Found in Translation: The Unexpected Origins of Place Names

by Duncan Madden

Have you ever stopped and thought about the name of your home country or one you're travelling to? What it means, where it came from, how it came to be? From  The Land of Many Rabbits  to  The Land of the Thunder Dragon , and many places in between,  Found in Translation  is a fascinating, extraordinary and frequently funny journey into the history of the naming of the world. Filled with extraordinary stories of invasion and rebellion, culture and religion, misunderstanding and the curiosities of language as it has evolved over the ages, it offers etymological insight into how and why the countries we live in and travel to got their names - and their often bizarre meanings.

Genres: Nonfiction, Travel, History, Language

256 pages, Hardcover

Published March 14, 2023

Reviews

[Liam Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but a little bit frustrating that there's no consensus on any of the etymologies. Surely some must have roots/sources that are verifiable? Each country has 2-5 possible etymologies presented with no real idea of which one might be the most appropriate.

I feel like some linguistics work here could have shored it up a lot - it kind of is a bit like a holiday brochure, grazing between stories and options with not a ton of depth.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

An informative and easy book to read! Each short chapter describes the background to the possible (?) meaning of a country's name. Good fun to read this one!

[Imogen]

DNF at 36% because he said Julius Caesar was an emperor.

If you can’t fact-check, you shouldn’t be writing a book about facts!

[Poopy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Understandably repetitive