Names I was delighted that I shared my first name with Born Free author Joy Adamson till I discovered she was female. This is a quiz about names.

1 Which group of islands off the coast of Africa got their name from the number of wild dogs reputed to be there?

2 A famed doctor and poet, this gentleman also popularised the terms ‘Boston Brahmin’ and ‘anaesthesia.’ However, his name is most remembered because of a tribute paid to him by another medical man in his works of fiction. Identify this 19th century hero.

3 Internationally, which is the most popular fabric to derive its name from the city of Nimes?

4 The Büyük Menderes is a river which rises in west central Turkey near Dinar before winding its way to the Aegean sea. What was its ancient name, which has given a word to the English language?

5 Which English name for a type of house derives from a Gujarati word meaning an abode built in the style of a Bengali?

6 Which Czech-born entrepreneur has towns named after him in places from India to Canada to Pakistan and a museum named after him in Toronto? I promise you that you have heard of him.

7 Momentous things have happened at this retreat which was originally named Shangri La and later named by a head of State after his three-year-old grandson. Name the place, well known in international diplomacy?

8 This capital city was originally named after a region in the Netherlands. Its current name derives from a Sanskrit word which roughly translates as ‘victorious deed’. Identify this city.

9 In 1699, which 11-year-old did the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb regard a quarter better than all of his other vassals? The descendants of that 11-year-old continued to use the title.

10 Which well-known media personality and her sister, also a respected wildlife journalist, got their names from a popular song from the 1960 film Parakh ?

Answers

1. The Canary Islands, from canines. The birds got their name from the island!

2. Oliver Wendell Holmes. The fictional connect is,

I trust, elementary.

3. Denim, derived from Serge De Nimes.

4. Meander, the river has numerous twists and turns.

5. Bungalow from Bengalese.

6. Thomas Bata, the sultan of shoemakers.

7. Camp David. Begin and Sadat won a Nobel Peace prize for their work together in that retreat.

8. Djakarta, originally Batavia.

9. Sawai Jai Singh. A quarter better than the other rulers.

10. Barkha Dutt and Bahar Dutt, the song goes

O sajna, barkha bahar aayi .

Joy Bhattacharjya is a quiz master, Director - Kolkata Knight Riders and author of Junior Premier League — The First XI

Follow Joy on Twitter >@joybhattacharj

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