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 Sri Lankan towns and cities.
Colombo has a couple of theories as to the origins of its name. As it was first recorded as such by the Portuguese, it could be they have taken it from the classic Sinhala Kolon thota or 'port on the river Kelani'. Alternatively this could be Sinhalese kola amba thota or 'harbour with green mango trees'.
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia has a number of tales told about it. One speaks of Diya Wala, which translates as 'depression filled with water', while another says it refers to a forest of lime trees.
Sri Jayawardhanapura translates as 'resplendent city of growing victory' following its conquest by the Jaffna kingdom in 1391.
Negombo is a Tamil name, where Neerkolombu was corrupted by the Portuguese. The Sinhalese name for this place is Migamuva or 'village of the honeycomb'. Both names refer to the legend of King Kavantissa's army finding honey bees in a canoe on the shore.
Kandy is an Anglicised version of Sinhalese Kanda Uda Rata or 'the land on the mountain'.
Galle was known as Gimhathitha in early records, this probably from classical Sinhalese meaning 'port near the river Gin'. The present name likely comes from gaala or 'where cattle are herded'. While herds of cattle do not grace the city, bullock carts are a common sight in the area.
Trincomalee is an Anglicised version of the Tamil Thiru-kona-malai or 'lord of the sacred hill'. Other translations suggest 'sacred peaked hill' or 'three peaked hill'.
Batticaloa is from Portuguese, a translation of the original Tamil name of Matakkalappu or 'muddy swamp' - it would be difficult to find a swamp which wasn't muddy.
Jaffna is a corrupted form of Yalpanam, itself from a legend. A king is said to have visited a blind musician, a Panan, who was skilled in playing the Yal. So delighted was the kind he gifted a sandy plain to the man who went to his home and brought all his people to live here.
Ratnapura translates, in both Tamil and Sinhala, as 'city of gems' and remains the traditional centre for trading gems in Sri Lanka.
Sri Pada or Adam's Peak is a mountain which is held sacred by Buddhists as it is said to have a rock formation known as Sri Pada, the Sanskrit for 'sacred footprint'. Clearly it is the footprint of Adam when referring to Christian or Islamic tradition.
Note the spellings of the places are English as the piece is written in English.
Showing posts with label victory. Show all posts
Showing posts with label victory. Show all posts
Sunday, 5 April 2020
Sunday, 24 April 2016
Egypt 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 to cast my net a little wider. This time Egypt and a look at some of its largest settlements and most interesting names and starting with the capital.
Cairo is not only the capital but also one of the largest and oldest of places. Fittingly the name is most interesting. Egyptians will often refer to the place as Masr, the local name for the country and emphasising the importance of the place. Officially the city is known in Arabic as al-Qahirah meaning literally 'the defeater' which is said to be a shortened version of the original name Al Najm Al Qahir and refers to the planet Mars rising at the time of the city's founding. Yet we also see this interpreted as 'the vanquisher' or 'the victorious', here said to refer to Caliph al-Mu'izz Ii Din Allah, he arriving here in 973; as Khere-Ohe and meaning 'the place of combat' and said to be a reminder of the battle between the Egyptian gods Seth and Horus; and we also find a reference to the place as Umm ad-Dunya or 'the mother of the world'.
Alexandria, unlike Cairo, has the simplest of names to define - as many will know it remembers its founder, Alexander the Great. Yet this was not the first settlement here, before 331BC the city of Rhakotis already existed here and referred to 'that which is built up' and continues as a region in the current city.
Giza is a famous nam and a simplistic albeit informative one. The name comes from gaza meaning 'to cross' and tells this is a good place to cross the Nile.
Shubra is a city of three million people, yet the place name comes from the Coptic word Sopro meaning either 'a small village' or possibly 'a small field'.
Port Said first appeared in 1855 and chosen by a committee. That committee, featuring representatives from Great Britain, France, Austria, Russia, Spain and Piedmont, came up with the obvious 'port' (although originally it signified 'a market') adding the name of the (then) Egyptian ruler Sa'id.
Suez, better known as the name of the canal, is found almost on the same site as a town named Kolzum in the 7th century. This town stood at the eastern terminus of a canal linking the Nile to the Red Sea built by Amr ibn al-'As. From 770, when the canal had closed to prevent access by enemies, the town's fortunes dropped but continued to act as a trading post between Egypt and Arabia. The name Kolzum is an Arabic form of the earlier Greek klysma meaning literally 'wash, rinse out' and a reference to a river or some water course taking away the town's detritus - hence this early place name referred to its sewage system. When the town of Suez grew nearby it became known from the Arabic as-suways meaning 'beginning' and a reference to the port being at the head of the Red Sea.
Luxor comes from the Arabic al-'uqsur and describes 'the palaces'. There is some evidence to suggest this may be a loanword from Latin castra meaning 'fortifications'. Luxor is not its original name, this famous archaeological site previously known as Thebes. This earlier name has been influenced by both Roman and Greek culture and known as Thebae and Thebai respectively and coming from ta ipet or 'the shrine' and earlier known as waset or 'city of the sceptre'.
Mansoura was named to mark the Egyptian victory over Louis IX of France in the Seventh Crusade, its name means 'victorious'.
Asyut is derived from the earlier Egyptian Zawty and ultimately from a name meaning 'wolf city'.
Faiyum is ultimately from the Coptic ep'iom meaning 'the sea or lake' and a reference to nearby Lake Moeris. The name of the lake comes from the Egyptian mer-wer and means 'great canal'. Because its fossils have been found here, Faiyum has given its name to a species of early elephant which went extinct some 30 million years ago - the genus Phiomia serridens meaning 'the saw-toothed animal of Faiyum'.
Aswan is a name most often associated with the dam, however it is also a city and an ancient one. Originally it was known as Swenett, itself from an Egyptian goddess of the same name. She was associated with childbirth and, with the Nile flowing north and Egypt beginning at Swenett, both were seen as 'the opener'. This is also said to be derived from the ancient Egyptian symbol for trade and/or market - and likely both meanings have a common root.
Minya has its roots in Sahidic Coptic Timoone and Bohairic Thome, both meaning 'the residence'.
Damanhur is the modern form of Dmi en Hor or 'the city of the god Horus'. Later the Greeks called it Hermou Polis Mikra or 'the lesser city of Hermes', while the Romans knew it as Apollonopolis to refer to the god Apollo.
Note the spellings of the places are English as the piece is written in English.
Cairo is not only the capital but also one of the largest and oldest of places. Fittingly the name is most interesting. Egyptians will often refer to the place as Masr, the local name for the country and emphasising the importance of the place. Officially the city is known in Arabic as al-Qahirah meaning literally 'the defeater' which is said to be a shortened version of the original name Al Najm Al Qahir and refers to the planet Mars rising at the time of the city's founding. Yet we also see this interpreted as 'the vanquisher' or 'the victorious', here said to refer to Caliph al-Mu'izz Ii Din Allah, he arriving here in 973; as Khere-Ohe and meaning 'the place of combat' and said to be a reminder of the battle between the Egyptian gods Seth and Horus; and we also find a reference to the place as Umm ad-Dunya or 'the mother of the world'.
Alexandria, unlike Cairo, has the simplest of names to define - as many will know it remembers its founder, Alexander the Great. Yet this was not the first settlement here, before 331BC the city of Rhakotis already existed here and referred to 'that which is built up' and continues as a region in the current city.
Giza is a famous nam and a simplistic albeit informative one. The name comes from gaza meaning 'to cross' and tells this is a good place to cross the Nile.
Shubra is a city of three million people, yet the place name comes from the Coptic word Sopro meaning either 'a small village' or possibly 'a small field'.
Port Said first appeared in 1855 and chosen by a committee. That committee, featuring representatives from Great Britain, France, Austria, Russia, Spain and Piedmont, came up with the obvious 'port' (although originally it signified 'a market') adding the name of the (then) Egyptian ruler Sa'id.
Suez, better known as the name of the canal, is found almost on the same site as a town named Kolzum in the 7th century. This town stood at the eastern terminus of a canal linking the Nile to the Red Sea built by Amr ibn al-'As. From 770, when the canal had closed to prevent access by enemies, the town's fortunes dropped but continued to act as a trading post between Egypt and Arabia. The name Kolzum is an Arabic form of the earlier Greek klysma meaning literally 'wash, rinse out' and a reference to a river or some water course taking away the town's detritus - hence this early place name referred to its sewage system. When the town of Suez grew nearby it became known from the Arabic as-suways meaning 'beginning' and a reference to the port being at the head of the Red Sea.
Luxor comes from the Arabic al-'uqsur and describes 'the palaces'. There is some evidence to suggest this may be a loanword from Latin castra meaning 'fortifications'. Luxor is not its original name, this famous archaeological site previously known as Thebes. This earlier name has been influenced by both Roman and Greek culture and known as Thebae and Thebai respectively and coming from ta ipet or 'the shrine' and earlier known as waset or 'city of the sceptre'.
Mansoura was named to mark the Egyptian victory over Louis IX of France in the Seventh Crusade, its name means 'victorious'.
Asyut is derived from the earlier Egyptian Zawty and ultimately from a name meaning 'wolf city'.
Faiyum is ultimately from the Coptic ep'iom meaning 'the sea or lake' and a reference to nearby Lake Moeris. The name of the lake comes from the Egyptian mer-wer and means 'great canal'. Because its fossils have been found here, Faiyum has given its name to a species of early elephant which went extinct some 30 million years ago - the genus Phiomia serridens meaning 'the saw-toothed animal of Faiyum'.
Aswan is a name most often associated with the dam, however it is also a city and an ancient one. Originally it was known as Swenett, itself from an Egyptian goddess of the same name. She was associated with childbirth and, with the Nile flowing north and Egypt beginning at Swenett, both were seen as 'the opener'. This is also said to be derived from the ancient Egyptian symbol for trade and/or market - and likely both meanings have a common root.
Minya has its roots in Sahidic Coptic Timoone and Bohairic Thome, both meaning 'the residence'.
Damanhur is the modern form of Dmi en Hor or 'the city of the god Horus'. Later the Greeks called it Hermou Polis Mikra or 'the lesser city of Hermes', while the Romans knew it as Apollonopolis to refer to the god Apollo.
Note the spellings of the places are English as the piece is written in English.
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