South American names include those from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
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]
Aguascalientes(Political Subdivision)Spanish Means "hot waters" in Spanish, so named for the many hot springs in the region. This is the name of a state of, as well as a city in, Mexico.
Ajijic(Settlement)Spanish Means "place of water" or "place where water bubbles up" in Nahuatl.
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]
Alameda(Region)Spanish The word Alameda is Spanish for "tree lined street or path" or "grove of poplar trees."
Albaina(Settlement)Spanish Albaina is a hamlet and minor local entity located in the municipality of Condado de Treviño, in Burgos province, Castile and León, Spain.
Almería(Settlement)Spanish From the name of the Spanish city. Means 'the mirror of the sea.'
Almodóvar(River, Body of Water & Settlement)Spanish From Arabic المدور (al-mudawwar) meaning "round (place)" referring to a fort, hill or other topographic feature. It is the name of a river and reservoir in the province of Cádiz, Spain, as well as three towns in other provinces.
Almodôvar(Settlement)Portuguese From Arabic المدور (al-mudawwar) meaning "round (place)" referring to a fort, hill or other topographic feature. It is the name of a town in Portugal.
Amalfi(Settlement)Italian, Spanish (Latin American) The name of a coastal in the Italian province of Salerno and a town and municipality in the Antioquia Department of Colombia which is named in honour of the Italian town.... [more]
Amán(Settlement & Political Subdivision)Spanish Spanish form of Amman.
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]
Apulia(Political Subdivision)English, Ancient Roman, Polish, Spanish From Latin Apulia, itself of unknown origin, perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ep-, meaning "water". This is the name of a region in southern Italy.
Aquitania(Region)Spanish Aquitania was a region of Gaul inhabited by the Aquitani, a people living in Gallo-Roman times in what is now Aquitaine, France.
Arcadia(Region & Settlement)English, Italian, Spanish From Greek Ἀρκαδία (Arkadia) named for the mythological character Arcas. This is the name of a region in the Peloponnese in southern Greece, as well as the name of numerous cities in various countries.
Asunción(Settlement)Spanish Means "assumption" in Spanish, as in “assumption of Mary to heaven". This is the capital of Paraguay. Originally called Nuestra Señora Santa María de la Asunción (meaning "Our Lady Saint Mary of the Assumption") by its founder, it was later shortened to Asunción.
Ataídes(Settlement)Portuguese Freguesia in Portugal, probably named after Athanagild, 6th-century king of Visigothic Hispania and probable founder of the village.
Azores(Political Subdivision & Region)English, Greek, Spanish From Portuguese Açores meaning "goshawks", the plural of açor meaning "goshawk". This is the name of an archipelago located in the North Atlantic Ocean and one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal.
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.
Barcelona(Settlement)Catalan, Spanish, English Barcelona is a city in Spain. It is the capital and largest city of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain.
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]
Bombay(Settlement)English (Archaic), Dutch, French, Spanish From Portuguese Bombaim, which may have been derived from the phrase bom baim meaning "good little bay" or from the Marathi name मुंबई (Mumbai). This is an older English name for Mumbai, officially used until 1995... [more]
Buenos Aires(Settlement)Spanish Ultimately derived from Aragonese buen ayre “good air”. It is the capital city of Argentina. The explorer who founded the city originally called it Ciudad de la Santísima Trinidad y Puerto de Nuestra Señora la Virgen María de los Buenos Aires meaning "City of the Most Holy Trinity and Port of Saint Mary of the Good Airs" which was later shortened to just Buenos Aires.
Cádiz(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Spanish From Arabic قادس (Qadis), ultimately derived (via Latin) from Phoenician 𐤂𐤃𐤓 (gdr) meaning "wall, compound". This is the name of a province and city in southwestern Spain, historically known as Gades in Latin and Γάδειρα (Gadeira) in Greek.
Calabria(Political Subdivision)Italian, English, Finnish, Galician, Spanish From Ancient Greek Καλαβρία (Kalabría), itself derived from the name of a local Oscan tribe. This is the name of a region in southern Italy.
Campania(Political Subdivision)Italian, English, Galician, Spanish, Ancient Roman From Latin Campania, itself from campania felix, denoting the fertile countryside around Mount Vesuvius. This is the name of a region in southern Italy.
Campeche(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Spanish Derived from Kaan Peech, the name of the 16th-century Maya chiefdom meaning "place of snakes and ticks", derived from Yucatec Maya kaan meaning "snake" and peech meaning "tick"... [more]
Campobasso(Settlement)Italian, English, French, German, Spanish Literally "low field"; derived from Latin Campus Vassorum, denoting that the city was host to vassals. This is the name of the capital city of the southern Italian region of Molise.
Canarias(Island)Spanish From Latin Canariae Insulae meaning "islands of the dogs". This is the name of a Spanish archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, near the coast of northwestern Africa.
Casablanca(Settlement)English, French, Spanish Means "white house" in Spanish. The name comes from a Spanish translation of the Arabic name الدار البيضاء (ad-Dar al-Bayda'), which in turn was derived from a calque of the Portuguese name Casa Branca... [more]
Catania(Settlement)Italian, English, German, Sicilian, Spanish From Ancient Greek Kατάvη (Katánē), itself either from Sicel katane ("grater"), due to its proximity to Mount Etna and the resulting rough earth, or from Proto-Italic katina ("basin"), owing to the wide valley around the town... [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]
Chihuahua(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Spanish Meaning unknown, possibly of Nahuatl origin meaning "the place where water of the rivers meet, confluence". This is the name of a state of, as well as a city in, Mexico.
Ciscaucasia(Region)English, Italian, Spanish Means "on this side of the Caucasus", derived from Latin cis meaning "on this side of" combined with the latinized Greek noun Caucasia meaning "the Caucasus" (both the mountains and their namesake region)... [more]
Coahuila(Political Subdivision)Spanish Meaning uncertain. It is most likely of Nahuatl origin, with possible meanings including "flying serpent", "place of many trees" or "place where serpents creep". This is the name of a state of Mexico, formally known as Coahuila de Zaragoza.
Coimbra(Settlement)Portuguese From Latin Conimbriga, itself derived from the name of an ancient tribe known as the Conii and Old Celtic brigā meaning "hill, fortress". This is the name of a city in Portugal.
Crimea(Country, Political Subdivision & Region)English, Italian, Spanish From Crimean Tatar Qırım, which is of uncertain origin. It may have been derived from a corruption of Latin Cimmerium or Greek Κιμμερικόν (Kimmerikon), the name of an ancient city, from Old Turkic qurum meaning "protection, defense" or qirum meaning "fosse, trench", or Ancient Greek κρημνοί (kremnoi) meaning "cliffs"... [more]
Cusco(Political Subdivision, Region & Settlement)Quechua
Cuzco(Political Subdivision & Settlement)Inca (Hispanicized), Quechua (Hispanicized), Spanish (Archaic) Traditional spelling of Cusco, a city in Peru which was the capital of the Inca Empire. Cusco is the Hispanicized form of Quechua Qusqu meaning "rock, boundary stone; heap of earth and stones; nucleus; navel; bed, dry bed of a lake".
El Paso(Settlement)English, Spanish From Spanish el paso, meaning "the pass". This is the name of several settlements in the world, including the city in Texas.
El Salvador(Country)Spanish El Salvador is a small Central American nation. It's known for its Pacific Ocean beaches, surf spots and mountainous landscape. Its Ruta de Las Flores is a winding route past coffee farms, rainforests with waterfalls and towns like Juayúa, with its weekend food festival, plus Ataco, home to vivid murals... [more]
Emilia(Region)Italian, English, Finnish, Polish, Spanish From the Via Aemilia, itself from Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, the Roman consul who planned the road. This is the name of a traditional region of northern Italy, now contained in the modern political region of Emilia-romagna.
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]
Etruria(Country)English, Italian, Spanish, Ancient Roman, History Meaning unknown. This was the name of an ancient country in the Italian Peninsula (located in what is now Tuscany) inhabited by the Etruscans.... [more]
Fortaleza(Settlement)Portuguese Means "fortress" in Portuguese, a shortened form of the original name Fortaleza de Nossa Senhora de Assunção meaning "Fort of Our Lady of the Assumption". This is the name of a city in Brazil.
Fuerteventura(Island)Spanish From Spanish fuerte "strong" and ventura "fortune", though an alternative theory is that the name is derived form the Roman name for the Canary Islands, Fortunatae Insulae "fortunate islands"... [more]