Carelia
/kəˈriːliə/noun
A Latinized form of Karelia, the historical region around the eastern Baltic and northwestern Russia.
Did you know?The region’s name has no securely established ultimate etymology; scholars generally connect it with the ethnonym of the Karelians, while proposed deeper roots remain disputed.
Etymological Timeline
Medieval period
Proto-Finnic
*karjala
“Reconstructed ancestral form associated with the Karelian ethnonym; its deeper origin is uncertain.”
13th–14th Century
Old Russian
Корѣла
“An early Russian form referring to the Karelians and their territory.”
16th Century
Latin
Carelia
“Latinized geographical name for Karelia in European maps and texts.”
17th–18th Century
Swedish/Latin
Carelia
“Name used in administrative and cartographic contexts for the Karelian region.”
Modern English
English
Carelia
“A historical or Latinized variant of Karelia, and also a scientific name used in taxonomy.”