Countries that changed their name

A country's name is not neutral data: it is a claim. Every change tells a story of decolonisation, of a conflict ending, or of a state's communications operation. Here are the cases that matter, most recent first.

Eswatini (2018)

King Mswati III renamed Swaziland as Eswatini — “land of the Swazis” in siSwati — on the fiftieth anniversary of independence. The official motive: end a name of colonial origin, and stop the permanent confusion with Switzerland in international forums.

North Macedonia (2019)

The longest naming dispute in recent history. Greece refused the name “Macedonia” on the grounds that it also designates one of its own regions and implied a territorial claim. For twenty-seven years the country sat at the UN under the acronym FYROM (“Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”). The 2018 Prespa Agreement settled it: North Macedonia, in exchange for which Greece lifted its veto on NATO membership.

Türkiye (2022)

Turkey asked the UN to use Türkiye in every language, including English where turkey also means the bird. Adoption is real in official documents, but common usage still overwhelmingly says “Turkey” — which is what the game keeps.

Czechia (2016)

After the split of Czechoslovakia in 1993, the country had no satisfactory short form: “Czech Republic” is a long name, and “Czech” alone is an adjective. Prague made Czechia official in 2016. Thirty years on, usage still hesitates.

Cabo Verde (2013)

The archipelago asked for its Portuguese name, Cabo Verde, to be used as is in every language rather than translated to “Cape Verde”. It is the same move Côte d'Ivoire has required since 1986: its name is never to be translated — not Ivory Coast, not Costa de Marfil.

The older cases, still live

• Burma / Myanmar — the junta imposed “Myanmar” in 1989. Part of the francophone world and of the Burmese opposition still says “Burma”, precisely because the change was never democratically validated.
• East Timor / Timor-Leste — independent in 2002, the country prefers the Portuguese form.
• Zaire / Democratic Republic of the Congo — back to the original name in 1997, after Mobutu fell.
• Upper Volta / Burkina Faso — renamed in 1984 by Thomas Sankara: “land of upright people”.
• Ceylon / Sri Lanka — 1972, at the proclamation of the Republic.

What the game uses

GeoG uses the most common forms and accepts variants when you type: writing “Eswatini” or “Swaziland”, “Myanmar” or “Burma”, “Türkiye” or “Turkey” all work in the modes where you type the answer. It is the right compromise when usage itself is divided.

One caveat in fairness: the game's French label for some of these countries still follows the older usage — “Swaziland” rather than “Eswatini”, “Îles du Cap-Vert” rather than “Cabo Verde”. It is a known gap, to be fixed on the game-data side.

Frequently asked

Read next

• How many countries are there in the world?
• Disputed territories
• The capitals quiz
• About: where our data comes from