Đà Lạt(Settlement)Vietnamese Derived from Koho daa meaning "water" and Lạt, a name for the indigenous Koho people of Vietnam. This is the name of a city in Vietnam.
Dalian(Settlement)Chinese Ultimately from the name of the Russian settlement Дальний (Dalniyy) literally meaning "far, distant", a reference to the town's location. This is the name of a city in China.
Dalkeith(Settlement)Scottish A small town in Midlothian, Scotland, south of Edinburgh. It is of Cumbric language origin. The first element is dal, meaning 'meadow, plateau' (Welsh ddôl) and chyd, meaning 'trees, wood' (Welsh coed).
Damah(Settlement)Khmer Khmer form of Damascus via the French form Damas.
Đà Nẵng(Settlement)Vietnamese Uncertain, possibly from Eastern Cham đanak meaning "mouth of a river" or đarak meaning "large river" or from Western Cham đaknan meaning "wide water, large water" (all referring to the Han River)... [more]
Dar Es Salaam(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Swahili, English Derived from Arabic دار السلام (dar as-salam) meaning "house of peace" or "abode of peace". This is the name of an administrative region and city in Tanzania.
Darkhan(Settlement)Mongolian Means "blacksmith" in Mongolian. This is the name of a city in Mongolia.
Darton(Settlement)English Darton is a large village in the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley (part of South Yorkshire), on the border with West Yorkshire, England.
Dasmariñas(Settlement)Filipino Dasmariñas, officially the City of Dasmariñas, is a 1st class component city in the province of Cavite, Philippines... [more]
Datian(Settlement)Chinese Chinese form of Daejeon and Ōda (both derived from the same Chinese roots).
Dauphin(Political Subdivision & Settlement)French, English The name Dauphin comes from the French word for "dolphin", which was historically used as the emblem of the heir to the French throne (the "Dauphin"). The name likely refers to the Dauphin River, which in turn was named after the French title... [more]
Davao(Region, Settlement & River)Filipino Davao City, officially the City of Davao, is a highly urbanized city in the Davao Region, Philippines. The city has a total land area of 2,443.61 km2, making it the largest city in the Philippines in terms of land area... [more]
Davenport(Settlement)English Transferred use of the English surname Davenport. The city in Iowa was named for George Davenport, a prominent settler in Iowa Territory.
Dawei(Settlement)English From Burmese ထားဝယ် (dawe) derived from Mon ထဝဲါ (thawai) meaning "to sit cross-legged", referring to the Buddha's posture on the palin (a type of throne). This is the name of a city in Myanmar, formerly known as Tavoy in English.
Deadwood(Settlement)English From the English word "deadwood". The city in South Dakota was named for the dead trees found by Euro-American settlers in the area.
Decatur(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the surname Decatur. The city in Alabama was named for Commodore Stephen Decatur, Jr., a United States Navy officer.
Dekalb(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the surname De Kalb. The city in Illinois was named for Johann von Robais, Baron de Kalb, a French-Franconian major-general who fought for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.
Demak(Country, Political Subdivision & Settlement)Indonesian, Javanese Meaning uncertain, possibly either of Javanese or Arabic origin. This is the name of a sultanate that existed between the 15th and 16th centuries in northern Java. It is also the name of a regency of, as well as a city in, the modern-day Indonesian province of Central Java.
Demelza(Settlement)Cornish Name of a hamlet in Cornwall, sometimes explained as a contraction of Cornish Dinas Maeldaf "fort of Maeldaf", but more likely derived from Cornish ty "house" and malsai "eel".
Denpasar(Settlement)Indonesian From Balinese ᬤᬾᬦ᭄ᬧᬲᬃ (dénpasar) possibly meaning "north market". This is the name of the capital city of the Indonesian province of Bali.
Denver(Settlement)English Named after James W. Denver; the surname itself comes from Old English Denefær ("crossing of the Danes") or den-ōfer ("valley-bank")... [more]
Depew(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the surname Depew. The village in New York was named for Chauncey M. Depew, president of the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad Company.
Depok(Settlement)Indonesian From an acronym of Dutch De Eerste Protestantse Organisatie van Christenen (DEPOC) meaning "First Protestant Christian Organisation", referring to a 17th-century congregation established by Dutch merchant Cornelis Chastelein (1657-1714) to convert indigenous Indonesians to Christianity... [more]
Derry(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Irish City and country in Northern Ireland. May mean "oak wood", from 'Daire Coluimb Chille', meaning "The Oak-wood of Saint Columba". Or the name may have been from Proto-Celtic 'calg-ac-os', meaning "possessing a blade" or "possessing a penis".
Dersingham(Settlement)English Derived from the Old English "homestead belonging to Deorsige".
Des Moines(Settlement)English Name of the capital and the most populous city in Iowa, which derived from Fort Des Moines, which was named for the Des Moines River. The French des Moines translates to either "from the monks" or "of the monks".
De Soto(Settlement)English (American) From the Spanish surname De Soto. Various cities in the United States are named for Hernando De Soto, a Spanish conquistador. However, the city in Texas was named for Thomas Hernando DeSoto Stewart, a doctor dedicated to the community.
Destin(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the surname Destin. The city in Flordia was named for Leonard Destin, a Connecticut fishing captain.
Dhaka(Settlement)Bengali, English Uncertain, possibly from the name of the dhak tree (scientific name Butea monosperma), which used to grow in the area, from Bengali ঢাক (dhak) referring to a traditional membranophone instrument, or from the name of the Hindu goddess Dhakeshwari... [more]
Dharamshala(Settlement)English From Hindi धर्मशाला (dharmshala) referring to a type of sanctuary for religious pilgrims, itself derived from Sanskrit धर्म (dharma) meaning "law, duty, virtue" (with the additional meaning of "religion, faith" in Hindi) and शाला (shala) meaning "house"... [more]
Dharan(Settlement)Nepali Means "saw pit, place to saw timber" in Nepali. This is the name of a city in Nepal.
Điện Biên Phủ(Settlement)Vietnamese From the name Điện Biên and Sino-Vietnamese 府 (phủ) meaning "administrative division, prefecture". This is the name of a city in Vietnam.
Dieppe(Political Subdivision & Settlement)French Dieppe, New Brunswick, was named after Dieppe, France, a coastal city in Normandy. The French name Dieppe likely comes from the Old Norse word djúp (djúp = "deep"), referring to the deep waters of the port... [more]
Dixie(Region & Settlement)English, French The name Dixie is historically used to refer to the southeastern United States, particularly the states that were part of the Confederacy during the American Civil War.... [more]
Dixon(Settlement)English Various cities in the United States. Transferred use of the English surname Dixon.
Djakarta(Settlement)Dutch (Archaic), Afrikaans, Icelandic Archaic Dutch form of Jakarta as well as the modern Afrikaans and Icelandic form of the name. The modern Dutch form is written exactly the same as the English form.
Doldersum(Settlement)Dutch It is unknown how this place got it's name, most think that it's a combination of Dolder and sum. Dolder being an ancient river in the northeastern Netherlands and sum meaning "village/settlement" in Old Saxon, so the meaning is "village/settlement on the Dolder"... [more]
Doncaster(Settlement)English A town in England located on the River Don. The first element is from the Roman fort Danum, likely from an earlier Celtic settlement relating to the River Don. The second element is the Old English ceaster, 'fort' (c.f Modern English castle).
Donegal(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Irish County and town in Ireland. Meaning "place of foreigners" (i.e. the Vikings). Alternatively, it may mean "land of Conall", a king from the area. Conall means "strong wolf".
Dongguan(Settlement)Chinese Means "eastern bulrushes" from Chinese 东 (dōng) meaning "east" and 莞 (guān) meaning "bulrush" (a type of plant; genus Schoenoplectus)... [more]
Dorchester(Settlement)English From Durnovaria, the name of a Roman town probably meaning "place of fist-sized pebbles" derived from Brythonic durn "fist", combined with Old English ċeaster "fortress, town, city"... [more]
Dordrecht(Settlement)Dutch Dordrecht is a city and municipality in the Western Netherlands, located in the province of South Holland.... [more]
Dover(Settlement)English Dover is a small, but important port town in Kent, Southern England. It is derived from the Brythonic Dubrās, meaning 'water' (Modern Welsh ddwfr, 'water, tears').... [more]
Dresden(Settlement)German Dresden, capital of the eastern German state of Saxony, is distinguished by the celebrated art museums and classic architecture of its reconstructed old town. The name is of Slavic origin.
Drummondville(Settlement)French Drummondville is named after Frederick Drummond, a British army officer and the first person to be granted land in the area during the early 19th century. The name follows the common tradition of naming settlements after prominent figures... [more]
Duarte(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the Spanish surname Duarte. The city in California was named for the ranchero Andrés Avelino Duarte.
Dublin(Settlement)English, Croatian From Irish dubh "black" "dark" referring to a dark tidal pool where the River Poddle entered the Liffey on the site of the Castle Gardens at the rear of Dublin Castle.
Dubrovnik(Settlement)Croatian Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea. ... [more]
Dubuque(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the French surname Dubuque. The city in Iowa was named for Julien Dubuque, the first white man to settle in Iowa
Dumaguete(Settlement)Cebuano, Tagalog Derived from Cebuano dagit meaning "snatch, abduct, carry away", so named because the area was frequently raided by pirates. This is the name of a city in the Philippines.
Dumfries(Settlement)Scottish Dumfries is a scottish/british market town , and founded in 1690.... [more]
Dunedin(Settlement)English (New Zealand) This is a city in the South Island of New Zealand. It is known as the 'Edinburgh Of The South' due to its many historical buildings.
Durban(Settlement)English The name of a city in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa (known in Zulu as eThekwini). From D'Urban, named for Lieutenant General Sir Benjamin D'Urban (1777-1849), who was the governor of the Cape Colony when the city was named in 1835.
Durcet(Settlement)French It is the name of a commune in north-western France.
Durham(Settlement & Region)English, Anglo-Norman A cathedral city in the North-East of England. The name is derived from the city's Latin name Dunelm, which comprises of the Celtic element dun, 'fortress' (c.f Welsh dinas, 'city') and the Old Norse holme, which meant an island (referring to the peninsular formed by the River Wear).
Dushanbe(Settlement)Tajik, English, Russian Mean "Monday" in Tajik, so named for a popular market that used to be held in the area on Mondays. This is the name of the capital city of Tajikistan.
Dzaudzhyqau(Settlement)Ossetian Means "Dzaug's settlement" in Ossetian, from the name of 18th-century figure Dzaug Bugulov combined with Ossetian хъӕу (qau) meaning "village, settlement". This is the Ossetian name for Vladikavkaz.
Ecclefechan(Settlement)Scottish A village in South-West Scotland. It's name derives from the Cumbric eccle-, meaning 'church' (Welsh eglwys) and fechan, which meant 'small, unimportant' (Welsh fychan).
Ecorse(Settlement & River)English (American) A river and city in Michigan, from French écorche meaning "bark".
Edina(Settlement)English (American) A city in Minnesota, named for the local Edina Mill. The mill, in turn, took its name from a poetic term for Edinburgh.
Edinburgh(Settlement)Scottish Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland. It was first attested in the Cumbric form Dinn Eidyn, meaning 'castle of Edin', hence the Gaelic name Dùn Èideann.... [more]
Eiđi(Settlement)Faroese Eiđi is a village in the Faroe Islands. Founded in 1881 but first mentioned in the 14th century.... [more]
Eigias(Political Subdivision, Region & Settlement)Romansh
Eindhoven(Settlement)Dutch Combination of eind and hoven, hoven can refer to "Hof" (fenced piece of land, garden, earth) or "Hoeve" (homestead). The origin of Eind isn't known well. It probably meant "the boundary between the cultivated land of a settlement and the waste ground outside of it"... [more]
Einsiedeln(Settlement)German The settlement of Einsiedeln is first mentioned in 1073. The town is known as Äinsidle in the local Highest Alemannic dialect, and in neighboring dialects as Äisele, Näisele, Äisidle, Näisidle, Äisigle... [more]
Ekibastuz(Settlement)Kazakh, Russian Means "two heads of salt" from Kazakh екі (eki) meaning "two", бас (bas) meaning "head" and тұз (tuz) meaning "salt". This is the name of a city in Kazakhstan.