# Why do/did some countries have the definite article prepended to their names?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-did-some-countries-have-the-definite-article-prepended-to-their-names/592613>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 13, 2011, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-did-some-countries-have-the-definite-article-prepended-to-their-names/592613 "2011-08-13T21:47:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![zeno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zeno/32/15040_2.png) [@zeno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zeno)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-did-some-countries-have-the-definite-article-prepended-to-their-names/592613/1 "2011-08-13T21:47:06Z")

</div>

The Sudan  
The Gambia  
The Ukraine

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![zeno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zeno/32/15040_2.png) [@zeno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zeno)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-did-some-countries-have-the-definite-article-prepended-to-their-names/592613/2 "2011-08-13T21:48:07Z")

</div>

I meant definite article, but I can’t edit the title

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Desert\_Nomad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desert_nomad/32/177_2.png) [@Desert\_Nomad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desert_Nomad)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-did-some-countries-have-the-definite-article-prepended-to-their-names/592613/3 "2011-08-13T21:51:03Z")

</div>

In the case of Sudan, the name means “south” or “southern lands”. When I was in Sudan, no one used “The”.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![orcenio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orcenio/32/1036_2.png) [@orcenio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orcenio)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-did-some-countries-have-the-definite-article-prepended-to-their-names/592613/4 "2011-08-13T21:55:48Z")

</div>

> [@Desert\_Nomad](#):
>
> In the case of Sudan, the name means “south” or “southern lands”. When I was in Sudan, no one used “The”.

I thought Sudan meant ‘black land’ as in “The land of Blacks.”

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-did-some-countries-have-the-definite-article-prepended-to-their-names/592613/5 "2011-08-13T22:01:00Z")

</div>

[We did this one a few weeks ago.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=616909)

Usually, it’s because the country’s name derives from a wider region. In the case of “the Ukraine” and “the Sudan,” these are actually the names of the region; the names of the countries are just “Ukraine” and “Sudan.”

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-did-some-countries-have-the-definite-article-prepended-to-their-names/592613/6 "2011-08-13T22:01:36Z")

</div>

> [@zeno](#):
>
> I meant definite article, but I can’t edit the title

Fixed.