Kyrgystan Place Names Explained

Having blogged samples of my books on English place names and also examined the etymologies of the nations of the world and their respective capitals I thought it time I cast my net a little wider. As English place names share some links to other tongues it would be interesting to see if any of the elements contributing to our place names could be found elsewhere. Continuing an alphabetical tour of the world and a look at the largest of Kyrgystan cities.

Bishkek has only been known as such since 1991, prior to that it had been known as Frunze by the Soviet Union from 1925, and as Pishpek when established as a fortress in 1825. Frunze was after the Bolshevik leader Mikhail Frunze who was born here and who died in 1925. The name of Pishkek is thought to be from a Kyrgyz word for a 'churn', one used specifically to make fermented mare's milk, the national drink.

Jalal-Abad is known for its mineral springs, the water from the spa long believed to cure leprosy. Its name comes from Jalal ad Din, who set up caravanserais (early service station)serving travellers and pilgrims to the holy mountain. The suffix of '-abad' or '-abat' comes from the Persian and denotes a place associated with the named person.

Tokmok simply means 'hammer', a reference to it being established as a military outpost.

Kara-Balta translates as 'black axe'.

Kant is the Kyrgyz word for 'sugar', for a sugar plant constructed here in 1930.

Kara-Suu is the Kyrgyz for 'black water'.

Isfana is thought to come from the Sogdian word asbanikat meaning 'the land of horses'.

Toktogul is named after its most famous inhabitant, Toktogul Satilganov a poet and composer (1864-1933).

Batken comes from the Sogdian, an Iranian language, and means 'the city of wind'.

Sulukta comes from the Turkic word zuluk and, with the suffix, refers to a place 'containing leeches'.

Cholpon-Ata is literally 'Venus father' and refers to the mythological protector of the area.

Kok-Janggak is from the Kyrgyz for 'green walnut'.

Pristan'-Przheval'sk is named after the Russian geographer Nikolai Mikhailovich Przhevalsky (1839-1888) whose grave is found here.

Note the spellings of the places are English as the piece is written in English.

Kuwait Place Names Explained

Having blogged samples of my books on English place names and also examined the etymologies of the nations of the world and their respective capitals I thought it time I cast my net a little wider. As English place names share some links to other tongues it would be interesting to see if any of the elements contributing to our place names could be found elsewhere. Continuing an alphabetical tour of the world and a look at the largest Kuwaiti cities.

Kuwait City shares its name with the country, the settlement giving the name to the country and not vice versa. Here the Arabic Al-Kuwayt refers to the former Potuguese fort here as 'the enclosed'.

Dasma is an area of the capital city with a name translating as 'rich'.

Surra is an Arabic word meaning 'belly button'. A rather strange concept one would think, but appropriate as it is the central part of the urban district.

Hittin has revealed archaeological remains dating from the Early Bronze Age five thousand years ago, Its name comes from the Old Hebrew Kfar Hittin or 'village of grain'.

Al-Qurain comes from the Arabic for 'elevated land' or maybe simply 'hill'.

Al Ahmadi was named after Sheikh Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and created in 1946. Sheikh Ahmad ruled the province from 29 March 1921 to 29 January 1950 and was the tenth ruler of Kuwait and succeeded his uncle as ruler.

Note the spellings of the places are English as the piece is written in English.

Do You Speak Reindeer?

It's that time of year when certain individuals get to don a certain suit of red. One of the delights of such is hearing what the little ones want for Christmas and having no idea what it is. Requests from more mature individuals have included a blonde of 18 and a Land Rover. Why she wanted an inexperienced driver for such a car when surely half the pleasure is in driving it, I have no idea.

As always I was stumped by one question. A young chap asking "What language does the reindeer speak?" I told him "reindeer" and moved the conversation quickly on. But it did get me thinking as to what animals are heard to sound like in other languages. A quick search failed to reveal anything about speaking reindeer, but I did find this fascinating list of dogs barking, ducks quacking and frogs croaking in other languages.

These alternative sounds can be found here'

Kenya Place Names Explained

Having blogged samples of my books on English place names and also examined the etymologies of the nations of the world and their respective capitals I thought it time I cast my net a little wider. As English place names share some links to other tongues it would be interesting to see if any of the elements contributing to our place names could be found elsewhere. Continuing an alphabetical tour of the world and a look at the largest Kenyan cities.

Nairobi derives its name from the River Nairobi, itself the Maasai phrase Enkare Nairobi or 'cool water'.

Mombasa, to understand this name we have to go back to pre-colonnial days of the Portuguese. Folklore speaks of the founding of the settlement by two rulers, the pagan queen Mwana Mkisi and Shehe Mvita. Mkisi founded Kongowea, the original settlement on what is now known as Mombasa Island. Mkisi comes from ukisi or 'holy' in the liLongo language. Similarly Kongowea is the Swahili form of Kongo. On the arrival of the Portuguese in 1502 the place first became known by two names: Mvita in Swahili and Manbasa in Arabic, both having the same origin and meaning.

Kisumu was founded as a trading post, with the name either from the local adhi kisuma 'I'm going to trade' or an Anglicised version of kusuma, the Maragoli word for 'trading'. Either way the name is true to its origins.

Eldoret is based on the Maasai phrase Ole Mpere N Tomito and means 'stony river'. This is the Sosiani, a tributary of the Nile.

Kikuyu is named after the Kikuyu people, they took their name from the Swahili Gikuyu meaning 'large sycamore tree'.

Kitui, a name also seen for Kitui County, comes from the many metalworkers who settled here before the Europeans arrived and describes 'a place where iron goods are made'.

Thika has two possible origins, either the Kikuyu word guthika 'to bury' and a reminder of two Maasai tribes who fought a great battle; or perhaps the Maasai sika or 'subbing something off the edge' and a topographical description.

Karuri derives its name from the main chief, the Karuri Wa Gakure.

Nyeri is where the British defeated the native Kikuyu warriors a little over a century ago. The Maasai warriors referred to this as Na-aier 'the little hill'.

Mumias is named after the King Nabongo Mumia, ruler of Wanga.

Ngong is the Maasai word for 'knuckles', a delightful reference to the four peaks of the overlooking ridge of land.

Litein is derived from the word liteito, a stone used for sharpening iron objects in the times before the Europeans arrived and showed the locals better ways of producing the casting.

Kericho may be from kerichek, a Kipsigis word meaning 'medicine' as this was where the first hospital was built by the British at the beginning of the 20th century. I say 'may' because this does sound rather stretching the truth.

Kakamega is a modern name, one apparently derived from a word meaning 'pinching', a description of the European settlers attempts to feed themselves the traditional maize meal dish without using cutlery. This does not seem overly likely.

Kapsabet comes from the local kap sabit or 'the place of life'.

Bungoma is from the Bukusu word engoma or 'drums'. This being the meeting place for Bukusu elders who would be summoned by the sound of the drums.

Webuye, possibly one of the best origins I have ever discovered, for it is named after a cobbler who once repaired shoes for the railway workers.

Note the spellings of the places are English as the piece is written in English.

Kazakhstan Place Names Explained

Having blogged samples of my books on English place names and also examined the etymologies of the nations of the world and their respective capitals I thought it time I cast my net a little wider. As English place names share some links to other tongues it would be interesting to see if any of the elements contributing to our place names could be found elsewhere. Continuing an alphabetical tour of the world and a look at the largest of Kazakhstan cities.

Almaty has its origins in an earlier settlement near the site of the present city, the largest in Kazakhstan, and known as Almatu. There are to possible origins of the name: either this represents the Kazakh word for apple and means 'full of apples' or is from the Russian Amma-Ata 'father of the apples'.

Shymkent comes from two Sogdian words, this the language spoken in the Central Asian area and an Eastern Iranian tongue, where chim kent refers to 'the city in the grasslands'.

Karaganda is derived from the Caragana arborescns, the most abundant flora in the area.

Astana has only been named as such since 1998 and simply means 'capital city'. Earlier, from 1992, it was known as Akmola. or 'white grave', and prior to that Tselinograd 'city of tselina' from 1961 and as Akmolinsk since its founding in 1830.

Pavlodar refers to itself as 'the city of Paul', chosen to mark the birth of the Grand Duke Pauk Alexandrovich of Russia.

Aktobe is from the Kazakh ak teoe or 'white hill', a reminder of the high ground on which the settlement was founded.

Oral is the Kazakh translation of Ural'sk, itself named from the river which, in turn, took its name from the Ural Mountains, this thought to come from the Turkic for 'stone belt'.

Petropavl, founded in 1752, is named after two saints, the apostles Peter and Paul.

Kyzylorda had earlier been known as Ak-Mechet or 'the white mosque'. It's present name is a Kazakh rendition of its Turkic name meaning 'red city'.

Aktau is a Kazakh name referring to it being overlooked by the cliffs, it means 'white mountain'.

Temirtau takes its name from the Kazakh for 'iron mountain', previously known as Zhaur, a reference to the hill on the opposite side of the river.

Atyrau is the Kazakh for 'island', although in truth this is simply a bank in the mouth of the Ural River.

Ekibastuz is derived from the name of the nearby lake, itself coming from eki bas tuz 'the two-headed lake' and a reference to its shape.

Kokshetau comes from the Kazakh meaning 'a smoky-blue mountain'.

Zhanaozen means 'new river' in Kazakh.

Baikonur is best known as the launching site for the Russian space programme. The name comes from the Kazakh for 'wealthy brown', a reference to fertile land which produces a variety of fauna and in excellent quantities. Previously the name had been Tyuratam, a name still used by the railway station and one meaning 'Tore's grave''. Tore, or formally Tore-Baba, was a noble and descendant of Genghis Khan.

Note the spellings of the places are English as the piece is written in English.