What's in a Name? (Part 2) Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Mona Lisa

The official title of what is possibly the world's most famous painting is "Portrait of Lisa Gherardini, wife of Francesco del Giocondo." The title Mona Lisa originates from a biography of Michelangelo written about 30 years after his death in which the author referred to Lisa del Giocondo as 'ma donna', meaning the lady, which turned into madonna, and its contraction 'mona.' Thus we get Mona Lisa.

Answer: A poem by Chicago native Carl Sandburg

The title of the poem is "Chicago" and begins with these phrases: 'Hog Butcher for the World, Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat, Player with Railroads and the Nation's Freight Handler; Stormy, husky, brawling, City of the Big Shoulders.'

Answer: Beautiful Country

There are various explanations as to the origin of Mei Guo and its literal translation 'beautiful country' as the name for America.

According to the ChineseForum.com the origin of Mei Guo is the shortened version of the full Chinese name for America which is 'Mei Li Jian He Zhong Guo' (the United States of America). Shortening it to Mei Guo is akin to the English abbreviation 'The US.' 'Mei' is a Chinese word that means beautiful and 'guo' is country or land.

Similarly, Germany's official Chinese name, De Yi Zhi Lian Bang Gong He Guo, is truncated to De Guo, Ying Ge Lan (England) is shortened to Ying Guo and France (Fa Lan Xi) is more commonly known as Fa Guo.

Answer: Sydney Harbour Bridge

Construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge was completed in 1932. It consists of 8 lanes of traffic lanes, two rail lines and pedestrian walkways and bicycle way. Beginning in 1998 the bridge's framework is used to create a special 'Bridge Effect' on New Year's Eve, such a smiley face, intertwined hearts and a disco ball.

The "Crocodile Dundee" actor Paul Hogan once worked on the bridge's painting crew.

Answer: The Bank of England

There are a couple of theories as to how the Bank of England acquired the name "The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street." From the Bank's own website is this explanation: "the nickname first appeared in print as the caption "Political Ravishment or The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street in danger" to a cartoon published in 1797 by James Gillray. It depicts William Pitt the Younger, the Prime Minister of the day, pretending to woo the Bank, which is personified by an elderly lady wearing a dress of £1 notes seated on a chest of gold." (http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/education/museum/walkthrough)

Another theory cites the ghost of one Sarah Whitehead as the old lady in question. In 1811 Whitehead's brother Philip, an angry former Bank of England employee, was fired for forgery and was later executed. Sarah is said to have become mentally unstable following Philip's grisly death and went to the Bank daily for the next 25 years asking to speak with her brother. She was buried in the nearby churchyard that later, ironically, became the Bank's garden. Her 'ghost' is featured in tours conducted by the London Ghost Tour company.

Answer: Pol Pot

Pol Pot was only one of the many names Sar went by. He was also called Hay, Pouk, 87, 99, Phem, Grand Uncle, Elder Brother and First Brother. In a 2005 article in the Indian Express by journalist Ashok Malik, Pol Pot was quoted as saying "It is good to change your name. The more often you change your name the better. It confuses the enemy."

Ho Chi Minh was Prime Minister and President of North Vietnam from 1946-1969. Kim Il-Sung and Syngman Rhee were the leaders of North and South Korea, respectively, during the Korean War conflict of the 1950s.

Answer: Paul McCartney

Also called "Macker" in Ireland, Macca is a common British nickname for a person whose last name starts with Mc or Mac. In Gaelic Mc and Mac are the prefixes that imply son of. In addition to Sir Paul, other celebrities who have been cited as Macca are singer Amy McDonald and Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Answer: Island Monkeys

One explanation as to the origin of 'Inselaffen' comes from the British paper The Independent. An article from the 28 October 2006 edition states that "Inselaffen is an enduring though still little used term (of derision for the English) especially among the young which translates as 'island ape' - a reference to the alleged backwardness of the occupants of the British Isles.

Answer: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

"The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" was one of Clint Eastwood's famous "spaghetti westerns", so named because they were produced and directed by Italians. Eastwood made three films with Italian director Sergio Leone: A Fistful of Dollars (1964), For a Few Dollars More (1965) and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966).

Answer: Euphrates

"Eu" is the Greek prefix meaning good or well. Prata is a transliteration of what is thought to be the original name of the river now known as the Euphrates.