Valinor(Region)Literature A region in JRR Tolkien's 'Lord of the Rings' series. From the fictional Quenya language, a compound of vala, a fictional quasi-divine species, and the suffix ndor meaning "land".
Velikorossiya(Country & Region)Russian Means "Great Russia" (великий/velikiy + россия/rossiya). It is a historical name of what is now mostly the Russian Federation.
Vinland(Region)Old Norse Old Norse name for a place in modern Canada, named by viking Leif Eriksson c. 1000 AD. The first element of the name is uncertain, but it could be from Old Norse vín "wine" or vin "meadow".
Visayas(Region & Body of Water)Filipino The Visayas, or the Visayan Islands, are one of the three principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao... [more]
Wausau(Region & Settlement)Indigenous American (Latinized, Rare) Term used in many Native American languages with varying similar meanings such as "to see from a distance" or "to hear from a distance." It was the Native American name for a valley in central Wisconsin that is still refered to as such by locals... [more]
Winterberg(Region, Settlement & Mountain)German The name of towns in German and Switzerland, as well as a mountain chain in South Africa and several mountains in Germany. From German Winter meaning "winter" and Berg meaning "mountain, hill".
Württemberg(Political Subdivision & Region)German, English Etymology uncertain. Originally referred to a castle near Stuttgart, and increased its scope as the owners increased their possessions. Scholars have rejected the derivation Wirth am Berg, meaning "innkeeper/host on the hill/mountain"... [more]
Wusuli(Region, Body of Water & River)Chinese Sinicisation of Usuri. The wording used in Mainland PRC is 乌苏里, while the wording used in Taiwan is 烏蘇里.
Xinjiang(Political Subdivision & Region)Chinese Means "new frontier" from Chinese 新 (xīn) meaning "new" and 疆 (jiāng) meaning "boundary, border, frontier". This is the name of an autonomous region in western China as well as a historical region in Central Asia.
Yucatán(Political Subdivision & Region)Spanish Most likely from Chontal Maya Yokot'an either meaning "I do not understand you" or "hear how they talk!", both phrases supposedly uttered by the Mayans when questioned by Spanish explorers. Alternately it may mean "land of yucas", referring to the edible tuber... [more]