Tonga 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 Tonga's places.

Minerva Reefs were named after one of their victims, the whaling ship Minerva wrecked in 1829.

Holonga traditionally got its name from the people of Pea, who escaped from their home after losing a battle. They ran and ran. While some stopped and settled en route, one group ran and ran until, now exhausted, they hid in a bush. This was Holonga - holo means 'escaped' and nga 'cry'.

Kolonga gpts its name from another battle and another retreat, or so it's said. Retreating to a distant settlement they were bemoaning their loss when a chieftain asked "What is that sound?" and was told koe kolo 'oku nga, 'uhinga koe kolo 'oku tangi or 'the town is weeping meaning the town is crying'.

Fonuafo'ou is the Tongan for 'new land', a reference to this volcanic island.

Falevai translates from Tongan as 'water house' and a reminder of just how close to the ocean the houses are.

Vailmalo was named when the first Spanish explorers arrived and were met by the Tongans. They asked the Spanish what they want and the Spanish asked for water. Whereupon they were given water and food and made welcome for the next two weeks. When departing the Spanish said gracias aqua 'thank you water' and the Tonagan vail malo means exactly the same.

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.

Thailand 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 Thailand's cities.

Bangkok's origins are unclear, although most often said to be bang 'village on a stream' and ko 'island'. Alternatively this could be bank makok, where the latter refers to Elaeocarpus hygrophilus a plant which produces fruit similar to the olive.

Pak Kret refers to its location as 'the village at the lesser bypass', not a road but a rerouting of the Chao Phraya River..

Surat Thani was named by King Vajravudh in 1915 as 'the city of good people'.

Chiang Mai simply means 'new city', although the city was founded in 1296.

Nakhon Ratchasima comes from several sources: Nakhon is the Sanskrit for 'city', raj from Sanskrit for 'sovereign', and Thai suma 'temple'.

Nakhon Si Thammarat is 'the city of the righteous ruler', a reference to the religious concept of Dharma.

Nakhon Sawan describes itself as the 'heavnely city'.

Phuket is possibly from the Malay for 'hill', which would fit with its previous name of Thalang derived from 'cape'.

Ubon Ratchathani describes itself as the 'royal lotus city'.

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

Tanzania 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 Tanzanian cities.

Dar es Salaam is the capital city and means 'place of peace'.

Dodoma is fron the Bantu Gogo language meaning 'it has sunk'.

Sumbawanga translates as a warning to those bringing in superstition and spiritual healing as it translates as 'throw away your witchcraft'.

Musoma is a shortened form of the word omusoma or 'spit' and a reference to this standing on a spit of land extending into Lake Victoria.

Iringa represents the Hehe word lilinga or 'fort'.

Babati's name is traditionally said to be a misunderstanding. When a German asked a boy what the name of the place was, the boy thought he'd asked a very different question and responded with baba ti or 'he is my father'.

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

Tajikstan 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 Tajikstan cities.

Dushanbe means 'Monday' in the Persian language - correctly 'second day' - as this was when a large bazaar was held here.

Tursunzoda was originally known as Regar or 'a town on sand' but renamed in 1978 to honour the national poet Mirzo Tursunzoda.

Somoniyon was renamed in 1998 to mark the 1100th anniversary of the Samanid Empire, earlier known as Sardorova after Karakhon Sardorov.

Balkh is related to the Sanskrit for 'Bactrian'.

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

Taiwan 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 Taiwan's cities.

Taipei City and New Taipei City is a form of the original T'ai-pei or 'north of Taiwan'.

Kaohsiung is thought to come from the early Siraya language and means 'bamboo forest'.

Miaoli takes two Hakka Chinese words meu 'cat' and li 'raccoon dog'.

Taitung simply tells us it can be found in 'eastern Taiwan'.

Penghu used to be called Ilhas dos Pescadores or 'fishermen islands'.

Kinmen comes from the Chines for 'golden gate'.

Keelung is from the Chinese from 'rooster cage'.

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

Syria 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 Syrian cities.

Aleppo was earlier known as Habab, which may represent the Hebrew for 'milk' and thus a reference to the tale of Abraham and how he milked his sheep to feed the poor.

Damascus comes from the Greek and describes 'the well-watered land'.

Deir ez-Zor us from Syriac for 'small habitation'.

Hama is from the Syriac for 'fortress'.

Homs is the Arabic form of the city's Latin name of Emesus or the Greek Emesa. It is thought to have been transferred from another city, the Aramean Hamath-zobah meaning near fortress'. Another theory suggests it comes from the Greek Khemps and thus means 'the female camel'.

Latakia was named after a ruling dynasty, Seleucus I Nicator honouring his mother Laodice, who married a general of Philip II of Macedon.

Quneitra is simply the Arabic word for an 'arched bridge', the town built around a series of same.

Abu Kamal means 'the family of Kamal', the name of the tribe living here. Under Ottoman rule it was called Kisla or 'military barracks'.

Kobani takes the name of the German railway company who built the railway here.

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