Quirindi(Settlement)English (Australian) Quirindi is believed to have originated from an Aboriginal word, though the exact meaning is uncertain. Quirindi is a town in New South Wales, Australia, located in the north-western part of the state... [more]
Quispamsis(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Maliseet, English The name Quispamsis comes from the Maliseet (Wolastoqey) word qospemsis, meaning "little lake" (qospem = "lake," sis = diminutive suffix). This refers to the Kennebecasis River and surrounding waterways, which were important to Indigenous peoples for travel and sustenance... [more]
Quiulacocha(Body of Water & Mountain)Spanish (Latin American) A mountain and lake in Peru. Possibly meaning "gull lake", from Quecha qillwa, qiwlla, or qiwiña meaning "gull" and qucha meaning "lake".
Quttinirpaaq(Other)Inuit National park in Nunavut, Canada. Means "the top of the world" in Inuktitut, as it is the northernmost national park in Canada, and the second in the world.
Quyang(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Chinese From Chinese 曲 (qū) meaning "song" and 阳 (yáng) meaning "light, son, male." It is the name of a county in Hebei, and a historical county and a modern township and village in Jiangsu.
Quy Nhơn(Settlement)Vietnamese Most likely derived from Sino-Vietnamese 歸 (quy) meaning "return, come back to" and 仁 (nhơn) meaning "benevolence, compassion". This is the name of a city in Vietnam.
Qytai(Country)Kazakh, Bashkir Kazakh form of Cathay, used as the Kazakh name for China. It is also an alternate transcription of Bashkir Qytay.
Qytay(Country)Bashkir, Kazakh Bashkir form of Cathay, used as the Bashkir name for China. It is also an alternate transcription of Kazakh Qytai.
Raba(River & Settlement)Polish Uncertain. The name is theorized to come from either Proto-Slavic *or-ba from *orati meaning "to plough", or ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *Ar(ə)-b(h)ā from *ar(ə) meaning "fast-moving"... [more]
Rabat(Settlement)English, French, Spanish From Arabic الرباط (ar-Ribat) meaning "the ribat", referring to a type of fortification used during the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb. It is also used as a shortened form of the city's Arabic nickname, رباط الفتح (ribatu l-fath), which means "fortification of conquest, fortification of victory"... [more]
Rabka(Settlement)Polish Name of Rabka-Zdrój until 1999, as well as its present colloquial name.
Rabka-Zdrój(Settlement)Polish Named after the river Raba with the diminutive suffix -ka, and zdrój meaning "spring, source". It is the name of a town in southern Poland.
Rạch Giá(Settlement)Vietnamese Most likely derived from Vietnamese rạch meaning "small irrigation canal, ditch" and giá meaning "bean sprouts". This is the name of a city in Vietnam.
Racine(Settlement)English, French Means "root" in French. It is the name of a large city in Wisconsin.
Rakhine(Political Subdivision)English From Arakanese ရခိုင် (rahkaing), the name of the Rakhine (or Arakanese) people, which is believed to be derived from Pali Rakkhapura or Rakkhita meaning "land of the Rakshasas" (the name of a legendary creature in Hindu mythology)... [more]
Rakoti(Settlement)Coptic (Bohairic) Derived from Egyptian rꜥ-qdyt possibly from rꜥ meaning "sun, day" (also the name of the Egyptian sun god Ra) and qdy meaning "to go around, to return, to surround"... [more]
Raleigh(Settlement)English Name of the capital in North Carolina, named for Sir Walter Raleigh, sponsor of Roanoke, the "lost colony" on Roanoke Island.
Ramona(Settlement)English Transferred use of the given name Ramona. The settlement in California was named for Helen Hunt Jackson's novel Ramona, which was set in southern California.
Rancho Cucamonga(Settlement)English From the name of a 19th-century land grant (rancho) given to Mexican merchant Tiburcio Tapía (1789-1845), who turned it into a winery. The name was derived from Tongva kukamonga meaning "sandy place"... [more]
Rangihaute(Island)Moriori This is the name the Moriori gave Pitt Island in the Chatham Archipelago. On this island Moriori slaves hid from Maori masters during the Moriori enslavement. One of these slaves include a man named Koche, a popular (among the Moriori) son of a Moriori chief, who escape from his Maori master.
Rangkasbitung(Settlement)Indonesian, Sundanese Derived from Sundanese rangkas meaning "cut, broken" and awi bitung referring to a type of bamboo (genus Dendrocalamus). This is the name of a city in Indonesia.
Rangoon(Settlement)Danish, Dutch, Swedish, English (Archaic) Historical English form of Yangon based on the Arakanese pronunciation of the city's name. It is also the standard Danish, Dutch and Swedish form.
Rankin Inlet(Settlement)Inuit First visited by Europeans in the early 1600's the Inlet was named for Lt. John Rankin of the British Royal Navy.... [more]
Ranong(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Thai Most likely a corruption of the original name แร่นอง (Raenong) meaning "full of minerals", from แร่ (rae) meaning "mineral, ore" and นอง (nong) meaning "flood, overflow"... [more]
Rantoul(Settlement)English Transferred use of the surname Rantoul. The city in Illinois was named for Robert Rantoul, Jr., a a U.S. representative from Massachusetts, and a director of the Illinois Central Railroad.
Rapa Nui(Island)Rapa Nui This is one of the Rapanui names for Easter Island. The word "Nui" in this case with "Rapa" means "Great Rapa." It was named this to distinguish it from another island in French Polynesia Rapa Iti. This name comes from a Tahitian who thought the shape of the island looked like his home island Rapa (now called Rapa Iti) in what is now French Polynesia... [more]
Ratanakiri(Political Subdivision)Khmer Means "mountain of gems" from Khmer រតន (rotan) meaning "gem, jewel, crystal" and គិរី (kiri) meaning "mountain". This is the name of a province of Cambodia.
Ratchaburi(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Thai Means "royal city" from Thai ราช (rat) meaning "royal" and บุรี (buri) meaning "city, town". This is the name of a province of, as well as a district and town in, Thailand.
Rawalpindi(Settlement)English From Punjabi راولپنڈی (Ravalpindi) meaning "village of rawals", derived from راول (raval), a variant of Sanskrit title राज (raja) meaning "king", and پنڈ (pind) meaning "village"... [more]
Rayong(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Thai From Chong ราย็อง (rayong) either meaning "boundary, territory, frontier" or referring to the Burma padauk (a type of tree). This is the name of a province and city in Thailand.
Red(River)English The Red River goes through the southern states of the USA.
Red Deer(Settlement)English (Canadian) The name Red Deer is derived from the color of the local river, which is called the Red Deer River. The river itself was named by early European settlers. The city of Red Deer is located in central Alberta, Canada, and is one of the province's larger urban centers.
Reedley(Settlement)English (American) A city in Fresno County, California. Named for Thomas Law Reed, a veteran of the Union Army in the Civil War who donated most of his land to the city.
Reggio Calabria(Settlement)Italian, English, German, Dutch From Latin Regium, itself from Ancient Greek Ῥήγιoν (Rhéghion), of uncertain meaning. This is the name of a city in southern Italy.... [more]
Reggio Emilia(Settlement)Italian, English, Dutch, German, Spanish From Latin Regium, abbreviation of Regium Lepidi, named after Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, who oversaw the construction of the Via Aemilia. This is the name of a city in northern Italy.... [more]
Regina(Settlement)English (Canadian) Capital of Saskatchewan, Canada. Meaning "queen", named in honour of Queen Victoria.
Région Centre(Region & Political Subdivision)French Meaning "central region", a reference to the region's location in the central part of the original French language area.... [more]
Rēkohu(Island)Moriori The name means "misty sun" or "misty skies." This was what the Moriori called the Chatham Islands. This is what they also called Chatham Island.
Retford(Settlement)English Retford, also known as East Retford, is a market town in the Bassetlaw District in Nottinghamshire, England, and one of the oldest English market towns having been granted its first charter in 1105
Revere(Settlement)English (American) A city in Massachusetts named after American Revolutionary War patriot Paul Revere. Revere is an English word meaning "to admire".
Reykjavík(Settlement)Icelandic Means "bay of smokes", from Old Norse reykir, plural of reykr “smoke” and vík "bay". Steam from hot springs in the region is said to have inspired Reykjavík's name.
Reynosa(Settlement)Spanish Reynosa is a border city in the northern part of Tamaulipas, Mexico. It is also the municipal seat of Reynosa Municipality.
Rgya Gar(Country)Bhutanese, Tibetan From Bhutanese and Tibetan རྒྱ (rgya) meaning "extent, size, vastness" or "empire" and དཀར (dkar) meaning "white". This is the Bhutanese and Tibetan name for India.
Rgya Nag(Country)Tibetan, Bhutanese Means "the black expanse" from Tibetan རྒྱ (rgya) meaning "extent, size, area, country" and ནག (nag) meaning "black". This is the Tibetan and Dzongkha name for China.
Rhinelander(Settlement)American The name of a town in Oneida County, Wisconsin and the home of the Hodag, a cryptid with the head of a frog, the face of an elephant, and the body of a dinosaur. It was named after Frederic W. Rhinelander.
Rhode Island(Island & Political Subdivision)English Name of a state in the United States, said to have been named by Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano when he passed through in 1524, based on an imagined similarity between modern Block Island and the Greek Isle of Rhodes, or possibly from Dutch Roodt Eylandt, literally "red island", a name given by Dutch explorer Adriaen Block.
Rhône(River)French From Gaulish *Rodonos or *Rotonos, from a Proto-Indo-European root *ret-, meaning "to run, to roll", frequently found in names for rivers.... [more]
Rhône-Alpes(Political Subdivision & Region)French From the French names of the Rhône river and the Alpes mountain range.... [more]
Rhûn(Body of Water)Literature A sea in JRR Tolkien's 'Lord of the Rings' series. From the fictional Sindarin language rhûn meaning "east".
Rhyl(Settlement)Welsh Seaside resort and community in the Welsh county of Denbighshire. The origin is not fully known. The name seems to be a hybrid of the English word "hill" and the Welsh definite article "y", meaning "the hill"... [more]
Riau(Political Subdivision)Indonesian Meaning uncertain, possibly derived from Portuguese rio meaning "river" or Malay riuh meaning "thunderous, frenzied, blaring". This is the name of two provinces in Indonesia (Riau and Riau Islands) as well as an archipelago in the same region.
Ribat(Settlement)Arabic Arabic form of Rabat, usually written with the definite article: الرباط (ar-Ribat).
Riga(Settlement)English, Russian From Latvian Rīga, origin disputed. It may be derived from Livonian ringa meaning "loop", referring to an ancient harbor formed by the tributary loop of the Daugava river, from Riege, the German name of the Rīdzene (a tributary of the Daugava), or from Latvian rija meaning "threshing barn"... [more]
Riksgränsen(Settlement)Swedish Means "the national border" in Swedish. Riksgränsen is a small village and popular ski-resort in Northern Sweden, close to the Norwegian border.
Rimac(River)Spanish (Latin American) Rimac River, Rimac derives from quechua "Rimay" which means "to speak", Rimac River is called "the speaking river", "the river that babbles/chatters/speaks a lot", in some sense "the roaring river" or "the noisy river".
Rio de Janeiro(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Portuguese, English The name of a state and city in Brazil, meaning "river of January" in Portuguese. The city was named after the nearby Guanabara Bay, which was first discovered by Europeans on January 1, 1502.
Rio Grande do Norte(Political Subdivision)Portuguese, English Literally "Great River of the North" in Portuguese, referring to the mouth of the Potenji River. This is the name of a state of Brazil.
Rio Grande Do Sul(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese, English Literally "Great River of the South" in Portuguese. This name comes from the Lagoa dos Patos, which was thought to be the mouth of the Rio Grande by Dutch explorers. This is the name of a state in Brazil.
Rioni(River)Georgian Meaning unknown, possibly of Svan, Iranian, Greek or Indo-European origin. This is the name of a river in Georgia.
Riyadh(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Arabic, English Means "meadows, gardens", from the plural of Arabic روضة (rawdah). This is the name of the capital city of Saudi Arabia and a province of the same name. In Arabic it is properly written with the definite article: الرياض (ar-Riyadh).
Rizal(Political Subdivision)Filipino, Tagalog, English The name of a province of the Philippines, named for Filipino nationalist and writer JoséRizal (1861-1896).
Rjukan(Settlement)Norwegian The settlement of Rjukan got it's name from the nearby waterfall named 'Rjukanfossen' which means waterfall that emits fog, or foggy waterfall.
R'lyeh(Settlement)Literature A fictional lost city in the South Pacific, invented for HP Lovecraft's short story 'The Call of Cthulhu'. From a fictional language incomprehensible to and unable to be pronounced by humans.
Road Town(Political Subdivision)Caribbean From the nautical term “the roads”, a place less sheltered than a harbor but which ships can easily get to.
Rochester(Settlement)English Name of three places in Northumberland with names whose early spellings are very similar and sometimes difficult to distinguish from each other. Rudchester in Ovingham is probably the likeliest source of the surname which is concentrated in the southern half of Northumberland but Rochester parish and a lost Ruchester in Chollerton are both possible candidates... [more]
Rock Bottom(Settlement)Popular Culture Rock Bottom is a fictional town from the cartoon 'Spongebob Squarepants'. It's name is a reference to the saying Rock Bottom. Rock Bottom is typically used as a way of expressing desperation or feeling like one is stuck... [more]
Rockford(Settlement)English From the English words "rock" and "ford". The city in Illinois was named for a ford in the nearby Rock River
Rodinia(Region)English and Russian A Mesoproterzoic and neoproterzoic supercontinent that derives from Russian (rodina)... [more]
Rodney(Settlement)English A place name meaning "Hroda's island" in Old English (where Hroda is an Old English given name meaning "fame") and ieg "island"... [more]
Rodriguez(Settlement)Filipino Rodriguez, officially the Municipality of Rodriguez and commonly known by its former name Montalban, is a 1st class urban municipality in the province of Rizal, Philippines... [more]
Roi Et(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Thai Means "one hundred and one" from Thai ร้อย (roi) meaning "hundred" and เอ็ด (et) meaning "one". This is the name of a province of, as well as a town in, Thailand.
Romsa(Political Subdivision)Northern Sami A county in Norway. It is generally believed that the name comes from the Norwegian name for the county, which is Troms.
Roncesvalles(Settlement)Spanish Derived from Latin roscida vallis meaning "dewy valley". Alternatively, it may be derived from Basque *Erozabal meaning "the plain of the Erro valley", which may have later mutated into Rozavalles, a form first recorded in 1050... [more]
Roncisvalle(Settlement)Italian The Italian form of Roncesvalles (Navarra, Spain) where in 778 Charlemagne lost a famous battle against Arabs.
Ronkonkoma(Settlement & Body of Water)English (American) A city and lake in New York, USA. The name is derived from Algonquian, likely meaning "boundary fishing-lake".
Roraima(Political Subdivision, Region & Mountain)Portuguese, Spanish, English Of Peron origin, meaning either "parrot mountain" or "green peak," referring to Mount Roraima, located on the border between Guyana, Brazil and Venezuela. Since 1962, the name has also been used on a federal territory in north-western Brazil, which became a state in 1988.
Roreto(Settlement)Italian Roreto is an Italian boys place name which originates from Northern Italy region near Turin.... [more]
Roscommon(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Irish County and town in Ireland. From the Irish 'Ros Comáin', meaning "Saint Coman's wood", after Saint Coman mac Faelchon who built a monastery there in the 5th century.
Roseau(Settlement)French (Caribbean) Roseau, the capital of Dominica, got its name from the French word for "reed." It is believed that the French explorers who first settled the area named it Roseau due to the abundance of reeds along the banks of the Roseau River, which flows through the city.