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This is a list of countries and dependent territories named after people.
Sovereign countries named after people
Countries named after legendary figures
| Country | Source of name |
|---|---|
| Afghanistan | Supposedly named after tribal chief Prince Afghana. |
| Armenia (Hayastan) | Hayk |
| Bangladesh | from "Bengal", which, according to one hypothesis, is named after Bang, son of Hind, son of Ham, son of Noah |
| Belarus | Rus |
| Cambodia | Sage Kambu Swayambhuva |
| Czech Republic | Čech |
| Denmark | Dan I of Denmark |
| Djibouti | "Djibouti" means "Land of Tehuti" or "Land of Thoth", after the Egyptian Moon God |
| Hungary | Hunor (or Magyarország — Magor) |
| Bhārat (India) | Dushyanta's son Bharata or Rishabha's son Bharata |
| Egypt | Misr in Arabic, Misrayim in Hebrew, named after the biblical figure Mizraim. |
| Israel | Jacob, who was also called Israel in the Bible |
| Éire (Ireland) | Éire (Ériu), a Celtic fertility goddess |
| Italy | Italus |
| Laos | possibly after Lava |
| Lechia (historical and/or alternative name of Poland) | Lech |
| Norway | Nór (although other etymologies are generally more widely accepted) |
| Romania | from "Rome" (the modern capital city of Italy) / "Roman", which possibly comes from Romulus |
| Russia | Rus |
| Solomon Islands | King Solomon of Israel and Judah |
| Somalia | Supposedly named after Samaale. |
Former countries named after people
Dependent territories named after people
See also
References
- Porras Barrenechea, Raúl. El nombre del Perú. Lima: Talleres Gráficos P.L. Villanueva, 1968, p. 83.
- India and the Afghans: a study of a neglected region, 1370-1576 A.D., Amrendra Kumar Thakur, Janaki Prakashan, 1992 - 231 pages, Covers the history of Bihar during the Afghan rule in India. Page 2 & 9.
- Land of Two Rivers, Nitish Sengupta
- Abu'l-Fazl. Ain-i-Akbari.
- RIYAZU-S-SALĀTĪN: A History of Bengal Archived 15 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Ghulam Husain Salim, The Asiatic Society, Calcutta, 1902.
- Roshen Dalal (2010). The Religions of India: A Concise Guide to Nine Major Faiths. Penguin Books India. p. 57. ISBN 978-0-14-341517-6.
- Lewis, Ioan M. (1961). A Pastoral Democracy: A Study of Pastoralism and Politics Among the Northern Somali of the Horn of Africa. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 11–13. ISBN 9780852552803.
- Monroe, J. Cameron (2011). "In the Belly of Dan: Space, History, and Power in Precolonial Dahomey". Current Anthropology. 52 (6): 769–798. doi:10.1086/662678. S2CID 142318205.
- "Manannán mac Lir | Irish deity". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 10 November 2020.