SACRAMENTO(Settlement)English Name of a city in CALIFORNIA, from Spanish sacramento, in honor of the Holy Sacrament.
SAEKI(Settlement)Japanese This is the name of a former town in Okayama Prefecture in western Japan and a ward of Hiroshima City, also in western Japan.... [more]
SAINT PETERSBURG(Settlement)English Derived from German Sankt Petersburg meaning "Saint Peter's city", a reference to Saint Peter, a Disciple of Jesus Christ or Peter the Great, a Russian tsar. Saint Petersburg is a city in Russia and the former capital of the country... [more]
SAKHA(Political Subdivision)English Derived from Turkic saqa, saha meaning "cue" or "bat". The Sakha Republic (or Yakutia) is a federal subject in the Russian Far East.
SAKHALIN(Island)Russian, English Derived from Manchu sahaliyan meaning "black". A misconception of the original Manchu word led to the present name. "Sahaliyan Ula" is also the Manchu name for the Amur River. Sakhalin Island is an island in the Far East of Russia, right above Japan.
SAN ANTONIO(Settlement & River)English Means "Saint Anthony" from Spanish san "Saint" + Antonio, a Spanish form of the given name ANTHONY. The river was named after San Antonio de Padua by the first governor of Spanish Texas, Domingo Terán de los Ríos in 1691... [more]
SANDHURST(Settlement)English Old English, meaning "sandy thicket of trees." A place name. In England, the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (named after the village it is located) is the prestigious British Army officer training centre.
SAN DIEGO(Settlement)English Name of a city in CALIFORNIA, meaning "Saint Diego" from Spanish san "Saint" + the given name DIEGO.
SANDRINGHAM(Settlement)English Derived from the Old English: "sand" hring "ring"/"circular" ham "homestead". "Sandy circular homestead". The name of a village in Norfolk, where Sandringham House, one of the Queen's country retreats is located.
SAN JOSE(Settlement)English Name of a city in CALIFORNIA, meaning "Saint Joseph" from Spanish san "Saint" + Jose, a Spanish form of JOSEPH.
SAN JUAN(Other)Spanish The name of the Capital of Puerto Rico. San Juan, Puerto Rico's capital and largest city, sits on the island's Atlantic coast. Its widest beach fronts the Isla Verde resort strip, known for its bars, nightclubs and casinos... [more]
SAUDI ARABIA(Country)English From Arabic سُعُودِيّ (suʿūdiyy) referring to the House of Saud, the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia (see Arabic SAUDIYYAH), combined with Greek Ἀραβία (Arabíā) referring to the Arabian Peninsula... [more]
SAUDIYYAH(Country)Arabic From Arabic سُعُودِيّ (suʿūdiyy) referring to the House of Saud, the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia, usually written with a definite article as السعودية (as-Saudiyyah)... [more]
SAWEL(Mountain)English, Irish (Anglicized) Sawel Mountain (historically known as Slieve Sawel) is the highest peak in the Sperrins, a mountain range in Northern Ireland. This is an Anglicized form of Irish samhail meaning "likeness", taken from its Irish name Samhail Phite Méabha "likeness to MÉABH's vulva", referring to a glen or hollow on the side of the mountain.
SÁŽŽÁ(Island)Northern Sami An Island and a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The meaning is unknown. The Norwegian name for the island is SENJA.
SCANDINAVIA(Region)English Likely derived from the Germanic root *Skaðin-awjō, a combination of the reconstructed elements *skaðan- "danger, damage" and *awjō "island". Scandinavia is a region in Northern Europe and usually refers to SWEDEN, DENMARK, and NORWAY.
SCARBOROUGH(Settlement)English The name of a city in England. It is mentioned in the folk song "Scarborough Fair" about a fair held in the Middle Ages. A notable version of this song is the one by Simon and Garfunkel.
SECACAH(Settlement)Biblical A Hebrew girl's name, originating in Israel, meaning "covering, defense"
SEDBERGH(Settlement)English A small town in rural Northern England. Its name derives from Old Norse sed, meaning 'sand' and berg, meaning 'mountain', referring to the mountainous location of Sedbergh and possibly the sandstone hills.
SENJA(Island)Norwegian An island and a municipality in TROMS county, NORWAY. The meaning of the name is officially unknown, but it could come from the word sundr which means "split apart" or "tear"... [more]
SERDICA(Settlement)Ancient Greek Latin and Ancient Greek name for the Bulgarian city now known as SOFIA. Named after the Celtic tribe Serdi.
SERKLAND(Region)Ancient Scandinavian Old Norse name for a region around the Caspian sea in the Middle East. The name is composed of Old Norse serkr "gown" and land "country"... [more]
SETON(Settlement)English A Scottish place, Seaton near Longniddry, "is so named because it was held from the 12th century by a Norman family de Sey, from Say in Indre. Other places of this name, for example those in Cumbria, Devon, County Durham, Northumbria, and Yorkshire, are mostly named with Old English sæ "sea, lake" and tun "enclosure, settlement"... [more]
SHANGRILA(Body of Water)Pakistani, Tibetan Shangrila is a name of Tibetan origin. The name means "heaven on earth". The name is mainly known in northern Pakistan. The "Shangrila Lake" in northern Pakistan is very famous among the country.
SHIRETOKO(Other)Japanese This is the name of a peninsula (declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005) in north-eastern Hokkaidō in northern Japan. The kanji that make up Shiretoko are 知 (chi, shi.raseru, shi.ru, shire) meaning "know, wisdom" and 床 (shou, toko, yuka) meaning "bed, floor, padding, tatami."... [more]
SHISHAN(Political Subdivision)Arabic Arabic form of CHECHNYA, usually written with the definite article as الشيشان (al-Shishan).
SIBERIA(Region)Albanian, Basque, English, Italian, Romanian, Spanish Meaning uncertain. One theory suggests its derivation from Siberian Tatar Sib Ir meaning "sleeping land", while another suggests an origin from the ethonym Sirtya, Syopyr, an ethnic group which spoke a language that evolved into the Ugric languages... [more]
SICILY(Political Subdivision & Island)English This is the name of one of the islands of Italy. It is also the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.... [more]
SIERRA LEONE(Country)English The name of the Country in West Africa. Sierra Leone is a country in West Africa, on the Atlantic Ocean. It’s known for the white-sand beaches lining the Freetown Peninsula. The capital city, Freetown, commemorates the nation’s slave-trade history with the Cotton Tree landmark and King’s Yard Gate... [more]
SILOAM(Body of Water)Biblical Hellenized form of Hebrew שִׁלֻּחָה (Shiloach), derived from שילח (shileach) "to send out" and interpreted as meaning "a sending out, gushing forth (of water)". According to the Gospel of John in the New Testament, the Pool of Siloam was a spring in the southeast corner of Jerusalem where Jesus sent the "man born blind" to wash and receive sight... [more]
SINDH(Political Subdivision & Region)Urdu, Sindhi, English From SINDHU, the Sanskrit name of the INDUS River; ultimately from the Sanskrit सिन्धु (síndhu) meaning "river, stream"... [more]
SKÅNE(Political Subdivision)Swedish Province and county in southern Sweden that was a part of Denmark until 1658. The name is likely derived from Old Norse Skáney (ultimately derived from the Germanic root *Skaðin-awjō) meaning "danger" or "damage"... [more]
SKELLEFTEÅ(Settlement)Swedish Swedish city located in VÄSTERBOTTEN. The first element of the name is of unknown meaning, but is believed to be of Sami origin. The second element is -eå "river".
SKIPTON(Settlement)English A town in North Yorkshire, England meaning "sheep town".
SMARA(Settlement)English Meaning unknown. Smara is a Moroccan-controlled city in the disputed Western SAHARA.
ŚNIEŻKA(Mountain)Polish Name of a mountain on the border between the Czech Republic and Poland, the most prominent point of the Silesian Ridge in the Krkonoše mountains.
SNIR(River)Biblical Hebrew It's a river in the Bible, near the Hermon Mount. Sometimes the Hermon itself is called "Snir".
SNOWDON(Mountain)English Snowdon (Welsh: Yr Wyddfa, pronounced ər ˈwɪðva) is the highest mountain in Wales, at an elevation of 1,085 metres (3,560 ft) above sea level, and the highest point in the British Isles south of the Scottish Highlands.e
SÖDERMANLAND(Political Subdivision)Swedish Södermanland is a Swedish county and province meaning "land of the southern people". The southern people referred to people living south of MÄLAREN... [more]
SODOR(Other)Popular Culture This is the name of a fictional island where all the engines live in the TV-series 'Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends'.
SOFIA(Settlement)Bulgarian, English Capital of Bulgaria named after the Saint Sofia Church located in the city. The name was first used by Bulgarian tsar Ivan Shishman in the 14th century.
SOLZHA-GHALA(Settlement)Chechen Means "city (on the) Sunzha River" from Chechen Соьлжа (Solzha) referring to the Sunzha River and гӏала (ghala) meaning "town". This is the Chechen name for Grozny.
SOMKHETI(Country)Georgian From Georgian სომეხი (somekhi) referring to the Armenian people and the suffix -ეთი (-eti) used to indicate location. This is the Georgian name for Armenia.
SOQUEL(Settlement)English Soquel is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, California, United States approximately 75 miles (120 km) south of San Francisco, and forms part of the north coast of Monterey Bay.... [more]
SORTOBE(Settlement)Kazakh, Russian, English Meaning unknown. Sortobe is a small settlement located near the border between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. The population consists mostly of Dungans, an ethnic group from China.
SOUTH CAROLINA(Political Subdivision)English (American) Name of a state in the United States, Named after King Charles I of England.
SOUTH DAKOTA(Political Subdivision)English (American) Name of a state in the United States, also the name of indigenous people of the Great Plains, from the Dakota word dakhóta "friend".
SPALDING(Settlement)English This is the name of several places in England, USA, Canada and Australia, including one located in the eastern English county of Lincolnshire.... [more]