Czech exonyms
The following is a list of Czech exonyms, that is to say names for places that do not speak Czech that have been adapted to Czech phonological system and spelling rules, or are simply native names from ancient times. Note that a large number of the names on the list below are archaic, no longer in use in contemporary Czech.
Exonyms should not be confused with romanization, i.e., transliteration of names using a different script into a variant of the Latin alphabet according to a given set of rules. The Czech language usually employs different romanization systems than English (for example, the standard Czech romanization of the Chinese name 青岛 is Čching-tao, as opposed to its Hanyu Pinyin transliteration Qīngdǎo or to Wade–Giles Ch'ing-tao).
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Notes
- The Czech name "comes from a medieval castle on the Austro-Czech border called Radgos, which is today known as Raabs. The Czechs used the name of the castle for the whole country and called it Rakuš or Rakus, which eventually became Rakousko."[1]
- "This comes from the Czech adjective němý, which means mute. This term was originally used for all foreigners, as they could not speak Czech, and were thus essentially mute."[1]
- Uhersko is an archaic name for Hungary.[1] It can still be seen used in places such as Uherské Hradiště and Uherský Brod in Moravia.
- Vlašsko is an archaic name for Italy.[1] It can still be seen used in places such as the Italian Court (Vlašský dvůr) in Kutná Hora.
References
- "It's all Greek to me." Radio Prague transcript. 18 June 1999. Retrieved 15 July 2011.