Languages and place names

It's been a long running discussion between Gemma and I that some languages change the names of towns more than others do. Admittedly, our frame of reference is fairly limited (i.e. we only really discussed English and Spanish) - but this doesn't mean that it's not an interesting topic.

The way I see it, in English we usually seem to use the local name of a place. That is to say, we don't change Madrid to anything else. In Spanish, London has its name changed to Londres (similar to the French form). We do change Sevilla to Seville though. We don't change Beijing (the standard international name for the Chinese capital). In Spanish, it's still called Pekí­n. Indian city names which have recently changed are similarly not recognised (though this is perhaps understanding: Spain has few historic links with that part of the world).

Also, the Spanish change people's names. When I was at school i was taught that speaking in a foreign language, one should never change the form of one's name to match the language being spoken. You were named William, not Guillaume, and that's how you should refer to yourself. Clearly, the Spanish don't care for this little rule. Everyone's name is converted to the hispanic form: Queen Elizabeth is called Isabel but in England, we call the King of Spain Juan Carlos.

I'm not saying that either side is right (well, I could hardly do that, given that I've not made any argument)… I just find it interesting that these differences exist. And that's it.

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November 25, 2005 | Filed Under Language 

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