The Old Names Of AFRICAN Countries (& Why They Changed)

491 views Mar 31, 2025

Download Raid https://t2m.io/GeneralKnowledge to get 2 Legendaries + 2 Epic heroes available via my link and for new players only 1 - Epic Ultimate Galek from the start 2 - Epic Fayne from the level 15th 3 - Legendary ALICE THE WANDERER by logging into RAID on 7 days by March 26th 4 - Legendary SUN WUKONG via promo code MONKEYKING available by February 7th In this video, I explore the history behind the old names of African countries and how they changed over time. I discuss Abyssinia, a name rooted in the Arabic term "Al-Habash," and its transition to Ethiopia, reflecting an ancient Greek origin tied to its biblical legacy. I also cover Ghana, formerly the Gold Coast under colonial rule, renamed to honor the ancient Ghana Empire, and Zimbabwe, known as Rhodesia during British colonization, later adopting its native name referencing the Great Zimbabwe ruins. Describing how Burkina Faso transitioned from Upper Volta, a colonial name tied to the Volta River, to a name meaning "Land of Incorruptible People." Understanding how The Congo's name evolved from Zaire, derived from a Kikongo word meaning "river," while Benin replaced Dahomey, drawing inspiration from the historic Benin Kingdom. Learning how Eswatini and Lesotho returned to native names from colonial ones, Swaziland and Basutoland, respectively. And finally getting into how Namibia shed its colonial - and overly descriptive - South West Africa name, adopting one inspired by the Namib desert. PLus how Tanzania combined Tanganyika and Zanzibar, with roots in Swahili and Persian words. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Africa and its Country Names 00:27 Abyssinia to Ethiopia 02:04 Raid 04:09 Gold Coast to Ghana 05:56 Rhodesia to Zimbabwe 07:55 Upper Volta to Burkina Faso 09:02 Kongo to Zaire to Congo 10:03 Dahomey to Benin 12:03 Swaziland to Eswatini 12:28 Basutoland to Lesotho 12:50 South West Africa to Namibia

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