What do country names (ones you are affiliated with or know of) mean in their own language?
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Aotearoa - new Zealand
To most it means "Land of the long white cloud" and as with most Maori things, there's a story that goes along with it if you want to read.
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Finland (Suomi) basically means a swamp (suo).
If you look at the etymology, there are other explanations of the origins, but a modern person would associate the name with a swamp. I guess it makes sense with all the lakes.
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Ukraine: Україна [ookraïna] means literally "our land"
It doesn't. It means "У country"
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Canada, or 'Canada' in French, was derived from "Kanata" the Iroquois word for Village. Not sure there ever was a local world for the country known as Canada though? Would love to be enlightened if so.
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
United States of America: We're made up of a bunch of states in North America that, ideally, are united. Although we've hardly lived up to that sentiment since the original 13 colonies fought for independence in the American Revolutionary War.
Technically, we didn't call them "states" until the Declaration of Independence was drafted in 1776 (they were "colonies" before then), so I guess that was the first and last time we were ever truly united.
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Canada: from the St. Lawrence Iroquoian word kanata, meaning "village". The word was told to French explorer Jacques Cartier, who believed it referred to a much larger area than it actually did.
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Unlike popular belief, Chile is not named after the spicy vegetable. Story goes there wasa bird chirping and the Spanish thought it sounded like "Chile".
The Netherlands literally means the Low countries. Pretty literally there.
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
You already said China so I guess I'll go Hong Kong.
Hong Kong (香港) means fragrant harbour. The origin of this name is unknown, but there are theories of it coming from a type of wood we produced, a nice river, the wife of a pirate, or some residents just pronounced it with an accent to the British soldiers.
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Deutschland means literally German Country xD
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
That there were some areas ruled by monarchs and now they're one bigger area ruled by a single monarch.
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Deutschland means literally German Country xD
Apparently, "deutsch" originated from Medieval Latin "theodiscus", which meant "belonging to the own people".
German source: https://www.dwds.de/wb/Deutschland
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Unlike popular belief, Chile is not named after the spicy vegetable. Story goes there wasa bird chirping and the Spanish thought it sounded like "Chile".
The Netherlands literally means the Low countries. Pretty literally there.
In German, we also call the Netherlands "the low countries" ("die Niederlande").
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Germany: Deutschland. "Deutsch" comes from the word "people, tribe". The oldest roots go back to the 8th century and the kingdom of Charlemagne, where "deodisk" ("the language of the common people") was used to distinguish the Old German from "walhisk" (the medieval latin that the ruling class spoke).
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It doesn't. It means "У country"
Oh, look at them. Ok, explain to me how exactly you got "наша країна" out of "Україна".
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Portugal comes from "Portus Cale". It was in the general area of the city of Porto. The word "Postus" and "Porto" mean port, as in a port for ships.
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Switzerland means land of the people from Schwyz, which is one of the 3 founding "Cantons / States" of Switzerland. When going to war the old confederacy would wear white cross with red background (the flag of Schwyz) to distinguish themselves in battle. So in wider Europe they where known as Switzerland, specially because the Swiss Mercs were elite warriors and the most powerfull nobles would want to have the Swiss as their Guard (the Vatican still uses them today).
The real name of Switzerland though is Confederatio Helvetica. Which means the Helvetic Confederation. The Helvetic are a Celtic tribe that used to live in today's Switzerland before the Romans took over and later the Alemans rolled in.
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Here’s the answer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_country-name_etymologies
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
wrote last edited by [email protected]Bharat is original name of India, as set down in Article 1 of the Constitution, adopted in 1950, which states in English: "India, that is Bharat,..."[20] The term 'Bharat' with its origins in Sanskrit, holds a significant historical and cultural significance. Throughout India’s ancient history, the name ‘Bharat’ has been linked to various legends and events, contributing to its enduring narrative.[21]
According to ancient texts and scriptures, one of the earliest references to the name ‘Bharat’ dates back to the Rig Veda’s accounts of the legendary ‘Dasharajna’ or the Battle of Ten Kings. This epic confrontation involved King Sudasa of the Bharata tribe from the Trtsu Dynasty, ultimately leading to the tribe’s recognition and the land being termed ‘Bharat Varsha’ – the land of Bharata.
The Sanskrit word Bhārata is a vrddhi derivation of Bharata, which was originally an epithet of Agni. The term is a verbal noun of the Sanskrit root bhr-, "to bear/to carry", with a literal meaning of to be maintained (of fire). The root bhr is cognate with the English verb to bear and Latin ferō. This term also means "one who is engaged in search for knowledge".
This realm of Bharat, which has been referred to as Bhāratavarṣa in puranas - after Bharata, the son of Rishabha.
The country that lies north of the ocean and south of the snowy mountains is called Bhāratam there dwell the descendants of Bharata.
\—Vishnu Purana (2,3,1)
In the Sanskrit epic, the Mahabharat (200 BCE to 300 CE), a larger region of Indosphere is encompassed by the term Bharat.[28] Some other Puranic passages refer to the same Bhārata people, who are described as the descendants of Dushyanta's son Bharata in the Mahabharata.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_for_India#Bharat
Edit:
In case you like 90s Bollywood, here's a song (music debut by AR Rahman): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7q5DUIgLs_4
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Not something I thought of a lot when I was back in US since USA is... a pretty bureaucratic name by all means. But I just realized that some countries have really fascinating names in their local language
Like how China names itself Central/Middle country in a very grandiose way (as in, we are the center of the world), or Japan being "land of the rising sun"
Brasil, the name comes from Pau Brasil, a tree that has a deep red color, used to make dye and for its quite beautiful red wood. The word Brasil comes from brasa (ember), essentially means "tree that's red like an ember".
