List of Dominican Republic Provinces By Etymology

This article provides a collection of the etymologies of the names of the provinces of the Dominican Republic.

State name Language of origin Source word Meaning and notes
Azua Spanish Montaña, which can mean either mountainous or hard to tame
Baoruco Taino The name for the Yaque del Sur River
Barahona Spanish Bara Hona The theory affirms that the name comes him for that of current, Bahía Honda now called Bahía de Neiba.
Dajabón French, Taino One of them attributes it to a fish that existed in the river Massacre, called Dajao, which meant river in local Taino, which, united to the French word "bonne" that signifies good, would have produced the name.
Distrito Nacional Spanish It literally means National District. This district is where the capital is located.
Duarte Spanish named for Juan Pablo Duarte, 19th-century revolutionary and one of the country's founding fathers.
Elías Piña Spanish hero of the wars of independence
El Seibo Spanish The name of Seibo, itself due to a tribal leader of race Taino, that was called Seebo.
This Seebo was a species of Sub-Cacique, subject to the dispositions of the Overlord of Higuey: Cayacocha.
Espaillat Spanish named for Ulises Francisco Espaillat (1823–1878), 19th-century author and governor of the Province
Hato Mayor Spanish greater cattle-raising district
Hermanas Mirabal Spanish named for the Mirabal Sisters (Patria, Minerva, and María Teresa), martyred for their opposition to Rafael Trujillo.
Independencia Spanish Literally means Independence, named after multiple wars for independence from Haiti in 1844.
La Altagracia Spanish Alta Gracia the brothers Alonso and Antonio de Trejo arrived from Spain in the early 16th century with a painting of
Our Lady of La Altagracia. Miracles are attributed to it. Means upper grace
La Romana Arabic Origin of the name of La Romana, which affirms that the name comes from the Arabic Language
Al-Rümân that signifies the Fields that is use for Cropping.
La Vega Spanish named after the star of Vega which was seen in the founding night of the location.
María Trinidad Sánchez Spanish named after Juan Pablo Duarte's aunt and a female soldier in the wars of independence
Monseñor Nouel Spanish named for a president of the republic, Monseñor Dr. Adolfo Alejandro Nouel y Bobadilla
Monte Cristi Spanish The name of Monte Cristi associates to the days in which Christopher Columbus explored those lands.
Friday, 4 January 1493 when the discoverer sailed next to the coasts,
I remain deeply touched with the visual impression that abandonment in him the slender colony of Nose.
He seemed so much to Golgotha where he died crucified the divine one Galilee that exclaimed ¡Mount of Christ!
Monte Plata Spanish Named after the people who migrated to the location that came
from Monte Cristi and Puerto Plata. Literally means silver mountain.
Pedernales Spanish Literally means in Spanish "flints", which is located in the river of Pedernales.
Peravia Spanish Name derives from a corruption of the Spanish surname Pravia,
who carried the lady Ana de Pravia, daughter of Francisco Ruiz de Pravia and Beatriz de la Rocha, who lived on a ranch that existed at the beginning of colonial period in the location.
Puerto Plata Spanish Puerto Plata Literally means silver port. Named after all the silver that was found in the location by the settlers.
Samaná Taino Named after what the Taino tribe called the location.
Sánchez Ramírez Spanish named for Brigadier Juan Sánchez Ramírez, hero of the battle of Palo Incado (1808).
San Cristóbal Spanish named after Christopher Columbus. Immortalized as saint in the region in the colonial period. Literally Saint Christopher.
San José de Ocoa Spanish This province takes its name of the river Ocoa that crosses the
province of north to south, passing for the capital city.
San Juan Spanish, Taino named after San Juan Bautista. It is the first San Juan of the Americas.
Nicolas de Ovando named it San Juan de la Maguana. Maguana after the caciquedom wherein the province is located.
San Pedro de Macorís Taino Macorís is a native word in the colonial period for "speaker of a foreign language".
The land reminded Christopher Columbus of San Pedro de Alcántara.
Santiago Spanish Its name comes from the name of the city that has always been its capital: Santiago de los Caballeros.
Besides, is the first one Santiago of America, that is to say, first city with that name. Named after the same
geographic of Santiago de Compostela.
Santiago Rodríguez Spanish named for one of the founders of the city (founded in 1844)
Santo Domingo Spanish Santo Domingo named after the national capital which the province separated from. Literally means Holy Sunday.
Valverde Spanish named for General José Desiderio Valverde, 19th-century governor

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