Exploring this alluring Mediterranean island
This nation was previously referred to as New Holland and New South Wales.
The nation in Southeast Asia was formerly known as Burma, and some countries still refer to it by this name.
The Philippines used to be a part of the Spanish East Indies. It gained independence in 1898 and was named the Philippines.
Ethiopia and Eritrea were united as Abyssinia before 1974.
This country in South Asia was formerly known as Eastern Bengal and Assam, then East Bengal, East Pakistan, and currently, Bangladesh.
From the time it was colonized by the British Empire, this country was known as Ceylon.
Basutoland, now an enclaved nation, was formerly a British Crown colony.
From 1920 until 1991, the nation was called Byelorussia, or "White Russia."
Moldova was previously known as Bessarabia.
Iraq was given complete independence in 1932 and was officially called Iraq, having previously been known as the British Mandate of Mesopotamia.
Belgium has undergone numerous name changes throughout history. It was previously referred to as the Duchy of Brabant, Burgundian Netherlands, and the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The country in West Africa once went by Dahomey.
Zimbabwe, like other countries, has undergone multiple name changes in the past, including Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia, and Zimbabwe-Rhodesia.
Prior to 1825, the country was called Upper Peru.
Until 1853, this nation was known as Bosnia.
This landlocked country was called Northern Rhodesia until 1964.
Vanuatu was previously recognized as New Hebrides before its renaming.
This island nation in Polynesia was formerly called the Ellice Islands.
The country in South America was previously called Dutch Guiana.
Togo was formerly a section of French Togoland, a colonial League of Nations that existed from 1916 to 1960.
The country formerly known as Siam became Thailand in 1949.
Temasek was an initial name given to Singapore before adopting its current name in 1819.
Papua New Guinea has gone through a few name modifications. It was previously referred to as the Territory of Papua and Territory of New Guinea, and later as the Territory of Papua and New Guinea.
This country was previously called the County of Holland, the Dutch Republic, and the Batavian Republic.
Belize was formerly known as British Honduras.
Namibia was previously referred to as German Southwest Africa and Southwest Africa before changing its name in 1990.
Mexico used to be a part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, but in 1821, it underwent a name change after a war of independence.
Before 1960, Mali was known as French Sudan, named by its European colonizers.
The region known as the Emirate of Transjordan was later renamed the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in 1949. Today, it's simply known as Jordan.
In 2019, Macedonia changed its name. The Balkan country became the Republic of North Macedonia after a prolonged disagreement with Greece. However, this is not an isolated case. Many other nations have also experienced their own identity transformations. Have you heard of New Holland? Upper Peru? The United Kingdom of the Netherlands? These countries may not be familiar to you, but they did exist at some point in history.
Curious? Click through this gallery to find out which countries have undergone name changes.
New identity: these countries changed their names
Can you guess which country was once called New Holland?
TRAVEL Countries
In 2019, Macedonia changed its name. The Balkan country became the Republic of North Macedonia after a prolonged disagreement with Greece. However, this is not an isolated case. Many other nations have also experienced their own identity transformations. Have you heard of New Holland? Upper Peru? The United Kingdom of the Netherlands? These countries may not be familiar to you, but they did exist at some point in history.
Curious? Click through this gallery to find out which countries have undergone name changes.