# How many countries are named after rivers? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 14, 2023, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179 "2023-03-14T17:47:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/1 "2023-03-14T17:47:28Z")
I saw a claim that 15 countries were named after rivers, but I couldn’t find a good site that listed them. Some poking around did give me 15. - Belize - Belize - Bosnia – Bosna - Cameroon – Rio dos Camaroes - Democratic Republic of the Congo - Congo - Republic of the Congo – Congo - The Gambia – Gambia - India – Indus - Jordan – Jordan - Moldova – Moldova - Niger– Niger - Nigeria – Niger - Paraguay – Paraguay - Senegal – Senegal - Uruguay – Uruguay - Zambia – Zambezi Those are all modern names. There might be others whose names have changed. And some of the names have uncertain origins. I also don’t know what to do with Argentina, whose etymology as given by the [CIA](https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/country-name/) is borderline. > **etymology:** originally the area was referred to as Tierra Argentina, i.e., “Land beside the Silvery River” or “silvery land,” which referred to the massive estuary in the east of the country, the Río de la Plata (River of Silver); over time the name shortened to simply Argentina or “silvery” Any more out there? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/2 "2023-03-14T18:10:03Z")
Panama 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/3 "2023-03-14T18:15:02Z")
The river that supplies the canal is actually named the Chagres. But that was a cute try. ---
**Author:** ![Versicle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c2a13f/32.png) [@Versicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Versicle)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/4 "2023-03-14T18:26:33Z")
Punjab means “Five Waters”, and Sindh (almost certainly) means “River”: these supply the Pa- and -S- in Pakistan. So this may count if you allow the _existence_ of river(s) as part of your survey. Among former countries there is Upper Volta, now Burkina Faso. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/5 "2023-03-14T18:28:35Z")
There is a list of rivers by country here: > **[List of rivers](https://www.britannica.com/topic/list-of-rivers-2020029)** > > This is a list of selected rivers, ordered alphabetically by continent or region and by country. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/6 "2023-03-14T18:40:57Z")
I was looking at Paraguay and noticed the following: > derived from the Guarani word “par” meaning river, and “guay”, meaning “this side”. [Country profile: Paraguay | News | Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2005/5/9/country-profile-paraguay) > From Guarani _paraguá_ “feather crown” and _y_ “water” thus _paraguaí_ “feather crown of waters”. [Paraguay - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraguay) > one explanation has the name meaning “water of the Payagua” (an indigenous tribe that lived along the river) [https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/paraguay/](https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/paraguay/) > said to be from Guarani para “water” + guay “born.” [paraguay | Etymology of the name paraguay by etymonline](https://www.etymonline.com/word/paraguay) ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/7 "2023-03-14T19:30:40Z")
I had not appreciated before I searched how many country’s name origins are uncertain or entirely unknown. OTOH, [some historians debate the origin of America](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naming_of_the_Americas). > The naming of the Americas, or America, occurred shortly after Christopher Columbus’s first voyage to the Americas in 1492. It is generally accepted that the name derives from Amerigo Vespucci, the Italian explorer, who explored the new continents in the following years on behalf of Spain and Portugal. However, some have suggested other explanations, including being named after the Amerrisque mountain range in Nicaragua, or after Richard Amerike, a merchant from Bristol, England. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/8 "2023-03-14T21:16:18Z")
Tangentially related to this discussion: I learned some number of years ago that Missouri probably means something like “people of the dug-out canoe.” So I concluded that Missouri (the state) was named after the tribe. Not so fast. The _river_ is named for the tribe. The _state_ is named for the river. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/9 "2023-03-14T21:31:48Z")
There’s quite a few US states named for rivers. In fact, a quick list I made has exactly 15, just like countries. And many of those rivers were named for tribes. Only two do not have a Native American origin. Alabama Arkansas Colorado Connecticut Delaware Illinois Kansas Kentucky Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Nebraska Ohio Tennessee Wisconsin If it weren’t for Congress changing the proposed name of Columbia Territory, there’d be one more. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/10 "2023-03-14T21:59:34Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Nebraska I was regretting my ignorance about the existence of a Nebraska River, but… there isn’t one. I assume it derives from this one? > **[Niobrara National Scenic River (U.S. National Park Service)](https://www.nps.gov/niob/index.htm)** > > Explore what the Niobrara National Scenic River has to offer. In the heart of the Midwest, this National Park site is a crossroads of east and west, offering the best of the Midwest to visitors ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/11 "2023-03-14T22:12:13Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I was regretting my ignorance about the existence of a Nebraska River, but… there isn’t one. The Platte River was originally called the Nebraska. Quoth Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > The first Europeans to see the Platte were [French](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France) explorers and fur trappers about 1714; they first called it the _Nebraskier_ (Nebraska), a transliteration of the name given by the [Otoe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otoe_tribe) people, meaning “flat water”. > **[Platte River](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platte_River)** > > The Platte River (/plæt/) is a major river in the State of Nebraska. It is about 310 mi (500 km) long; measured to its farthest source via its tributary, the North Platte River, it flows for over 1,050 miles (1,690 km). The Platte River is a tributary of the Missouri River, which itself is a tributary of the Mississippi River which flows to the Gulf of Mexico. The Platte over most of its length is a broad, shallow, meandering stream with a sandy bottom and many islands—a braided stream. > The Pla... ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/12 "2023-03-15T00:59:11Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > I also don’t know what to do with Argentina, whose etymology as given by the [CIA](https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/country-name/) is borderline. It’s not on your list so that must be more than a pun. What do you think is unlikely about it? > [@wikipedia](#): > > Argentina rose as the successor state of the [Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viceroyalty_of_the_R%C3%ADo_de_la_Plata),[[15]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentina#cite_note-FOOTNOTELevene194811S%C3%A1nchez_Viamonte1948196%E2%80%9397Vanossi196411-19) a Spanish [overseas viceroyalty](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viceroyalty) founded in 1776. Doesn’t that make it pretty clear the modern country of Argentina is named after the river, or perhaps for the river if it’s not a direct reference? ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/13 "2023-03-15T02:04:34Z")
Silver in Spanish is _plata_, which is also the name of the river. _Argentum_ is the earlier Latin form. _Plata_ comes from _plattus_, meaning wide, because silver was hammered into sheets. Etymology is weird. No doubt the the name an allusion to the river. The indirectness is why I called it borderline. I haven’t found any reason why the early explorers used the Latin instead of Spanish, though. In case anyone’s mind works like mine does, the German Palatinate does not come from _plata_ or _plattus_ but from the Latin _palātium_ or palace. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/14 "2023-03-15T14:04:09Z")
I thought of that, but figured I’d be run out of town or drowned. ---
**Author:** ![kurtisokc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bbce88/32.png) [@kurtisokc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kurtisokc)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2023, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/15 "2023-03-16T15:49:18Z")
It’s possible that in some cases the river might be named for the country instead of vice versa. I don’t know of a Canada River, but near where I live there is the Canadian River. Located in Oklahoma. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2023, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/16 "2023-03-16T16:04:58Z")
Similarly, there’s the American River in California. ---
**Author:** ![themapleleaf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/themapleleaf/32/14349_2.png) [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2023, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/17 "2023-03-16T16:21:27Z")
The Czech Republic is composed of three historical regions: Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia. Moravia, in Czech “Morava”, is named after the river Morava, which, per Wikipedia, “…runs from its north to south, being its principal watercourse.” In the Dark Ages, Moravia was much larger and was a principality; later it became a Margraviate that was part of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown. ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2023, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/18 "2023-03-16T23:04:44Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > No doubt the the name an allusion to the river. The indirectness is why I called it borderline. I haven’t found any reason why the early explorers used the Latin instead of Spanish, though. The people making maps often used latin. eg they put on latin versions of peoples names mentioned. Portuguese explorer called Lopo Homem wrote Argentea on a 1554 map. Using a latin word… Also ? or perhaps because, plata could imply its silver foil or silver plated… Argentine implies solid silver. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2023, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/19 "2023-03-17T00:05:48Z")
Lopo Homem? Any relation to Lorem Ipsum? Seriously, that’s the information I was looking for and didn’t find. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2023, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-countries-are-named-after-rivers/981179/20 "2023-03-17T00:41:49Z")
The river Temarc in winter!