In a Word: Cities of the World

Back in 2022, we published a series that looked at the stories behind the names of all 50 state capitals (Part I, Part II, Part III). There were some fascinating history in there (like the “red stick” of Baton Rouge, or the fact that Nashville was once Nashborough), and even some surprises (like Topeka being “a good place to dig potatoes”). International geography offers even more interesting etymologies and histories. This week, we’re going further afield to look at the source and meaning behind the names of seven well-known world cities.

Bangkok

The capital of Thailand dates its history back to the mid-1500s, but the name Bangkok is older than that. It’s believed the name combines bang “village or district” and makok “wild plums” — so Bangkok is the “district of wild plums.”

But that name is one used by outsiders; within Thailand, it’s called Krung Thep Maha Makhon “the great city of angels,” or just Krung Thep. And that’s not even its full name. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the complete name of what we call Bangkok is the longest place name in the world, containing 168 letters in the romanized spelling: Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Ayuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Piman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit, which means “the City of Gods, the Great City, the Residence of the Emerald Buddha, the Impregnable City (of Ayutthaya) of God Indra, the Grand Capital of the World Endowed with Nine Precious Gems, the Happy City Abounding in Enormous Royal Palaces Which Resemble the Heavenly Abode Wherein Dwell the Reincarnated Gods, a City Given by Indra and Built by Vishnukarm.”

Chicago

Incorporated as a city in 1837, fast-growing Chicago attracted traders from all over because of its location at the mouth of a major river that connected Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River. Though a lucrative location for east-west trade, its name hints at one possible drawback to the area: Its odor. Chicago comes from a French Canadian form of a word from an Algonquin language, either Fox for “place of the wild onion” or Ojibwa for “at the skunk place.”

Dublin

Long, long ago, a monastery was established near the eastern coast of Hibernia, where the River Poddle emptied into the River Liffey. The confluence of the two waterways created a particularly deep, dark pool, after which the monastery was named. It was called Dubhlinn monastery, from dubh “black” and linn “pool or pond.” This was later sacked by Vikings, but the place name remained — though today we spell it Dublin, and Hibernia is now called Ireland.

That the name of the capital if Ireland literally translates to “black pool” is a little odd when you consider that if you travel about 30 miles north and then go directly east, across the Irish Sea, you’ll find yourself in the town of Blackpool, a seaside resort on the western coast of England.

Fukushima

I would wager that most Americans had never heard of the Fukushima prefecture before 2011’s tsunami caused a nuclear disaster in the area. Given how the place is now so closely associated with catastrophe, its name is downright ironic. In Japanese, shima means “island” and fuku means “good luck” or “good fortune.” So the site of the 2011 nuclear incident is literally “good fortune island.”

Hong Kong

If the odor of Chicago is not to your liking, try this metropolis on the South China Sea. Hong Kong comes from heung gong, the Cantonese pronunciation of the Chinese Xianggang. All three translate as “fragrant port,” likely a reference to the incense (and maybe opium) factories that were once common there.

Kathmandu

According to legend, the area around modern-day Kathmandu was once completely submerged beneath a massive lake called Nagdaha. The bodhisattva Manjushree came there more than two millennia ago and, using his flaming sword, cleaved Chobhar Hill in two, allowing the lake to drain and creating land that could be settled. So when a new village was founded there in A.D. 723, it was called Manju-Patan “City of Manju.”

In 1596, Raja Lachmina Singh built a temple there — said to have been constructed from the wood of a single tree. That temple became so central to life in the area that the region came to be called Kathmandu, from the Nepalese words kath “wooden” and mandir “temple.” Today, it’s Nepal’s capital and largest city.

Reykjavík

According to tradition, Norseman Ingólfur Arnarson established a settlement on a peninsula in southwestern Iceland in A.D. 874; it would remain a relatively small fishing village and trading post until the 20th century. Two things that Iceland is known for are its natural hot springs and its volcanic activity — generating steam and smoke. So it should be no surprise that the capital of Iceland derives its name from the Old Norse reykja “to smoke” and vik “bay,” because Reykjavík sits on what could be described as a “smoky bay.”