List of etymologies of country subdivision names

This article provides a collection of the etymology of the names of country subdivisions. This page generally only deals with regions and provinces; cities and other localities and features may appear listed under the individual country, with a link below.

Australia

States

*New South Wales: named with reference to Wales by Captain James Cook. For the etymology of Wales, see below.
*Queensland: named in honour of Queen Victoria
*South Australia: located in the south-central region of Australia
*Tasmania: named after Abel Tasman, who sighted the island in 1642; originally named by Tasman as ''Van Diemen's Land'', after Anthony van Diemen, the colonial governor who commissioned Tasman's voyage
*Victoria: named in honour of Queen Victoria
*Western Australia: comprises the western third of Australia

Territories

Mainland

* Australian Capital Territory
* Northern Territory: territory in north-central Australia
* Jervis Bay Territory: bay named by Lieutenant Bowen in 1791 for the naval hero Admiral Sir John Jervis, 1st Earl of St. Vincent.

External

* Ashmore and Cartier Islands: named for Ashmore Reef islets and Cartier Island
** Ashmore Reef: first recorded sighting by a European, Captain Samuel Ashmore of the ''Hibernia'', 11 June 1811
** Cartier Island: discovered by a Captain Nash, aboard the ''Cartier''
* Christmas Island: bestowed by Captain William Mynors of the British East India Company for its discovery on Christmas Day, 25 December 1643.
* Cocos (Keeling) Islands:
**Cocos Islands: for the plentiful coconuts (''Cocos nucifera'') growing there
** Keeling Islands, an alternate name: for their discovery by Captain William Keeling of the English East India Company in 1609.
* Coral Sea Islands: uninhabited islands in the Coral Sea, named for its coral formations, especially the Great Barrier Reef, the largest coral reef in the world.
* Heard Island and McDonald Islands:
** Heard Island: discovered (first ''confirmed'' sighting) by Captain John Heard of the merchant vessel ''Oriental'', 25 November 1853

** McDonald Islands: discovered by Captain William McDonald, 4 January 1854
* Norfolk Island (Norfuk: ''Norfuk Ailen''): discovered and named by James Cook (1774) for Duchess Mary Howard, Duchess of Norfolk

Austria

States

*Burgenland (German; hu, Várvidék; hr, Gradišće): originally called ''Vierburgenland'', "Land of four Burgs (castles)", a name suggested in 1919 from the endings of the four former counties forming the state: Preßburg, Wieselburg, Ödenburg and Eisenburg. In 1922 Austria ceded Ödenburg to Hungary and dropped the numeric prefix ''Vier-'' ("four"); the remaining three counties became Burgenland.
* Carinthia, German'' Kärnten'': etymologically related to the early Slavic medieval principality Carantania (Slovenian ''Karantanija'', German ''Karantanien''); a suggested etymology references a Celtic term for "stone" or "crag", while a popular etymology holds that the name means "land of friends"
*Lower Austria, German ''Nieder-Österreich'': the lower part (lower in height) of the original territory of Austria ('the eastern country'), as opposed to Upper Austria; also called ''Österreich unter der Enns'' "Austria below the (river) Enns"
*Salzburg: after the city of Salzburg (literally "salt castle"), which takes its name from the salt mines that existed there during the Middle Ages
* Styria, German ''Steiermark'': after the castle of Steyr; in the high Middle Ages, it formed a march of the Holy Roman Empire, hence ''-mark''
*Tirol: after the Tirol Castle near Meran
*Upper Austria, German ''Ober-Österreich'': the upper (physically higher) part of the original territory of Austria, as opposed to Lower Austria; also called ''Österreich ob der Enns'' "Austria above the (river) Enns"
*Vienna, German ''Wien'': from Celtic ''Vindobona'' (''vindo'' "white" + ''bona'' "foundation, fort")
*Vorarlberg, literally "in front of the Arlberg", takes its name from the Arlberg, a mountain (German: ''Berg'') with a high mountain pass, characterised by ''Arle'', a local German term for "mountain pine".

Belgium

Regions

*Brussels, Dutch ''Brussel'', French ''Bruxelles'' (the capital city, outside any province; also Belgium's third region): medieval Dutch ''broek'' 'bog' + ''zele'' (in many place names in the Low Countries="habitation using thatching")
*Flanders, Dutch ''Vlaanderen'', French ''Flandre(s)'': plural of a terrain type; or "flooded land"; or a compound Flemish ''vlakte'' "plain" and ''wanderen'' "to wander". The name extended from the historical county (about half lost to French and Dutch neighbours; the rest roughly made up two administrative provinces, East Flanders and West Flanders; in French ''les Flandres'', plural) to the whole Dutch-speaking, majority part of Belgium (French ''la Flandre'', singular)
*Wallonia, French ''Wallonie'': from the (Romanized (Germano-) Celtic, now Francophone) Walloon people: as in many European countries, so named by Germanic neighbours; meaning: "strangers". Compare "Wales" below.

Provinces

* Antwerp: from the city of Antwerp, the province's capital, which may derive from the Frankish ''anda'' ("against") and a noun derived from the verb ''werpen'' ("to throw").
*Brabant (now divided for administrative purposes into Flemish Brabant and Walloon Brabant): The name in Carolingian times appeared in Latinised form as ''pagus Bracbatensis'', from ''bracha'' "new" and ''bant'' "region". See also under the Netherlands.
*East and West Flanders; see Flanders, above.
* Hainaut: after the river Haine.
* Liège: of disputed etymology. The name ''Liège'' (also used by the city of Liège, the province's capital) may have the same origin as the ancient name of Paris, i.e. ''Lutetia''; the German form, ''Lüttich'', suggests this. Liège and Lutetia would both derive from Latin ''lucotætia'', "marsh" or "mud". Another suggestion derives the names from Latin ''Lætica'', "colony", or ''Leudica'', "free". Alternatively, the Latin ''Leudica'' meaning "public place" may have given rise to the Walloon ''Lîdje'' and thence to ''Liège''. Note that the name appeared in written form as ''Liége'' (with an acute accent) until the 1950s.
*Limburg: Derived from the castle-fortified town of Limbourg, which in turn was derived from "lint" "dragon" and burg "fortress". See also under the Netherlands.
*Luxembourg: identical with the independent country of the same name to the east. See List of country name etymologies#Luxembourg for the etymology of "Luxembourg".
* Namur: after the city of Namur, the province's capital, of uncertain etymology.

Brazil

Bulgaria

Cambodia

* Banteay Meanchey Province: Ford of Victory in Khmer
* Battambang Province: Lost Staff in Khmer according to the legend of Preah Bat Dambang Kranhoung.
* Kampong Cham Province: Port of The Chams in Khmer
* Kampong Chhnang Province: Port of the Pots in Khmer
* Kampong Speu Province: Port of Carambola in Khmer
* Kampong Thom Province: According to legend two large snakes came to the port and it was named Kampong Pos Thom which means Large Snakes' Port in Khmer but passed through the years it was simplified to Kampong Thom which means Large Port in Khmer
*Kampot Province: Tetraodontidae in Khmer
* Kandal Province: Central in Khmer
* Koh Kong Province: Kong Island in Khmer
* Kep Province: Saddle of horse in Khmer
* Kratie Province: A kind of cosmetic powder in Khmer
* Mondulkiri Province: Mountain of Mandala
* Oddar Meanchey Province: Northern Victory in Khmer and Snaskrit
* Pailin Province: From the Word Phe Leng meaning Pinniped playing
* Phnom Penh: More information at
* Sihanoukville Province: Named after the former king, Norodom Sihanouk
* Preah Vihear Province: Sacred Temple named after Preah Vihear Temple
* Pursat Province: According to legend, a type tree swings and it was grown in then it was called A type of tree swings
* Prey Veng Province: Long Forest
* Ratanakiri Province: Precious Gems Mountain
* Siem Reap Province: Siam Defeated, literally Siam Flat
* Stung Treng Province: Lake of Reeds
* Svay Rieng Province: Aligned Mangoes
* Takeo Province: Grandfather Keo

Canada

Provinces and territories

Historical regions

*Acadia (French ''Acadie''): origin disputed:
**# Credited to Italian navigator Giovanni da Verrazzano, who first named a region around Chesapeake Bay ''Archadia'' ( Arcadia) in 1524 because of "the beauty of its trees", according to his diary. Cartographers began using the name ''Arcadia'' to refer to areas progressively farther north until it referred to the French holdings in maritime Canada (particularly Nova Scotia). The ''-r-'' also began to disappear from the name on early maps, resulting in the current ''Acadia''.
**# Possibly derived from the Míkmaq word ''akatik'', pronounced roughly "agadik", meaning "place", which French-speakers spelled as ''-cadie'' in place names such as Shubenacadie and Tracadie, possibly coincidentally.
* Nunatsiavut: Inuktitut, meaning "our beautiful land".

Chile

Regions

Roman numerals originally identified the regions in order from north to south (except Santiago). With the establishment of Arica-Parinacota and Los Ríos Region in 2007 the numbers no longer reflect the regions' positions.

* Maule Region (Spanish ''VII Región del Maule''): named after the Maule River.
*Biobío Region (Spanish ''VIII Región del Biobío''): named after the Bío-Bío River.
*Los Ríos Region (Spanish ''XIV Región de los Ríos''): refers to the river systems of Valdivia and Bueno and to the nickname of the city of Valdivia. The name may also reflect the name of Los Lagos Region (Spanish for Region of the Lakes) from which Los Ríos split away.
*Aisén Region, sometimes also spelled Aysén (Spanish ''XI Región Aisén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo''): The name Aisén may come from the Huilliche word ''achen'', meaning "to crumble". Another theory suggests that the Chonos culture used the word to mean "going more to the interior", in reference to the Fjord of Aisén that stretches east from the Moraleda strait.
* Magallanes y Antártica Chilena Region (Spanish ''XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena''): named in honour of Ferdinand Magellan, the Strait of Magellan and the city of Punta Arenas, formerly called ''Magallanes''.

China

Provinces

*Anhui () – lit. "Peaceful Badge", actually abbreviates Anqing & Huizhou
*Beijing () – "Northern Capital"
* Chongqing () – "Doubled Celebration"
*Fujian () – lit. "Luck Builds", actually abbreviates Fuzhou & Jian'ou
* Gansu () – lit. "Willingly Serious", actually abbreviates Ganzhou & Suzhou ()
*Guangdong () – lit. "Eastern Expanses", actually contracts the earlier "Eastern Guangnan" ('' Guangnandong'')

* Guangxi () – lit. "Western Expanses", actually contracts the earlier "Western Guangnan" ('' Guangnanxi'')
*Guizhou () – lit. "Expensive Province", actually refers to Mount Gui
*Hainan () – "South of the Sea", in reference to the Qiongzhou Strait, for the Hainan Island. Similarly, Leizhou Peninsula, which faces Hainan across the strait, is also called Haibei, meaning "North of the Sea".
*Hebei () – "North of the Yellow] River"
*Heilongjiang () – "Amur River, Black Dragon River", the Chinese name for the Amur River, from its Manchu language, Manchu name ''Sahaliyan Ula'' () ("Black River")
*Henan () – "South of the Yellow] River"
*Hubei () – "North of the Lake", in reference to Lake Dongting
*Hunan () – "South of the Lake", in reference to Lake Dongting
*Jiangsu () – lit. "The River Revives", actually abbreviates Jiangning & Suzhou ()
*Jiangxi () – lit. "West of the /nowiki>Yangtze.html" ;"title="Yangtze.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Yangtze">/nowiki>Yangtze">Yangtze.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Yangtze">/nowiki>Yangtze/nowiki> River" (although it is to the Yangtze's south), actually contracts the earlier "Western Jiangnan" (''Jiangnanxidao, Jiangnanxi'', "Western Region South of the River")
*Jilin () – lit. "Lucky Forest", actually a Sinification of Manchu language, Manchu girin ula (吉林乌拉) meaning "Riverside"
* Liaoning () – lit. "Distant Peace", actually refers to "Peaceful Liao", the region around the Liao River
*Inner Mongolia () – from the perspective of Beijing, as distinguished from " Outer Mongolia", which became independent in the 20th century (''Mongolia'' itself from "Land of the Mongols"; ''Mongol'' from the Mongolian for "brave")
*Ningxia () – lit. "Peaceful Summer", actually refers to the Tibetan state of Western Xia
*Qinghai () – "Blue Sea", for Qinghai Lake, from Mongolian (Köke Naghur)/Хөх нуур (Höh nuur)
*Shaanxi () – "West of the Pass(es)" or "West of Shanzhou". Shanzhou is named in reference to the three former channels of the Yellow River at Sanmenxia, previously supposed to have been cleft in the rock by Yu the Great and now submerged by the Sanmenxia Dam
* Shandong () – "East of the Taihang.html" ;"title="Taihang_Mountains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Taihang Mountains">Taihang">Taihang_Mountains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Taihang Mountains">Taihang/nowiki> Mountains"
*Shanghai () – "On the ocean"
*Shanxi () – "West of the Taihang.html" ;"title="Taihang_Mountains.html" ;"title="/nowiki> Taihang">Taihang_Mountains.html"_;"title="/nowiki>Taihang_Mountains">Taihang/nowiki>_Mountains"
* Taihang">Taihang_Mountains.html"_;"title="/nowiki>Taihang_Mountains">Taihang/nowiki>_Mountains"
*Sichuan">Taihang_Mountains">Taihang">Taihang_Mountains.html"_;"title="/nowiki>Taihang_Mountains">Taihang/nowiki>_Mountains"
*Sichuan_()_–_lit._"Four_Rivers",_refers_to_the_four_circuit_(administrative_division).html" ;"title="Sichuan.html" ;"title="Taihang Mountains">Taihang">Taihang_Mountains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Taihang Mountains">Taihang/nowiki> Mountains"
*Sichuan">Taihang Mountains">Taihang">Taihang_Mountains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Taihang Mountains">Taihang/nowiki> Mountains"
*Sichuan () – lit. "Four Rivers", refers to the four circuit (administrative division)">circuits of the region during the Song Dynasty – Chengdufu Circuit, Chengdufu, Kuizhou Circuit, Kuizhou, Lizhou Circuit, Lizhou, and Zizhou Circuit, Zizhou; also possibly refers to the four rivers in the regionMin River (Sichuan), Min, Tuo River, Tuo, Jialing and Wu.
*Tianjin () – "Heavenly Ford", in honor of the Yongle Emperor's crossing at that point
*Tibet – from ( ''Böd'') in the form ''Mtho-Böd'' 'High Tibet' or ''Stod-Böd'' 'Upper Tibet', or from Old Turkic ''Töbäd'' or ''Töpüt'' 'the heights'; the modern Chinese name ''Xizang'' means 'Western Tsang", from the Sinification of Tibetan ''Tsang'', the central-southern region of Tibet
*Xinjiang () – "The New Frontier"
*Yunnan () – lit. "South of the Clouds", actually refers to the Yunling Mountains
*Zhejiang () – "Crooked River", a former name of the modern Qiantang River

Special administrative regions

*Hong Kong – An Anglicized transcription of the Cantonese Chinese place name (''Hoeng¹gong²'', "Fragrant Harbor"), originally the name of the small inlet now known as Aberdeen Harbour. The reference to fragrance may refer to the harbor waters sweetened by the estuarine influx of the Pearl River or to the incense factories lining the coast to the north of Kowloon which was stored around Aberdeen Harbour, prior to the development of Victoria Harbour. The name was applied to the entirety of Hong Kong Island in the 1842 Treaty of Nanking. The Kowloon peninsula and New Territories were later added by the 1860 Convention of Peking and the 1898 Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory.
*Macau – for the Cantonese Chinese pronunciation of 媽閣 ( Maa⁵gok³), the name of temple of the sea goddess A-Ma, or ''A-Ma Gao'' (, "Bay of A-Ma"). The Chinese name of Macau () means "Inlet Gates". Also the English transcription is ''Macao''.

Czech Republic

Historical regions

*Czechia, geographic name of the Czech Republic (''Česko'' in Czech). From old Czech ''Czech'' (nationality), later written ''Čech''. Until 19th century referred predominantly to Bohemia only, later the meaning has been extended to all Czech lands (Bohemia, Moravia and Czech Silesia). Traditionally traced to a Forefather Čech, who brought the Czechs into Bohemia.
* Bohemia: "Land of the Boii", a Celtic tribe of the region. The ultimate etymology of ''Boii'' is uncertain, but has been connected to Proto-Indo-European roots meaning "cow" and "warrior"
*Moravia: "Land of the Morava"
*Silesia – from the holy Silesian mountain of Ślęża
* Sudetenland – from the Sudeten mountains

Denmark

* Bornholm: The Old Danish form, ''Burghændeholm'' shows derivation with the suffix ''-und'' from ''burgh'' "fortress": "provided with a fortress", later combined with ''holm'', "island". The similarity with the Germanic Burgundian tribe whose name has the same etymology and which may or may not have originated in Scandinavia, can be purely coincidental since the derivation is quite basic in meaning.
*Copenhagen ( da, København): The Old Danish form, ''Køpmannæhafn''Jørgensen, Bent, ''Stednavneordbog''. Copenhagen: Gyldendal, 1994. P. 170 shows the older genitive plural ''køpmannæ'' of ''køpman'', "merchant", coupled with ''hafn'', "harbor", producing the meaning "merchants' harbour". It has entered English via the (Low) German ''Kopenhagen''.
*Danish Virgin Islands, a former territory: See British Virgin Islands below.
*Faroe Islands ( da, Færøerne, fo, Føroyar): From Old Norse ''Færeyjar'' – literally, "Sheep Islands", from their dense population of sheep. Another theory suggests that the lexeme ''fær'' instead derives from Celtic and means "distant".
*Greenland ( da, Grønland): From Old Norse ''Grœnland'', literally, "green land"; so named by Erik the Red to induce settlement there. Greenlandic-speakers use the name ''Kalaallit Nunaat'', meaning "Land of the Greenlanders"
*Jutland ( da, Jylland; german: Jütland): From Old Danish ''Jutland'',Jørgensen, Bent, ''Stednavneordbog''. Copenhagen: Gyldendal, 1994. P. 148 derived from the tribal name of the Jutes, combined with ''land'' "land".
*Zealand ( da, Sjælland): Old Icelandic ''Selund'', Latin rendering ''Selon'', Old Danish ''Sialand''.Jørgensen, Bent, ''Stednavneordbog''. Copenhagen: Gyldendal, 1994. P. 249 A somewhat later form, now poetic, is ''Sjølund''. The oldest forms with the single l and the original vowel reveal that the name is derived with the suffix ''-und'' (cf. Bornholm above) from Old Danish ''*sial'' meaning either "seal" or "furrow": "provided with seals" or "provided with furrows", referring either to populations of seals or inlets from the sea. The suffix has later been reinterpreted as the lexeme ''land'' "land.

Dominican Republic

Estonia

Note: Estonian ''maakond'' means "county" and ''maa'' means "land". Counties given here without the suffix -''maa'' take their names (and etymologies as given here) from their capitals.
*Hiiumaa: from Estonian ''hiis'' – "holy grove", or ''hiid'' – "giant", meaning "land of holy groves" or "land of giants".
* Ida-Virumaa: "Eastern Virumaa" – see Virumaa below
*Jõgeva: from Estonian ''jõgi'' – "river" ( Pedja river) and possibly ''vahe'' – "between" (since the old estate stood on an island in the river), meaning "between rivers".
* Järvamaa: from Estonian ''järv'' – "lake", meaning "land of lakes".
* Läänemaa: from Estonian ''lääne'' – "western", meaning "western land".
* Lääne-Virumaa: "Western Virumaa" – see Virumaa below
*Petseri: from Russian ''peshchera'' – "caves".
*Põlva: from Estonian ''põlv'' – "knee". According to a legend, a virgin was once bricked in a church wall on her knees. According to another version, the Tartu-Võru and Kanepi- Räpina roads form a curve, shaped like a knee.
*Pärnu: named after Pärnu river, that drains into the sea at Pärnu
*Saaremaa: from Estonian ''saar'' – "island", meaning "island-land".
* Valga: from German family names ''de Walco'' and ''de Walko''. According to another version, from Old Estonian ''valketa'' – "white".
* Virumaa: from several Finnic languages ''virukas'' – "big" or "strong", or ''vire'' "sharp" or "penetrating" (for wind), meaning "land of the strong / big" or "land of the sharp / penetrating winds". (In Finnish, the words for Estonia and Estonians derive from Virumaa – ''Viro'' and ''virolaiset''.)

Finland

*Helsinki: The Swedish name ( or ) represents the original official name of the city of Helsinki (in the very beginning, in the form 'Hellssingeforss'). The Finnish language form of the city's name probably originates from 'Helsinga' and similar names used for the river currently known as Vantaanjoki, as documented as early as the 14th century. ''Helsinki'' (pronounced with the stress on the first syllable: ), refers to the city in all languages except Swedish and Norwegian. ''Helsingfors'' comes from the name of the surrounding parish, ''Helsinge'' (source for Finnish ''Helsinki'') and the rapids (in Swedish: ''fors''), which flowed through the original village. The name ''Helsinge'' possibly originated with medieval Swedish settlers who came from Hälsingland in Sweden. Another possible derivation looks to the Swedish word ''hals'' (neck), referring to the narrowest part of the river, i.e. the rapids.
* Ostrobothnia (or in Swedish: ''Österbotten'') – "Eastern Bothnia". Bothnia is a Latinization of Old Norse ''botn'', meaning "bottom". The name ''botn'' was applied to the Gulf of Bothnia as ''Helsingjabotn'' in Old Norse, after Hälsingland, which at the time referred to the coastland west of the gulf. Later, ''botten'' was applied to the regions Västerbotten on the western side and Österbotten the eastern side ("East Bottom" and "West Bottom"). The Finnish name of Österbotten, ''Pohjanmaa'', or "Pohja"-land, gives a hint as to the meaning in both languages: ''pohja'' means both "bottom" and "north".
*Åland – "Waterland", from the proposed Germanic root ''*ahw-'', cognate with Latin ''aqua'' and meaning "water". ''Ahvenanmaa'', its Finnish name means "Land of Perch" and is partially borrowed, partially folk-etymologized from Germanic.
* Finland Proper: The first part of Finland to be colonised by Swedes, therefore called Finland, later the name Finland was extended to all the country.
*Uusimaa (Swedish: ''Nyland''): means ''New Land'', reflects the colonisation around the 13th-14th century.
* Lapland: land of the Lappi (the Sami people), same word as Lapland (Sweden)

France

Historic regions

Most modern French départements take their names from local geographical features: usually rivers, occasionally mountain ranges or coasts. Thus most such names have a self-evident immediate origin. The traditional provinces and regions (of any period) often bear names with richer but more obscure histories.

*Alsace – from Latin ''Alsatia'', a Latinised form of the Germanic name that also yields Old High German ''El-sasz'' (modern German ''Elsass''), allegedly meaning "foreign settlement" (according to the OED article on "Alsatia"); or "settlement on the Ill River"
* Artois – from Latin ''Atrebatensis'', adjectival form derived the Belgic tribe Atrebates, whose name comes from ''*ad-treb-ates'', meaning 'inhabitants', based on the Celtic root ''treb-'' 'building', 'home' (cf. Old Irish ''treb'' 'building', 'farm', Welsh ''tref'' 'building', Middle Breton ''treff'' 'city', toponyms in ''Tre-'', Provençal ''trevar'' 'to live in a house or in a village'). According to Alexander MacBain (d. 1907),MacBain, Alexander. (1982:§1) ''An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language'' Gairm Publications. the name ''Atrebates'' parallels the Irish ''aitreibh'', 'building,' Early Irish ''aittreb'', 'building,' and Welsh ''adref'', 'homeward'. McBain states that the Celtic root ''treb'' corresponds to Latin ''tribus'', 'tribe', and to English ''thorpe'', 'village'. MacBain reconstructs *''ad-treb''- as the Proto-Celtic form of Early Irish ''aittreb''. The name of the main city of Artois, Arras (''Atrecht'' in Dutch) derives directly from the tribe's name Atrebates, so ''Artois'' properly means "territory of Arras".
* Basque Country (french: Pays Basque, eu, Euskal Herria) – derived from the ancient tribe of the Vascones via the medieval Duchy of Vasconia and a ''County of Vasconia'', split from it. The Basque name derives from ''Euskara'' (the autochthonous name of the Basque language).
** Labourd (''Lapurdi''): from the Roman city of Lapurdum (modern Bayonne).
**Lower Navarre (French: ''Basse Navarre'', Basque: ''Nafarroa Behera'', ''Benafarroa''). From the medieval Kingdom of Navarre, itself of disputed etymology (either Basque ''nabar'': "brownish, multicolor", also "ploughshare"; or Romance ''nava'': "river bank"; or Basque ''naba'' (valley, plain) + ''herri'' (people, land)). Compare Kingdom of Navarre#Etymology
** Soule: deformation of the original Basque name ''Zuberoa'' or ''Xiberue''
* Brittany (''Bretagne'') – area occupied by refugee Britons from Roman Britain (''Britannia'') ''circa'' 500 AD
* Burgundy (''Bourgogne'') – part of the land settled by the East Germanic Burgundians, who possibly originated on the island now known as Bornholm. Speakers of Old Norse knew the island as ''Borgundarholm'', and in ancient Danish especially the island's name appears as ''Borghand'' or ''Borghund''; these names relate to Old Norse ''borg'' "height" and ''bjarg/berg'' "mountain, rock", as the island rises high from the sea. Other names known for the island include ''Burgendaland'' (9th century), ''Hulmo'' / ''Holmus'' (Adam of Bremen), ''Burgundehulm'' (1145), and ''Borghandæholm'' (14th century). Alfred the Great uses the form ''Burgenda land''. Some scholars believe that the Burgundians take their name from the island of Bornholm; they comprised a Germanic tribe which moved west when the western Roman Empire collapsed, and occupied and named Burgundy in France in the 5th century CE.
*Champagne – from the Latin ''campania'' (plain, open country, battlefield). Compare "Campania", below.
* Corsica (''Corse'') – possibly from the Phoenician ''Korsai'', which means something like "forest-covered"
*Dauphiné – from the nickname and coat of arms of former ruler Guy VIII of Vienne: "dolphin"
* Franche-Comté – in French, literally the "Free County" of Burgundy (as opposed to the Duchy of Burgundy)
* Gascony (''Gascogne'') – from the Duchy of Vasconia (also ''Wasconia''), itself derived from the ancient tribe of the Vascones. In Latin and Romance languages in medieval times, ''Vascones'' came to apply to all the Basque-speaking peoples.
*Languedoc – the region speaking the ''langue d'oc'' (as opposed to the regions whose language (langue d'oïl) developed into modern French)
*Limousin – from an adjective referring to the local centre, Limoges
*Lorraine – from the Mediaeval Latin coining ''Lotharingia'', meaning the lands granted as a kingdom in 855 AD to Lothair, son of the Holy Roman Emperor Lothair I
*Maine (province/county), from the Maine River, considered a variant/continuation of the Mayenne River, whose early French name suggests "middle river"
* Normandy (''Normandie'') – land settled by Viking ''Northmen'' in the early 10th century
*Occitania, from ''Occitània'' in Occitan. From medieval Latin ''Occitania'' (approximately since 1290). The first part of the name, ''Occ-'', is from Occitan '' enga d'�c'' or Italian '' ingua d'c'' (i.e. "Language of Òc"), a name given to the Occitan language by Dante according to its way of saying "yes" (''òc''). The ending ''-itania'' is probably an imitation of the old Latin name '' qutania''.
*Provence – from Latin ''provincia'' (province), short for ''Provincia Narbonensis'', the Roman province located in present-day southern France.
* Savoy – of unknown origin, but dating to the days of the Kingdom of Burgundy

Territories

*Clipperton Island, a territory: From the French ''Île de Clipperton'', for the English mutineer and pirate John Clipperton who hid there in 1705.
*Europa Island, a territory: For the British ship ''Europa'', which visited the island in 1774. For the etymology of Europe, see List of continent etymologies.
*French Guiana, a territory: See France and Guiana at List of country-name etymologies.
* French Polynesia, a territory: ''Polynesia'' formed from the Greek ''polynesia'' ("many islands"), a compound of ''polý-'' (πολύ, "many") and ''nēsos'' (νῆσος, "island").
* French Southern and Antarctic Lands, a territory: Self-descriptive. See France at List of country-name etymologies and List of continent-name etymologies.
**Bassas da India, part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands: Cartographic errors misspelling original name Portuguese ''Baixo da Judia'' ("Jewess Shoal") from the name of a Portuguese ship that ran aground on the reef.
*Glorioso Islands, a territory: Presumably from their glorious appearance.
* Guadeloupe, a territory: From Spanish ''Guadalupe'', bestowed by Christopher Columbus in 1493 in honor of Santa María de Guadalupe in Extremadura, Spain.
* Juan de Nova, a territory: For João da Nova, a 15th-century Portuguese explorer-navigator.
*Martinique, a territory: Bestowed by Christopher Columbus in honor of Saint Martin of Tours in 1502
*Mayotte, a territory: A French corruption of the native ''Maore'' or ''Mawuti'', sultanates on the island around the year 1500.
* New Caledonia, a territory: "New Scotland" from the Latin ''Caledonia'', bestowed by British captain James Cook in 1774 after a supposed resemblance. For further etymology of "Caledonia", see Scotland below.
* Réunion, a territory: Selected in 1793 to commemorate the union of revolutionaries from Marseille with the French National Guard in Paris on 10 August 1792. (For earlier names, see History of Réunion.)
* Territorial Collectivity of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (french: Collectivité territoriale de Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon), an overseas collectivity:
**Saint Pierre: From the French for "Saint Peter", patron of fishermen.
**Miquelon: From the Basque for "Michael", possibly for Saint Michael, published by Martin de Hoyarçabal's pilot in 1579 as ''Micquetõ'' and ''Micquelle'', after which it evolved over time into ''Miclon'', ''Micklon'', and finally ''Miquelon''.
*Tromelin Island: From the French '' Île Tromelin'' in honor of the Chevalier de Tromelin, a French Royal Navy officer who commanded the French corvette '' La Dauphine'' which visited the island in 1776.
* Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands (french: Territoire des îles Wallis et Futuna), an overseas collectivity:
**Futuna: From an endonym derived from the local ''futu'' (" Fish-poison tree")
**Wallis: for the British explorer Samuel Wallis, who sailed there in 1797.

Germany

States

*Baden-Württemberg: formed by combining the names of the former states of Baden and of Württemberg.
**Baden: after the city of Baden-Baden, formerly ''Baden'', the name became reduplicated to distinguish it from the state (as in "Baden in Baden"). The name means "baths", after the springs in the city.
**Württemberg: after Württemberg Castle, which stood on the Württemberg, a hill in Stuttgart, formerly ''Wirtemberg'', further origin uncertain (''-berg'' means "mountain")
*Bavaria (German ''Bayern''): the state of Bavaria developed out of the tribe of the Baiuvarii, who probably gained their name from the land of Bohemia
*Brandenburg: after the city of Brandenburg. The earlier Slavic name of the castle (''Burg'') of Brandenburg appears as ''Branibor'' (Slavic for "Branim's forest", where ''bor'' means "a dense forest").
*Hamburg: from the 9th-century name ''Hammaburg'', where ''Hamma'' has multiple conflicting interpretations, but ''burg'' means "castle".
*Hesse: after the tribe of the Chatti
*Lower Saxony (German ''Niedersachsen''): after the tribe of the Saxons. "Lower Saxony" became differentiated in modern times from the state of Saxony to its southeast. The word "lower" reflects Lower Saxony's location in the lowlands of the North German Plain, as opposed to Saxony, which has a higher elevation. See below for etymology of "Saxony".
* Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania ( German) ''Mecklenburg-Vorpommern''): formed geographically by joining Mecklenburg with the western part of Pomerania, also called ''Hither Pomerania''.
**Mecklenburg takes its name from Mecklenburg Castle in Dorf Mecklenburg (''Burg'' means "castle" in German, the first part means "big": compare Middle Low German ''mekel'', cognate with English ''mickle''—"big castle").
**''Pomerania'' (German ''Pommern'') comes from Slavic roots meaning "near the sea" (in Slavic languages ''more'' means "sea"): the standard modern Polish name for the region, ''Pomorze'', demonstrates this well.
* North Rhine-Westphalia (German ''Nordrhein-Westfalen'')—geographically formed by joining the northern part of the Rhineland (after the River Rhine) with Westphalia.
** The name of the Rhine derives from Gaulish ''Renos'', and ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *''reie-'' ("to move, flow, run"); words like ''river'' and ''run'' share the same root. The Reno River in Italy shares the same etymology. The spelling with -h- suggests a borrowing from the Greek form of the name, ''Rhenos'', seen also in ''rheos'', "stream", and ''rhein'', "to flow".
** Westphalia formed the westernmost subdivision of the Saxon tribe; the origin of the second part (''-falen'' in German) remains unknown
* Rhineland-Palatinate (German ''Rheinland-Pfalz''): formed geographically by joining parts of the Rhineland (see above under North Rhine-Westphalia) with the Rhenish Palatinate, formerly a palatine county located near the Rhine, meaning that its count administered a palace of the Holy Roman Emperor.
** The word Palatinate derives from Latin ''palatinus'' "imperial", from ''palatium'' "palace", after the location of the palace of the Roman Emperor Augustus on the Palatine Hill in Rome
*Saarland: after the Saar River
*Saxony (German ''Sachsen''): land of the Saxons (possibly the "sword-folk"). The state of Saxony developed out of the Saxon tribe, which principally inhabited present-day Lower Saxony; during the Middle Ages and early modern times, the name migrated to the current location of the state of Saxony
*Saxony-Anhalt (German, ''Sachsen-Anhalt''): formed geographically by joining the Prussian Province of Saxony (see above under Saxony) with Anhalt
**Anhalt takes its name from Anhalt Castle near Harzgerode; the origin of the name of the castle remains unknown
*Schleswig-Holstein: created by joining Schleswig and Holstein.
**Schleswig takes its name from the City of Schleswig, which in turn derives its name from the Schlei bay and the Low German word ''wig'' for "trading place".
** "Holstein" comes from a Saxon subtribe named, in Latin, Holcetae, whose means "dwellers in the wood" (Northern Low Saxon: ''Hol(t)saten''; German: ''Holzsassen'').
* Thuringia (German ''Thüringen'') – after the tribe of the Thuringii.

Historic regions

* Brunswick (German: ''Braunschweig''): from the town of Brunswick, possibly originating as "Bruno's ''wik''" (Bruno's marketplace) (with reference to the legendary founder Bruno, Duke of Saxony, died 880, or another Bruno) or as "burnt ''wik''"); the High German form ''Braunschweig'' is an erroneous translation of the original Low German ''Brunswick''
* Franconia (German: ''Franken''): from the traditional designation "Franks", referring especially to the Kingdom of the East Franks. The name refers to those areas east of the Rhine that were first occupied by the Franks, as opposed to areas that were held by the Swabians, Bavarians or Saxons.
* Hohenzollern: ultimately from the names of Hohenzollern Castle and its location, Mount Hohenzollern (known locally as ''Zoller'' or ''Zollern''). The lexeme ''hoh''/''hohen'' in German means "high/height".
* Oldenburg, after the city of Oldenburg, first recorded in 1108 as the town of ''Aldenburg'', subsequently also a county, duchy, grand duchy and republic, meaning "old castle"
*Prussia (German: ''Preußen'') – (at times historically connected with Germany or with parts thereof): from the people known as the Prussians, a grouping of western Balt peoples whose collective name (German: ''Prussen'' or anciently ''Pruzzen'') may possibly derive from an Indo-European root meaning "swamp": see Old Prussians; for political reasons, the electors of Brandenburg decided to name themselves kings of Prussia in the 18th century; in this way, they transferred the name of the remote eastern region to a major German state
* Swabia (German: ''Schwaben'' or ''Schwabenland''): after the tribe of the Suebi whose name may come from Proto-Germanic *''swēbaz'' based on the Proto-Germanic root *''swē-'' meaning "one's own" eople
(Text in Swedish); for an alternative meaning, as "free, independent" see ; compare Suiones.
from an Indo-European root *swe-, the third-person reflexive pronoun.

Greece

* Arcadia: from Arcas, the legendary eponymous leader of early Hellenic settlers
*Sparta: from Greek Σπάρτη ''spartē'', a cord or rope made from the shrub ''spartos'', a type of broom
* Macedonia, from Greek mak- (long, tall)—'highland'.

India (Republic of India)

See List of Indian state and union territory name etymologies.

Indonesia

* Aceh: name of the coastal people of the area (the main group inhabiting the inland area are the Gayo people).
*Banten: named in the honor of the former Banten Sultanate, which ruled over the region from 16th to the 18th centuries and became one of the main fronts of opposition against the colonial might of the Dutch East India Company (VOC).
*Bengkulu: named after the Bengkulu river, which passes through the area of the province. The name of ''Bengkulu'' itself comes from the Malay word ''bangkai'' meaning "corpse", and ''hulu'' meaning "river-source"—it refers to the story that in the past the area near the source of the river Bengkulu had often served as a battlefield—tribes and clans battled each other on the river banks leaving them full of corpses and blood.
* Gorontalo: from the Dutch version of the local phrase ''hulontalo'', meaning "lands surrounded by water" due to the many lakes and rivers formerly in the area
*Irian Jaya: The name ''Irian'' is said to come from the Biak language. An alternative etymology for ''Irian'' stems from the acronym ''Ikut Republik Indonesia, Anti Nederland'' ("Join/Follow the Republic of Indonesia, rejecting The Netherlands) (see the article on the Province of Papua— the official Indonesian and internationally recognized name for ''Irian Jaya''). The word ''jaya'' means "victory" or "glorious" in Indonesian, referring to the Indonesian victory over the colonisers who controlled the area both militarily and diplomatically, a sign of pride as the Indonesians showed themselves capable not only of defending their lands from the Dutch attempt to reestablish colonial rule after World War II, but also of taking over lands not included in the 1945 proclamation or the 1950 reunification, specifically ''Irian Jaya' or the Province of Papua.
* Jakarta: from the Javanese words ''jaya'' (meaning "victory") and ''karta'' (meaning "glory"), which make up the phrase "victorious & glorious; this refers to the victory of Prince Pati Unus (also known as Fatahillah) of the Demak Sultanate in his campaign to defeat the rival Malacca Sultanate of the Malay peninsula and Samudera Pasai Sultanate of Aceh region in the mid-16th century. The "glorious victory" also refers to the event of Indonesian Proclamation of Independence on 17 August 1945 which took place in the city.
* Jambi: the province takes its name from the historical Jambi Sultanate which ruled over the area from the 17th to the 19th centuries
*Lampung: From the word "Lambung" in the Old Malay phrase ''anjak Lambung'', which means "descended from the heights". This refers to the ancestral riddle of the Lampung people, who allegedly had ancestors "descended from the heights". The "heights" reference the southernmost part of the Barisan mountain range that runs through all the western part of the Lampung province.
*Nusa Tenggara: from ''Nusa'' meaning "islands" (referring to the Lesser Sunda Islands that make up the area) and ''tenggara'' meaning "south-east" (referring to the position of the area within the country).
* Sumatra: from Ibn Battuta's 14th-century pronunciation of the name of the Samudra Kingdom (13th to 15th centuries CE)
*Yogyakarta: From 'Jogja' and 'Karta'. Jogja is a Javanised version of a Sanskrit word, 'Ayodhya', the prefix A- meaning 'not' and 'Yodhya' is synonymous to Hindi 'Yuddha', meaning battle, combat, fight, or war. Thus Ayodhya, which later Javanised into Jogja, meant 'The place of no fight' or in simpler interpretation, peaceful. This may refer to the geographic location of Jogjakarta, being fortified naturally by the Java Sea to the South, the Merapi Mountain to the north, the Gunung Sewu Karst Mountains to the east and Progo River to the west where it would be the perfect fortress of peace, and even more supported as a breeding place of peaceful life with its rich and fertile volcanic land and rivers, sourcing up to the majestic Merapi. The word 'Karta' means glory, referring to a hope that this city would bring glory to its people.

Iran (Persia)

* Lorestan: land of the Lurs
* Mazendran: its combination of 3 words: Mad (female, mother, mater) and Zainthi (wisdom, knowledge, science) Eran (aryans), Both MAD and Eran is either suffix or prefix of many places in greater Iran or Persia Europeans called + upper India

Iraq

*Iraqi Kurdistan: The name Kurdistan literally means Land of the Kurds, believed to mean nomad in the Proto-Iranian language. In the Iraqi Constitution, it is referred to as Kurdistan Region. The full name of the government is "Kurdistan Regional Government" (abbrev: KRG).

Ireland (Éire)

*Connacht: ''Connachta'' in Irish. "Descendants of Conn". From the Irish Connachta people, who all claimed descent from the High King Conn Cétchathach, Conn of the Hundred Battles.
*Leinster: ''Laighin'' in Irish. From the Irish Laigin people, named after ''láigne'', the broad blue-grey iron spearheads they carried, and Old Norse ''staðr'', meaning place or territory.
* Munster: ''Mhumhain'' in Irish. From the Gaelic goddess Muman and the old Norse ''staðr'', meaning place or territory.
*Ulster: ''Ulaidh'' in Irish. From the Irish Ulaid people, whose name probably comes from Old Irish ''ul'', "beard", and old Norse ''staðr'', meaning place or territory.
* Meath: ''Mide'' in Irish. "Middle" in Old Irish. No longer a province of Ireland.

Italy

* Abruzzo: ''Aprutium'' in medieval Latin (6th century), a name by which the "County of Teramo" was known; in turn, Aprutium perhaps derives from the ancient people of Praetutii, who inhabited the territory in pre-Roman times.
* Aosta Valley (Valle d'Aosta): From the valley where Aosta rises, which owes its name to its ancient Latin name of ''Augusta Pretoria.''
* Apulia (Puglia): From ''Apulia'', a toponym used in pre-Roman times to indicate a territory corresponding to the current north-central Apulia. In turn, ''Apulia'' derived from the indigenous toponym "''Japudia''" (parallel to the Greek term Ἰαπυγία, then Latinized to lapygia), with a passing from D to L, typical of italic languages or, more precisely, Osco-Sabellic.
* Basilicata: From the Greek ''basilikos'' (royal, imperial), appeared during the 7th century and used to designate Bizantine Themi governors. ''Basilikos'' means "King official", being adjective of ''basileus'', "king"; Basilicata is a term referred to the period when the region belonged to the Eastern Roman Empire. In ancient times it was also known as "''Lucania''", a term that either originated from the pre-Romani people named Lucani (who took their name from the eponymous hero Lucus or by the Latin term "''lucus''", meaning sacred wood) or by the Greek for wolf: ''lykos''. Another supported theory indicates that the term may have originated from the ancient Anatolian people of Lici, which would be established in the area of their original land: ''Licia''.
* Calabria: a Roman times toponym at the time referred to the Salentine Peninsula, now part of Apulia, that may be originated from a pre-Indo-European mediterranean root cal-/cala- or calabra/galabra-, meaning "rock", "calcareous concretion".
* Campania: From the homonymous Latin name, coming from the Campanians people, the ethnonym would come from ''campus'', "open field, countryside", since this people was completely dedicated to agriculture; the first meaning of the Region name was the equivalent of "Land of Work", a name that was given to it for the same reason. Compare "Champagne", above.
* Emilia-Romagna: Emilia derives from the Via Aemilia, a main trading route, that takes its name from its builder, Marco Emilio Lepido, from the '' Aemilia gens.'' Romagna derives from Romania (Roman territory).
* Friuli Venezia Giulia; Friuli derives from Latin Forum Iulii "Forums of Giulio", name of Cividale del Friuli, in honour of Julius Caesar; Venezia Giulia was instead proposed by Graziadio Isaia Ascoli, to identify all the areas inhabited by Italian people but still in the hands of the Austro-hungarian empire after 1866.
* Lazio: From Latin "''Latium"'', given to the Region by the Latins (Italic tribe); in turn the toponym may be deriving from the size of their territory, being it wide, flat or large (''latus'' in Latin). Ovid hints at perhaps a slightly more sophisticated folk etymology, with a legend of the naming of Latium after Saturn ''latente deo'' (as a god in hiding) after he allegedly fled to Italy following his expulsion by Jupiter. Modern linguists postulate origins in a Proto-Indo-European language (PIE) root ''*stela-'' (to spread, extend), expressing the idea of "flat land" (in contrast to the local Sabine high country). But the name may originate from an earlier, non-Indo-European one. See th
Online Etymological Dictionary

* Liguria: From the homonymous Latin toponym, the ancient pre-Romani people of Ligures, in greek Λιγυες, Ligues and in Latin ''Ligures'', of uncertain origin, mentioned from the 7th century BC to the 5th century BC.
* Lombardy: from the medieval Latin "''Langobardia''", Land of the Lombards, a germanic population that invaded the Italian peninsula in 568, making Pavia its own reign capital.
* Marche: from the plural of ''Marca'', identifying a frontier territory, developed to designate the territory on a political and administrative level during the early Middle Ages, referring to the period in which the Region was at the border of Charlemagne Empire during the 8th century.
* Molise: Derives from a toponym registered for the first time during the early Middle Ages, indicating a Normans' county, like "''Castello di Molise" (Molise Castle''), which name may be originated from the Latin "''Molensis''".
* Piedmont: From the expression that alludes to the Region morphology, ''at the foot of the mountains'', particularly at the foot of the Western Alps.
* Sardinia: From the Latin ''Sardinia'' and the name of its ancient inhabitants, Sardi. It is unclear how those populations did define themselves, while it is possible that the etnonym derived from Sherden people.
* Sicily: From the Latin ''Sicilia'' and the Greek ''Sikelia'', by the name of the people who inhabited the island, Sicels, who may had originated from the centre of Italy but moved then to the eastern side of Trinacria. Yet since the 2nd century BC, the Latin term ''Siculus'' has lost every ethnolinguistic connotation, indicating who is born or lives on the island.
* Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol: Trentino derived from the Latin ''Tridentinus'', adjective of ''Tridentum'', Trento, identifying the area of its Autonomous province. Alto Adige alludes to the upper course of the river Adige and identifies the area of Bolzano's Autonomous province.
* Tuscany: From the medieval Latin "''Tuscania''", having as an adjective ''Tuscanus'', from the late Latin ''Tuscia'', from the adjective ''Tuscus,'' plural ''Tusci'', in turn from a previous ''Truscus'', shortening of ''Etruscus'', plural ''Etrusci, Etruscan civilization,'' the inhabitants of the Region during the pre-Roman times.
* Umbria: From the Latin ''Umbria'', from the ancient Umbri people; it's unclear the provenance of their etnonym. An hypothesis was proposed by Pliny the Elder in the " Natural History (Pliny)": "The umbrian population is estimated to be the most ancient of Italy; in facts, we believe that Umbri have been called ''Ombrii'' by the Greeks, since they may be survived to the rains when their land was flooded by the Flood". "''Ombros''" in Greek and "Imbris" in Latin means "rain, downpour".
* Veneto; From the ancient pre-Roman Adriatic Veneti, Tacitus and Pliny the Elder; the Indo-European root detected at the origin of this name is ''wen'', to love, so Veneti may be the "''lovely and friendly ones''".

Japan

Main Islands

*Honshu: "Main Province" in Japanese
* Kyushu: "Nine Provinces" in Japanese, in reference to the Chikuzen, Chikugo, Hizen, Higo, Buzen, Bungo, Hyūga, Ōsumi, and Satsuma provinces of 7th-century Saikaidō (''See:'' Gokishichidō)
*Shikoku: "Four States" in Japanese, in reference to the Awa, Tosa, Sanuki and Iyo provinces of 7th-century Nankaidō (''See:'' Gokishichidō)
*Hokkaido: "Northern Sea Circuit" in Japanese, a compromise archaism selected by bureaucrats during the Meiji Restoration (''See:'' Naming of Hokkaido)

Korea

*Chungcheong – from the first characters in the city names Chungju and Cheongju.
* Gangwon (South Korea) / Kangwŏn (North Korea) – from the first characters in the city names Gangneung and Wonju.
*Gyeonggi – the Hanja for the name mean "area around the capital", referring to the location of the province around Seoul, South Korea
* Gyeongsang – from the first characters in the city names Gyeongju and Sangju.
* Hamgyŏng – from the first characters in the city names Hamju and Kyŏngsŏng (?).
*Hwanghae – from the first characters in the city names Hwangju and Haeju.
*Jeolla – from the first characters in the city names Jeonju and Naju (The first character of Naju is actually "ra"—"r" changes to "n" in the initial position, and the combination "nr" changes to "ll" due to phonological characteristics of the Korean language).
* P'yŏngan – from the first characters in the city names P'yŏngyang and Anju.

Laos

* Salavan – one million days
*Vientiane – city of sandalwood

Malaysia

*Alor Star – ''alor'' in Malay means "furrow", while ''star'' refers to a kind of tree (''Bouea macrophylla'') that bears small, sour fruit known as ''kundang'' or ''remia'' in Malay
*Cyberjaya – Malay: "cyber excellence", a reference to the city's designation as the "Silicon Valley of Malaysia"
* Ipoh – named after the ''ipoh'' tree whose poisonous sap the Orang Asli used to coat their blowpipe darts with
*Johor – from Arabic ''jauhar'', or "precious stones"
* Kangar – named for the Malay 'kangkok', a kind of hawk (''Spizaetus Limnaetu'')
*Kelantan – said to be a corruption of ''gelam hutan'', the Malay name for the ''Melaleuca leucadendron'' tree, also possibly derived from ''kilatan'' ("lightning")
* Klang – possibly from Mon-Khmer ''klong'' or Malay ''kilang'' ("warehouse")
*Kota Bharu – Malay: "new town/fort"
*Kota Kinabalu - The word of "kota" means city in Malay while the word of "kinabalu" derived from the Kadazandusun ''aki nabalu'' ("grandfather" for ''aki'', and "mountain" for ''nabalu'')
*Kuala Lumpur – Malay: "muddy confluence", a reference to the founding of the city at the confluence of Gombak River and Klang River
* Kuching - Malay: "cat", but probably a corruption of the Indian ''cochin'' ("port") or a reference to the ''mata kucing'' trees that used to proliferate where the city grew subsequently
*Labuan – derived from the Malay ''labuhan'' ("anchorage")
*Langkawi – Malay for "eagle island", but possibly related to Langkasuka, an ancient Hindu kingdom founded in Kedah in the 1st century CE
* Malacca – named by the founder of Malacca, Parameswara, after the Melaka tree under which he sheltered
* Negeri Sembilan – Malay: "nine states", a reference to the nine original districts (or ''nagari'') settled by the Minangkabau
* Penang – named after the Pinang tree
* Perak – Malay: "silver", from the silvery colour of tin for which the area is known or possibly from the "glimmer of fish in the water"
* Putrajaya – Malay: literally: "the son's victory"; but taken to mean "princely excellence". Named after the first Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra, possibly with reference to the planned city's status as the new administration centre for the Federal Government
*Selangor – possibly from the Malay ''selangau'' ("fly") due to the abundance of flies along the Selangor River
* Sungai Petani – literally "farmer river" in Malay, said to originate from the concentration of paddy-fields and farmers in the state
* Taiping – Chinese: "great peace"

Mexico

Mongolia

* Arkhangai: from the Mongolian: ''Ar'' (north; back side of a mountain) and Khangai Mountains
* Bayan-Ölgii: from the Mongolian: ''Bayan'' (rich), ''Ölgii'' (cradleregion), a province later built in the 1940s especially for some Kazakh tribes migrated to Mongolia in the early 1910s for land.
* Bayankhongor:
* Bulgan: from the Mongolian: ''Darkhan'' (great) and ''Uul'' (mountain)
* Darkhan-Uul: from the Mongolian: ''Darkhan'' (great) and ''Uul'' (mountain)
* Dornod: from the Mongolian: ''Dornod'' (the east)
* Dornogovi: from the Mongolian: ''Dorno'' (east) and Gobi desert (''Govi'' in Mongolian)
* Dundgovi: from the Mongolian: ''Dund'' (middle) and Gobi desert (''Govi'' in Mongolian)
*Govi-Altai: after the Gobi desert (''Govi'' in Mongolian) and the Altai Mountains
* Govisümber:
* Khentii: after the Khentii Mountains
* Khovd: after Khovd River
* Khövsgöl: after Khövsgöl Lake
* Ömnögovi: from the Mongolian: ''Ömnö'' (South) and Gobi desert (''Govi'' in Mongolian)
* Orkhon: after the Orkhon River
* Övörkhangai: from the Mongolian: ''Övör'' (south;front side of a mountain) and Khangai Mountains
* Selenge: after the Selenge River
* Sükhbaatar: after Damdin Sükhbaatar, a Mongolian military leader in the revolution of independence.
* Töv: from Mongolian: ''Töv'' (center)
* Uvs: after Uvs Lake
* Zavkhan: after Zavkhan River
* Ulan Bator: from Mongolian: ''Ulaan'' (red), '' baatar'' (hero)

Morocco

*Western Sahara, claimed territory: After its geographic position. "Sahara" derives from the Arabic ''aṣ-Ṣaḥrā (الصحراء), meaning "desert". The area is also claimed by the Sahrawis.

Kingdom of the Netherlands

Constituent countries

* Aruba: Uncertain. One etymology derives from Spanish ''Oro Hubo'' ("there was gold"); another cites the Arawak ''oibubai'' ("guide").
* Curaçao: Uncertain. One etymology derives from Portuguese ''curaçao'' ("healing"); another from Portuguese ''coração'' ("heart"); another that it is a local endonym.
*Netherlands ( nl, Nederland): "Lowlands". See List of country name etymologies#Netherlands.
*Sint Maarten: Southern part of the island of Saint Martin (island), Saint Martin, which was named for Saint Martin of Tours, as it was first sighted by Christopher Columbus on St. Martin's Day (11 November), 1493.

Provinces

*Drenthe (Dutch Low Saxon: ''Drentie''): first mentioned in a Latin document of 820 as ''pago Treanth''. Treanth probably finds its origin in the number three, as the area was then divided in three jurisdictions.
*Flevoland: from Latin ''Lacus Flevo'' (Lake Flevo), a name used in Ancient Rome, Roman sources to refer to a body of water at what would later become known as the Zuiderzee. The Netherlands government established the province in 1986 on lands reclaimed from the Zuiderzee in the 1950s and 1960s.
*Friesland ( fry, Fryslân): land of the Frisians.
*Gelderland (also English: ''Guelders''): Named after the modern city of Geldern, Germany.
*Groningen (province), Groningen (Gronings: ''Grönnen'' or ''Grunnen''). Named after Groningen (city), its capital city. The origin of the city name is uncertain; theories include an original meaning of "people of Groni" (a man's name) or "green fields".
*Limburg (Netherlands), Limburg: Derived from the castle-fortified town of Limbourg which in turn was derived from "lint" "dragon" and burg "fortress". See also under Belgium.
*North Brabant ( nl, Noord-Brabant). The name in Carolingian times appeared in Latinised form as ''pagus Bracbatensis'', from ''bracha'' "new" and ''bant'' "region". See also under Belgium.
*North Holland ( nl, Noord-Holland): Northern part of the region of Holland. See List of country name etymologies#Netherlands for the etymology of "Holland".
*Overijssel: Dutch for "[Lands] across the IJssel river" (also Latin: "Transiselania")
*South Holland ( nl, Zuid-Holland): Southern part of the region of Holland. See List of country name etymologies#Netherlands for the etymology of "Holland".
*Utrecht (province), Utrecht: named after the city of Utrecht (city), Utrecht, the name of which derives from Latin ''Ultraiectum ad Rhenum'', meaning "place to cross the Rhine river".
*Zeeland (also English: ''Zealand''): Dutch for "sea land".

Other names

*Alkmaar: from ''Aelcemaer'', meaning 'lake of auks', due to the fact that lakes formerly surrounded the core of Alkmaar—all of them now drained and thus turned into dry land
*Amsterdam: from ''Amstelredam'', which means "dam over the Amstel" (the river Amstel flows through present-day Amsterdam)
*Netherlands, Batavia (Germanic): "arable land" (derived from the regional name "Betuwe", as opposed to the other regional name "Veluwe" meaning "fallow" or "waste" land). Alternatively: the people known as the Batavians (Latin: ''Batavi'') inhabited the island of ''Betawe'' between the Waal River, Waal and the Rhine. The name of the island probably derives from ''batawjō'' ("good island", from Germanic ''bat''—"good, excellent" and ''awjō''—"island, land near water"), referring to the region's fertility.
*Bonaire: Uncertain, but thought to have been originally derived from the Caquetio people, Caquetio word ''bonay''. Later Dutch and Spanish colonists modified it, first to Bojnaj and finally to its current name of Bonaire (French: "good air").
*Holland (part of the Netherlands; but the term often refers to the country as a whole): Germanic "holt (i.e. wooded) land" (often incorrectly regarded as meaning "hollow [i.e. marsh] land")
*Netherlands Antilles, a territory: From their Dutch owners and from a mythical land or island (Antillia), west of Europe, or a combination of two Portuguese words ''ante'' or ''anti'' (possibly meaning "opposite" in the sense of "on the opposite side of the world") and ''ilha'' ("island"), currently the name for these Caribbean Islands.
*Rotterdam: meaning 'dam over the Rotte' (the river Rotte flows through present-day Rotterdam)
*Groningen (province), Stad en Ommelanden for the province of Groningen, meaning "city and surrounding lands" and referring to the city of Groningen and the medieval Frisian lordships west, north and east of the city.
*Twente (region in the east of the province of Overijssel): from Latin ''tvihanti''; or after the Germanic tribe the Twente, Tubantii as described by Tacitus; or an early form of the current Twents-language word for a 2-year-old horse: ''Tweanter''.

New Zealand

Provinces

*Auckland: in honour of George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland, George Eden, Earl of Auckland, a patron of William Hobson, who founded and named the city of Auckland. The Earl took his sobriquet from Auckland in Durham, England, Durham, United Kingdom, possibly deriving from the Celtic ''Alclet'' or ''Aclet'', or "Cliffs of the Clyde". Although nowhere near the River Clyde, the locality may have had connections with the Celtic kingdom of Strathclyde; it may have borrowed the name of the Clyde for aesthetic or prestige reasons, as Alclet's river—the Gaunless—means "useless" in Old Norse; or a nearby river may have had the name "Clyde"—history does not record the name of the river Gaunless before the Norse named it
*Hawke's Bay (region), Hawke's Bay: in honour of Edward Hawke, 1st Baron Hawke of Barony of Towton, Towton
*Marlborough Region, Marlborough: to commemorate John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough
*Nelson, New Zealand, Nelson: in honour of Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson (the Admiral)
*Otago: anglicised from the Māori name ''Otakou'', a ''kainga'' east of present-day Otago Harbour, originally meaning "one isolated village" or "place of red earth"
*Wellington (region), New Zealand, Wellington: in honour of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington

Other categories

*Cook Islands, a territory: In honor of British captain James Cook, who discovered the islands in 1770.
*Levin, New Zealand, Levin: from a director of the railway company that established the town to help boost its railway
*Niue, a territory: ''Niu'' probably means "coconut", and ''é'' means "behold". According to legend, the Polynesian explorers who first settled the island knew that they had come close to land when they saw a coconut floating in the water.
*Plimmerton: from John Plimmer, Wellington pioneer, director of the railway company that created the seaside resort to help boost its railway; central Wellington has Plimmer's Steps.
*Tasman, New Zealand, Tasman: district named from the bay name, in honour of Dutchman Abel Tasman, commander of first European expedition to sight the country; also a mountain and glacier name. Abel Tasman National Park bears a fuller version of his name.
*Tokelau, a territory: From the Tokelauan language, Tokelauan "North" or "Northern", in reference to their position relative to Samoa. The Tokelauan people traditionally suppose themselves to have originated from settlers from Samoa.
*Waikato: Named after the Waikato River. The hydronym is a Māori-language word meaning "flowing water".

Norway

Counties

* Akershus – Fortress of (the district) Aker (named after the farm Aker, meaning agriculture field)
* Aust-Agder – East Agder. Agder has a pre-Viking Age unknown meaning. Maybe meaning coast, related to English edge.
* Buskerud – after a farm Buskerud, meaning the Bishops farm (rud more specifically means clearing the wood for farming)
* Finnmark – Land of the Sami people.
* Hedmark – Hed comes from the name of an old tribe. March (territory), Mark means border land or wood land.
* Hordaland – land of the Charudes, an old tribe.
* Innlandet – Inner land, the land away from the coast.
* Møre og Romsdal – Møre, and Rom valley. Møre probably means sea (land at the sea) and Roms comes from the river Rauma (river), Rauma, unknown meaning.
* Nordland – Northern land
* Nord-Trøndelag – (Self-ruling) country of the Trønder people, northern part.
* Oppland – the Upper lands
* Oslo – disputed, maybe "the meadow beneath the ridge", see History of Oslo's name
* Rogaland – Land of the Rugii, an old tribe.
* Sogn og Fjordane – Sogn refers to Sognefjord, "the fjord with tidal stream". Og Fjordane means "and the (other) fjords".
* Sør-Trøndelag – (Self-ruling) country of the Trønder people, southern part.
* Telemark – Tele comes from an old tribe. March (territory), Mark means border land or wood land.
* Troms – Unknown
* Vest-Agder – West Agder. Agder has a pre-Viking Age unknown meaning. Maybe meaning coast, related to English edge.
* Vestfold – West (side of) Fold, where Fold means fjord, here the Oslo Fjord.
* Vestland – Western land, traditional name of the west coast of Southern Norway
* Viken (county), Viken – the inlet; old name of the area (Viken (region), Viken) around the Oslo Fjord.
* Østfold – East (side of) Fold, where Fold means fjord, here the Oslo Fjord.

Territories

*Bouvet Island ( no, Bouvetøya), a dependent territories of Norway, dependent territory: Named after the French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier, who discovered it in 1739.
*Svalbard, a territory: A compound of Norwegian language, Norse roots meaning "cold edge"

Pakistan

*Khyber Pakhtunkhwa – from the native Pashto language for "valley of the Pashtuns", who are ethnic Afghans
*Balochistan (Pakistan), Balochistan – Land of the indigenous Balochi people of the Iranian plateau that straddles south-east Iran and south-west Pakistan
*Punjab (Pakistan), Punjab – from the Persian language, Persian for "Land of Five Rivers" in Central Pakistan
*Sindh, Sindhustan or Sindhistan – from "Sindhu", the Sanskrit name for the Land of the Indus River
*Azad Jammu and Kashmir – ''Azad'': Urdu, "Free"; "Kashmir"

Papua New Guinea

*New Britain – in honour of Great Britain. Originally named by William Dampier in the Latin form ''Nova Britannia''; called ''Neu-Pommern'' (New Pomerania) during the period of German colonization until the conquest of the area by Australia in 1914
*New Ireland (island), New Ireland – named after Ireland (with the Latin phrase ''Nova Hibernia'') by Philip Carteret in 1767 when he established that it differed from nearby New Britain. (Officially known as New Mecklenburg (German: ''Neumecklenburg'' or ''Neu-Mecklenburg'') during the period of German New Guinea from 1885 to 1914.)

Peru

Philippines

Poland

*Greater Poland – from the tribe of Polans (western), Polans or from the word "pole" (field) meaning "country of fields" – "Greater" distinguishes it from the whole Polish state
*Kuyavia – "covered by sand dunes"
*Lesser Poland – in contrast with Greater Poland
*Lubusz Land – from the town of Lebus, Lubusz
*Masovia – "boggy"
*Masuria – from the Masovians, who settled Masuria
*Podlaskie, "by Name of Poland, Lachs", i.e., "by Poles"
*Polesie – "covered by forests"
*Pomerania – "along the sea"
*Silesia – from the holy Silesian mountain of Ślęża
*Subcarpathian Voivodship, Subcarpathia – "at the foot of the Carpathian Mountains, Carpathians"
*Warmia – from the Old Prussian tribe of Varms

Portugal

*Alentejo: meaning "beyond the Tejo (the Tagus river)"
*Algarve: meaning "the west" (of the Guadiana River), from the Arab "Al-Gharb"
*Azores: from Açores (pl.), after the "Northern goshawk, açor", the Portuguese word for the northern goshawk
*Beira, Portugal, Beira: quite literally, the "edge" (during the early phase of Portugal's history, Beira formed a borderland)
*Estremadura Province (historical), Estremadura: from Medieval Latin ''Extrema Dorii'' (literally, "extremes of the Douro river"), referring to the territories south of the Douro basin (see also: Extremadura, Spanish Extremadura)
*Madeira: "wood"
*Minho River, Minho: after the river Minho, that passes north of the region
*Ribatejo Province, Ribatejo: meaning "above the Tejo (the Tagus river)"
*Trás-os-Montes (region), Trás-os-Montes: literally, "behind the mountains", its territory is behind the mountains of Serra do Marão

Romania

*Bessarabia – from Basarab I, Principality of Wallachia, Wallachian prince who led some expeditions in this land
*Bukovina – (from Serbian Bukovina in German: "''Buchenland''") = "beech land"
*Dobruja – from Dobrotitsa, ruler of the region in the 14th century
*Hațeg – "''Terra Herzog''"=Duke's land
*Muntenia – from ''muntean''=man of the mountains, from Romanian ''munte''=mountain
*Oltenia – from the river Olt River, Olt, called ''Alutus'' by the Romans, possibly from Latin ''lutum'', meaning "mud" or "clay".
*Transylvania – "beyond the woods"—i.e., from Hungary
**''Ardeal'' – possibly a borrowing of the Hungarian name Erdély, like the Romani name ''Ardyalo''—speakers of old Hungarian pronounced ''Erdély'' as ''Erdél''. The initial Hungarian "e-" occasionally changes to "a-" in Romanian (compare Hungarian ''egres'' "gooseberry" and ''Egyed'', which became ''agriş'' and ''Adjud'' in Romanian). The ending '-eal' in Romanian does not suggest a Romanian borrowing from Hungarian. In parallel examples, Hungarian ''-ely'' becomes ''-ei'' in Romanian. But when Hungarian adopts a word from Romanian, "a" usually becomes "e": ''Andreas'' becomes ''Endre'', the Latin ''ager'' becomes ''eger'', etc. Thus the word ''Ardeal'' could become ''Erdély''. The linguist Josep Lad Pic determined that the word "Ardeal" has an Indo-European origin, while the words ''Erdely'' and ''Erdo'' do not. The Proto-Indo-European root *arde ("to grow", "high") manifests itself in the Old Indian ''árdhuka'' ("prospering"), and in Latin ''arduus'' ("high"). In Celtic Gaul, ''Arduenna silva'' parallels the English "Forest of Arden" and the Ardennes Woods in Belgium. In Romanian, ''deal'' means "hill" and ''ardica'' "to grow, high, prosperous".
*Wallachia – "land of the Romance-speaking people"

Russia

*Arkhangelsk Oblast: the region of the city of Arkhangelsk, whose name the inhabitants traditionally associated with a monastery in the area dedicated to the Archangel Michael (Russian: Архангел Михаил or ''Arkhangel Mikhail'').
*Chechnya: the Russian ethnonym ''Chechen people, Chechen'' probably derives from the name of the ancient village of Chechana or Chechen-aul. The village stands on the bank of the Argun River (Caucasus), Argun River, near Grozny. Another theory derives the name from ''chechenit' sya'', "to talk mincingly". Max Vasmer, Vasmer suggests a Kabardian language, Kabardian origin: ''šešen''. The native term, ''Noxçi'', comes from ''nexça'' (sheep cheese), ''nox'' (plow) or from the prophet Noah (''Nox'' in Chechen).
*Dagestan: the word ''Daghestan'' or ''Daghistan'' ( av, Дагъистан; Arabic and fa, داغستان) means "country of mountains"; it derives from the Turkic word ''dağ'', meaning "mountain" and the Persian suffix -stan, -''stan'' meaning "land of". The spelling ''Dagestan'' transliterates the Russian name, which lacks the voiced velar fricative.
*Kaliningrad Oblast: from the Russian name ''Kaliningrad'' (Kalinin-city) of its largest city, renamed in 1946 to commemnorate Mikhail Kalinin
*Kazan Governorate, Kazan (former Imperial Russian governorate): (compare the name of the city of Kazan)
*Khabarovsk Krai: the Khabarovsk region. The city of Khabarovsk took its name from the explorer Yerofey Khabarov
*Leningrad Oblast: from the city (Saint Petersburg) formerly known as ''Leningrad'' (Russian for Vladimir Lenin, Lenin-city)
*Nizhniy Novgorod: Russian: literally "lower Novgorod": for "lower new city", "new city on the Lower Volga"; in contrast to the older Novgorod
*Novaya Zemlya: Russian for "new land"
*Sakhalin: derived from misinterpretation of a Manchu name "sahaliyan ula angga hada" (peak of the mouth of the Amur River). "Sahaliyan" means "black" in Manchu and refers to the Amur River ( ''sahaliyan ula'').
*Siberia: from a Tatar language, Tatar word meaning "sleeping land"
*Smolensk Oblast: from the river Smolnya
*Vladikavkaz: Russian for "ruler of the Caucasus" or "rule the Caucasus"

Slovakia

*Banská Bystrica Region, Banská Bystrica: The name includes two distinct roots: the adjective ''Banská'' (from Slovak ''baňa''—"mine") and the name of the local river Bystrica (from Slavic ''bystrica''—"a swift stream"). Its name in hu, Besztercebánya has the same semantic origin. The name literally means "mining creek".
*Bratislava Region, Bratislava: The first written reference comes from the ''Annales Iuvavenses'', which calls the locality ''Brezalauspurc'' (literally: Braslav, Duke of Lower Pannonia, Braslav's castle), in relation to the battles between the Bavaria and Hungary, which took place before the walls of Bratislava Castle in 907. The castle got its name either from Predslav, third son of King Svatopluk I or from the local noble Braslav. This former variant reappears as "Braslav" or "Preslava" on coins minted by King Stephen I of Hungary, István I of Kingdom of Hungary, Hungary, dating to about the year 1000 and in which appeared the motto "Preslavva Civitas". At the end of the Middle Ages, the name took its final German form Pressburg: Slovak language, Slovak of ''Prešporok'' derived from this. Although Pressburg remained the official name until 1919, the Hungarians use and used the name ''Pozsony'' (attested by the 12th century). ''Bozan'' could result from a ruling of the Bratislava Castle from the eleventh century. The name ''Posonium'' Latin derives from Hungarian. In addition to these names, documents of the Renaissance call the city 'Ιστροπόλις' Istropolis which means "City of the Danube" in Ancient Greek. The current name, ''Bratislava'', dates from 1837 when the Slavist scholar Pavel Jozef Šafárik reconstructed a variant of the name, ''Břetislaw'' a from old names, believing that these derived from the name of the ruler Bretislaus I of Bohemia.
*Košice Region, Košice: The first written mention of the city as "villa Cassa" dates from 1230. The Slovak name of the city comes from the Slavic personal name "Koša" with the patronymic slavic languages, slavic suffix "-ice". According to other sources the city name probably stems from an ancient Hungarian first Hungarian names, name which begins with "Ko" such as Kokos-Kakas, Kolumbán-Kálmán, or Kopov-Kopó. Historically, the city has been known as ''Kaschau'' in German, ''Kassa'' in Hungarian, ''Cassovia'' or ''Caschovia'' in Latin, ''Cassovie'' in French, ''Caşovia'' in Romanian language, Romanian, ''Кошицы'' (''Koshitsy'') in Russian and ''Koszyce'' in Polish (see Names of European cities in different languages: I-L#K, here for more names).
* Nitra Region, Nitra: The first mention of Nitra dates back to 880 (other variations: 826 as Nitrawa, 880 as Nitra, and in 1111/1113 as Nitra, Nitria). The name of the city derives from the Nitra (river), river Nitra. The name originates in the Germanic word ''Nitrahwa'': in the Indo-European languages ''nid'' means "flow" while ''ahwa'' means "water".
* Prešov Region, Prešov: The city name originates in the Hungarian word ''eper'' which means "strawberry". The city's historic coat of arms contains strawberries. Historically, the city has been known as ''Eperjes'' in Hungarian, ''Eperies'' or ''Preschau'' in German, ''Fragopolis'' in Greco-Latin, ''Preszów'' in Polish, ''Peryeshis'' in Romany language, Romany, ''Пряшев'' (''Pryashev'') in Russian and ''Пряшів'' (''Priashiv'') in Rusyn language, Rusyn and Ukrainian language, Ukrainian.
* Trenčín Region, Trenčín: Trenčín first appeared under Greek name ''Leukaristos ''(Λευκαριστος), depicted on the Ptolemy world map around 150 CE. In 179 CE, during the Marcomannic Wars between the Roman Empire and Germanic Quadi, the Romans carved an inscription on the rock under the present-day castle, mentioning the place as ''Laugaricio''. (The inscription marks the northernmost known presence of the Romans in Central Europe.) The first written mentions in the Middle Ages date from 1111 (as ''Treinchen'') and from 1113 (adjective: ''Trenciniensis''). The name became ''Trentschin'' in later German and ''Trencsén'' in Hungarian.
*Trnava Region, Trnava: The name of the city derives from the Slovak word ''tŕnie'' ("thornbush") which characterized the river banks in the region. The Hungarian name ''Nagyszombat'' (first mentioned in 1238 in the form of ''Zumbotel'') originates from the Hungarian word ''szombat'' ("Saturday"), referring to the weekly market fairs held on Saturdays.
*Žilina Region, Žilina

South Africa

Before 1994

* Transvaal Province, Transvaal: literally ''beyond the Vaal River'', which acted as its southern border.
* Natal Province, Natal: ''see below at KwaZulu-Natal''.
* Orange Free State: the Free State operated as an independent country (Free State) during most of the 19th century. The adjective ''Orange'' came from the Orange River to the south/south-west of the province, in turn named in 1779 by Robert Jacob Gordon (1743–1795), commander of the Cape Colony garrison (1780–1795), in honour of the Dutch House of Orange-Nassau.
* Cape Province, Cape of Good Hope: named after the Cape of Good Hope, where Cape Town stands.

After 1994

* Eastern Cape, Northern Cape, Western Cape: from the Cape of Good Hope, the site of the first European settlement in today's South Africa, which would give its name to Cape Town, Cape Colony, and the former Cape Province, of which each of the three named provinces originally formed a part.
* Free State (province), Free State: the popular contraction of this province's historic predecessor, the Orange Free State.
* Gauteng: The Sesotho language, Sesotho name for the province's and country's largest city of Johannesburg. The literal meaning, "Place of Gold", refers to the area's large gold-mining industry.
* KwaZulu-Natal: a combination of the names of the two entities that merged to form the modern province:
** KwaZulu: a bantustan formed in the apartheid era, ostensibly as a "homeland" for the Zulu people, Zulu
** Natal Province, Natal: Portuguese for "Christmas". The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama named the area: he landed on the coast of the future KwaZulu-Natal on Christmas Day in 1497.
* Limpopo: the Limpopo River forms the province's and the country's most northern boundary.
* Mpumalanga: "east", or more literally, "the place where the sun rises", in several Nguni languages, among them Swazi language, Swazi, Xhosa language, Xhosa, and Zulu language, Zulu. Refers to the province's location in the north-east of South Africa.
* North West (South African province), North West: From its geographic position, in the north of the country and west of the main population-centre of Gauteng.

Spain

*Andalusia: from the Arabic name (Al-Andalus, with several suggested etymologies) formerly applied to the whole Iberian Peninsula
*Aragon: from the Aragon River, that gave its name to the county of Aragon, one of the little Christian polities that resisted Islamic rule in Spain during its greatest extent (see Reconquista)
*Asturias: the land of the Astures, an early people of north-west Spain
*Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country ( eu, Euskal Herria): from the ancient tribe of the Vascones, whose name became an ethnonym in the Middle Ages. The Basque name derives from ''Euskara'' (the autochthonous name for the Basque language).
**Álava ( eu, Araba): of uncertain etymology. Various theories see it deriving from a Roman town called ''Alba'', from several prossible Basque etymologies or from Arabs (who only briefly held the province). A chronicle of 905 uses the form ''Arba'', but later the word commonly appears as ''Alaba'' or ''Alava''.
**Biscay ( eu, Bizkaia, es, Vizcaya): variant of ''bizkarra'' ("shoulder", "back" or, in this case, "mountain range" in Basque)
**Gipuzkoa ( es, Guipúzcoa): of unknown etymology. Old documents sometimes use the variant ''Ipuscoa''.
*Cantabria: from the Cantabri, a mountain people defeated by the Roman Empire, Romans only after a great military effort (Cantabrian Wars, 29 – 19 BC). Celtologists have suggested a derivation from the Celtic root ''cant-'', meaning "rock" or "stone", and from the suffix ''-abr'', used frequently in Celtic regions. From this we can deduce that the word "cantabrus" means "dwelling in the mountains", referring to the rugged terrain of Cantabria. Another suggestion derives ''Cantabria'' from the Celtic ''Kant'' ("mountain" or "rock") and ''Iber'' (the river Ebro), thus "The Mountains of the Ebro". Spaniards also call this region ''La Montaña'' ("The Mountain"), but usually call the Bay of Biscay the Cantabrian Sea.
*Castile (historical region), Castile: the Spanish/Castilian name ''Castilla'' reflects the Spanish ''castillo'' ("castle") and the Latin ''castellum'' ("fort" or "fortress") with reference to numerous forts or castles erected by King Alfonso VI of Castile, Alfonso I for the defence of the area
*Catalonia: from the ''castlà'' ("castellan") class who governed the nascent feudal Catalonia from their castles in the 11th and 12th centuries. (Compare the etymology of "Castile (historical region), Castile".) Other parallel theories exist: Lafont (1986) says ''Catalunya'' could come from Arabic ''Qalat-uniyya'' (''Qalat'' means "castle" and ''-uniyya'' operates as a collective suffix) because medieval Catalonia formed a border country with a lot of castles in front of the Muslim and Arabized zone of the Iberic peninsula. Some texts suggest that the name ''Catalunya'' derives from "Gauta-landia": land of the Goths, or "Goth-Alania" meaning "Land of the Goths and Alans" through Arabian ''*Cotelanuyya'' [cf. Andalusia, land of the Vandals], as the Visigoths and Alans invaded and divided Iberia between themselves, agreeing to rule some parts together, with the region of Catalunya going to the Visigoths. Additionally, the Visigothic kingdom of Catalonia may have taken its name from that of the original homeland of the Visigoths, "Gotland". Joan Coromines, Coromines suggests an Iberian origin: ''Laietani'' (latinization of Iberian ''laiezken'') > ''*laketani'' > ''laketans'' > Metathesis (linguistics), metathesized as ''catelans'' > ''catalans'', re-inforced by ''castellani'' (with an Epenthesis, epenthetic ''s'' according to Coromines). Another theory suggests ''*kaste-lan'' as the Iberian name, later Latinized as ''castellani'' (an Iberian tribe in northern Catalonia according to Ptolemy); then the name would have evolved into ''*catellani'' > ''*catelans'' > ''*Catalans''.
*Extremadura: from Medieval Latin ''Extrema Dorii'' (literally, "extremes of the Douro river"), referring to the territories south of the Douro basin; or from an Old Castilian Spanish, Castilian word used to designate the further territories controlled by the Christians (see Reconquista)
*Gallaecia, Galicia: from Latin ''Gallaecia'', the name of the province created in Roman Hispania by Diocletian in 298 CE. It derives from ''gallicoi'' or ''callicoi'', (''Galli'' or Celts).
*León (province), León: the ancient Kingdom of León, kingdom and subsequent León (province), province of León take their name from the city of León, León, León, whose name derives from its position as the base of a Roman legion (Latin ''legio'')
*Navarre (Spanish: ''Navarra'', Basque: ''Nafarroa''): from the Kingdom of Navarre. ''Navarra'' has been argued to have either a Basque or Romance etymology. In the first case it would come from ''nabar'' ("brownish, multicolor", also "plowshare"), in the second from ''nava'' ("river bank").
* La Rioja (Spain), Rioja: speculatively interpreted as "red" from the redness of a prominent soil type in the area.

Sweden

Historical Provinces

Sweden formerly consisted of Provinces of Sweden, historical provinces (Swedish: ''landskap''), and the province-names still often serve to describe locations in Sweden. Their names often date from before the year 1000. Officially Sweden now subdivides into Counties of Sweden, counties (Swedish: ''län''), introduced in 1634.

Historical provinces:
*Blekinge: from the adjective ''bleke'', which corresponds to the nautical term for "dead calm".
*Bohuslän: meaning "county of Bohus Fortress".
*Dalarna: meaning "the valleys"
*Dalsland: originally ''Dal'', meaning "the valley"
*Gotland: land of the Gutar
*Gästrikland
*Halland: the land beyond Hovs Hallar
* Hälsingland
*Härjedalen: valley of the Härje river
*Jämtland
*Lappland, Sweden, Lappland: land of the Lappi (the Sami people)
*Medelpad: Unclear. "Medel" means "in the middle". One theory is "the land between the river valleys" (Ljungan and Indalsälven)
*Norrbotten: from Norrbotten County
*Närke
*Skåne
*Småland: "small lands", given for a combination of several smaller provinces.
*Södermanland: "south men's land"
*Uppland "up land" (north of Stockholm, used after the foundation of Stockholm, was before that three independent provinces)
*Värmland
*Västmanland: "west men's land"
* Västerbotten: West Bothnia (west side of the Gulf of Bothnia). In old Nordic "botten" meant inner part of a bay/gulf, see the Gulf of Bothnia#Name, etymology of Bothnia. Compare Ostrobothnia (Österbotten / East Bothnia) in Finland, formerly a Swedish province, and Norrbotten above.
*Västergötland: means Western Götaland, Gothia/Götaland.
*Ångermanland: from the Old Norse "anger", which means "deep fjord" and refers to the deep mouth of the river ''Ångermanälven''.
*Öland
*Östergötland: means Eastern Götaland, Gothia/Götaland

Present counties

*Stockholm County, Stockholm: from Stockholm, the city. From ''stock'' (timber log) and ''holm'' (small island). (Somewhat disputed.)
*Uppsala County, Uppsala: from Uppsala, the city. (Ultimate etymology disputed.)
*Jönköping County, Jönköping: from Jönköping, the city. ''Jön'' comes from the creek Junebäcken; "köping" means "merchant place".
*Kronoberg County, Kronoberg: from Kronoberg Castle. ''Kronoberg'' means "the Crown's mountain".
*Kalmar County, Kalmar: from Kalmar, the city. (Ultimate etymology disputed.)
*Västra Götaland County, Västra Götaland: means "Western Götaland, Gothia/Götaland".
*Örebro County, Örebro: from Örebro, the city, the name of which means "bridge over gravel banks".
*Gävleborg County, Gävleborg: from Gävle, the city, and ''borg'' (fortress), referring to Gävle Castle.
*Västernorrland County, Västernorrland: means "Western Norrland". At the time Norrland meant North Sweden including North Finland, and Western Norrland excluded Finland. Now Västernorrland is located in Eastern Norrland.
*Norrbotten County, Norrbotten: North Bothnia (originally northern part of Västerbotten County)
*Blekinge County, Blekinge, Dalarna County, Dalarna, Gotland County, Gotland, Halland County, Halland, Jämtland County, Jämtland, Skåne County, Skåne, Södermanland County, Södermanland, Värmland County, Värmland, Västerbotten County, Västerbotten, Västmanland County, Västmanland and Östergötland County, Östergötland are named directly after the historical province they match. See previous chapter.

Switzerland

*Aargau: German name labelling the district (''Gau (country subdivision), Gau'') of the River Aar.
*Appenzell: from Latin ''abbatis cella'', meaning "land of the abbot", referring to the fact that Appenzell originally belonged to the Abbey of St. Gall.
*Basel: traditionally associated with the Greek ''basileus'' ("king") or ''basileos'' ("of the king"): the city saw itself as preserving the Roman Empire, Imperial Roman heritage of its parent settlement, the Roman town of Augusta Raurica. Note the use of the basilisk as a Basler icon.
*Canton of Bern, Bern: German ''Bär[e]n'' (bears): reflected in the Bern, capital city's bear pit, bear-pits, foundation-legend and Heraldry of Bern, coat-of-arms
*Graubünden: (the German name literally means "grey leagues")—from the Grey League, a grey-clad organisation started in 1395.
* Canton of Jura, Jura: after the Jura Mountains.
*Neuchâtel: French for "new castle"; ''Neuenburg'' (with the same semantic meaning) in German
*Canton of Schwyz, Schwyz: named after the town of Schwyz; the origin of the town name is unknown.
*Canton of St. Gallen, St Gallen: from Saint Gall (c. 550 – c. 646), traditionally the Irish founder/namesake of the Abbey of St. Gall which came to dominate the area.
*Canton of Solothurn, Solothurn: the city of Solothurn, capital of the Canton of the same name, first appears under the Celtic name ''Salodurum''.
*Thurgau: an early medieval ''Gau (country subdivision), Gau'' county named after the River Thur (Switzerland), Thur.
*Ticino: from the principal river of the canton, the Ticino River, Ticino, a tributary of the Po River.
*Uri (canton), Uri: (speculatively) from the older German ''Aurochs'', a wild ox (see aurochs); or from the Celtic word ''ure'', a bull. (Note the head of the bull on the cantonal coat of arms.)
*Valais (French), Wallis (German): from the Latin word ''vallis'', meaning "valley"; the canton consists mainly of the Rhone valley.
*Canton of Zurich, Zurich: after the city of Zurich, called ''Turicum'' in 2nd-century Latin; the origin of the Latin name is unknown.

Syria

* Latakia: el, Λαοδίκεια (Laodikeia)
* Idlib: ar, إدلب
* Aleppo: Khalpe, Khalibon
* Raqqa: ar, الرقة
* Al-Hasakah:
* Tartus: el, Antarados, script=Latn
* Hama: hit, Amatuwana, script=Latn
* Deir ez-zor: ar, دير الزور
* Homs: el, Ἔμεσα (Emesa)
* Damascus: "T-m-ś-q" (15th century BC)
* Rif Dimashq: ar, ريف دمشق
* Quneitra: ar, القنيطرة
* Daraa: ''Atharaa'' (hieroglyphic tablets)
* As-Suwayda: ar, السويداء

Taiwan

*Changhua (): "Manifest [Imperial] Influence" in Chinese (顯彰皇化) in 1723
*Chiayi City, Chiayi (): "Commend Righteousness" in 1787
*Hsinchu (): Literally "New Bamboo", renamed from "Bamboo Fortress" (Chinese: 竹塹, Mandarin: ''Zhuqian'') in 1878
*Hualien City, Hualien (): Literally "Lotus Flower" in Chinese, shortened from , renamed by 1920 from ''Kiray'' (奇萊), previously "Whirling Waves" (洄瀾; ''Huilan'')
*Kaohsiung (): literally "High Grandeur", from Japanese ''Takao'', renamed in 1920 from ''Takau'' (), "Bamboo Forest" in a Formosan languages, Formosan language
*Keelung (): Literally "Prosperous Base" in Chinese, renamed in 1875 from "Chicken Cage" (Chinese: 雞籠; Mandarin: Jilong; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Ke-lâng), possibly derived from the Ketagalan people
*Kinmen (): "Golden Gate", 1387. When a fortress was built to defend the coast of Fujian, Kinmen was described as being "as secure as a metal moat, proudly safeguarding the gate of the sea" (固若金湯, 雄鎮海門)
*Miaoli County, Miaoli (): Renamed in 1889 from / (Mandarin: Maoli), from the Bari Settlement of the Taokas people, Taokas Tribe, meaning "Plains"
*Nantou County, Nantou (): 1695, after the ''Ramtau'' settlement of the Arikun Tribe
*Penghu (): "Splashing Lake" in Chinese, (formerly )
*Pingtung County, Pingtung (): East of Banpingshan (literally "Half-Screen Mountain"), from Japanese in 1920
*Tainan (): 1887 creation of Tainan Prefecture (Qing), Tainan Prefecture, "Southern Taiwan [City]" in Chinese
*Taipei (): "Northern Taiwan [City]" in Chinese, 1875 creation of Taipeh Prefecture
*Taichung (): "Central Taiwan [City]" in Chinese, from Japanese created 1896
*Taitung City, Taitung (): "Eastern Taiwan [City]" in Chinese. Creation of Taitung Prefecture in 1888
*Taoyuan City, Taoyuan (): "Peach Orchard" in Chinese, officially , 1909
*Yilan County, Taiwan, Yilan (): Literally "Suitable Orchid" in Chinese, 1878 creation of ''Gilan Hsien'', derived from the Kavalan people
*Yunlin County, Yunlin (): Literally "Clouded Woods" in Chinese, created in 1887

Thailand

*Bangkok – Thai: ''place of olives''
*Bueng Kan – Thai: ''black lake''
*Chiang Mai – Northern Thai: ''new city''
*Chonburi (city), Chonburi – Thai: ''city of water'', as the city is very close to the sea
*Kanchanaburi – Thai: ''golden city''
*Kalasin – Thai: ''black water''
*Narathiwat – Malay: ''Menara'' (''tower'')
*Nonthaburi (city), Nonthaburi – Thai: ''city of Peltophorum pterocarpum (Nontri)'', the provincial tree of Nonthaburi Province, Nonthaburi
*Pattani – Malay: ''pata ini'' (''this beach'')
*Pattaya – from ''thap phraya'', which means ''army of the Phraya''
*Phitsanulok – Thai: ''Vishnu's heaven''
*Phuket Province, Phuket – Malay: ''bukit'' (''hill'')
*Roi Et – Thai: ''one hundred and one'' (101)
*Udon Thani – Thai: ''northern city''
*Yasothon – named after ''Yasodhara''

Turkey

Main article : Toponyms of Turkey

Ukraine

Most of Ukraine's oblasts take their names from their principal city; but Volyn Oblast, Zakarpattia Oblast, and the Crimean Autonomous Republic offer exceptions to this rule. See also subdivisions of Ukraine.
*Cherkasy Oblast: from the city Cherkasy, presumably the city's name derived from Circassians according to Giovanni da Pian del Carpine, Vasiliy Tatishchev, and Aleksandr Rigelman.
*Chernihiv Oblast: from the city Chernihiv
*Chernivtsi Oblast: from the city Chernivtsi
*Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Crimea: from the Crimean Tatar language, Crimean Tatar name: ''Qırım''
*Dnipropetrovsk Oblast: from the city Dnipropetrovsk (renamed in 1926 after ''Dnipro'' (Dnieper river) and the Soviet Ukraine 's head of state, the Bolshevik Grigory Ivanovich Petrovsky)
*Donetsk Oblast: from the city Donetsk, after the Donets river. ''Donets'' is a diminutive form of Don and is a tributary of the river Don River, Russia, Don.
*Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast: from the city Ivano-Frankivsk, renamed (from ''Stanyslaviv'') after the Ukrainian writer Ivan Franko (1856–1916) in 1962
*Kharkiv Oblast: from the city Kharkiv, legendarily named for the mythical Ukrainian folk hero Kharko (died ca 1737)
*Kherson Oblast: from the city Kherson
*Khmelnytskyi Oblast: from the city Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine, Khmelnytskyi, named in 1954 on the 300th anniversary of the Treaty of Pereyaslav, after Cossack leadership, leader Bohdan Khmelnytsky
*Kyiv, City of Kyiv: ancient name (Ukrainian: ''Kyiv''). Myth/legend tells of a founder named ''Kyi, Shchek and Khoryv, Kyi''
*Kyiv Oblast: from the city Kyiv
*Kirovohrad Oblast: from the city ''Kirovohrad'' ("Kirov City"), after Sergey Kirov (named Kirovo in 1934, Kirovograd in 1939)
*Luhansk Oblast: from the city Luhansk
*Lviv Oblast: from the city of Lviv, founded 1256 by King Danylo of Halych, and named after his son Lev Danylovich
*Mykolaiv Oblast: from the city Mykolaiv, after the day of Saint Nicholas (Ukrainian ''Mykolai'', Russian ''Nikolai''), 19 December 1788, commemorating the Siege of Ochakov (1788), fall of the Turkish fortress of Ochakiv to the Russians
*Odessa Oblast: after the city Odessa in 1795; etymology unknown, but see History of Odessa, Odessa: "History" for some possibilities
*Poltava Oblast: from ''Ltava'', an ancient name of the city Poltava
*Rivne Oblast: from the city Rivne
*Sevastopol, City of Sevastopol: (1783) Greek "highly respectable city, august city"; see Sevastopol#Etymology, Sevastopol: "Etymology"
*Sumy Oblast: from the city Sumy
*Ternopil Oblast: from the city Ternopil
*Vinnytsia Oblast: from the city Vinnytsia
*Volyn Oblast: ancient name of the region of Volyn
*Zakarpattia Oblast: "beyond the Carpathian Mountains", Carpathian Ruthenia, Transcarpathia
*Zaporizhzhia Oblast: from the city Zaporizhzhia, in turn after Zaporizhzhia (region), region "beyond the rapids" (seventeenth century), downstream of the rapids of the Dnieper river, River Dnieper
*Zhytomyr Oblast: from the city Zhytomyr (988), after Zhytomyr, prince of the Principality of the Drevlians, Drevlians

United Kingdom

Constituent countries

*England: "Land of the Angles", from Old English ''Englaland'', for the Germanic tribes, Germanic tribe first attested in 897. The Angles themselves were first attested as the Latin ''Anglii'' in Tacitus's 1st-century ''Germania (book), Germania'' and the name was extended to cover the other Germans in Great Britain, Britain after the ascension of the Kentish Egbert of Wessex, Egbert to the Saxon thrones.Taylor, Isaac.
Names and Their Histories; a Handbook of Historical Geography and Topographical Nomenclature
'. Gale Research Co. (Detroit), 1898. Retrieved 24 September 2011. Their etymology is uncertain: possible derivations include ''Angul'' (the Angeln peninsula of eastern Jutland), the "people of the Narrow [Water]" (from the proposed PIE, proto-Indo-European root ''*ang-'', "narrow", or ''*angh-'', "tight") in reference to the Angeln's Schlei inlet, "people of the meadows" (cf. Old High German ''angar''), the god ''*Ingwaz''a proposed Proto-Germanic form of Freyr's earlier name Yngvi,or the Ingaevones who claimed their descent from him. See Etymology of England.
**''Anglia'', a former name: As above, in its Latin form.
**''Angelcynn'', a former name: "Folk of the Angles", from Old English, name used by Alfred the Great.
*Northern Ireland: Northern part of the island of Ireland; see List of country-name etymologies#Ireland, List of country-name etymologies: Ireland for the etymology of the name "Ireland".
*Scotland: "Land of the Scottish people, Scots", attested in the 11th-century ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicles'' of Abingdon, Worcester and Laud. "Scot" from Old English ''Scottas'', from Late Latin ''Scoti'' or ''Scotti'', of ultimately uncertain origin, but used in Latin to reference Gaels raiding Roman Britain from a region (''Scotia'') in Ireland. and whose colinguists established the realm of Dál Riata in the vicinity of Argyll.
**''Alba'', ''Albania'', or ''Albany'', former endonyms: Uncertain etymology, presumed to derive from Albion or its antecedents. See also "Albion" at List of country-name etymologies#United Kingdom, List of country-name etymologies: United Kingdom.
**''Caledonia'', a former name: "Land of the Caledonii" in Latin, from a Latin name for a local tribe, of uncertain etymology. Possibly related to the Welsh language, Welsh ''caled'' ("hard", "tough").
*Wales: From Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic word ''Walhaz'', meaning "Romanised foreigner"; through Old English ''welisċ'', ''wælisċ'', ''wylisċ'', meaning "foreigner", with the more specific "''Brytwylisc''" referring directly to Brittonic Peoples, Brittonic speaking people (literally "British Welsh/Foreigners"); to Modern English ''Welsh people, Welsh''. ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' (British Library MS. Cotton Tiberius B) glosses Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People, Ecclesiastical History, citing ''Brytwylsc'' as one of the ''fif geþeodu'', or "five languages", of the island of ''Brytene'', along with the ''Ænglisc, Scottysc, Pictish language, Pihttisc, and :ang:Lǣden, Boclæden'' (English, Scottish, Pictish, and Latin). The same etymology applies to Cornwall in Great Britain, Britain and to Wallonia in Belgium. See Etymology of Wales.
**''Brythoniaiad'', a former name: "Britons" in Old Welsh. See "Britain" under List of country-name etymologies#United Kingdom, List of country-name etymologies: United Kingdom. More inclusive than "Cymru", its use predominated until around the 12th century.
**''Cambria'': Romanization, Latinized version of ''Cymru'' below. Geoffrey of Monmouth related the traditional pseudoetymology of this name from an eponymous King Camber.
**''Cymru'' (endonym): "Land of Compatriots" from Old Welsh ''kymry'' ("compatriots"), first attested in an encomium to Cadwallon ap Cadfan c. 633, from Brythonic languages, Brythonic ''combrogi''. Its use during the Sub-Roman Britain, post-Roman era amounted to a self-perception that the Welsh and the "Hen Ogledd, Men of the North" were one people, distinguished from the invaders, Cornish people, Cornishmen and Breton people, Bretons.

British Crown Dependencies

*Jersey: The Old Norse, Norse suffix ''-ey'' means "island" and is commonly found in the parts of Northern Europe where Norsemen established settlements. (Compare modern Nordic languages: ''øy'' in Norwegian, ''ø/ö'' in Danish and Swedish.) The meaning of the first part of the island's name is unclear. Among theories are that it derives from Norse ''jarth'' ("earth") or ''Jarl (title), jarl'' ("earl"), or perhaps a personal name, Geirr, to give "Geirr's Island". American writer William Safire suggested that the "Jers" in Jersey could be a corruption of "Caesar".
*Isle of Man: The island's name in both English and Manx language, Manx (''Mannin'') derives from ''Manannán mac Lir'', the Brythonic languages, Brythonic and Goidelic languages, Gaelic, equivalent to the god Poseidon.

British Overseas Territories

*Anguilla: "eel", for its elongated shape, from either Spanish ''anguila'', Italian language, Italian ''anguilla'', or French ''anguille'', as it is uncertain whether the island was first sighted by Christopher Columbus in 1493 or by French explorers in 1564.
*Bermuda: "Land of Bermúdez", from the Spanish ''La Bermuda'', from the Spanish Empire, Spanish captain Juan de Bermúdez who sighted the island in 1505 while returning from Hispaniola.
*British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT): See List of country-name etymologies for etymologies of United Kingdom, Britain and India
*British Virgin Islands: bestowed by Christopher Columbus from Saint Ursula and her 11,000 virgins, on account of the seemingless endless number of islands
*Cayman Islands: From the Spanish name ''Caymanas'', from the Carib language, Carib for "caiman", a kind of marine alligator.
*Falkland Islands: From the Falkland Sound between the two main islands, bestowed by Kingdom of England, English captain John Strong (mariner), John Strong in 1690 in honor of Anthony Cary, 5th Viscount Falkland, First Lord of the Admiralty. Falkland Palace was the Caries' ancestral home in Scotland.
**''Islas Malvinas'', its Spanish name: "Malovian Islands", from the French ''Malouines'' describing the Breton people, Breton sailors from St. Malo in Brittany who frequented the islands in the 1690s.
**Sebald Islands, a former name now applied in Spanish to the Jason Islands: From a Dutch language, Dutch name commemorating Sebald de Weert, the captain usually credited with first sighting the archipelago in 1598.
*Gibraltar: A corruption of the Arabic language, Arabic words ''Jebel Tariq'' (جبل طارق) which means "Tariq's Mountain", named after Tariq ibn Ziyad, a Berber people, Berber who landed at Gibraltar in 711 to launch the Islamic invasion of the Iberian Peninsula.
*Montserrat: From the Spanish name ''Santa Maria de Monterrate'' bestowed by Christopher Columbus in 1493 in honor of the Virgin of Montserrat, Blessed Virgin of the Monastery of Montserrate in Spain. "Montserrat" itself means "jagged mountain".
*Pitcairn Islands: A member of the English Captain Philip Carteret's crew in his ship HMS Swallow (1745), HMS ''Swallow'' first sighted the remote islands in July 1767. Carteret named the main island "Pitcairn's Island" after the man who first saw land: the son of Major Pitcairn of the Marines.
*Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha:
**Saint Helena: bestowed by Portuguese explorer João da Nova in honor of Helena of Constantinople, Saint Helena, the mother of list of Roman emperors, Roman emperor Constantine the Great, for its discovery on Saint Helena's Day, 21 May 1502.
*South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI):
**South Georgia: "Land of George III of the United Kingdom, George", from the original "Isle of Georgia" bestowed by British captain James Cook in honor of George III of the United Kingdom, King George III on 17 January 1775. "South" distinguished it from the other colony of Georgia, which became an American state in 1782.
**South Sandwich Islands: Bestowed by British captain James Cook in honor of John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, John Montagu, Earl of Sandwich, who at the time was First Lord of the Admiralty and helped fund Cook's voyages. "South" distinguished them from the other Sandwich Islands, now known by their native name Hawaii.
*Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI):
**Turks Islands: for the indigenous Melocactus intortus, Turk's-cap cacti (''Melocactus communis'')
**Caicos Islands: from the indigenous Lucayan language, Lucayan ''caya hico'', meaning "string of islands".

United States

States

Counties

Territories

* Baker Island National Wildlife Refuge, an unincorporated territory: for American captain Michael Baker (captain), Michael Baker of New Bedford, Massachusetts, who claimed to have discovered it in 1832 or 1834, despite being the third to have done so.
* Guam, a territory: From the native Chamorro people, Chamorro word ''guahan'', meaning "we have".
* Howland Island, a territory: Bestowed by Capt. George E. Netcher in honor of the lookout who sighted it from his ship, the ''Isabella'', on 9 September 1842.
* Jarvis Island, a territory: Bestowed by the British Captain Brown in honor of Edward, Thomas, and William Jarvis, the owners of his vessel the ''Eliza Francis''.
* Johnston Atoll, a territory: For British captain Charles J. Johnston, commander of , who discovered the atoll on 14 December 1807.
* Kingman Reef, a territory: For Capt. W.E. Kingman, who discovered the reef aboard the ''Shooting Star'' on 29 November 1853.
* Midway Islands, a territory: For their geographic location, perhaps from the islands' situation midway between North America and Asia, or their proximity to the International Date Line (halfway around the world from the Greenwich Meridian)."Frequently Asked Questions about Midway"
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
**Middlebrook Islands or the Brook Islands, former names: For their discoverer, Captain N.C. Middlebrooks.
*Navassa Island, a territory: From the Spanish ''Navaza'' (''nava-'' meaning "plain" or "field"), bestowed by members of Christopher Columbus's crew who discovered the island while attempting to return to Hispaniola from Jamaica
*Northern Mariana Islands, a commonwealth: From its position and the Spanish name ''Las Marianas'' bestowed by the Jesuit missionary San Vitores in 1668 in honour of Mariana of Austria, widow of Philip IV of Spain, King Felipe IV and regent of Spain.
*Palmyra Atoll, a territory: Named after the boat ''Palmyra'', which belonged to the American Captain Sawle. He sought shelter on the atoll on 7 November 1802, and became the first person known to land on it.
*Puerto Rico, a territory with commonwealth status: Christopher Columbus named the island ''San Juan Bautista'' in honour of Saint John the Baptist in 1493. The Spanish authorities set up a capital city called ''Puerto Rico'' (meaning "rich port"). For now unknown reasons, the island and capital city had exchanged names by the 1520s.
* United States Virgin Islands, an insular area: See British Virgin Islands above.
* Wake Island, an unincorporated territory: for British William Wake (sailor), Captain William Wake, who sighted the island in 1796, despite the Kingdom of Spain, Spanish explorer Álvaro de Mendaña de Neyra, Mendaña having probably sighted it in 1568.

Venezuela

*Amazonas, Venezuela, Amazonas: for the Amazon rainforest.
*Anzoátegui: in honor of Venezuelan War of Independence, independence hero José Antonio Anzoátegui.
*Apure: for the Apure River.
*Aragua: derived from the Cumanagota language, Cumanagota word for a type of palm, ''Roystonea oleracea''.
*Barinas (state), Barinas: comes from an indigenous word which identifies a strong wind that occurs during the rainy season, from the valleys of Santo Domingo.
*Bolívar (state), Bolívar: in honor of Venezuelan War of Independence, independence hero Simón Bolívar.
*Carabobo: comes from the Arawak language, Arawak ''karau'' (savannah; plain) and ''bo'' (water). The repeated ''bo'' acts as a superlative.
*Cojedes (state): for the Cojedes River.
*Delta Amacuro: for the Orinoco Delta and the Amacuro River.
*Falcón: in honor of President of Venezuela, president Juan Crisóstomo Falcón.
*Guárico: Carib language, Carib word for "cacique, chief".
*Lara, Venezuela, Lara: in honor of Venezuelan War of Independence, independence hero Jacinto Lara.
*Mérida (state), Mérida: after the city of Mérida, Spain, Mérida in Extremadura, Spain.
*Miranda (state), Miranda: in honor of Venezuelan War of Independence, independence hero Francisco de Miranda.
*Monagas (state), Monagas: in honor of President of Venezuela, president José Tadeo Monagas and the Monagas family.
*Nueva Esparta: after Sparta.
*Portuguesa, Venezuela, Portuguesa: after Portugal.
*Sucre, Venezuela, Sucre: in honor of Venezuelan War of Independence, independence hero Antonio José de Sucre.
*Táchira: from the Timoto–Cuica people, Timoto–Cuica word ''tachure'' which was used to designate the bellyache bush (''Jatropha gossypiifolia'').
*Trujillo (state), Trujillo: after the city of Trujillo, Cáceres, Trujillo in Extremadura, Spain.
*Vargas (state), Vargas: in honor of President of Venezuela, president José María Vargas.
*Yaracuy: in honor of a local cacique.
*Zulia: in honor of a mythological Wayuu people, Wayuu princess.

See also

*Etymology
*Toponymy
*List of country name etymologies
*List of political entities named after people
*Lists of etymologies
*List of double placenames

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:List of Etymologies of Country Subdivision Names
Lists of administrative divisions, Etymologies
Lists of place name etymologies, Country Subdivision
Etymologies of names of country subdivisions,