Online Encyclopedia
List of English exonyms for German toponyms
This list is a compilation of German toponyms (i.e., names of cities, regions, rivers, mountains and other geographical features situated in a German-speaking area) that have traditional English exonym s. The names of federal states (Bundesländer, q.v.) are not included unless they are coterminous with geographical regions.
Usage notes:
- While in the case of regions, rivers and mountains, English exonyms are the definite choice (not least of all because the features they describe often cross language borders), some lesser-known city exonyms whose difference is merely orthographic and does not affect pronunciation (Cassel, Coblenz) have begun to retreat in favour of the endonymic forms. The media are divided about the use of the English exonyms Basle (difference in pronunciation) and Berne (no difference in pronunciation). The Times Style guide encourages their use. [1]
- Exonyms that are used exclusively in historical and/or ecclesiastical contexts are marked accordingly (h/e).
- The definite article is given where necessary. Please note that often the article is only correct in one of the two languages (Styria - die Steiermark).
List:
- A
- the Adige - die Etsch
- B
- Basle - Basel
- the Baltic Sea - die Ostsee
- Bavaria - Bayern
- Berne - Bern
- the Black Forest - der Schwarzwald
- Brunswick - Braunschweig
- C
- D
- the Danube - die Donau
- H
- Hamelin - Hameln
- Hanover - Hannover
- Heligoland - Helgoland
- Hesse - Hessen
- L
- Lower Saxony - Niedersachsen
- Lucerne - Luzern
- Lucerne, Lake of - Vierwaldstätter See
- Lusatia - die Lausitz
- N
- Nuremberg - Nürnberg
- P
- the Palatinate - die Pfalz
- Pomerania - Pommern
- R
- V
- Vienna - Wien
- W
- Westphalia - Westfalen
- Z
- Zurich - Zürich*
* Zurich is the established English spelling of Zürich and therefore no exception to the typographical rule that umlauts occurring in German proper names are kept in English texts.
Last updated: 01-21-2005 08:09:10