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Istanbul, Meaning of the Name?
(21 Messages in 3 pages - View all)
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10.       sophie
2712 posts
 02 Apr 2007 Mon 04:24 pm

Quoting SunFlowerSeed:


I don't know if there is another city in the world called with different names as many as İstanbul. Thanks to its rich history.

From Wikipeida:

İstanbul is called with different names in those languages.

* Greek: Vizantion, Stampoli
* Rumca/Old Greek?: Konstantinopolis, Istinpolin, Megali Polis, Kalipolis
...............................................
* Lazca/Greek dialect ???: Poli



Most of the greek definitions are wrong here. There is no such word as 'Stampoli' in greek and the rest of them are just words that could someone use to describe Istanbul or any other city. "Megali Polis" could be used for Athens or Rome or any other big city in the world as well. As for 'Kalipolis' this is the greek name for Gelibolu.

Vyzantion, is the word for Byzantium and it is used only to describe the whole byzantin empire and that same period in history.

Istanbul, as Gezbelle very well explained, is from the greek words 'ΕΙΣ ΤΗΝ ΠΟΛΗ' (is tin poli), which mean 'to the City'. 'Polis' or 'Poli' have been the short ways for Greek people to call Istanbul from the times that it was called Constantinoupolis.

As for the city with the most variations of its name (not just descriptions or adjectives), some say that it is Thessaloniki (Selanik in turkish) with over 13.

11.       kisa771
12 posts
 02 Apr 2007 Mon 04:57 pm

I Love Istanbul

12.       SunFlowerSeed
841 posts
 03 Apr 2007 Tue 11:14 am

As I said 'I don't know'. So I am not sure whether names of İstanbul are the most in number. There are many cities in the world called by different names in different languages.
By the way, I love Thessaloníki. It is the hometown of my grand-grand-father. I have been there a couple of times and loved the city. It feels like home to me.
Could you PM me about the names of Thessaloníki. I'd be pleased.

You may also want to check here;
A different city names page


Regards,

13.       stephanieobrien
54 posts
 03 Apr 2007 Tue 01:57 pm

As far as i know.When the Romans Emperor Constantine formed the Western and Eastern Roman Empires-naming the latter the Byzantine Empire-he rebuilt the ancient city of Byzantium in 330AD,renamed it Constantinople after himself and declared it the capital.It remained so for over a thousand years,untill Sultan Mehmet 2 captured it in 1453,made it the capital of his Ottoman Turkish Empire and named it Istanbul-City of Islam.Hope this can be some help to u

14.       longinotti1
1090 posts
 05 Apr 2007 Thu 08:56 am

OK, many answers.

When the native speakers say: "İstanbul". I like how it sounds.

15.       bliss
900 posts
 05 Apr 2007 Thu 09:48 am

Istanbul -- formerly Constantinople, and once ancient Byzantium, Turkish İstanbul.
The name Byzantium may derive from that of Byzas, who, according to legend, was leader of the Greeks from the city of Megara who captured the peninsula from pastoral Thracian tribes and built the city about 657 BC. In 196 BC, having razed the town for opposing him in a civil war, the Roman emperor Septimus Severus rebuilt it, naming it Augusta Antonina in honour of his son. In AD 330, when Constantine the Great dedicated the city as his capital, he called it New Rome. The coinage, neverthless, continued to be stamped Byzantium until he ordered the substitution of Constantinopolis. In the 13th century Arabs used the appelation Istinpolin, a "name" they heard Byzntines use -- eis ten polin -- which in reality, was a Greek phrase that meant "in the city". Through a series of speech permutations over a span of centuries, this name became Istanbul. Until the Turkish Post Office officially changed the name in 1926, however, the city continued to bear the millenary name of Constantinople.

BRITANNICA

16.       otto-man
20 posts
 05 Apr 2007 Thu 09:57 am


i domt wanna disheaert no one..but it is a useless discussion..just come to see istanbul and enjoy its beauty..

they might be giants= Istanbul is not constantinople
lyrics...


Istanbul was Constantinople
Now it's Istanbul, not Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Now it's Turkish delight on a moonlit night

Every gal in Constantinople
Lives in Istanbul, not Constantinople
So if you've a date in Constantinople
She'll be waiting in Istanbul

Even old New York was once New Amsterdam
Why they changed it I can't say
People just liked it better that way

So take me back to Constantinople
No, you can't go back to Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Why did Constantinople get the works
That's nobody's business but the Turks

Istanbul (Istanbul)
Istanbul (Istanbul)

Even old New York was once New Amsterdam
Why they changed it I can't say
People just liked it better that way

Istanbul was Constantinople
Now it's Istanbul, not Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Why did Constantinople get the works
That's nobody's business but the Turks

So take me back to Constantinople
No, you can't go back to Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Why did Constantinople get the works
That's nobody's business but the Turks

Istanbul

17.       ceviz
51 posts
 07 Apr 2007 Sat 10:44 am

Where ia this lyrics from? I remeber I first read it in Elif şafak's Baba ve Piç. But I wouldn't think that is is so well-known.

18.       lady in red
6947 posts
 07 Apr 2007 Sat 12:42 pm

Quoting ceviz:

Where ia this lyrics from? I remeber I first read it in Elif şafak's Baba ve Piç. But I wouldn't think that is is so well-known.



Try this link for an explanation:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Istanbul_(Not_Constantinople)

(and sorry for posting 4 times - not sure what happened!)

19.       otto-man
20 posts
 07 Apr 2007 Sat 01:33 pm

oh this is not fair liir..r u trying to get points from empty posts..i will report you to the admin

20.       Trudy
7887 posts
 07 Apr 2007 Sat 01:39 pm

Quoting otto-man:

oh this is not fair liir..r u trying to get points from empty posts..i will report you to the admin



lol

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