Everest
/ˈɛvərɪst/noun
Everest is the commonly used English name for Mount Everest, the world’s highest mountain above sea level.
Did you know?The mountain’s English name honors George Everest, yet he opposed naming it after himself and reportedly pronounced his surname roughly “EE-ver-ist,” not the modern common pronunciation.
Etymological Timeline
Antiquity
Tibetan
ཇོ་མོ་གླང་མ་ (Qomolangma/Jomolungma)
“A traditional Tibetan name commonly interpreted as “Goddess Mother of the World,” though scholarly interpretations vary.”
Ancient to Modern
Nepali
सगरमाथा (Sagarmāthā)
“The Nepali name for the mountain; its precise original sense and history remain debated.”
1841
English
Peak XV
“The British Great Trigonometrical Survey’s numerical designation for the mountain before its English name was officially chosen.”
1865
English
Mount Everest
“The Royal Geographical Society’s adopted name, honoring George Everest, Surveyor General of India from 1830 to 1843.”
Modern English
English
Everest
“A proper noun for the mountain and, figuratively, any supreme height or seemingly unsurpassable achievement.”