Uganda 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 Ugandan cities.

Kampala began as the name of a nearby hill. Originally it was known as kasozi impala or 'hill of the impala' but that description became shortened.

Entebbe comes from the Lugunda langaugae and means 'seat, chair'.

Kabale comes from the local Rujiga language and means 'small stone'.

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

Togo 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 Togo's cities.

Kara takes its name from the Kara River on which it stands, the river name has never been understood.

Kpalime was originally known as Agome-Kpalime, the Agome being the name of the people. Kpalime is an abbreviation of mokpalipe or 'crossroads'.

Tchamba takes its name from the tribe living in and around here.

Notse is a distortion of the word noin, and says 'we stay here' in the Ewe dialect.

Maritime is the southernmost of Togo's five regions and named as it is the only one with a coastline.

Centrale is a region of Togo named because it is the middle of the five regions.

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

Eswatini 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 Eswatini or Swaziland cities.

Nhlangano is a name meaning 'meeting place'.

Piggs Peak is named after William Pigg, who discovered a gold reef here in March 1884.

Bulembu is named from the siSwati word for 'spider's web'. I don't care why, it's a fabulous idea.

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

Somalia 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 Somalian cities.

Bur Salah, formerly known as Burar, is named after Saalax Jaamac, owner of a water pool in the town's centre.

Burtinle is named after the hill which largely surrounds it. This hill, known as Buurta Ninle, has a name meaning 'hairy hill' and named for the desert scrub growing here.

Damala comes from the Somali word meaning 'acacia woodland'.

Galinsoor combines two Somali words: gelin is 'half of the day' and therefore either morning or afternoon, or day or night, depending on context. However, here the addition of the element soor or 'hosting', enables us to see this was known as a stopover, where travellers would be accommodated for the night.

Hargeisa is thought to be derived from its use as a watering stop for nomadic herders en route to Harar. If indeed harar as-sagir is the origin and meaning as 'little Harar', itself named for its early occupation by the Harari people - the calling it Gey or 'the city' and which also gave them their alternative name of Geyusu 'people of the city'.

Hingalol comes from the Somali tongue where hin 'densely', combines with Galol, the local name for the acacia tree'.

Laag is a Germanic name, probably from loga meaning 'field'.

Luuq is from the Somali language and means 'alley', a reference to the location almost surrounded by a river and just the 'alley' as a land bridge.

Mogadishu is the capital city, probably taking its name from the Somali Muuq Disho 'sight killer'.

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

Nigeria 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 Nigeria's cities.

Lagos is a name given to the place by the Portuguese, it means simply 'lakes'.

Kano was originally known as Dala, after Dalla Hill, and remained such until the end of the 15th century. Later it took its current name, itself borrowed from the name of the hereditary rulers named Kano.

Ibadan comes from the phrase eba odan, 'between the forest and the plains'.

Benin came from the Portuguese pronunciation of the original name of Ubinu, itself from Ile-Ibinu 'the land of vexation' as coined by Prince Oranmiyan, he frustrated in his attempts at governing this area.

Port Harcourt, built in 1912, was named to honour Lewis Vernon Harcourt, Secretary of State for the Colonies.

Jos is recorded as originally being known as Gwosh, a former village named for its position n the hills.

Enugu is derived from two Igbo words, where Enu Ugwu means 'hill top'.

Zaria was named after Queen Zaria.

Bauchi was named after a hunter called Baushe or encouraged Yaqub, of the Sokoto Empire, to build this city.

Sokoto is a modern version of the earlier Arabic name, itself from suk meaning 'market'.

Yola comes from the Fulfulde meaning 'great plain'.

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

Morocco 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 Moroccan cities.

Casablanca was from the 15th century Portuguese Casa Branca or 'white house', previously the place had been known as Anfa in the Berber tongue since as least the seventh century BC and is still the name of a region of the city.

Fez is thought to have earlier been known as Fas and related to the region known as Faza, all ultimately from the Berber tribe that settled here, the Bany Fazaz.

Tangier, recorded during the classic Greek and Roman eras as Tinga, Tenga and Titga, was known to the earlier Berber people as Tingi, this from tingis or 'marsh'. Note the Greeks claimed this to have been named after Tingis, daughter of the titan Atlas, he who supported the heavens on his shoulders.

Marrakesh is perhaps the Berber amur n akush 'the land of God', although earlier it had been documented as Qarawiyyin 'country of the sons of Kush'.

Meknes is named after the Berber tribe, the Miknasa.

Rabat is recorded as Ribatu I-Fath in 1170, a name meaning 'stronghold of victory'.

Kenitra is derived from the Arabic al-Qonaytera 'the little bridge'.

Agadir is a Berber word, used in several contexts to mean 'wall, enclosure, fortified building, citadel', all of obvious oriins where a place name is concerned.

Tetouan is another of Berber origin, this with the literal meaning 'the eyes' but understood as 'the water springs'.

Safi is pronounced locally as Asfi, coming from the Berber root meaning 'to flood, spill, pour' and a reference to its watery location.

Nador has at least three suggested origins, with meanings as diverse as small village by a lagoo', 'lighthouse' or 'sight'.

Settat is derived from the term Ait Settat, the name of a Senhaja-Berber tribe.

Berkane is quite simply the Berber word for 'black'.

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

Madagascar 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 Madagascan settlements.

Antananarivo, the capital, was founded in the early 17th century when Merina King Andrianjaka defeated and expelled the Vazimba people of what was then known as Analamanga. Tradition has it that he depolyed a thousand soldiers to capture and then guard the place. Then, some fifty years later, it was during the reign of King Andriamasinavalona the place took its present name which refers to 'the city of a thousand' to honour those soldiers.

Toamasina means 'like salt' or perhaps 'salty'. Situated on the coast and protected by a coral reef, this produces increased salinity through evaporation and hence the name.

Antsirabe is a Malagasy name and, as with the previous name, means 'the plae of much salt'. However here the reference is to the brine springs in the area as Antsirabe is about as far from the coast as it is possible to get.

Fianarantsoa is a cultural and intellectual centre for the entire island nation and fully merits its meaning of 'good education'.

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