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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

Country Source of name
Bolivia Simón Bolívar
China Emperor Qin (pronounced "Chin") of the Qin Dynasty
Colombia Christopher Columbus
Dominican Republic Saint Dominic
El Salvador Jesus (literally, The Saviour)
Eswatini (Swaziland) King Mswati II
Kiribati Thomas Gilbert ("Kiribati" is the Gilbertese rendition of "Gilberts")
Liechtenstein Princely Family of Liechtenstein
Marshall Islands John Marshall
Mauritius Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange
Mozambique Mussa Bin Bique
Nicaragua Nicarao
Peru Birú, a local ruler who lived near the Bay of San Miguel, Panama City, in the early 16th century.[1]
Philippines King Philip II of Spain
Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Christopher
Saint Lucia Saint Lucy
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent of Saragossa
San Marino Saint Marinus
São Tomé and Príncipe Saint Thomas and Prince of Portugal to whom duties on the island's sugar crop were paid
Saudi Arabia Muhammad bin Saud
Seychelles Jean Moreau de Séchelles
United States of America Amerigo Vespucci (see Naming of America)
Uzbekistan Öz Beg Khan
Venezuela (The Bolivarian Republic of) Simón Bolívar (as for the Bolivarian Republic), the name Venezuela is however derived from Venice. See: Venezuela#Etymology
Jordan (The Hashemite Kingdom of) Hashim ibn Abd Manaf (as for the Hashemite Kingdom), the name Jordan is from Jordan River.

Countries named after legendary figures

Country Source of name
Hayastan (Armenia) Hayk (legendary figure)
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 (legendary figure)
Cambodia Sage Kambu Swayambhuva
Czech Republic Čech (legendary figure)
Denmark Dan (king) (legendary figure, uncertain etymology)
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 (legendary figure)
Norway Nór (legendary figure, dubious origin of etymology)
Romania from "Rome" / "Roman", which possibly comes from Romulus
Russia Rus (legendary figure)
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
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

Territory Source of name
Baker Island Michael Baker
Bermuda Juan de Bermúdez
Bouvet Island Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier
Clipperton Island John Clipperton
Cocos (Keeling) Islands Captain William Keeling
Cook Islands Captain James Cook
Falkland Islands Anthony Cary, 5th Viscount Falkland
Gibraltar Tariq ibn Ziyad (from Jabal Ṭāriq, meaning 'Mountain of Tariq')
Jan Mayen Jan Jacobszoon May van Schellinkhout
Jarvis Island Edward, Thomas and William Jarvis
Johnston Atoll Captain Charles J. Johnston
Juan de Nova João da Nova
Kingman Reef Captain W. E. Kingman
Isle of Man Manannán mac Lir
Norfolk Island Wife of Edward Howard, 9th Duke of Norfolk
Northern Mariana Islands Mariana of Austria
Peter I Island Peter the Great
Queen Maud Land Maud of Wales
Pitcairn Islands Robert Pitcairn (midshipman)
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Saint Helena of Constantinople, Tristão da Cunha
Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Peter and Saint Michael
Sint Maarten Martin of Tours
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands George III of the United Kingdom and John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich
Tromelin Island Chevalier de Tromelin
Virgin Islands Saint Ursula and her 11,000 virgins
Wake Island William Wake
Wallis and Futuna Samuel Wallis

See also

References

  1. ^ Porras Barrenechea, Raúl. El nombre del Perú. Lima: Talleres Gráficos P.L. Villanueva, 1968, p. 83.
  2. ^ Land of Two Rivers, Nitish Sengupta
  3. ^ Abu'l-Fazl. Ain-i-Akbari.
  4. ^ RIYAZU-S-SALĀTĪN: A History of Bengal Archived 15 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Ghulam Husain Salim, The Asiatic Society, Calcutta, 1902.
  5. ^ 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.
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