Royally Named Trivia Quiz

Answer: Philippines

Located in the Pacific Ocean, the Philippines consists of over 7,000 different islands. There is no agreed historical name that covers the entire group of islands that make up the present day country, pre-dating European colonization. In the 16th century, Spanish explorer, Ruy López de Villalobos christened the islands as "Las Islas Filipinas" (translated to the "islands of Philip") after Prince Philip, who later went on to become King Philip II.

At the time, this name was only for the islands of Leyte and Samar. Eventually it encompassed all the islands in the region under Spanish possession. Spanish colonization of these islands continued till the late 19th century when they were ceded to the US after Spain lost the Spanish-American War. It would be almost another half century before the country became fully independent.

Answer: Victoria

Victoria is one of two Australian states named after Queen Victoria, the other being Queensland. It was separated from New South Wales and established as a colony by itself in 1851. Being a British colony, it was named after the then reigning monarch, Queen Victoria. Literally days after its creation, gold was discovered at two separate sites within the state, triggering one of the largest gold rushes across the world and resulting in an influx of new immigrants.

Queen Victoria having such a long reign, there are several places across the world named after her. These include the capital of Canada's British Columbia province, a major waterfalls and lake in Africa, an Australian desert, and mountains in New Zealand and Myanmar.

Answer: Georgetown

Georgetown is the capital and largest city of Guyana. Though Guyana is located on the mainland of South America, culturally it is considered to have closer ties with the Caribbean. Guyana was originally colonized by the Dutch before passing to the French and later falling under British control in the 18th century.

Whilst the country was a British colony, the city was renamed Georgetown in honour of King George III.

Answer: Yekaterinburg

Yekaterinburg is the fourth largest city in Russia and located near the boundary between the Asian and European continents. It was founded in the 18th century when it served as a gateway to Siberia making it an important economic centre. The city was named after Catherine I, who was then the wife of the Russian Tsar Peter the Great.

After his death, she ruled in her own right as Empress until she died.

Answer: Mauritius

Mauritius is an island nation located in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Africa. It is famed for its beaches and for being the home of the extinct dodo bird. The Portuguese were the first European explorers to discover these islands in the early 16th century. However, they were named Mauritius by the Dutch in the late 16th century. The islands were named in honour of Maurice, Prince of Orange. At the time, he was the stadtholder (similar to a duke) of most Dutch provinces. When his half-brother died in 1618, he assumed the title of Prince of Orange.

Mauritius later passed into the hands of the French when it was known as Isle de France. The British acquired the islands from the French after the Napoleonic Wars and the island reverted to its former name of Mauritius. It became fully independent only in 1968.

Answer: Virginia

Queen Elizabeth I was nicknamed the "Virgin Queen" since she never married. The US states of Virginia and West Virginia are named after her. The colony of Virginia was the first permanent English settlement in North America. Virginia was the 10th state to be admitted into the Union and is nicknamed "Old Dominion".

Other US states named after members of the English royal family are Georgia (King George I), Maryland (Henrietta Maria of France, wife of Charles I), and North and South Carolina (King Charles I).

Answer: Adelaide

Nicknamed the "City of Churches", Adelaide is the capital of the Australian state of South Australia. The city was founded in 1836 to be the capital of the then only freely settled English colony in Australia, as opposed to other cities that were first created as penal colonies. The city was named after Queen Adelaide, who was the Queen Consort to King William IV.

Answer: Alexandria

Alexandria is a major economic centre and the second largest city of Egypt. It was founded circa. 331 BC by Alexander the Great after whom it was named. Alexandria was one of the largest and most important cities of the Ancient World. It was home to a Great Library, believed to be the largest in the ancient world, and the Lighthouse of Alexandria, which was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Answer: Alberta

Located in the western part of Canada, Alberta is one of the country's three Prairie Provinces, along with Manitoba and Saskatchewan. It is one of only two landlocked provinces in Canada. Alberta attracts a fair share of tourists due to beautiful natural attractions like the Rocky Mountains, Banff National Park, and well known lakes like Lake Louise and Moraine Lake.

Alberta was named after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, daughter of Queen Victoria. The princess was also the wife of the Governor General of Canada. The aforementioned Lake Louise was named after her too.

Prince Edward Island is another Canadian province that would fit the theme of this quiz. It was named after Prince Edward, father of Queen Victoria.

Answer: Louisiana

The region of the present day US state of Louisiana was previously a French colony. French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle named it Louisiana when he claimed the territory for France. It was named after Louis XIV, King of France. The name stayed even after the US acquired the territory from France in 1803.