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From Sin City to Lion City, nicknames for world cities and how they were coined

Whether it be Paris, the City of Love, or Chicago, the Windy City, nicknames for places create a sense of civic identity and sometimes confer global recognition

Some aliases are based on a city’s weather or topography, while others are derived from language. In some cases, the nicknames are dreamed up by tourist boards

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City nicknames are common the world over, including Johannesburg, South Africa, which is dubbed City of Gold, from the Zulu word Egoli. Photo: Getty images

Published: 12:45pm, 9 Jul 2022Updated: 6:22pm, 15 Jul 2022

City nicknames are coined in a number of ways. Some are dreamed up by PR companies or tourist boards as part of a branding exercise, others are translations from local languages, and a few have uncertain or disputed origins.

Here is a collection of nicknames, aliases and epithets that have helped create a sense of civic identity, global recognition and, in some cases, economic benefits.

Beginning with the “no explanation needed” category, Chicago is the Windy City and City of Angels is a rough translation of Los Angeles. Ushuaia, in Argentina, is the planet’s southernmost settlement and is predictably nicknamed the End of the World.

The City of Seven Hills and the City of Four Rivers tell us much about the topography of Lisbon, in Portugal, and Turin, Italy, respectively. Rome was also built on seven hills (although not in one day) but is usually called the Eternal City – the Romans believed their empire would flourish forever.

Canada’s Vancouver is jokingly known as Rain City and Raincouver – meteorological monikers that certainly weren’t tourist office creations.

Still on the subject of weather (and eternity), a number of resorts and tourist hotspots go with the “not too hot; not too cold” City of Eternal Spring slogan. These are often hill towns in tropical countries or regions that, thanks to their altitude, offer visitors respite from the heat of the lowlands.