List of words derived from toponyms

This is a list of English language words derived from toponyms, followed by the place name it derives from.

General agate — after Achates, ancient Greek name for the river Dirillo on the Italian island of Sicily Alberta clipper — a weather phenomenon named after the Canadian province of Alberta, where it originates Angora goat, Angora rabbit, Angora wool (obtained from the previous two), Angora cat — named after Angora, variant or former name of Ankara, their place of origin Antimacassar — after Makassar, Indonesia, which was the source of hair oil Armageddon — after "mount of Megiddo", where the battle was to be fought according to myth badminton — after Badminton in Gloucestershire, England balkanization — after the Balkans, region in southeastern Europe similarly divided into small nations in the twentieth century bangalored — after Bangalore, India; used often in the US when jobs are lost because of outsourcing; first time use by the magazine The Economist; usage: "He is sulking today because he got bangalored." Bedford cord, a heavy fabric with a ribbed weave similar to corduroy; named after either Bedford, England or possibly New Bedford, Massachusetts Bedlam — meaning pandemonium, after popular name/pronunciation of St Mary of Bethlehem, London's first psychiatric hospital Bedlington Terrier, a breed of dog, after Bedlington, UK bezant — former gold coin, and current heraldic charge, after Byzantium (now Istanbul), where the coins were made bikini — two-piece bathing suit for women, after Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands, where atomic bombs were tested in 1946; supposedly analogous to the "explosive" effect on the male libido the Blarney and Blarney Stone — Blarney Castle Boeotian, an ancient Greek term for a fool, after the Boeotian people bohemian — term referring to artists, writers, and other people who wished to live an unconventional, vagabond, or "gypsy" lifestyle; from Bohemia, where "gypsies" were erroneously thought to originate; see also gypsy, below La Brabançonne, national anthem of Belgium — Brabant, province of Belgium Bronx cheer — a noise made by the mouth to signify derision; after The Bronx, a borough of New York City brummagem — goods of shoddy quality; from a local pronunciation of Birmingham, city in the United Kingdom bungalow — a low building or house, from a Gujarati word meaning "Bengalese", used elliptically to mean a house built in the style of Bengal Byzantine, used to describe any work, law, or organization that is excessively complex or difficult to understand, named after Byzantine Empire calico — a type of cloth named after Calicut, where Europeans first obtained it; Calico cat and calico horse derive from the appearance of their mottled coat suggesting calico cloth canary — a small yellow bird, originating on and named after the Canary Islands, specifically the largest island, Gran Canaria, called in Latin Insula Canaria, "island of dogs", after the wild native dogs found there Capri pants — mid-calf pants named for the Italian isle of Capri, where they rose to popularity in the late 1950s and early '60s. Caucasian — name for the "white race", coined by anthropologist Johann Blumenbach after Caucasus Mountains, their supposed ancestral homeland chautauqua — a form of local fair, after Chautauqua, New York, where the first one was held Chicago Typewriter, a nickname for the Thompson submachine gun chihuahua — small dog from Chihuahua, state of Mexico china — originally chinaware, as in "wares from China" Chinese wall, artificial organizational barrier, derived from Great Wall of China coach — a type of carriage, ultimately from Hungarian kocsi (szekér) or "carriage of Kocs", where this vehicle was first made Coldstream Guards — regiment founded at Coldstream in Scotland cologne — a perfume originating from Cologne, Germany. Corinthian order — one of the three orders of classical architecture, after Corinth in Greece Coventry (in the construction "Send to Coventry"): shunned by friends and family, after the treatment of Royalist prisoners during the English Civil War Dalmatian dog - a breed of dog, from Dalmatia Damask — material, from Damascus denim — a coarse cotton fabric, from French serge de Nîmes, or "serge of Nîmes", where the cloth originated derby — a stakes race limited to three-year-old steeds, named after Derby in England by way of its 12th Earl; also refers to a style of shoe and hat. dollar — a unit of currency, originally from the German taler, an abbreviation of Joachimstaler ("gulden of Joachimstal"), a coin minted (1519) from silver mined near Joachimsthal, Bohemia donnybrook — colloquial term for a brawl or fracas, derived from Donnybrook Fair, an annual horse fair in the Dublin suburb notorious for fighting and drunkenness doolally or dolally — an adjective meaning "mad" or "eccentric" (e.g. "to go dolally"), ultimately named after Deolali, a hill station near Nashik in colonial India, referring to the apparent madness of men waiting to return to Britain after their tour of duty duffel or duffle — heavy woollen cloth, hence duffel coat and duffel bag; after Duffel, a town in Belgium where it was first made Dunkirk spirit, after the evacuation of Dunkirk in World War II Estrela Mountain Dog — Estrela Mountains, where this dog breed is originally from Fez, (also called tarboosh), a hat — Fez, a city in Morocco Finlandization, the influence a large country can have on a smaller one, after Finland gauze, a thin translucent open-weave fabric⏤after the city of Gaza, which is where it is thought to have originated. gamboge, a yellow artist's pigment — Cambodge, French name for Cambodia geyser, a hot water spring — Geysir in Iceland Glasgow kiss, a slang term meaning headbutt — Glasgow, Scotland Greek, not understandable ("all Greek to me") — Greek language of Greece Guinea, former British gold coin, and guineafowl — Guinea region of West Africa Gypsies, nomadic peoples in Europe and United States — Egypt Habanera — a musical style named after Havana, Cuba Hackney carriage, name for the London taxicab, probably from Hackney in London, England Havana, cigar — from capital of Cuba Hempenstall, a surname, after the town of Heptonstall (England) Honiton, a form of lace, after the town in Devon (England) where it is produced Holland, cotton or linen fabric — Holland iliad — a long narrative poem, or a series of woes, trials, etc.; both derive from the Homeric epic Iliad, literally meaning "of Ilium" (or Troy) Indian, the aboriginal peoples of the New World, after India Indigo, colour, after India Ionic order — one of the three orders of classical architecture, after Ionia in present-day Turkey japanning, application of lacquer, after Japan Jeans, denim trousers; Genoa Jersey cattle (also tomato, milk, cream, jumper) — Jersey, one of the Channel Islands Kimblewick bit, used on horses for riding — Kimble Wick, hamlet in Buckinghamshire (England) Labyrinth, maze, after a legendary structure on Crete Laconic, (of a person, speech, or style of writing) using very few words. From Laconia Ancient Sparta (Greece) Left Bank, style of life, fashion, or "look" — "Left Bank", left bank of the Seine (facing downstream) in Paris Leghorn chicken — after Leghorn, historical name for Livorno, Italy Lesbian, female homosexual — Lesbos, island in Greece Lipizzaner, a breed of horse — Lipica, town in Slovenia Magenta, colour — named after Magenta, Lombardy, Italy Marathon, long race — Marathon, Greece, town Madras, lightweight cotton fabric — Madras, old name for Chennai, coastal city in southeastern India Manila envelopes, Manila fiber — Manila, city in Philippines Marseillaise, national anthem of France — Marseille, city in France Masada, a mass suicide when conditions are hopeless, after Masada, Israel Mausoleum, a large and impressive tomb — Mausoleum at Halicarnassus in Turkey meander, a bend in a river — Meander, a river in Turkey Mecca, ultimate destination or activity center — Mecca, holy city in Saudi Arabia Mongoloid race — Mongolia, country in central Asia Morocco leather — Morocco, country in north Africa Muslin, a lightweight fabric — Mosul, Iraq Neanderthal man, known by his fossils — Neanderthal, Germany, valley where the fossils were found Nicene Creed, Christian doctrine — Nicaea, old name for İznik in Turkey Olympics, worldwide games — Mount Olympus, tallest mountain in Greece Ottoman (furniture), a type of stool — after the Ottoman Empire Paisley (design), used in shawls — Paisley, Scotland Panama hat — Panama in Central America, where it was first sold Portland cement — named after the Isle of Portland, England Rubicon, the point of no return — Rubicon (or Rubico), a small former river in northern Italy Rhode Island Red — Chicken named after Rhode Island Rugby football — Rugby School, in Rugby, Warwickshire, central England Shanghaied — drugged and forced into service aboard a ship, from Shanghai, China Siamese twins, conjoined twins — Siam, old name for Thailand Siberia, a remote undesirable location — Siberia, in eastern Russia Skid Row, originally Skid Road of Seattle, now the rundown area of a U.S. city Sodomy, forbidden sexual acts — Sodom, Biblical town on the plain of the Dead Sea Solecism, incorrect or ungrammatical usage of language — Soli an ancient city in Cilicia, where a dialect of Greek regarded as substandard was spoken Spa, place having water with health-giving properties — Spa, a town in Belgium, also famous for its motor racing circuit. Suede, a durable fabric — French name for Sweden Surrey, horse-drawn carriage — Surrey, a county in southern England Timbuktu, metaphor for an exotic, distant land — Timbuktu, city on the Niger River in Mali, West Africa Trojan horse, malicious computer virus — Trojan Horse, of Troy, from the Iliad turkey, from Turkey tuxedo, after Tuxedo Park, New York Vaudeville, after the Vau de Vire the setting for the bawdy songs of Olivier Basselin. volcano, from Italian island of Vulcano Xanadu, a symbol of opulence — Xanadu (or Shangdu), summer capital of Kublai Khan's empire

Events and agreements Abu Ghraib (Iraq) – the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse scandal in 2003 Arraiolos — Arraiolos Group Attica (New York) – the Attica Prison riots in 1971 Beijing (China) – the Fourth World Conference on Women in 1994 Brest (Belarus) – the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in 1918 Bretton Woods (New Hampshire) – The Bretton Woods system from 1944 Cairo (Egypt) – the International Conference on Population and Development of 1994 Camp David (U.S. presidential retreat in Maryland) – the Camp David Accords of 1978 and the Camp David 2000 Summit Copenhagen (Denmark) – the World Summit for Social Development in 1995 Dayton (Ohio) – the Dayton Peace Agreement in 1995 Doha (Qatar) – the Doha round of World Trade Organization negotiations that began in 2001 Durban (South Africa) – the World Conference against Racism in 2001 Geneva (Switzerland) – the Geneva Conventions, and the unofficial Geneva Accord negotiations of 2003 Gleneagles (Scotland) – the 31st G8 summit in Gleneagles, Scotland Grand Trianon (a château in France) – the Treaty of Trianon in 1919 Hillsborough (Sheffield, England) – the Hillsborough disaster of 1989 Hiroshima (Japan) – the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in 1945 Jackson State (Mississippi) – the Jackson State killings in 1970 Kent State (Ohio) – the Kent State shootings in 1970 Kyoto (Japan) – the Kyoto Protocol of 1997 Lisbon — the Tresty of Lisbon of 2007 Locarno (Switzerland) – the Locarno Treaties of 1925 Lockerbie (Scotland) – the Lockerbie bombing of 1988 Maastricht (The Netherlands) – the Maastricht Treaty of 1992 Marrakesh (Morocco) – the Marrakesh Agreement of 1994 establishing the World Trade Organization Munich (Germany) – the Munich Agreement of 1938 and the Munich Massacre at the 1972 Summer Olympics