Elctronica Basica

Continent Country Language of origin Words in original language
Africa Algeria Arabic Al Jazā᾽ir
Africa Angola Portuguese Ngola
Africa Benin Yoruba Ile–ibinu
Africa Botswana Tswana Bechuanaland
Africa Burkina Faso More/ Dioula Burkina/faso
Africa Burundi Kirundi Burundi
Africa Cameroon Portuguese Camarões
Africa Cape Verde Portuguese Cabo Verde
Africa Central African French République centrafricaine

Republic
Africa Chad Kanuri Tsade
Africa Comoros Arabic ‫جزر القمر‬
Africa Congo Bantu Kongo
Africa Côte d'Ivoire French Côte d'Ivoire
Africa Democratc Republic of Bantu Kongo

the Congo
Africa Djibout Afar Gabouri
Africa Egypt Greek Αἴγυπτος
Africa Equatorial Guinea Portuguese Aguinaw

Africa Eritrea Greek Ἐρυθρά Θάλασσα
Africa Ethiopia Greek Æthiopia
Africa Gabon Portuguese Gabão
Africa Ghana Ghanaian Ghana
Africa Guinea Portuguese Aguinaw
Africa Guinea-Bissau Portuguese (black people) aguinaw +

Bissau
Africa Kenya Kikuyu Nyaga
Africa Lesotho Sesotho Basotho

Africa Liberia Latn Liber
Africa Libya Greek Libyē
Africa Madagascar Arabic Madageiscar
Africa Malawi Bantu Maravi
Africa Mali Malinké and Bamana Mali
Africa Mauritania Latn (Tribe) Mauri + (Land) -itania
Africa Mauritus Dutch Maurice van Nassau
Africa Morocco Arabic Maghrib-al-Aqsa

Africa Mozambique Arabic Musa al Biq
Africa Namibia Nama Namib
Africa Niger Tamasheq Ger-n-ger
Africa Nigeria Tamasheq Ger-n-ger
Africa Rwanda Kinyarwanda Vanyarwanda
Africa Sao Tome and Principe Portuguese/Berber São Tomé and Príncipe
Africa Senegal Wolof Il sunu gaol
Africa Seychelles French Séchelles

Repiblik Sesel (Creole);
République des Seychelles
(French)
Africa Sierra Leone Spanish Sierra Leona

Africa Somalia Somali Somalis
Africa South Africa Afrikaans Suid-Afrika
Africa Sudan Arabic Bilad-al-sudan
Africa Swaziland Swat (Swazi) Umbuso weSwatni
Africa Tanzania Tonga(Tanganyika) and Tanganika and Zanzibar

Arabic(Zanzibar)
Africa The Gambia Portuguese Ba-Dimma
Africa Togo Ewe Togo
Africa Tunisia Berber Tunisia

Africa Uganda Swahili Buganda
Africa Zambia Tonga Great River
Africa Zimbabwe Shona Dzimba-dze-mabwe

English translation of Explanation behind etymology Source 1
name/etymology
The Islands Algeria is the Anglicizaton of the Arabic https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
name Al Jazā᾽ir, ‘the islands’. + Latnate
"country" suffix -ia.
The Land of Ngola The Portuguese called the Angola area after https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
the first word of the ttle of the ruler of the
Mbundu people in Ndongo, Ngola a kiluanje.
Land of Argument The name may be derived from the Bini, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Benin’s original inhabitants. Alternatvely,
Benin may come from the Yoruba Ile–ibinu,
‘Land of Argument’, a possible reference to a
tme when the tribes were at war.
Those Who Went Away Named after the indigenous people, the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Tswana or baTswana. Their name apparently
means ‘those who went away’ or ‘the
separators’.
Land of Honest Men Burkina Faso translates to ‘Land of Honest https://www.cia.gov/lib

Men’, from Mandekan Burkina, ‘honest’ or rary/publications/the-
‘upright’, and faso, ‘fatherland’. world-
factbook/geos/uv.html
Home of Rundi Speakers The name comes either from Kirundi, a Bantu https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
language spoken in Burundi, with Bu, a prefix
indicatng the country, or from the name of
the Rundi people.
River of Prawns Cameroon is the Anglicized form of the https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

Portuguese Camarões. The area was named
Rio dos Camarões, ‘River of Prawns’, by
Portuguese explorers.
Green Cape The name of the country stems from the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
nearby Cap-Vert, on the Senegalese coast. In
1444 Portuguese explorers had named that
landmark as Cabo Verde, a few years before
they discovered the islands (Verde is
Portuguese for "green").
Republic in the Centre of Africa The country’s name is a reference to the fact https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
that it lies at the centre of Africa. Its previous
name, Oubangui-Chari, comes from the
Bantu ou, ‘land’, and bangi, ‘rapid’, and from
a reference to the river Chari.
Land of the Large Lake The name is taken from the Lake Chad, which https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
in turn takes its name from the Bornu tsade,
‘lake’, itself from the Arabic tŝād, ‘large lake’.
Moons Name derives from the Arabic designaton https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

"Juzur al Qamar" meaning "Islands of the
Moon"
Kingdom of Mountains The Congo got its name from the river Kongo, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
which is named after the Kongo people who
founded the Kongo kingdom. Kong or kongo
is a Bantu word for ‘mountains’.
Ivory Coast The Cote d’Ivoire, or Ivory Coast in English, is https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

so called because the French and Portuguese
confined themselves to the coast to trade in
ivory in pre-colonial tmes.
Democratic Republic of the Mountains The Congo got its name from the river Kongo, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
which is named after the Kongo people who
founded the Kongo kingdom. Kong or kongo
is a Bantu word for ‘mountains’.
Plate The name probably comes from an Afar word https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

gabouri, ‘plate’ or 'plateau.' It may refer to
the fact that the city is on the coastal plain
and surrounded by flat desert.
Temple of the Soul of Ptah The ancient Greek and Roman names https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Aiguptos and Ægyptus are derived from the
Egyptan hūt-kā-ptah, ‘Temple of the Soul of
Ptah’, from hūt, ‘temple’, and kā, ‘soul’, and
the god Ptah. The Latn name Ægyptus is said
to mean ‘The Land below the Aegean Sea’,
from aigaiou hyptos.
(Equatorial) Land of the Black Men Guinea was given its name by the Portuguese https://blog.oxforddicto
after a Berber word, aguinaw, meaning ‘black naries.com/2016/05/17
man’, or akal n-iguinamen, meaning ‘Land of /country-name-origins/
the Black Men’.
Land of the Red Sea Eritrea was named by the Italians, from the https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
Italianized version of the Latn Mare
Erythraeum, ‘Red Sea’, from the ancient
Greek erythros, ‘red’.
Land of Burnt Faces The Greeks named the country Aithiops, http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/
‘(Land of) Burnt Faces’, from aithō, ‘I burn’,
and opsis, ‘appearance’. + Latnate "country"
suffix -ia.
Hooded Cloak The country adopted the name from the https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
Portuguese, who came up with the name
Gabão, ‘hooded cloak’, for the Gabon
Estuary, so called because of its shape.
The King's Land Ghana perhaps means ‘king’ or ‘sovereign’ https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

and may be derived from the ttle assumed
by the tribal chieftain of the old Ghanaian
empire that was located to the north of
modern Ghana.
Land of the Black Men Guinea was given its name by the Portuguese https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
after a Berber word, aguinaw, meaning ‘black
man’, or akal n-iguinamen, meaning ‘Land of
the Black Men’.
Black Bissau The name Guinea remains a source of https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

debate; it is perhaps a corrupton of an
Amazigh (Berber) word meaning “land of the
blacks.” The country also uses the name of its
capital, Bissau, to distnguish it from Guinea,
its neighbour to the east and south.
Mountain of Whiteness Kenya is a shortened version of the Kikuyu https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

name, Kirinyaga, a corrupton of the Swahili
kere nyaga, ‘Mountain of Whiteness’.
Land of the Sotho Lesotho translates approximately into ‘the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

land of the Sotho’.
Free Country Liberia is from the Latn liber ‘free’ – the https://www.cia.gov/libr
same root of the word liberty – and is so ary/publicatons/the-
called because it was founded in 1822 as a world-
settlement for freed slaves from the US, and factbook/geos/li.html
proclaimed independent in 1847. + Latnate
Land of the Libu The name Libya comes from the Greek name https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
given to Northwest Africa; Libya was the
daughter of Epaphus and Memphis in Greek
mythology. Name is of unknown origin.
Holy Land The name Madageiscar originated with https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

explorer Marco Polo in the 13th century as a
result of hearsay and misunderstanding. He
never visited the island and mistook the
Italian version of the Arab name for
Mogadishu, Mogadiscio, on the Somali coast
to refer to the island which he called
Madeigascar.
Land of Flames Malawi comes from Maravi people. Their https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

name means ‘flames’, which may be taken
from their habit of burning off dead grass to
prepare the land for cultvaton.
Hippopotamus Mali may come from the Malinké people, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

also known as the Mandinka, who are closely
related to other Mande-speaking peoples
who trace their ancestry to the Mali Empire.
It has also been suggested that the name
comes from the Mande word for
‘hippopotamus’.
Land of the Mauri The name comes from the country’s biggest https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
ethnic group, the Mauri. + Latnate "country"
suffix -ia.
Land of Governor van Nassau Mauritus had various name changes before https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
being named, in 1598, after the Dutch Prince
Maurice van Nassau.
The Far West from Italian, from Berber Marrakesh https://www.cia.gov/libr

(properly the name of the city of Marrakesh), ary/publicatons/the-
from Arabic Maghrib-al-Aqsa "Extreme world-
West." Compare French Maroc, German factbook/geos/mo.html
Marokko. In English, the first vowel has been
altered, apparently by influence of Moor.
Related: Moroccan.
Land of Musa al Biq Mozambique is said to have come from a https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
ruling Arab Shaikh, Musa al Biq and the town
which developed here was known to
medieval Arab geographers as Musanbīh and
in Swahili as Musambiki.
The Vast Place Named for the coastal Namib Desert; the https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
name "namib" means "vast place" in the
Nama/Damara language
River of Rivers named for the river Niger, probably an https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

alteraton (by influence of Latn niger "black")
of a local Tuareg name, egereou n-igereouen,
from egereou "big river, sea" + n-igereouen,
plural of that word. Translated in Arabic as
nahr al-anhur "river of rivers."
Land of the Niger River Nigeria is named after the Niger River; The https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
river’s name, may come from the Berber
phrase ger-n-ger, ‘river of rivers’. + Latnate
Land of the Rwandans The country takes its name from its https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
indigenous people, the Vanyarwanda. Name
is of unknown origin.
Saint Thomas and Prince São Tomé and Príncipe translates from https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Portuguese as ‘St Thomas and Prince’.
Our Canoe An explorer pointed to the Senegal River and https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

asked what its name was.
Another theory is that the country is named
for the river through it, perhaps from a local
word meaning "navigable."
Republic of Seychelles The French laid claim to the islands in 1756 https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
and named them after Jean Moreau de
Séchelles (1690–1761), the French controller-
general of finance. The name was later
changed by the Britsh to Seychelles
Lion Mountains Sierra Leone means ‘Lion Mountains’ from https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

the Portuguese sierra, ‘mountain chain’, and
leão, ‘lion’. However, there are no lions here,
even if there once were.
Land of Soma Somalia is named after its indigenous https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
inhabitants, the Somalis, or Soomaali, who
may have taken their name from a legendary
ancestor, Soma or Samale; it has also been
suggested that their name may come from so
‘go’ and mal ‘milk’, a reference to their
pastoral lifestyle. + Latnate "country" suffix
-ia.
Beautiful Southern Land South Africa is, of course, the southernmost https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
country in Africa; the word Africa may come
from the Berber word afar, ‘dust’, or perhaps
the ancient Egyptan root n’fr, meaning
‘good’, ‘beautful’, or ‘perfect’.
Country of the Blacks From Arabic Bilad-al-sudan, literally "country https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

of the blacks" (originally the stretch of Africa
between the Sahara and the equator), from
sud, plural of aswad (fem. sauda) "black." In
early use also Soudan, from French. Related:
Sudanese.
Kingdom of Swaziland The country is named after King Mswat II. https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
The Swazis were a Nguni clan, taking their
name from Ngwane III, who led them to this
region of southern Africa.
Land of Tanganika and Zanzibar Tanzania is formed by merging the names of https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
its consttuent parts, Tanganyika and
Zanzibar, which were united in 1964. +
Latnate "country" suffix -ia.
The River The country takes its name from the Gambia https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
River, itself named by the Portuguese after
the local name, Ba-Dimma, ‘The River’. +
Latnate "country" suffix -ia.
Land by the Water Derived from the Ewe words "to" (water) and https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
"go" (shore) to give the sense of "by the
water"; originally, this designaton applied to
the town of Togo (now Togoville) on the
northern shore of Lake Togo, but the name
was eventually extended to the entre naton
Land of Tunis Tunisia is named after the city of Tunis with https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
the suffix -ia adapted from the French name
for the protectorate, Tunisie.
Land of the Ganda People Uganda means ‘Land of the Ganda (People)’ https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
from the Swahili u ‘land’ and ganda, the root
word and adjectve for Buganda, the principle
province.
Land of the Great River The country is named after the Zambezi https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
which forms its southern border with
Zimbabwe. + Latnate "country" suffix -ia.
Stone Enclosure Zimbabwe means ‘stone enclosure’ or ‘stone https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

dwelling’ from the Bantu zimba, ‘houses’,
and mabwe, ‘stones’.
Source 2 Source 3
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Algeria
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Angola
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Yoruba
https://www.britannica.com/place/Botswana
https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/2016/05/17/country-name-origins/
https://www.britannica.com/place/Burkina-Faso
https://www.britannica.com/place/Burundi
https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=Cameroon
https://www.britannica.com/place/Cabo-Verde
http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780191751394.001.0001/acref-9780191751394
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Chad
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Congo
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Congo
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Egypt
http://www.refworld.org/cgi-
bin/texis/vtx/rwmain?
page=country&category=&pub
lisher=&type=COUNTRYPROF&
coi=GIN&rid=456d621e2&doci
d=4954ce60c&skip=0
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Eritrea
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Ghana
http://www.refworld.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/rwmain?page=country&category=&publisher=&type=COUNTRYPROF&coi=GIN&rid
https://www.britannica.com/place/Guinea-Bissau
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Guinea
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Kenya
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Liberia
http://self.gutenberg.org/artcles/eng/Ancient_Libya
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Libya
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Mogadishu
https://www.britannica.com/place/Madagascar/History
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Maravi
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Mali
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Ruritanian
https://www.britannica.com/place/Mauritania
https://www.britannica.com/place/Mauritus#ref4723
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Morocco
https://web.archive.org/web/20100630040028/http://www.ilhademo.net/history.html
https://www.britannica.com/place/Namibia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Niger
https://www.worldatlas.com/artcles/what-languages-are-spoken-in-niger.html
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Nigeria
https://www.worldatlas.com/artcles/what-languages-are-spoken-in-niger.html
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Rwanda
https://www.britannica.com/place/Rwanda/Land#toc40762
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Senegal
https://www.britannica.com/place/Senegal
https://www.britannica.com/place/Seychelles
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Seychelles
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Sierra%20Leone
https://www.britannica.com/place/Somalia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/South%20Africa
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Sudan
https://www.britannica.com/place/Swaziland
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Tanzania
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Gambia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Uganda
https://www.britannica.com/place/Zambia/Climate#toc44122
https://www.britannica.com/place/Zambezi-River
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Zimbabwe
Asia Afghanistan Sanskrit Ab-bar-Gan
Asia Armenia Armenian Armenia
Asia Bahrain Arabic (‫ااالبحرين‬
Asia Bangladesh Bengali Bangladesh
Asia Bhutan Bhutan Dzongkha
Asia Brunei Sansktrit Bhūmi
Asia Cambodia Sansktrit Nagara
Asia China Sanskrit Cina-s

Asia Georgia Arabic and Persian Gurgan
Asia India Greek Ινδία,
Asia Indonesia Greek Ινδoνησία
Asia Iran Old Persian Aryānam
Asia Iraq Arabic Al-‘irāq
Asia Israel Greek Yisra'el
Asia Japan Chinese Cipangu
Asia Jordan Hebrew and Canaanite ‫ ירד‬yrd
Asia Korea (North and Chinese Koryŏ

South)
Asia Kuwait Arabic kut
Asia Kyrgyzstan East-Turkic/Persian Steppe gizmek
Asia Laos Lao ລາວ
Asia Lebanon Semetc Lavan
Asia Malaysia Tamali Malai Ur
Asia Maldives Sanskrit ममलददव
Asia Mongolia Mongolian монгол
Asia Myanmar Burmese Mranma

Asia Nepal Sanskrit Nipat
Asia Oman Arabic ōˈmän
Asia Pakistan Iranian/Persian Pakstan
Asia Philippines Spanish Felipinas
Asia Qatar Arabic Qatara
Asia Russia Greek Rōs

Asia Saudi Arabia Arabic sa'di Arabia
Asia Singapore Sanskrit Singapura
Asia Sri Lanka Sanskrit Sri shrī
Asia State of Palestne Hebrew Pelesheth
Asia Syria Ancient Greek Syrioi
Asia Tajikistan Persian Tadzhikistan
Asia Thailand Thai Thai
Asia Timor-Leste Malay Timur

Asia Turkmenistan Sogdian Turkmenistan
Asia United Arab Emirates Arabic United Arab Emir
Asia Uzbekistan Turkic Uzbekstan
Asia Vietnam Vietnamese Việt Nam
Asia Yemen Arabic yaman

name/etymology
Mountainous Country While some sources claim that Afghan may https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
come from the Sanskrit Avagana, itself
perhaps derived from the Sumerian name of
the Badakshan region, Ab-bar-Gan,
‘Mountainous Country’, according to a
Persian translaton, Afghan means ‘wailing’
or ‘moaning’.
Land of Hayk The Armenians call themselves ‘the Hayk’ https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

after Noah’s great-great-grandson from
whom the Armenians claim descent. The
Armenian name thus means the ‘Land of
Hayk’.
The Two Seas Means ‘Two Seas’, from baḥrayn, the plural https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
of baḥr. It is a reference to the fact that the
kingdom has ‘seas’ to the east and west.
Land of the Bengalis Means ‘Land of the Bengalis’, from deś, ‘land’ https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
or ‘country’. The Bengalis take their name
from Banga, the chief of the Dravidian-
speaking Bang tribe.
Land of the Thunder Dragon Named Dzongkha in the language of Bhutan, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
from Druk-Yul, ‘Land of the Thunder Dragon’,
often also translated as ‘Land of the Peaceful
Dragon’.
Land Derivaton of the name is unclear; according https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

to legend, Muhammad Shah, who would
become the first sultan of Brunei, upon
discovering what would become Brunei
exclaimed "Baru nah," which roughly
translates as "there" or "that's it"
City Cambodia is the Latnized form of the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Sanskrit Kambuja, which in turn is derived
from Sanskrit nagara, ‘city’ or 'town.'
Middle Kingdom English name derives from the Qin (Chin) https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
rulers of the 3rd century B.C., who comprised
the first imperial dynasty of ancient China;
the Chinese name Zhongguo translates as
"Central Naton" (also translated as Middle
Kingdom).
Land of the Wolves The Western name may derive from the https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
Persian designaton "gurgan" meaning "Land
of the Wolves"; the natve name
"Sak'art'velo" means "Land of the
Kartvelians" and refers to the core central
Georgian region of Kartli
Country of the River Indus India is a Greek and Latn term for ‘the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
country of the River Indus’, with Indus
probably coming from the Sanskrit word
sindhu, ‘the sea’.
Indian Islands The name means ‘Indian Islands’, from Greek https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Indos Nesos.
Land of the Aryans Derived from the Old Persian aryānam, the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
genitve plural of arya, ‘noble’ in the sense of
‘high-born’. It means ‘(Land of) the Aryans’.
Beside the Water Iraq’s name is a reference to its locaton https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

astride the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers. It
comes from the Arabic al-‘irāq, ‘the (river)
bank’ or ‘beside the water’.
He that striveth with God Old English Israel, "the Jewish people, the https://www.etymonline.com/word/Isr
Hebrew naton," from Latn Israel, from
Greek, from Hebrew yisra'el "he that striveth
with God" (Genesis xxxii.28), symbolic proper
name conferred on Jacob and extended to
his descendants, from sara "he fought,
contended" + El "God."
Land of the Rising Sun The English word for Japan comes via the https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
Chinese name for the country "Cipangu."
Both Nihon and Nippon mean "where the
sun originates" and are frequently translated
as "Land of the Rising Sun"
Descend to the Sea Named after the River Jordan, from the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Hebrew root yrd, ‘descend (into the Dead
Sea)’. The river’s name, however, could mean
‘River of Dan’, with Dan being one of the sons
of Jacob.
High and Beautiful Korea is the Western name for the Koryŏ https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
dynasty (918–1392). It can be translated as
‘high and beautful’.
The Fortress Takes its name from a small fortress. It is a https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
diminutve of the Arabic kūt, meaning ‘fort’.
Land of the Wanderers Means ‘Land of the Kyrgyz’ and comes from https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
the Turkic kir, ‘steppe’, and gizmek, ‘to
wander’.
Kingdom of Three Laos Known as ‘Pathét Lao’ (‘Lao state’) in the Lao https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
language, Laos was the name given to unite
the three Lao kingdoms in 1893.
White Peaks comes from the Semitc word lavan meaning https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
‘white’ or ‘whitsh’, probably referring to the
snowy peaks of Mount Lebanon.
Mountain City Probably comes from the Tamil words malai https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
(mountain) and ur (city).
Garland of Islands Probably comes from the Sanskrit mālādvīpa https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

‘garland of islands’ from mālā ‘garland’ or
‘necklace’ and dvīpa.
Land of the Mongols Named after the Mongols who took their https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
name from mong ‘brave’ or ‘undefeated’.
Swift and Strong Name is taken from Mranma, the local name https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
for the Burmese people and their language.
Myan means ‘swift’ and ma ‘strong’.
The country looked after by Ne History and traditons say that a Hundu sage https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=b
named Ne established himself in the
Kathmandu valley during prehistoric tmes.
The word Nepal is thought to be derived
from the place protected ("pala" in Sanskrit)
by the sage, Ne. Thus, Nepal means "the
country looked after by Ne."
Land of Oman Supposedly named for its founder. https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Pure country Pakistan is an acronym deriving from Punjab, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Afghan Fronter, Kashmir, and Baluchistan:
regions envisioned as forming the new state,
which also made a play on Iranian pak
"pure". And -stan is a place-name element
from Persian -stan "country," from Indo-
Iranian *stanam "place," literally "where one
stands,"
Land of Prince Philip of Asturias The Philippines were named after Philip II, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
King of Spain in the 16th century; Philippines
is an Anglicizaton of Filipinas.
Land of Tar There is no certainty as to the origin of the https://www.etymonline.com/word/qa

name. Qatara means ‘to fall’, ‘drip’, or
‘trickle’, or ‘to line up camels in single file and
connect them with halters’, while qutr means
‘region’ and qutra ‘drop’. Thus the name
could have been inspired by the presence of
well-water or a camel park.
Other sources say it could be from Arabic
word katran, which means "tar" or "resin," in
reference to the country's petroleum.
Land of the Rus Russia comes from ‘Land of the Rus’’; it has https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
been suggested that Rus’ comes from Ruotsi,
the Finnish word for the Swedes, and
therefore means ‘Swedish Vikings’; or that it
is a Viking word meaning ‘oarsman’.
Land of Good Fortune Saudi refers to the name of the dynasty https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
whose eponym is Sa’ūd ibn Muhammad ibn
Muqrin, while Arabia refers to the geographic
region, principally the Arabian Peninsula. The
word Saudi is from Arabic sa'd "good fortune,
happiness." With common Semitc natonal
designaton suffix -i.
Lion City Singapore is derived from the Sanskrit https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Simm hapura meaning ‘Lion City’, from simm ha,
‘lion’, and pur, ‘city’.
Blessed Island Sri Lanka means ‘Blessed Island’ (also https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

sometmes translated as ‘Resplendent
Island’), and may be derived from the
Sanskrit shrī, ‘holiness’, ‘happiness’,
‘prosperity’, or ‘honoured’, and lak diga, ‘land
mass’.
Land of the Philistines from Latn Palestna (name of a Roman https://www.etymonline.com/word/Pa

province), from Greek Palaistne (Herodotus),
from Hebrew Pelesheth "Philista, land of the
Philistnes." Revived as an official politcal
territorial name 1920 with the Britsh
mandate.
Land of the Syrians The origin of the name Syria is not known, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
but it may be associated with the ancient
Kingdom of Assyria, although this lay mainly
in modern Iraq.
Home of the Tajiks Tajikistan takes its name from its indigenous https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
people, the Tajiks, with the additonal stan.
The Tajiks get their name from an Arab tribal
name, Taiy or Tayyi, a name widely used to
describe the Arabs in pre-Islamic tmes.
Land of the Free The country is named after the Thais whose https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
name means ‘Free (People)’ from fra, ‘to be
free’.
Land in the East Timor-Leste, also known as ‘East Timor', https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

takes Timor from the Malay tmur, ‘east’ –
thus East Timor means ‘East East’
Land of the Turkmen Turkmenistan simply means ‘Land of the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Turkmen’ from the Oğuz Turks and stan.
Their name may mean ‘Turk-like’ from the
Persian Tork and the root of mandan ‘to
resemble’ or the suffix men may indicate
strength.
United Arab Kingdom Abu Dhabi, ‘Ajmān, Dubai, al-Fujairah, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Sharjah (ash-Shāriqah), and Umm al
Qaywayn – and Ra’s al-Khaymah joined in
1972.
Land of the Free A combinaton of the Turkic words "uz" (self) https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
and "bek" (master) with the Persian suffix "-
stan" (country) to give the meaning "Land of
the Free"
Viets of the South Viet is the Vietnamese pronunciaton of a https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Chinese character meaning ‘beyond’ or ‘far’
and referred to the peoples living in the
southern reaches of the Chinese Empire and
the Red River delta.
Country of the South The meaning of Yemen is disputed. https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Southwestern region of Arabia, from Arabic
Yemen, literally "the country of the south."
Some say that it comes from the Arabic
yamīn ‘on the right-hand side’ of the Ka’bah
in Mecca or to the right of the Red Sea;
others that it comes from yumn ‘good
fortune’ or ‘prosperity’; yet others that it is
named after Yamin bin Qahtan, a grandson of
Noah and progenitor of the South Arabian
tribes, or that it is simply al-Yaman ‘the
South’.
Source 2 Source 3
https://www.etymonline.com/word/-stan
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Bahrain
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Bangladesh
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Bhutan
https://www.chinatravel.com/facts/origin-of-the-name-of-china.htm
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Georgia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/India
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Indonesia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Iran
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Iraq
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Japan
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Korea
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Kuwait
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Laos
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Lebanon
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Maldives
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Myanmar
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Oman
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Pakistan
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Philippines
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Russia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Saudi
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Singapore
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Sri%20Lanka
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Syria
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Thai
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Timor
https://www.britannica.com/place/East-Timor
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Vietnam
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Yemen
Australia Australia New Latn Terra Australis Incognita
Australia Fiji Polynesian/Fijian Vit
Australia Kiribat I-Kiribat Kir-a-bas
Australia Marshall Islands Marshallese Majeļ
Australia Micronesia Greek Micro and nesos
Australia Nauru Nauruan Anáoero
Australia New Zealand Dutch Zeeland
Australia Palau Palauan Belau
Australia Papua New Guinea Malay Papuah

Australia Samoa Samoan Samoa
Australia Solomon Islands Spanish Solomon Islands
Australia Tonga Samoan Tonga
Australia Tuvalu Tuvaluan Tuvalu
Australia Vanuatu Vanuatuan Vanuatu

name/etymology
Southern Land Imagining the existence of a land located in https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
the Southern hemisphere, the Greeks came
up with the name Terra Australis Incognita,
meaning ‘Unknown Southern Land’.
Great Fiji The meaning of Fiji is not known, but it takes https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
its name from its largest island, Vit Levu,
meaning ‘Great Fiji’.
Gilbert Islands Previously called Gilbert Islands, ‘Kiribat’ is https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

the natve pronunciaton of Gilbert and is
pronounced ‘Kir-a-bas’.
Island of John Marshall Named after the Britsh explorer John https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
Marshall, who explored them in 1788.
Small Island translates from the Greek for ‘small’ + https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

‘island’.
I go to the beach The island’s name may be derived from https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

anáoero, ‘I go to the beach’.
New Sea Land Comes from the Dutch province of Zeeland, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
‘sea land’.
The Island Village From the Palauan name for the islands, https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
Belau, which likely derives from the Palauan
word "beluu" meaning "village"
Frizzy-haired Men The word "papua" derives from the Malay https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
"papuah" describing the frizzy hair of the
Melanesians; Spanish explorer Ynigo ORTIZ
de RETEZ applied the term "Nueva Guinea"
to the island of New Guinea in 1545 after
notng the resemblance of the locals to the
peoples of the Guinea coast of Africa
Sacred Center said to mean ‘Sacred Centre’ because, https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
according to legend, this is where Tagaloalagi
created the world. It may, however, mean the
‘Place of the Moa’, an extnct bird, in the
Samoan language.
King Soloman Islands Named by the Spaniard Àlvaro de Mendaña https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

de Neira (1542–95), inspired by Inca stories
of islands 600 leagues to the west of Peru
that had been the source of the gold that
adorned the court of King Solomon.
Island to the South simply means ‘south’. It is named in relaton https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

to Samoa.
Eight Standing Together Means ‘eight standing together’ from the https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
Tuvaluan tu ‘to stand up’ and valu ‘eight’. The
eight were the eight islands and atolls
inhabited (of nine currently) when the first
Europeans arrived in the 16th century.
Our Land Forever Means ‘our land forever’, from the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Polynesian/Fijian vanua, ‘land’.
Source 2 Source 3
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Australia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Fiji
https://www.britannica.com/place/Kiribat
https://blog.oxforddictonaries
.com/2016/05/17/country-
name-origins/
https://www.etymonline.com/word/New%20Zealand
Europe Albania Latn Shqipëri
Europe Andorra Navarrese Andurrial
Europe Austria Österreich Österreich
Europe Azerbaijan Persian Āzarbāydjān
Europe Belarus Belarusian Belaya Rus
Europe Belgium Latn Belgic Gaul
Europe Bosnia and Latn/Old Serbian Bosna + (Old Serbian) Herceg

Herzegovina
Europe Bulgaria Turkic Bulģha
Europe Croata Persian Choroatos
Europe Cyprus Greek Kypros

Europe Czech Republic Czech Češi
Europe Denmark Old English Denamearc
Europe England Old English England
Europe Estonia Latn Esthonia
Europe Finland Swedish Finland
Europe France Late Latn Francia
Europe Germany Old High German Deutschland
Europe Greece Persian Yunanistan
Europe Hungary Turkic On-ogur

Europe Iceland Old Norse Snæland
Europe Ireland Gaelic Iar-en-land
Europe Italy Latn Vitulus or witaloi
Europe Kazakhstan Turkic qazaq or quzzaq
Europe Kosovo Serbian Kosovo Polje
Europe Latvia Latvian Latvis
Europe Liechtenstein German Liechtenstein
Europe Lithuania Latn Lithuania
Europe Luxembourg Celtc Lucilemburg
Europe Macedonia Greek Makedones

Europe Malta Latn Melita
Europe Moldova Gothic melh
Europe Monaco Greek Monoikos
Europe Montenegro Italian Mount Lovćen
Europe Netherlands Latn Inferior terra
Europe Norway Old Norse norðr
Europe Poland Polish Polska
Europe Portugal Latn Portus Cale
Europe Romania Latn Romani
Europe Russia English/Russian Rosia/Rossiya
Europe San Marino Italian San Marino

Europe Scotland English Kingdom of Scotland
Europe Serbia Slavic Man
Europe Slovakia Slavic Slavs
Europe Slovenia Slovene Solvenia
Europe Spain Punic Span or Tepan
Europe Sweden Old English Svear
Europe Switzerland Alemannic Schwyz
Europe Turkey Latn/Arabic Turchia/Turkiyye
Europe Ukraine Russian Okraina
Europe Wales Old English Wielisc

Europe Vatcan City Italian Città del Vatcano
name/etymology
Land of Eagles Medieval Latn name of the country called by https://www.etymonline.com/word/Alb
its inhabitants Shqipëri (literally "land of
eagles," from shqiponje "eagle"), from
Medieval Greek Albania, possibly from a pre-
IE word *alb "hill" (also proposed as the
source of Alps) or from the PIE root *albho-
"white"
Shrub-covered Land Probably taken from indigenous (Navarrese) https://www.etymonline.com/word/an

andurrial.
East Mark Derived from the fact that the region became https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
a military district on the eastern border
called Ostmark.
Protected by Fire May take its name from Persian general https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Atropates, who took his name from the
Greek atropatan, ‘protected by fire’.
White Ruthenia Shortening of Belaya Rus, meaning ‘White https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Ruthenia’
Land of the Belgae Named after the Belgae, a confederaton of https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

tribes that lived between the Rivers Rhine
and Loire in Roman tmes.
River Bosna + Property of a Duke Named after the River Bosna, while the name https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Herzegovina comes from the Old Serbian
Herceg, ‘duke’, ov, to make the genitve case
of herceg in order to indicate possession, and
ina, ‘property’.
Mixed Tribes From the Turkic bulga, ‘mixed’, Bulgaria is https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

named after the Bulgars, a mix of Turkic and
Slav tribes.
On the Mountain Ridge Either derived from the Persian choroatos, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
‘nomads’, from the Caucasus, or from the
Serbo-Croat hrbat, ‘mountain ridge’.
Island of Copper It is believed that the island’s abundant https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

deposits of copper led to the Greeks naming
it Kypros.
Land of the Czechs Name derives from the Czechs, a West Slavic https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
tribe who rose to prominence in the late 9th
century A.D.
Home of Warriors Took its name from the Danes, possibly https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
meaning ‘warrior’
Land of the Angles Old English Engla land, literally "the land of https://www.etymonlin
the Angles". e.com/word/england
Waterside Dwellers Named after its inhabitants, the Eest. It is https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

unclear where the word eest comes from,
perhaps from a natve name meaning
"waterside dwellers.
Land of the Finns Perhaps derived from the Germanic (or https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Teutonic Scandinavian) finna, ‘fish scale’. It
may be a reference to the type of clothing
worn by the primitve Finnish tribes.
Land of the Fierce Takes its name from a coaliton of Germanic https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
tribes, the Franks. The name Frank either
comes from the Old German word franka,
meaning ‘fierce’ or ‘brave’,
Land of the People The Gauls (Celts) of Western Europe may https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
have referred to the newly arriving Germanic
tribes who settled in neighboring areas east
of the Rhine during the first centuries B.C. as
"Germani," a term the Romans adopted as
"Germania." The natve designaton
"Deutsch" comes from the Old High German
"diutsc" meaning "of the people."
Land of the Ionians The Turkish name for the country, via Persian, https://www.etymonline.com/word/Gr
is Yunanistan, literally "Land of the Ionians."
Ionia also yielded the name for the country in
Arabic and Hindi (Yunan
10 Arrows Comes from On Ogur, ‘Ten Arrows’, the name https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

of a group of tribes (seven Magyar and three
Kavar) living along the north shore of the
Black Sea before they moved to modern
Hungary during the 9th century.
Snow Land Originally called Snæland, ‘Snow Land’, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Iceland’s present name comes from the
Norse settlers who renamed it with the
intenton to deter visitors from coming to the
island.
Land in the West The name is a form of Iar-en-land, ‘Land in https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

the West’ from the Gaelic iar, ‘west’
Sons of the Bull Believed to come from the Vitali tribe whose https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
name may be connected to Latn vitulus,
‘calf’, or witaloi, ‘sons of the bull’.
Place Where One Stands From stan and the Turkic kazak (qazaq or https://www.etymonline.com/word/-st
quzzaq), ‘Horsemen’ or ‘Riders of the
Steppe’. However, kazak is more commonly
translated as ‘adventurer’, ‘outlaw’, ‘raider’,
or ‘free, or independent, man’.
Field of the Blackbirds The name Kosovo is derived from a Serbian https://www.britannica.com/place/Kos
place-name Kossovo meaning “field of
blackbirds.” A battle was fought at Kosovo
Polje ("Field of the Blackbirds") between the
armies of the Serbian prince Lazar and the
Turkish forces of the Ottoman sultan Murad I
Forest Clearer Derived from what the Latvians call https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

themselves, Latvis.
Bright Stone Named after the Liechtenstein family from https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Liechtenstein Castle in Lower Austria. The
name means ‘bright stone’.
Shoreland Meaning not known, although it has been https://www.etymonline.com/word/Lit

suggested that it may be derived from the
Latn litus ‘shore’, a reference to the Baltc
coast or from the small River Letavka.
Little Castle Originally found as Luciliburhuc, meaning https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

‘little castle’.
Land of Tall People Comes from the ancient Greek root mak, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
‘tall, high’, possibly describing tall people
living there.
Place of Refuge Mediterranean island, from Latn Melite, https://www.etymonline.com/word/Ma
perhaps from Phoenician melita, literally
"place of refuge," from malat "he escaped."
Dark River Named for the river through it, probably https://www.etymonline.com/word/Mo
from a PIE word meaning "dark, darkish
color, soiled, black"
Single House Founded by the Phocaeans in the 6th century https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
bc as Monoikos, a Greek word meaning
‘single house’ or ‘single temple’, signifying a
place to rest.
Land of the Black Mountain Said to be a reference to the dark https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

appearance of Mt Lovćen at various tmes of
the year and the surrounding heavily wooded
areas.
Lowlands Literal English translaton of Nederlanden, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

itself a translaton from the Latn inferior
terra.
Northern Way The name means ‘The Way North’ or ‘The https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Northern Way’ from the Old Norse
Norrevegr, a reference to one of the routes
taken by the Vikings.
People of the Fields The country is named after the Polanie https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
‘People of the Fields, or Plain’ from pole
‘field’.
Warm Port Derived from the Latn portus cale, ‘warm https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
harbour’, which referred to a Roman
settlement, now Oporto, at the mouth of the
River Douro and the fact that the port was
never ice-bound.
People from Rome comes from the Romans – as some members https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
of the Roman legions settled in Dacia.
Swedish Vikings It has been suggested that Rus’ comes from https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Ruotsi, the Finnish word for the Swedes, and
therefore means ‘Swedish Vikings’; or that it
is a Viking word meaning ‘oarsman’.
Land of Saint Marinus Named after a Christan stonemason and https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

later saint, Marinus.
Land of the Scots Named for the Scots, who settled there from https://www.etymonline.com/word/Sc
Ireland 5c.-6c.; their name is of unknown
origin (see Scot).
Land of the Men Named after the Serbs; it declared https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
independence in 2006, having previously
been part of the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia. The word Serb derives from a
root meaning "man"
Land of the Slovaci Named after the Slovaks, a Slav tribe which https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
probably came from Silesia in the 6th or 7th
century.
Land of the Slavs Named after its indigenous inhabitants, the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Slovenes.
Land of Many Rabbits May come from the Punic span or tsepan, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
‘rabbit’, which were numerous in the
peninsula, or from the Punic sphan,‘north’,
since it was north of Carthage – or it may
come from the Basque ezpaña, ‘lip’ or
‘extremity’, a reference to this south-western
area of Europe.
Land of the Svear Named after Germanic people, the Svear or https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Suiones (the Roman name), who inhabited
the area around Lake Mälaren.
Land of the Swiss Takes its name from Schwyz, a German- https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
speaking forest community that joined with
Uri and Unterwalden in signing a agreement
of mutual assistance as the Everlastng
League.
Land of Strength Came from the word Turks, Said to mean https://www.etymonline.com/word/Tu
"strength" in Turkish. In Persian, turk, in
additon to the natonal name, also could
mean "a beautful youth," "a barbarian," "a
robber."
Land on the Edge Derived from the Russian okraina ‘(land) on https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
the edge’.
Land of the Foreigners The origin of the word Wales is a strange https://www.etymonline.com/word/We
one. It is a variaton on a common word used
hundreds of years ago by the Anglo Saxons to
mean foreigners or outsiders.
Papal Palace on the Hill from Latn mons Vatcanus, Roman hill on https://en.wikipedia.or
which Papal palace stands. Said to be an g/wiki/List_of_country-
Etruscan loan-word, not related to vates name_etymologies#y
"sooth-sayer."
Source 2 Source 3
https://blog.oxforddictonaries
.com/2016/05/17/country-
name-origins/
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Austria
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Azerbaijan
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Belgium
https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=Bosnia+and+Herzegovina
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Bulgaria
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Croata
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Czech
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Estonia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Frank
https://www.etymonline.com/word/France
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Germany
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Iceland
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Ireland
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Italy
https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Kosovo-1389-Balkans
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Latvia
https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=Liechtenstein
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Luxembourg
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Macedonia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Montenegro
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Netherlands
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Norway
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Portugal
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Romania
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Russia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Serb
https://www.britannica.com/place/Serbia/Government-and-society#ref43564
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Slovak
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Sweden
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Turk
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Ukraine
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/culture/sites/aboutwales/pages/history.shtml
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Vatcan
North America Antgua and Barbuda Spanish Antgua - Antego. Barbuda -

Barbado
North America Bahamas Spanish Boo de las Bahamas
North America Barbados Portuguese As Barbadas
North America Belize Spanish Belize
North America Canada Iroquoian Kanada
North America Costa Rica Spanish Costa Rica
North America Cuba Taíno Cubanacan
North America Dominica Latn diēs Dominicus
North America Dominican Republic Latn Dominican Republic

North America El Salvador Spanish El Salvador
North America Grenada French La Grenade
North America Guatemala Nahuatl Quauhtemallan
North America Hait Taíno/Arawak Hayit
North America Honduras Spanish Honduras
North America Jamaica Taíno/Arawak Indian Xaymaca or Hamaica
North America Mexico Nahuatl Metztlixihtlico
North America Nicaragua Spanish Nicarao
North America Panama Cueva Panama

North America Saint Kitts and Nevis Spanish St. Kitts and Nuestra Señora
de las Nieves,
North America Saint Lucia Latn Saint Lucia
North America Saint Vincent and the Spanish Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines Grenadines
North America Trinidad and Tobago Spanish La Isla de la trinidad
North America United States of English United States of America

America
name/etymology
The Bearded Ancient Land Christopher Columbus named Antgua after https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
the Church of Santa Maria de la Antgua, ‘St
Mary the Ancient’, in Seville, Spain. The
origin of the name Barbuda is not clear, but it
has been suggested that it is derived from
the Spanish barbados, ‘bearded’.
Land of Shallow Sea It is not entrely clear where the Bahamas got https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
their name, but it is said to mean ‘Shallow
Sea’ from the Spanish baja mar.
Land of the Bearded Ones Barbados is a Spanish word meaning https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

‘bearded’ or ‘the bearded ones’. It has been
speculated that Barbuda got its name from
the same root.
Muddy-watered Land May be named for the Belize River, whose https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
name possibly derives from the Maya word
"belix," meaning "muddy-watered"
The Village Canada’s name is perhaps derived from the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Huron-Iroquois word kanata, meaning
‘village’ or ‘settlement’.
Rich Coast Costa Rica means ‘rich coast’. The name was https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
chosen by Christopher Columbus, who may
have believed that gold would be found
there.
Centre Place Cuba may have adapted its name from the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Taino word Cubanacan, ‘centre place’.
Day of the Lord Discovered by Christopher Columbus and https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

named after the ‘Lord’s Day’, Dies Dominica,
or ‘Sunday’, in Latn.
Saint Dominic's Island The country name derives from the capital https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
city of Santo Domingo (Saint Dominic).
Land of the Savior Meaning ‘The Saviour’, the country takes its https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
name from a Spanish fort located on the
present site of the capital San Salvador.
Place of Pomegranates Probably named for the Spanish city of https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

Granada; in Spanish "granada" means
"pomegranate"
Land of Many Trees The origin of the name Guatemala is not https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
entrely clear, but it has been suggested that
it comes from an Aztec word,
Quauhtemallan, meaning ‘Land of Many
Trees’ or ‘Land of the Eagle’.
Land of Mountains Hait took its name from the Arawak name of https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Ayt, the original name for the island now
shared by Hait and the Dominican Republic.
Ayt means ‘Land of Mountains’.
Deep Water The name means ‘Deep Water’ from the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Spanish hondura, a possible reference to the
depth of the coastal waters.
Land of Wood and Water From the Arawak name of Xaymaca or https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Yamaya meaning ‘Land of Wood and Water’.
In the Navel of the Moon México is the simplified Spanish version of a https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Nahuatl name for the Aztec capital,
Metztlixihtlico, said to mean ‘In the Navel of
the Moon’ from mētztli ‘moon’, xictli ‘navel’
or ‘centre’, and the suffix -co ‘place’ – to give
‘Place at the Centre of the Moon’.
Land by the Water Nicaragua may come from the name of a https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
local 16th-century chief, Nicarao, and agua,
‘water’ in Spanish. Alternatvely, it has been
suggested that some Spaniards heard the
name Nicaragua, perhaps meaning ‘Here,
near the Lake’.
Place of Abundant Fish Panama is named after the capital, Panama https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
City, which is said to mean ‘(Place with) an
Abundance of Fish’.
St. Christopher's Land of Snows St Kitts is an abbreviaton of St Christopher, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
chosen by Christopher Columbus after his
patron saint. Nevis also comes from
Columbus, who thought that the island’s
summit, often wreathed in cloud, looked like
las nieves, ‘the snows’.
Land of Saint Lucy Saint Lucia is thought to have been https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

discovered by Christopher Columbus,
possibly on 13 December, the feast day of St
Lucy.
Isle of Saint Vincent The island of St Vincent was discovered by https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Christopher Columbus on 22 January 1498,
the feast day of St Vincent of Saragossa, a
martyr who died from torture in 304.
Island of the Holy Trinity and Tobacco Trinidad was named by Christopher https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Columbus in 1498, after the three peaks that
surrounded the southern bay. Tobago either
comes from the Haitan tambaku, ‘pipe’, or
from the local word tabaco, a reference to its
crops.
United States of America America – that was first applied to South https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
America in 1507 by Martn Waldseemüller
(c.1470–c.1521), a German geographer and
cartographer, in honour of an Italian explorer,
Amerigo Vespucci (1451–1512). Vespucci had
made exploratons that he’d initally thought
to be the east coast of Asia, but later realized
he had been to a ‘New World’.
Source 2 Source 3
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Antgua
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Bahamas
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Barbados
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Canada
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Cuba
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Dominican
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Dominican
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Guatemala
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Hait
https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=Honduras
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Jamaica
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Panama
South America Argentna Spanish La Argentna
South America Bolivia New Latn Bolivia
South America Brazil Portuguese Terra do Brasil
South America Chile Chilean Chile
South America Colombia Spanish Colombia
South America Ecuador Spanish Ecuador
South America Guyana Arawak guiana
South America Paraguay Guarani Paraguay

South America Peru Natve Peruvian Biru
South America Suriname Dutch Surinen
South America Uruguay Spanish Uruguay
South America Venezuela Spanish Venezuola

name/etymology
Land Beside the Silvery River Originally the area was referred to as Tierra https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
Argentna, i.e., "Land beside the Silvery
River" or "silvery land," which referred to the
massive estuary in the east of the country,
the Rio de la Plata (River of Silver); over tme
the name shortened to simply Argentna or
"silvery"
Bolivar's Land Bolivia takes its name from Simón Bolívar, a https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
natonal hero who led the revolutons against
Spanish rule in South America.
Red Dyewood Named after the indigenous people, the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Tswana or baTswana. Their name apparently
means ‘those who went away’ or ‘the
separators’.
Where the Land Ends Derivaton of the name is unclear, but it may https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
come from the Mapuche word "chilli,"
meaning "limit of the earth" (or "where the
land ends"), or from the Quechua "chiri,"
meaning "cold."
Land of Columbus Previously called New Granada after the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Granada in Spain, Colombia’s present name
was adapted in 1863 in honour of
Christopher Columbus.
The Equator The name means ‘Equator’ in Spanish, a https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

reference to the equator running through the
northern part of the country.
Land of Many Waters The name is derived from Guiana, the https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
original name for the region that included
Britsh Guiana, Dutch Guiana, and French
Guiana. Ultmately, the word is derived from
an indigenous Amerindian language and
means "Land of Many Waters" (referring to
the area's multtude of rivers and streams)
People Born Along the River The country takes its name from the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Paraguay River whose name comes from para
(‘river’ or ‘water’) and guay (‘born’). This
name may be connected with the Payaguá
tribe, perhaps meaning ‘(People) born
(along) the River’.
Land of the River Exact meaning is obscure, but the name may https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
derive from a natve word "biru" meaning
"river"
Land of the Surinens The name Suriname is said to come from a https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton
local tribe called the Surinas or Surinen, its
earliest inhabitants.
River of Shellfish Uruguay may have come from uruguä, the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20
Guaraní for a species of mussel, thus ‘River of
Shellfish’, or from uru, a type of bird that
lived near the river, gua ‘to proceed from’,
and y ‘water’.
Little Venice Venezuela, ‘Little Venice’, was named https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

because it reminded the Spaniards Alonso de
Ojeda and Amerigo Vespucci of the Italian
city.
Source 2 Source 3
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Argentna
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Bolivia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Brazil
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Chile
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Colombia
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Ecuador
https://www.britannica.com/place/Guyana
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Paraguay
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Peru
https://www.britannica.com/place/Suriname/History
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Uruguay
https://www.etymonline.com/word/Venezuela

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Continent Country Language of origin Words in original language

Africa Algeria Arabic Al Jazā᾽ir

Africa Angola Portuguese Ngola

Africa Benin Yoruba Ile–ibinu

Africa Botswana Tswana Bechuanaland

Africa Burkina Faso More/ Dioula Burkina/faso

Africa Burundi Kirundi Burundi

Africa Cameroon Portuguese Camarões

Africa Cape Verde Portuguese Cabo Verde

Africa Central African French République centrafricaine

Africa Comoros Arabic ‫جزر القمر‬

Africa Congo Bantu Kongo

Africa Côte d'Ivoire French Côte d'Ivoire

Africa Democratc Republic of Bantu Kongo

Africa Djibout Afar Gabouri

Africa Egypt Greek Αἴγυπτος

Africa Equatorial Guinea Portuguese Aguinaw

Africa Ethiopia Greek Æthiopia

Africa Gabon Portuguese Gabão

Africa Ghana Ghanaian Ghana

Africa Guinea Portuguese Aguinaw

Africa Guinea-Bissau Portuguese (black people) aguinaw +

Africa Kenya Kikuyu Nyaga

Africa Lesotho Sesotho Basotho

Africa Libya Greek Libyē

Africa Madagascar Arabic Madageiscar

Africa Malawi Bantu Maravi

Africa Mali Malinké and Bamana Mali

Africa Mauritania Latn (Tribe) Mauri + (Land) -itania

Africa Mauritus Dutch Maurice van Nassau

Africa Morocco Arabic Maghrib-al-Aqsa

Africa Namibia Nama Namib

Africa Niger Tamasheq Ger-n-ger

Africa Nigeria Tamasheq Ger-n-ger

Africa Rwanda Kinyarwanda Vanyarwanda

Africa Senegal Wolof Il sunu gaol

Africa Seychelles French Séchelles

Africa Sierra Leone Spanish Sierra Leona

Africa South Africa Afrikaans Suid-Afrika

Africa Sudan Arabic Bilad-al-sudan

Africa Swaziland Swat (Swazi) Umbuso weSwatni

Africa Tanzania Tonga(Tanganyika) and Tanganika and Zanzibar

Africa The Gambia Portuguese Ba-Dimma

Africa Togo Ewe Togo

Africa Tunisia Berber Tunisia

Africa Zambia Tonga Great River

Africa Zimbabwe Shona Dzimba-dze-mabwe

Land of Honest Men Burkina Faso translates to ‘Land of Honest https://www.cia.gov/lib

River of Prawns Cameroon is the Anglicized form of the https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

Moons Name derives from the Arabic designaton https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

Ivory Coast The Cote d’Ivoire, or Ivory Coast in English, is https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Plate The name probably comes from an Afar word https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

The King's Land Ghana perhaps means ‘king’ or ‘sovereign’ https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Black Bissau The name Guinea remains a source of https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Mountain of Whiteness Kenya is a shortened version of the Kikuyu https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Land of the Sotho Lesotho translates approximately into ‘the https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Holy Land The name Madageiscar originated with https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Land of Flames Malawi comes from Maravi people. Their https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton

Hippopotamus Mali may come from the Malinké people, https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

The Far West from Italian, from Berber Marrakesh https://www.cia.gov/libr

River of Rivers named for the river Niger, probably an https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Our Canoe An explorer pointed to the Senegal River and https://blog.oxforddictonaries.com/20

Lion Mountains Sierra Leone means ‘Lion Mountains’ from https://www.cia.gov/library/publicaton