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Place Names: New Destinations
Place Names: New Destinations
Dec 13, 2024 9:50 PM

  Feeling that geographical names have become kind of ho-hum?  It’s true that many people have tired of Paris and some of the over-visited names from the American West like Cheyenne, Sierra, Dakota and Dallas.  But that’s no reason to write off the whole category—we can renew our passports and look a bit farther afield for some fresher, more interesting and exotic choices from the global atlas.

  FOR GIRLS

  AILSA  —  Ailsa Craig is the name of a rocky island off Scotland, and Ailsa has long been used as a Christian name–as all of us namberryites well know

  ÁLORA—  A picturesque Spanish town near Malága, overlooking citrus orchards and olive groves

  ANDORRA  —  A small country located in the Pyranees—could work as an updated Andrea

  CORTINA—Cortina d’Ampezzo is one of the most famous and beautiful ski resorts in Italy; a more feminine namesake for Courtney?

  ELANORA –This name of an Australian suburb is used as a girls’ name in that country

  ELBA—The Italian island best known as the site of Napoleon’s exile; possible update of Ella?

  GENOA –Picturesque birthplace of Christopher Columbus, native version is GENOVA; a possible newer path to the Gen nickname

  IBIZA  (ih-BEETH-a)—Another interesting island name, though a little bit lispy

  ISCHIA (IS-key-a)—An Isla-like Italian island name

  JAVA — This Indonesian island name was recently used by Lost hunk Josh Holloway for his daughter

  LILLE —  (_LEELE) –_We’ve seen the growing popularity of double-L names, now here’s a French city with three of them

  LIXA –An old Portuguese city with a modern-sounding name

  LULEÅ — A city on the northern coast of Sweden; birthplace of the founder of the Nordstrom department store chain

  LUCERNE –A Swiss canton and lake name, with the possibility of a Lucy nickname

  LUZA – A Russian town on the Luza river—but too much like loser?

  MAJORCA  (my-OR-ca) — One of the most elegant and fashionable of the Spanish Balearic Islands

  ODESSA —  The name of a Ukranian port city inspired by Homer’s ‘Odyssey’

  QUINTANA  — Quintana Roo is a Mexican state in the Yucatan Peninsula and is one of the prettiest Q  possibilities

  RAVENNA –Italian city known for its Byzantine mosaics makes an appealingly feminine choice

  TAVIRA —  An attractive town in the Algarve area of Portugal; a possible namesake for a Great-Aunt Vera?

  TRALEE– The county seat of Kerry, Ireland, associated with the old song “The Rose of Tralee”

  VALENCIA – Orange-scented Spanish city name

  VALLETTA – the capital city of Malta, as well as being the surname of  glamorous model/actress Amber

  VERONA –home town of Romeo & Juliet

  FOR BOYS

  ARRAN  —  A Scottish island with a wide diversity of landscapes; possibility of being confused with Aaron

  BELLO  — A sizable city in Colombia

  BRECON  —  A historic market town in Wales; similar to saint’s name Breccan

  CADIZ —  A Spanish coastal province known for its windswept beaches, white villages and celebrated sherry.

  CARLOW – An Irish county and city on the River Barrow

  DONEGAL – Another of the traditional counties of Ireland

  DURANGO –City in Mexico founded in 1565

  ENNIS —  an ancient and picturesque town in County Clare

  GUERNSEY – Channel Islands name that is also a surname and occasionally used as a first; might be used for a girl as well

  MALMÖ —  The third largest city in Sweden

  MALO  — Saint–Malo, France is a walled city in Brittany on the English Channel, named for the saint who founded it

  OVAR —  A small city in Portugal

  PERTH – The capital city of Western Australia

  THANE —  A city in India near Mumbai, as well as the word used in ancient Scotland for a hereditary king (see Macbeth)

  TOULOUSE  –a thriving city in southern France; a name associated with artist Lautrec

  VIGO  — the largest city in Galicia, Spain

  YORK – a beautiful historic city in North Yorkshire

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