Italy
UK [ˈɪ.tə.lɪj] · US [ˈɪ.ɾə.li] proper noun
- proper noun A country in Southern Europe. Official names: Italian Republic and Republic of Italy. Capital and largest city: Rome.
- proper noun Synonym of Apennine Peninsula.
Synonyms
Etymology
Inherited from Old English Italia. Usually explained as a cognate of vitulus (“calf”), thus meaning "land of young bulls" in Oscan. In that case, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wet- (“year”). According to some ancient Greek authors, named after a king Italus or Italos, whose kingdom was on the peninsula. Doublet of Italia.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “Italy”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details