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There are more than 7000 tongues It is talked around the world in nearly 200 countries.
This huge linguistic variety affects the way nations refer to themselves, with many using names in their native languages, which are different from their well -known English versions.
Each year, on February 21, the United Nations organization monitors International Mother's Day to encourage “preserving and protecting all languages spoken by the peoples of the world.”
This date marks a historic event in 1952, when students in Dhaka protested for recognition of Bengal as an official language in East Pakistan, now BangladeshS Four students were killed, which led to mass protests, which ultimately led to Bengalia to be recognized as an official language in 1956.
In the next visual explanatory, Al Jazeera maps the names and meanings of countries around the world.
Africa: From Masr to Egypt to Mzansi to South Africa
The African continent, with nearly 3,000 languages spoken in 54 countries, is one of the most linguistically diverse regions in holyS
Many African names of the country are rooted in colonial history, with others stemming from the influence of Portuguese and Arab traders and exporters.
EgyptOne of the largest countries in Africa, calling itself Masr in Arabic, is thought to come from the word “mizraim”, a reference to the name of ancient civilization for the region, is also thought to mean “border” or “port”.
Liberia It extracts its name from the Latin word “Liber”, which means “free”, reflecting the founding of the country from the released Afro -American slaves in the 1820s.
In South AfricaMzansi is widely used to indicate the country in a more informal and affectionate manner. The term comes from the word Zulu “Umzani”, which means “south”.
Asia: “Middle Kingdom” and “Origin of the Sun”
Asia, home to about 4.8 billion, is a language center with more than 2,300 tongues It is spoken on the largest continent in the world.
The English name for China is considered to be originating from QIN (or Ch'in) Dynasty. However, in China, the country is called “Zhongguo”, which translates into a “middle kingdom” or “central country”, reflecting the traditional Chinese view of China as the center of civilization.
In IndiaThe country is often called Bharat, a Sanskrit term found in the scriptures dating back to about 2000 years. Another name for the country is Hindustan, which means the “land of the Hindus” in Urdu. The English name for India comes from the India River, a key feature in ancient Indian civilization.
In Japanese, Japan is called nihon or nippon. The name comes from the characters “Ni”, which means “sun” and “HON”, which means “origin”, so nihon or nippon is translated as “origin of the sun.” This applies to the location of Japan to the east of China, where the sun rises and is the source of the nickname of the country “Earth of the Rising Sun.”
Europe: Shqiperi for Albania, Hungary for Hungary
Europe, with more than 40 countries and many languages, there are names that differ most from those we are familiar with in English, with very significantly different.
AlbaniaFor example, it is known as Shqiperi in Albanian. The name comes from the word “shqiptar”, which means an Albanian man, and is thought to refer to speaking clearly or understandably. Some also associate it with “ShQiponje”, the word “eagle”, which is the national symbol of the country.
Hungary is called Magyarorszag in Hungarian. The name “Magyar” refers to the Hungarian people and “ORSZAG” means “state”, so together, Magyarorszag means “Land of the Magyars”. The name “Hungary” in English comes from Latin Hungary, which was used by the Romans to indicate the region.
Ukraine The name comes from the old Slavic word “Ukrain”, which means “borderland” or “region”, reflecting its historical position on the border of different empires and kingdoms.
North and Central America: “Low Sea” and “Mexico Place”
Like Africa, the bigger part of the country's names in North and Central America were influenced by the colonial forces, mainly by Spain, the United Kingdom, France and Portugal.
BahamasFor example, it was the first place where Christopher Columbus, the Italian explorer and navigator, “claims” to the Spanish crown, according to The The Guilder Lemaman Institute of American HistoryS Initially, Columbus named the island of San Salvador, which is thought to be one of the islands in today's Bahamas. Later, the area was renamed the Bahamas, descended from the Spanish Baja Mar, which means “the low sea”.
In the same way, Costa RicaIn the Spanish sense, the “rich shore” is thought to be named by Christopher Columbus when he arrived on the country's shores in 1502, probably due to the abundance of gold and other resources he encountered there.
Name Mexico It comes from Nahuatl Word Mexihco, which refers to the heart of Aztec's empire around their capital Tenochtitlan, now Mexico City. Importance “place of Mexika” and named after the people of Aztec, it reflects the deep root heritage of Mexico, long before Spanish influence.
Oceania: Aotearoa for New Zealand, Southern for Tonga
Oceania consists of fourteen countries, many of which still use their native names in English, although spelling can vary.
Australia was named after the Latin word “Australis”, which means “southern”, reflecting its position in the Southern Hemisphere. The name was promoted by English navigator Matthew Flinders, who used it in connection with the land when he toured the continent in the early 1800s. Previously, the continent was often called the “New Netherlands” by European researchers.
In the language of the local Maori, New Zealand is called Aotearoa. The name, often translated as “Long White Cloud,” is widely used with New Zealand and has a strong cultural importance for Maori people.
Name TongueIt comes from the local Tongan language, means “south” or “south” and is believed to reflect the position of the island nation in the South Pacific. The full name, the Kingdom of Tonga, refers to the islands themselves south of other Pacific islands such as Fiji and Samoa.
South America: “Land of Water”
Once a home of more than a thousand languages and close to a hundred language families, according to Encyclopedia BritannicaToday, between 200 and 400 languages are spoken in the twelve countries in South America.
The continent contains more than a quarter of the world's freshwater resources and many of its names of the indigenous population are rooted in water.
GayanaFor example, the only country in South America with English as an official language has its name derived from the root word “Guiana”, which is thought to mean “land of water.”
In the same way, ParaguayIt was named Guarani “par” which means river, and “Guay” which means “this country” while Uruguay bear its name after the Uruguay River, it is also thought to have come from Guarani for the “river from the river from Painted birds “or in another version” River of Painted Snails “.
Venezuela The name comes from the Italian “Venezia”, which means “Little Venice”. The Spanish researchers called it after seeing the root houses to cocking on Lake Maracaibo, which looked like those in Venice, Italy.
