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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 1,055
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 1,055 |
I can't think of a country off hand, but I know that 'Thessaloniki' in Greece was named after Alexander the Great's sister. Her husband (the king) apparently founded the city in Macedonia just for her - what a sweet-heart.
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981 |
Cecil John Rhodes Who the heck is/was he?. You'll have to ask Bill Clinton If you are still not sure, check out the following site produced in homage to Mr Rhodes: http://www.angelfire.com/biz/RhodesScholarship/abouttrust.htmlThere are plenty of other views about his role in history. Google to get a selection of views. This site http://slate.msn.com/TVReview/98-01-10/TVReview.asp gives a flavour of the BBC series "Rhodes". There are even less charitable views of Mr Rhodes' life around. The comment "Rhodes was no 19th-century Hitler. He wasn't so much a freak as a man of his time." characterises the reviewer's viewpoint.
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Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 2,636
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 2,636 |
Mexico was named after the Mejicas, a group that just didn't have any luck at all.
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
Of course I've heard of this, Jo--thank you! My goodness, the things I learn on this board. I never even knew (or had completely forgotten, if I had) that Rhodesia was named after anybody, let alone that there was a connection to Rhodes scholars. I had heard of the Kimberly diamond mines, though. I notice that one the first Trustees of the scholarship was Earl Grey. Was that the tea manufacturer? I do actually like "Earl Grey, hot" (hi, l-head!  ), the only hot tea I've ever found palatable.
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981 |
>I do actually like "Earl Grey, hot"
We must pass that on to TEd, I understand that he makes darn fine tea. I'm looking forward to trying it one day.
{That reminds me, I did go once all the way to North Bend near Snoqualmie Falls to try the "damn fine cherry pie", ... obsessive, I ain't)
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Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 2,605
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 2,605 |
Mexico was named after the Mejicas
The list will expand greatly if we include countries named for a group of people, rather than for a specific individual. E.g, Hungary (so too its official name, Magyar); Russia; England; Scotland.
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,467
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,467 |
>Mexico was named after the Mejicas, a group that just didn't have any luck at all.
Yep, but they are immortalized in that great book, The Last of the Mejicans." It tells the story of the cobbler who made all their footwear for them.
TEd
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803 |
the USA takes its name from Sr. Vespucci
*If we accept that notion (which, apparently, some don't) we also have the possibility that the name Amerigo derives from a Germanic phrase meaning Kingdom of Heaven.
And then, Rome started out as the name of a city but became the name of an entire empire.
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Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 1,289
veteran
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veteran
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 1,289 |
As I noted in a post a week or so ago, Jordan was originally (ca. 1925) called "Trans-Jordan" by the Brits, meaning the country on the other side of [the river] Jordan. The "Hashemite Kingdom" part came later, when the name was abbreviated to "Jordan".
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Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 1,289
veteran
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veteran
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 1,289 |
San Salvador is the capitol of El Salvador. Or Holy Saviour is the capitol of The Saviour. The Spaniards were fond of giving religious names to places they conquered or founded. "Los Angeles" is only a part of the original name.
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