List of countries named after people
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This is a list of countries and dependent territories named after people.
Sovereign countries named after people
Countries named after legendary figures
Country | Source of name |
---|---|
Hayastan (Armenia) | Hayk |
Bangladesh | from "Bengal" which is according to one possibility is named after Bung/Bang, son of Hind, son of Ham, son of Noah[2][3][4] |
Belarus | Rus |
Cambodia | Sage Kambu Swayambhuva |
Czech Republic | Čech |
Djibouti | "Djibouti" means "Land of Tehuti" or "Land of Thoth", after the Egyptian Moon God |
Hungary | Hunor (or Magyarország — Magor) |
Bhārat (India) | Dushyanta's son Bharata or Rishabha's son Bharata[5] |
Israel | Jacob, who was also called Israel in the Bible |
Éire (Ireland) | Éire (Ériu), a Celtic fertility goddess |
Laos | possibly after Lava |
Lechia (historical and/or alternative name of Poland) | Lech |
Norway | Nór (although other etymologies are generally more widely accepted) |
Romania | from "Rome" / "Roman", which possibly comes from Romulus |
Russia | Rus |
Solomon Islands | King Solomon of Israel and Judah |
Former countries named after people
Country | Source of name |
---|---|
Principality of Antioch, now part of Turkey | Antiochus, father of Seleucus I Nicator |
Kingdom of Dahomey and Republic of Dahomey, now part of Benin | Chief Dan, who was killed by Chief Dakodonu in a dispute after sarcastically saying "shall I open up my belly and build a palace inside it?"; Dan=chief, xo=Belly, me=Inside of[6] |
Lotharingia (Lorraine), now part of Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands | Lothair II |
Rhodesia (former name of Zimbabwe) | Cecil Rhodes |
Samo's Empire | Samo, a Slavic king |
Ottoman Empire | Osman I, founder of the empire |
Dependent territories named after people
See also
References
- ^ Porras Barrenechea, Raúl. El nombre del Perú. Lima: Talleres Gráficos P.L. Villanueva, 1968, p. 83.
- ^ Land of Two Rivers, Nitish Sengupta
- ^ Abu'l-Fazl. Ain-i-Akbari.
- ^ RIYAZU-S-SALĀTĪN: A History of Bengal Archived 15 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Ghulam Husain Salim, The Asiatic Society, Calcutta, 1902.
- ^ Roshen Dalal (2010). The Religions of India: A Concise Guide to Nine Major Faiths. Penguin Books India. p. 57. ISBN 978-0-14-341517-6.
- ^ Monroe, J. Cameron (2011). "In the Belly of Dan: Space, History, and Power in Precolonial Dahomey". Current Anthropology. 52 (6): 769–798. doi:10.1086/662678. S2CID 142318205.
- ^ "Manannán mac Lir | Irish deity". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 10 November 2020.