----- Original Message ----- From: Ruthi - rsheffer@xxxxxxxxx Subject: Etymology of the name Spain Phoenician/Punic - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenician_languages - אי שפנים ʾÎ-šəpānîm "isle of hyraxes" - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyrax. The Phoenician - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenicia - settlers found hares - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hare - in abundance, and mistook them for hyraxes of Africa - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Africa ; thus they named the land in their Canaanite dialect - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canaanite_languages. The Latin - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin - speaking Romans - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome - adapted the name as Hispania - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hispania. The Latin name was altered among the Romance languages - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_languages , and entered English - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_language - from Norman French - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_language - Spagne. ----------------------------------------------- ** Etni homepage - http://www.etni.org or - http://www.etni.org.il ** ** for help - ask@xxxxxxxx ** ** to post to this list - etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx ** -----------------------------------------------