MEDINA (Ar.),
a city or the metropolis; e.g. Medina, in Arabia, called by the Arabs Medinat-al-Nabi (the city of the prophet). In Spain: Medina-de-las-torres (the city of the towers); Medina-del-campo (of the plain); Medina-delpomar (of the apple-orchard); Medina-del-rio-seco (of the dry river-bed); Medina-Sidonia (of the Sidonians). This city was so named by the Moors, because they believed it to have been built on the site of the Phœnician city Asidur.
MEER, MERE (Teut.),
a lake, sea, or marsh; e.g. Blakemere (the black lake, blaec), in Hereford; Great Marlow or Merelow (the hill by the marsh); Cranmere (the crane’s lake or marsh); Winandermere, so called, according to Camden, from the winding of its shores; Wittleseamere, Buttermere, and Ellsmere, probably from personal names; Meerfeld, Meerhof, Meerholz, and Meerhout (the field, court, and wood near the lake or marsh), in Holland. But mere, in place-names, is said sometimes to mean a boundary—thus Merse, the other name for Berwickshire, may mean either the marshy land or the boundary county between England and Scotland. Closely connected with meer (a lake) are the words in the Celtic as well as in the Teutonic languages, denoting marshy lands, i.e. lands that have lain under water, and are still partially submerged—such as merse, A.S.; morast, Ger.; morfa, Welsh; marish, Gadhelic; marsk, Scand.; and marais, Fr. Many places in Great Britain and the Continent derive their names from these words, thus—the Maros or Marosh; and the Morava (marshy rivers); Moravia (the district of the marshy river); Morast, in Sweden (the town on the marsh); Merton, in Berwickshire (the town on the marsh); Morebattle, in Roxburghshire, anc. Mereboda (the dwelling on the marsh); Ostermarsh (east marsh), in Holland; Marengo (the marshy field), in Italy; Les Moeres (the marshes), in Flanders; Marchienne, Marchienes, Maresché, Maresches, Marest, etc., in France; Marcienisi, in Italy (marshy localities). The River Mersey may come from this word, or it may mean the border river between England and Wales.
MENIL, MESNIL (Fr.),
from Mansionile, the dim. of mansus; e.g. Grandmenil (the great dwelling or hamlet); Le Menil-la-comtesse (the manor of the countess); Mesnil-église (the church hamlet); Mesnil-Guillaume, Mesnil-Gilbert, Mesnil-Jourdan, named from the proprietors; Mesnil-sur-l’Estrée (the hamlet on the Roman road called Strata Estrée); Les Menils, Menillot, etc., in France.
MENZIL (Ar.),
a village; e.g. Miselmeri, corrupt. from Menzil-el-Emir (the emir’s village); Mezojuso, from Menzil-Yusuf (the village of Joseph).
MEON (Cel.),
MIO (Scand.),
little, cognate with the Lat. minor; e.g. the Rivers Minnow and Mynwy, in Wales; the Mincio, in Italy; the Minho, in Portugal; Minorca (the less), in opposition to Majorca (the greater island); Miosen (the little sea or lake), in Norway.