Euro state names etymology

The Romans have introduced the rabbits here according to the Dutch Wiki. The German Wiki also says they've been 'introduced'.

<<Im Altertum war das Wildkaninchen fast ausschließlich auf die Iberische Halbinsel und Südfrankreich beschränkt. So leitet sich der Name „Spanien" vom Phönizischen „Land der Schliefer“ ab, weil die Phönizier die dort heimischen Kaninchen nicht kannten und sie für die ihnen aus Afrika bekannten Schliefer hielten. Bereits in der Antike wurde es in Italien und Nordwestafrika eingebürgert. Im Mittelalter wurde es nach Frankreich und auf die Britischen Inseln gebracht, in der frühen Neuzeit nach Deutschland sowie auf viele Inseln in allen Ozeanen. Heute lebt es in ganz Europa außer im mittleren und nördlichen Skandinavien. Auch auf Island fehlt es. Im 19. Jahrhundert wurden Kaninchen in Australien (1859) und Neuseeland ausgesetzt. Darüber hinaus wurden sie in Südafrika, Nord- und Südamerika eingebürgert.>>

<<Oorspronkelijk komt het konijn enkel voor op het Iberisch Schiereiland. Spanje heeft zijn naam te danken aan het konijn. Toen de Phoeniciërs rond de 11e eeuw v.Chr. het Iberisch Schiereiland bereikten, troffen ze daar veel konijnen aan. Omdat zij de dieren erg vonden lijken op de voor hen beter bekende klipdassen, gaven ze de streek de naam 'i-saphan-im', het land der klipdassen. Deze naam is later door de Romeinen verbasterd tot 'Hispania'.

De Romeinen introduceerden het dier in het grootste deel van het Romeinse Rijk. Tegenwoordig wordt het in heel West-, Midden- en Zuid-Europa en Centraal-Azië aangetroffen op elk terrein waarin hij holen kan graven. Hij leeft van Zuid-Rusland en Oekraïne via Hongarije, Tsjechië, Duitsland, Denemarken en de Alpen tot de Benelux, Frankrijk, de Britse Eilanden, Italië en het Iberisch Schiereiland. Ook in Zuid-Scandinavië, Marokko en op enkele eilanden in de Middellandse Zee, als de Balearen, Corsica, Sardinië, Sicilië, Malta en Kreta, komt het voor. Ook in Australië komt het voor. Het wilde konijn leeft voornamelijk in graslanden, open weilanden, en heidegronden, liefst met een droge, losse, zanderige bodem. Ook komt hij voor in open bossen, de rand van landbouwgebieden en zandduinen. Het konijn mijdt naaldbossen.>>

I wonder how much of it is true.

The European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) is a species of rabbit native to south west Europe (Spain and Portugal). It has been widely introduced elsewhere often with devastating effects on local biodiversity.

Italy supposedly comes from Latin Ītalia, via Ancient Greek from Oscan Víteliú (a name for the southwestern tip of the boot of Italy), meaning "land of bulls" in Oscan; usually assumed to be a cognate of vitulus (“calf”), despite the different length of the i.

"Others argue that Cale[2] is a Celtic name like many others found in the region."

Maybe for this particular case, but like others have already said it, don't forget that celticity of Iberics is just a fake.

"is just a fake"

You mean COMPLETLY fake...

<< don't forget that celticity of Iberics is just a fake. >>

Iberians and Celts were different tribes of ancient Iberia. The same happened in Gaul as aquitanians were not Gauls but they were related to the Basques and Iberians.

from what i heard the celts were mainly concentrated in the west of the peninsula, especially in portugal and galicia, while the iberians occupied most of the rest of it.

therefore, some say that while spaniards are linguistically latin, they are ethnically of mostly non indo-european background, like the basques, even though the latter claims they are being oppressed or discriminated against sometimes.

The Celts were not in Galicia but in Castile and Portugal. I provided a map of the pre-Roman Iberia some messages before. Some cities in Castile like Toledo and Segovia are clearly Celtic toponyms. The Iberians inhabited Andalusia, Valencia, Murcia , Catalonia and Languedoc. It is a theory that the Basques were related to the Iberians, yet it is not completely confirmed.

Ireland (Éire)- From Old Irish Ériu < Proto-Celtic *ɸīwerjō < Proto-Indo-European *piHwerjon-, likely related to Proto-Indo-European *piHwer- (“fat”).

I've heard theories of Celts from northern Spain called Milesians or something going to what is now Ireland and leading to what is known as the Black Irish population, but it sounds crazy.

The Celts migrated to Ireland from France. Peoples who arrived to Ireland from Northern Spain were probably Ligurians or Basques. People talk about the Celts in Ireland as if they were the first humans who arrived to there.

<<<Some cities in Castile like Toledo and Segovia are clearly Celtic toponyms.>>>

Toledo is a Germanic - Celtic mixed name. It came from us French Germanic settlers. The 'Tol' is cognate to the southern French city of 'Tolouse' (Tollhouse in old Frankish) which is related to 'Mulhouse' (pronounced Mool-loose) in Alsace. Segovia is cognate to the southern French places of Segur which is comes from Icelandic Kopavogur.

Aquitaine is Viking settlement - think of Bayonne and Hossegor, Biscarrosse (Bjorns kirk/church house) and the the name Landes etc. These all Germanic.

'Bergerac' name is comming from 'the Berg of eric the viking' in old French Bergerac was calls 'Ericksberg'

Toledo is a pre-roman name, so it can't be Germanic because the Germanic tribes arrived to Spain in the V century.

gaul Sun Feb 21, 2010 5:48 am GMT
The name 'FRANCE' only represents a small historical ethnic elite not the gaulic French masses and their different ethnics, and French don't speak Frankish no more than Rhodesians (black or white) spoke 'Rhodesian' and never ever have done.

1. In Middle Age, some Frankish kings were order to burn the Germanic (Frankish) literatures which consisted of many tales, legends, stories, history, belief and practices of shamanism.

2. In Europe, the education was supplied by Roman Catholic Church at Middle Age and Latin was the written language in that time. So, the French vocabulary tell us some things about the derivation of Latin words.

3. The accent of Modern French is still preserved in the ancient Frankish pronunciation, although the French words derive from Latin.

4. Ancient Frankish tribe and his allied tribes had a very large population and they only settled in a "small place"; modern French territory. So, the modern French masses are come from ancient Frankish. The Gaulic masses may be disappear in history as like as Indian tribes in the new world.

"The Celts were not in Galicia but in Castile and Portugal. I provided a map of the pre-Roman Iberia some messages before. Some cities in Castile like Toledo and Segovia are clearly Celtic toponyms."

There is thousand germanic toponyms in Northern and Eastern France, and though, those regions speak romance languages. Sorry for you, but I think that spanish celts or celtibers are a pure invention.