Content tagged with "geography"

This was an ancient city near the modern city of Tunis in the country of Tunisia on the northern coast of Africa. It lay directly across the Mediterranean from Italy, and was often at war with the Roman Empire. The African Muslim populated drove the Romans out of Africa when they laid siege to and…

It may stem from a Turkish word to describe an ancient ruling dynasty. Marco Polo used the word quite often when describing his travels. I had always been familiar with the airline Cathay Pacific. Then, in The Mystery of Dr. Fu-Manchu, it’s mentioned a few times. For example, when the titular…

This was the original name of the current country of Sri Lanka. It was named Ceylon until 1972. I couldn’t find any specific reference to where “Ceylon” came from. The Portuguese used it when they occupied the island in the early 1600s, and it carried forward. It was finally rejected as a “slave…

Neither. Both the actor and the city were named for a medieval English hunting ground. The actor, who was born in 1943, is actually named Cornelius Chase. “Chevy” is a childhood nickname. The city in Maryland was named in the late 1800s. Which brings us to the patch of land in England: the Cheviot…

Well, it’s not formally defined, really. A continent is a “large landmass” on Earth, but opinions on the specifics vary. In the United States, we’re taught that there are seven continents, but not everyone agrees. In different places and different time periods, the count has changed. Many countries…

This is a city in Spain. However, it was formerly the Islamic capital of Spain, and it was ruled by Muslims from the 700s to the 1200s. At one point, it was the largest Islamic city in the world. It’s still home to The Great Mosque of Cordoba. I was watching Lawrence of Arabia. The Arab Prince…

This is the southeastern coast of France, also called the French Rivera. The name translates to “Coast of Azure” or “Coast of Blue,” referring to the color of the Mediterranean. The French Riviera ends at the Italian border in the east, but where it starts in the west is up for debate. Some sources…

This is a pass through the Appalachian Mountains. It’s located at almost the exact point where Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia come together. It is depressed between 600 and 900 feet from the peaks on either side of it. It used to have a highway, but that was dangerous, so a tunnel under the…

This is the western coast of the Balkan Peninsula, against the Adriatic Sea. It’s dominated by Croatia spreading southward, with the exception of a tiny sliver of Bosnia poking through to the ocean. In addition to the mainland coast, there are hundreds of small islands. The name comes from the…

A mountain range in Italy. They’re named for the type of rock they’re formed of. Also known as The Southern Alps. The mountains are located at the Northern Edge of Italy, towards Austria. This is where you ski in Italy, apparently. Unbeknownst to me, the winter scenes of For Your Eyes Only – one of…

This is technically a specific mountain sub-range in the Rockies. However, it’s used as a general descriptor for area on the Eastern side of the Rockies. Years ago, I read a proposal for Front Range Community College. I thought the name was interesting. Then, more recently, I saw a reference to…

This is probably just a coincidence. The U.S. State of Georgia is very clearly named for King George II. It became a colony in 1732 while he was in power. The country of Georgia is one of the former Soviet republics, located north of Armenia, between the Black and Caspian seas. Where it got its name…

In geometry, a “great circle” is a flat plane that cuts through the middle of a sphere. Essentially, it becomes the longer line that was drawn around that sphere. In aviation navigation, a “great circle route” is the shortest path between two points, and is achieved by finding the great circle that…

This is the third largest city in The Netherlands, commonly known for the International Court of Justice , which is the judicial arm of the United Nations. The name was originally a royal hunting ground in the 1400s, and was known as “des Graven Hage” . The city is known as “Den Haag” in Dutch, and…

This is a group of municipalities on the east end of Long Island, known for wealth, expansive homes, and proximity to New York City. In the state of New York, there are multiple governmental subdivisions: county, city, town, village, hamlet, etc. Some of these have their own governing bodies, and…

My first mistake here is that Harlem is not a full-fledged borough, it’s just a neighborhood in Manhattan. It’s the upper boundary of Manhattan, north of 110th Street, which is the top boundary of Central Park. It extends north to the Harlem river, which cuts diagonally from northwest to southeast….

There are technically eight islands…but not really. There are four islands with any notable population. There are four more islands – Molokai, Lanai, Niihau, Kahoolawe – but few people have heard of them and both population and physical size drop off considerably. The entire thing is actually an…

This is the British equivalent of “Main Street.” It’s meant to refer to the central or most important road in a metro, or the retail shopping district. I was in London and people mentioned it in conversation, such as: “the high street shops.”

This is an informal geographic term – it seems to be slang or patois for “hollow,” but some resources reject that and claim it has a definition all its own. It’s an Appalachian term for valley. The University of South Carolina defines it as: A small, sheltered valley that usually but not necessarily…

“Kill” is a borrowed word from Dutch. In that language it means “body of water” or, more often, “creek.” Thus, names like Fresh Kills, West Kill, Peeksill, Fishkill, usually refer to a nearby body of water. This usage is common in Upstate New York. Oddly, the Catskill Mountains might be a…

Like most countries in that region of the world, Taiwan is actually a chain of 168 islands. The biggest island – and the one most people think of when they think of “Taiwan” – is called Formosa, and it comprises 99% of the total land area of the chain. The largest city, Taipei, is located here, as…

This is an abbreviation you hear in hip hop occasionally. It can stand for: I first heard it on “Gin and Juice” by Snoop Dogg. I always thought it was “Long Beach Compton.” I don’t know where I got this impression. Then my Dad and I drove the PCH north from its start until it heads inland at Long…

This refers to a group of three lowland countries in Western Europe: Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. Large amounts of land in these countries is below sea level, hence the name. The three countries are politically aligned via a 1960 treaty. In many contexts , these three countries are…

The historical name for a region of Eastern Russia, Northeast China and Eastern Mongolia. This was never an official country or territory, just an informal name – like, “the Midwest.” The area referred to as “Manchuria” has been occupied by both China and Russia. It comprises the extreme Eastern tip…

Well, no one knows, really. What people agree on is that Memphis, Tennessee was named after Memphis, Egypt. The Egyptian Memphis is now just ruins, in the southern part of Cairo. It was long-abandoned in 1819, when the Tennessee city was founded. But, during it’s heydey in the millennia BC, it was…