2004. This is the Khmer name of the province and city of Sihanoukville.
Preah Vihear(Political Subdivision)Khmer Means “sacred sanctuary” in Khmer.
Preah Vihear(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Khmer From the name of an ancient temple itself meaning "temple, sanctuary", derived from Khmer ព្រះ (preah) meaning "god, lord" and វិហារ (vihear) meaning "temple, monastery"... [more]
Précy(Settlement)French Précy is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.
Presil(Country)Khmer Khmer form of Brazil via the French form Brésil.
Prestwick(Settlement)English a place in Lancashire (now Greater Manchester) derived from Old English preost "priest" and wic "outlying settlement" or from other places with the same derivation.
Prey Veng(Political Subdivision)Khmer Means “long forest” in Khmer.
Prey Veng(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Khmer Means "long forest" from Khmer ព្រៃ (prey) meaning "jungle, forest, woods" and វែង (veng) meaning "long". This is the name of a province of, as well as a town in, Cambodia.
Pridnestrovye(Political Subdivision & Region)Russian, English Another name for Transnistria, using the Russian derivation instead of the Romanian derivation.
Prince Albert(Settlement)English Prince Albert is named after Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the husband of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. The name was given in 1866 by Rev. James Nisbet, a Scottish Presbyterian missionary who established a settlement in the area... [more]
Prince Edward Island(Political Subdivision)English (Canadian) Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province. It was named for Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (1767–1820), Queen Victoria's father.
Pripyat(River & Settlement)Russian, English Russian form of the Ukrainian name Прип'ять (Prypyat) of uncertain meaning. This is the name of a river in Eastern Europe that flows through Ukraine and Belarus. It is also the name of an abandoned Ukrainian city that was evacuated after the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.
Pristina(Settlement)Kosovar City in Kosovo. Possibly from the Proto-Slavic '*pryščina', meaning "spring of water".
Providence(Settlement)English Name chosen by Puritan minister Roger Williams, in honor of "God's merciful Providence". This is the name of several settlements in the United States, including the capital city of the state of Rhode Island.
Provo River(River)English (American) River in Utah, named after the French-Canadian trapper Etienne Provost. The river inspired the name of the city to which it belonged, Provo.
Prussia(Country)History Became a Duchy in 1660 and a kingdom in the following century. At its greatest extent it included the northern two-thirds of Germany and western Poland. Prussia, by World War II a federal unit of Germany, was fully disbanded at the end of World War II.
Puchong(Settlement)Malay, English Likely from Malay pucung meaning "heron (bird)", so named for the many herons in the area. This is the name of a town in Malaysia.
Pudsey(Settlement)English This name is of Anglo - Saxian origin.... [more]
Puducherry(Political Subdivision & Settlement)English From the Tamil name புதுச்சேரி (Putucheri) meaning "new town", derived from புது (putu) meaning "new" and சேரி (cheri) meaning "slum, town". This is the name of a union territory and city in India... [more]
Pueblo(Settlement)English (American) A city in Colorado. From Spanish pueblo meaning "town, people".
Puji(Political Subdivision, Settlement & Island)Chinese Chinese form of Phuket.
Pukaskwa(Other & River)Ojibwe National park and river in Ontario, Canada. May be from the Ojibwe word 'pukasu', meaning "to cook the marrow in the bones of animals", or "eaters of fish"... [more]
Pukket(Political Subdivision, Settlement & Island)Korean Korean form of Phuket.
Pulaski(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the Polish surname Pulaski. The city in Virginia was named for Count Casimir Pulaski, a Polish-born hero of the American Revolutionary War.
Pulinkunnoo(Region, Settlement, Island, Body of Water & River)Malayalam Birthplace of Kunchacko.
Puncak Jaya(Mountain)Indonesian Means "summit of victory" from Indonesian puncak meaning "top, summit, peak" and jaya meaning "victory". This is the name of a mountain located on the island of New Guinea, sometimes referred to as the Carstensz Pyramid.
Punjab(Political Subdivision & Region)English From Punjabi پنجاب or ਪੰਜਾਬ (Panjab) from Persian پنجاب (panjab) meaning "five rivers" or "five waters", derived from پنج (panj) meaning "five" and آب (ab) meaning "water, river"... [more]
Punxsutawney(Settlement)Lenape the name (for the base-city of the Groundhog Day woodchuck Punxsutawney Phil) comes from the indigenous word for "Town of the Sandflies"
Purbalingga(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Indonesian, Javanese Derived from Indonesian purba meaning "ancient" or "east" (from Sanskrit पूर्व (purva)) and lingga meaning "lingam", referring to a type of abstract representation of the Hindu god Shiva (from Sanskrit लिङ्ग (linga))... [more]
Pursat(Political Subdivision)Khmer Means “drifting awakened” in Khmer.
Pursat(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Khmer Means "floating banyan" from Khmer ពោធិ៍ (po) meaning "banyan tree" and សាត់ (sat) meaning "to float". This is the name of a province of, as well as a town in, Cambodia.
Purwakarta(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Indonesian, Sundanese Derived from Sanskrit पूर्व (purva) meaning "beginning, ancient, old" and Sanskrit कृत (krta) meaning "done, accomplished". This is the name of a regency and town in Indonesia.
Putrajaya(Settlement)Malay, English Derived from Malay putra or putera meaning "prince", ultimately from Sanskrit पुत्र (putra), combined with jaya meaning "victory", ultimately from Sanskrit जय (jaya)... [more]
Pyay(Settlement)English From Burmese ပြည် (pyi) meaning "country", referring to the main city of the Pyu city-states that existed from the 2nd to 11th centuries. This is the name of a town in Myanmar.
Pyongyang(Settlement)Korean, English From Sino-Korean 平 (pyeong) meaning "flat, level, plane" and 壤 (yang) meaning "soil, land". This is the name of the capital city of North Korea.
Qahera(Settlement)Arabic (Egyptian) Egyptian Arabic transcription of قاهرة (see Qahirah), usually written with the definite article: القاهره (el-Qahera).
Qalmaqstan(Political Subdivision)Kazakh From қалмақ (qalmaq), the Kazakh name for the Kalmyk people, combined with the Persian suffix -ستان (-stan) meaning "land of". This is the Kazakh name for Kalmykia.
Qaridhel(River)Bashkir Means "black Volga" from Bashkir ҡара (qara) meaning "black" combined with Иҙел (Idhel) referring to the Volga River. This is the Bashkir name for the Ufa River.
Qazakheti(Country)Georgian From Georgian ყაზახი (qazakhi) referring to the Kazakh people and the suffix -ეთი (-eti) used to indicate location. This is the Georgian name for Kazakhstan.
Qiantadi(Settlement)Chinese From Chinese 前 (qián) meaning "front," 塔 (tǎ) meaning "tower," and 底 (dǐ) meaning "base" (literally "base of the front tower")... [more]
Qingdao(Settlement)Chinese From Chinese 青 (qīng) meaning "blue, green, young" and 岛 (dǎo) meaning "island". This is the name of a city in China.
Qinghai(Body of Water & Political Subdivision)Chinese, English From Chinese 青 (qīng) meaning "blue, green" and 海 (hǎi) meaning "sea, ocean". This is the name of a lake in as well as a province of China (the province is directly named after the lake).
Qingxiangping(Political Subdivision)Chinese From Chinese 清香 (qīngxiāng) meaning "delicate fragrance" and 坪 (píng) meaning "flatland," referring to the scent of local trees and the area's geography. It is the name of a subdistrict in Sichuan, China.
Qirgizeti(Country)Georgian From Georgian ყირგიზული (qirgizuli) referring to the Kyrgyz people and the suffix -ეთი (-eti) used to indicate location. This is the Georgian name for Kyrgyzstan.
Quảng Bình(Political Subdivision)Vietnamese From Sino-Vietnamese 廣 (quảng) meaning "broad" and 平 (bình) meaning "level".
Quảng Bình(Political Subdivision)Vietnamese From Sino-Vietnamese 廣 (quảng) meaning "broad, wide, extensive" and 平 (bình) meaning "level, even". This is the name of a province of Vietnam.