Persian masc. proper name, in classical history a son of Xerxes II, also a son of Darius, from Greek Artaxerxes, from Old Persian Artaxšaca, literally "having a kingdom of justice," from arta- "justice" + xšaca "kingdom."
name of the mountain east of the River Jordan, whence Moses was allowed to view the Promised Land he could not enter (Deuteronomy iii.27); with figurative use from 1640s. The name is Hebrew, literally "cleft."
ancient name of a land lying between the Jordan and the Mediterranean promised to the children of Israel and conquered by them, so called from Canaan, son of Ham (Genesis x.15-19). Related: Canaanite. In the Apostle name Simon the Canaanite it is a transliteration of an Aramaic name meaning "zealot."
former kingdom in the western Pyrenees, now included in Spain and France, a pre-Latin name, probably based on Basque nava "plain," despite the region's mountainous topography. Related: Navarrese.
ancient name of a province and kingdom of Asia Minor, roughly corresponding to modern Turkey, from Greek Kappadokía, perhaps ultimately from Persian Hvaspadakhim "land of fine horses." In ancient Athens, Cappadocians were notorious as knaves and cowards, but the region's horses were celebrated.
18c.-19c. West African kingdom, a native name of unknown etymology. Made a French protectorate in 1894, it gained full independence in 1960, and in 1975 changed its name to Benin. Related: Dahoman, Dahomean.
modern African nation, known by that name from 1959, formerly French Sudan. The name is that of a former African kingdom (13c.-14c.), perhaps from Malinke, name of an indigenous people of the region. Related: Malian.
West Indies island, discovered by Columbus Aug, 15, 1498, and named by him Concepción, the place later was renamed for the old Spanish kingdom or city of Granada. Related: Grenadian.
masc. personal name, in Old Testament the younger son of Joseph, also the name of the tribe descended from him, and sometimes used figuratively for "Kingdom of Israel;" Greek form of Hebrew Ephrayim, a derivative of parah "was fruitful" (related to Aramaic pera "fruit").
