Abruzzo(Political Subdivision)Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese From Late Latin Aprutium, itself probably from Praetūtium, which defined the territory in which the tribe of the Praetutii lived. This is the name of a region in southern Italy.
Acádia(Country, Region & Settlement)Portuguese Portuguese form of both Acadia and Akkad (mostly the ancient city, but sometimes also the Akkadian Empire).
Açores(Political Subdivision & Region)Portuguese, Catalan, French Portuguese form of Azores, which has been adopted into Catalan and French.
Acre(Political Subdivision & River)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese Most likely from Aquiri, a transliteration by European explorers of the Ipurinã term Umákürü or Uakiry. Other theories include the name originating from Tupi a'kir ü ("green river") or a'kir ("to sleep"), or from Yasi'ri, or Ysi'ri, meaning "flowing or swift water"... [more]
Alagoas(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese Plural form of Portuguese alagoa, a variant of lagoa ("lagoon"), referring to the Manguaba (the "southern lagoon") and Mundaú (the "northern lagoon") estuarine lagoons... [more]
Amapá(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian) Of uncertain origin. It may come from Tupi amapá, meaning "the place of the rain"; from a Nheengatu term meaning "island" or "land that ends", or from an Arawak term denoting the Hancornia amapa, a local species of tree; or from a Northern Geral term indicating a local species of tree... [more]
Amazonas(Political Subdivision & River)Portuguese (Brazilian), Spanish (Latin American), Spanish Reportedly named this way after the warriors, led by women, that attacked Francisco de Orellana's expedition, reminding him of the Amazons of Greek mythology. The word Amazon may come from Iranian *ha-maz-an- ("(one) fighting together") or *ha-mazan- ("warriors").... [more]
Ataídes(Settlement)Portuguese Freguesia in Portugal, probably named after Athanagild, 6th-century king of Visigothic Hispania and probable founder of the village.
Bahia(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese, English Literally "bay" in Portuguese, this name comes from the Bay of All Saints (Baía de Todos os Santos), for which a Portuguese captaincy was named. This is the name of a state in Brazil.
Basilicata(Political Subdivision)Italian, English, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese The origin of the name is uncertain: it may come from the Greek term βασιλικός (basilikos), a title given to the Byzantine governors of the region; it may be derived from the church of Acerenza, whose bishop had jurisdiction over the territory; or it may be connected to Basil II Porphyrogenitus, Byzantine emperor from 976 to 1025.... [more]
Catanzaro(Settlement)Italian, English, French, Catalan, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, German From Latin Catanciarium, itself derived from Catacium, ultimately from Ancient Greek Καταρτάριοι, meaning "silk spinners". This is the name of a city in southern Italy, the second city in Calabria, as well as its capital city.
Ceará(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian) Most likely from Tupi ceará, probably a combination of the words cemo ("to sing loudly", "to scream") and ara ("small macaw, parakeet, jandaia"), thus "the jandaia sings". Another interpretation is that the name means "river originating from the mountains"... [more]
Ceuta(Settlement)English, Spanish, Portuguese The settlement below Jebel Musa was later renamed for the seven hills around the site, collectively referred to as the "Seven Brothers". In particular, the Roman stronghold at the site took the name "Fort at the Seven Brothers"... [more]
Empoli(Settlement)Italian, English, French, German, Portuguese, Spanish Of uncertain origin: possibly from the Germanic first name *Empo- with the suffix -ulus, or from Latin in portu ("in the port") as per the Tabula Peutingeriana. An eighth-century castle is documented with the names Empolum, Emporium and Empolis... [more]
Goiás(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian) Of uncertain origin. It may be derived from the name of the (possibly mythical) Guaiá indigenous community; the name itself is composed of the Tupi words gua and iá, meaning, among other things, "the same person" or "people of the same origin." This is the name of a state of Brazil.
Java(Political Subdivision & Island)English, Dutch, French, German, Portuguese, Spanish From Indonesian Jawa, which is of uncertain origin. It is most likely derived from Sanskrit यव-द्वीप (yava-dvipa) meaning "island of barley", though it may have come from Javanese ꦗꦸꦮꦮꦸꦠ꧀ (juwawut) meaning "foxtail millet (a type of plant)" or Malay jauh meaning "far, distant"... [more]
Labrador(Political Subdivision)Portuguese, Spanish Province in Canada. Likely from Portuguese explorer João Fernandes Lavrador. Lavrador means "farmer" in Portuguese, as does the Spanish word 'labrador'.
Maranhão(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian) Of uncertain origin: it may come from Tupi mar'anhan ("running sea"), a name for the Amazon River. This is the name of a state of Brazil.
Minas Gerais(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese Literally "general mines" in Portuguese. It is unclear whether the adjective Gerais refers to the many mines within the region or to the Matos Gerais (or Campos Gerais), the fields that were far away from the mines... [more]
Pará(Political Subdivision & River)Portuguese From Tupi pará, meaning "sea" or "large river". This is the name of a river and a state of Brazil.
Paraíba(Political Subdivision & River)Portuguese (Brazilian) From Tupi pa'ra ("river") and a'íba ("difficult to invade/navigate"), referring to the narrow mouth of the Paraíba River. This is the name of a river and a state of Brazil.
Paraná(Political Subdivision & River)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese From Geral paraná, meaning "river". Some sources claim that the name comes from Guaraní para ("sea") and anã "resembling", owing to the width of the river Paraná. This is the name of a state in Brazil.
Pernambuco(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese Four theories exist over the origin of the name. The first theory is that it may come from Tupi para'nã ("great river" or "sea") and buka, meaning "hole", thus meaning "hole in the sea", perhaps indicating the Canal de Santa Cruz, which separates the island of Itamaracá from mainland Brazil.... [more]
Piauí(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian) From Piagoí, through the earlier name Piagüí, which is an early rendition of Tupi piauí, which means "river of the piabas" (piaba being a term used to indicate several types of fish)... [more]
Rio De Janeiro(Settlement)Brazilian, English Means "river of January" in Portuguese. Rio de Janeiro is a major city in Brazil. The city was named after the nearby Guanabara Bay which was discovered by Europeans in January 1502.
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.
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.
Santa Catarina(Political Subdivision & Island)Portuguese Portuguese form of "Saint Catherine (of Alexandria)", through Santa Catarina Island. This is the name of a state of Brazil.
Sergipe(Political Subdivision)Portuguese (Brazilian) Union of the Tupi words siri (the local name for the Callinectes genus of crabs) 'y ("river") and pe ("in"), thus "in the river of the siri". This is the name of a state of Brazil.
Tocantins(Political Subdivision & River)Portuguese (Brazilian) Union of Tupi words tukana ("toucan") e tim ("beak"), thus "toucan's beak". This is the name of a river and a state of Brazil.
Yamoussoukro(Political Subdivision & Settlement)English, French, Danish, Portuguese In honor of Yamousso, a Baoulé queen and great-aunt of President Félix Houphouët-Boigny (1905–1993), with the addition of the suffix kro ("village"). This is the name of the de iure capital city of Côte d'Ivoire, as well as the name of the district around it.