Ever wonder why some countries get a fancy “the” in front of their names?
Curiosities
“The Ukraine is Weak!”
By Nick Moran posted at 4:00 pm on June 9, 2012 1
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Nick Moran is the social media editor for The Millions. He was born in Hoboken, NJ and he returned there after graduating from the University of Miami. Before leaving the publishing industry, he worked for Norton, John Wiley & Sons, and Oxford University Press. His interests can be followed on his Tumblr, Nick Recommends and Twitter, @nemoran3.
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at 4:45 pm on June 9, 2012
I think I know why in the case of The Netherlands: because it’s a nation that originally existed of a number of city states that formed a republic and the plural nature is maintained in the name.
About Ukraine, I don’t believe it needs to be “The” Ukriane and in the EU in some languages they do not say that nation’s name with “the” in front of it, so not sure about that one!
Johanna van Zanten