Somalia
/soʊˈmɑː.li.ə/noun
A country in the Horn of Africa.
Did you know?The name Somalia is generally linked to the Somali people, whose ethnonym is often explained as relating to a phrase meaning “go and milk” in one traditional folk explanation, but scholars treat the country name as ultimately tied to the Somali ethnonym rather than a single certain “occult” root.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient/Medieval
Ethnonym
Somali
“The name of the Somali people, the Cushitic-speaking inhabitants of the Horn of Africa.”
19th Century
English
Somalia
“A European-form place name formed from the ethnonym Somali plus a territorial suffix.”
20th Century
English
Somalia
“The modern state name adopted for the independent country.”
Modern English
English
Somalia
“The sovereign nation in the Horn of Africa.”
Explore more surprising origins