Name of the Czech Republic - wikipedia Name of the Czech Republic The Czech Republic 's official formal and short names at the United Nations are Česká republika and Česko in Czech, and the Czech Republic and Czechia in English. All these names derive from the name of the Czechs, the West Slavic ethnic group native to the Czech lands. Czechia ( / ˈtʃɛkiə / ), the official English short name specified by the Czech government, is used by many international organisations and attested as early as 1841. However, most English speakers use ( the ) Czech Republic in all contexts. Other languages generally have greater official use of a short form analogous to Česko or Czechia ( such as French ( la ) Tchéquie or Korean 체코 / Cheko ) although forms equivalent to `` Czech Republic '' are not uncommon. The Czech name Čechy is from the same root but means Bohemia, the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech lands and the modern Czech Republic. The name Bohemia is an exonym derived from the Boii, a Celtic tribe inhabiting the area before the early Slavs arrived. The Lands of the Bohemian Crown ( 1348 -- 1918 ) were part of the Holy Roman Empire ; often called `` the Czech lands '', they sometimes extended further, to all of Silesia, Lusatia, and various smaller territories. The Czech adjective český means both `` Czech '' and `` Bohemian ''. The Czech Republic 's official formal and short names in Czech were decided at its creation after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in the so - called `` Velvet Divorce '' of 1993. Contents 1 Czech - language name 2 English - language name 2.1 Adoption of Czechia 3 Other languages 3.1 German 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Czech - language name The country is named after the Czechs ( Czech : Čechové ), a Slavic tribe residing in central Bohemia that subdued the surrounding tribes in the late 9th century and created the Czech / Bohemian state. The origin of the name of the tribe itself is unknown. According to legend, it comes from their leader Čech, who brought them to Bohemia. Research regards Čech as a derivative of the root čel - ( member of the people, kinsman ). Several variants of the name have been used over the centuries, due to the evolution of the Czech language. The digraph `` cž '' was used from the time of the 16th - century Bible of Kralice until the reform of 1842, being eventually replaced by `` č '' ( changing Cžechy to Čechy ). In the late 19th century the suffix for the names of countries changed from - y to - sko ( e.g. Rakousy - Rakousko for Austria, Uhry - Uhersko for Hungary ). While the notion of Česko appears for the first time in 1704, it only came into official use in 1918 as the first part of the name of the newly independent Czechoslovakia ( Česko - Slovensko or Československo ). Within that state, the Czech Socialist Republic ( Česká socialistická republika, ČSR ) was created on 1 January 1969. On 6 March 1990 the Czech Socialist Republic was renamed the Czech Republic ( Česká republika, ČR ). When Czechoslovakia broke up in 1993, the Czech part of the name was intended to serve as the name of the Czech state. The decision started a dispute as many perceived the `` new '' word Česko, which before had been only rarely used alone, as harsh sounding or as a remnant of Československo. The older term Čechy was rejected by many because it was primarily associated with Bohemia proper and to use it for the whole country was seen as inappropriate. This feeling was especially prominent among the inhabitants of Moravia. The use of the word `` Česko '' within the country itself has increased in recent years. During the 1990s, `` Česko '' was rarely used and viewed as controversial : some Czech politicians and public figures ( e.g. media magnate Vladimír Železný ) expressed concern about the non-use of Česko and Czechia ; on the other side, individuals such as president Václav Havel and minister Alexandr Vondra have strongly opposed using these forms. In 1997, the Civic initiative Czechia was formed by linguists and geographers in Brno to promote the use of Czechia. The following year, a conference of professionals aimed at encouraging the use of the name was held at Charles University in Prague. The Czech Senate held a session on the issue in 2004. By 2018, the short name Česko was used by Czech public television 5.4 times more often than the political name Česká republika in news coverage. English - language name The historical English name of the country is Bohemia. This name derives from the Celtic tribe of Boii, which inhabited the area from the 4th century BC. Boiohaemum, as it was originally known in Latin, comes from the Germanic `` Boi - haima, '' meaning `` home of the Boii. '' The name survived all the following migrations affecting the area, including the arrival of the Slavs and the creation of the Czech state. In the 9th century, the country became officially known as the Duchy of Bohemia, changing to the Kingdom of Bohemia in the 11th century, and the Crown of Bohemia in the 14th century. A number of other names for the country have been used, including Lands of the Bohemian Crown, Czech / Bohemian lands, Bohemian Crown, the lands of the Crown of Saint Wenceslas and others. The Bohemian state included the three historical lands : Bohemia ( Čechy ) in narrower meaning, Moravia ( Morava ) and Silesia ( Slezsko ). From the 14th century until 1635 it also included Upper and Lower Lusatia. The higher hierarchical status of the Bohemian region led to that name being used for the larger country, with the people and language of this country being commonly referred to as Bohemian. The current English ethnonym Czech comes from the Polish ethnonym associated with the area, which ultimately comes from the Czech word Čech. The words `` Czechian '', `` Czechish '', `` Czechic '' and later `` Czech '' ( using antiquated Czech spelling ) have been appearing in English - language texts since the 17th century. During the 19th century national revival, the word `` Czech '' had also been used to distinguish between the Czech and German speaking peoples living in the country. The term `` Czechia '' is attested as early as 1569 in Latin and 1841 in English ( Poselkynie starych Przjbiehuw Czeskych -- Messenger of the old Fates of Czechia ). Other early uses occurred in 1856 and in an 1866 report on the Austro - Prussian War. Shortly before the disintegration of the Austro - Hungarian empire and the proclamation of the new Republic of Czechoslovakia in 1918, there were proposals to use the traditional name Bohemia for the newly formed state. Out of consideration for Slovak national aspiration however, the new names `` Czecho - Slovakia '' and later `` Czechoslovakia '' were coined and adopted instead. After the establishment of Czechoslovakia, the name Czechia appeared in English, alongside the official name, as a reference to all the Czech lands and as a differentiation between the Czech and Slovak parts of the state. It was used at least as early as 4 January 1925 ; appearing in the article `` Literary History of the Czechs '', published by The New York Times. The name was used in the Anglophone press before the German occupation of the Czech lands in 1939. Adoption of Czechia Pilsner Urquell bottle label ( 1 ), pack of cans ( 2 ) and brewery logo ( 3 ) showing the location as `` Czechia ''. In accordance with Resolution No. 4 I. of the UN conference on the standardization of geographic names ( Geneva 1967 ) and Resolution No. 2 III. of the UN conference on the standardization of geographic names ( Athens 1977 ), the Terminological Committee of the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping, and Cadaster in cooperation with the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs standardized Czechia as the English translation of Česko in early 1993. Based on this standardization, the Czech Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Education, Youth and Sports recommended the use of the name Czechia. Other names suggested in the 1990s included Czechomoravia or Czechlands. However, by 2000 a short name had still not been fully adopted by Czech authorities. At that time, the British secretary for press and politics, Giles Portman, showed a willingness to accept the name Czechia. Portman said in 2000, `` Czechs still use the name Česká Republika rather than Česko, and the English equivalent, the Czech Republic, rather than Czechia. Were that pattern to change, we would have no problem at all with adapting accordingly. But we feel that the initiative for that change must come from the Czech side and not from us. '' In 2013, Czech president Miloš Zeman recommended the wider official use of Czechia, and on 14 April 2016, the country 's political leadership agreed to make Czechia the official short name. The new name was approved by the Czech cabinet on 2 May 2016 and was published in the United Nations UNTERM and UNGEGN country name databases on 5 July 2016. In September 2016, the British Permanent Committee on Geographical Names ( PCGN ), which advises the British government on policies and procedures for the proper writing of geographical names for places outside Britain, recommended the use of Czechia and added it as the sole form of the country name to PCGN 's list of country names. On 26 September 2016, the International Organization for Standardization included the short name Czechia in the official ISO 3166 country codes list. Despite this, in October 2016, the Guardian reported that the new name is hardly in use, even on the official Czech government websites. On 22 May 2017, a Forbes contributor released an opinion blog stating that `` Czechia has won the Czech Republic name debate '' and that `` If you 're feeling petulant, it 's the Czech Republic. If you want to be cool, it 's Czechia '' in a reference to the significant progress that has been made for the short name in the recent year. On 1 June 2017, the geographical department of the Faculty of Sciences of Charles University in Prague organized a special conference to assess how successful the process of adopting the name Czechia had been. More adoptions followed in 2017. Google replaced the Czech Republic with Czechia on Google Maps on 18 January. As of 20 June 2017, the CIA World Factbook and U.S. State Department both use Czechia as the short name of the country. Also in June 2017, the English Style Guide and Country Compendium of the European Commission introduced Czechia for optional use with the recommendation that it be used in informal contexts where it is not necessary to use the full political name, such as at sports events, in advertising etc. The UN 's adoption of Czechia has spread to its specialized agencies, such as UNESCO, the World Health Organization and UNICEF. Škoda Auto, the largest Czech automobile manufacturer, began using Czechia in their advertisements in 2017. The Pilsner Urquell brewery began using Czechia on bottles, cans and on the brewery logo in the summer of 2017. Apple Inc. began using Czechia in system settings with iOS 11. The Common Locale Data Repository, the largest and most extensive standard repository of locale data, uses Czechia as the primary name for the country. The Oxford Atlas of the World began using `` Czechia '' with its 2017 edition. In November 2017, Google began using `` Czechia '' in its Google Earth database. News media in the United Kingdom and Ireland began using Czechia in late 2017 and early 2018, with The Independent,, The Times, and the Daily Mail changing in December 2017, the Financial Times in January 2018, and The Guardian and The Irish Times in February 2018. The increase in usage of Czechia has been noted both within the country and abroad. By March 2018, usage had spread to the Canadian newspaper the Ottawa Citizen.. In May 2018 the Edmonton Journal and the Buffalo News started to use Czechia in their reports from the 2018 IIHF World Championship Division I. Other languages The equivalent of the Czech short form `` Česko '' is in routine use by most other languages. In a few cases ( for example Polish Czechy, Croatian Češka and Serbian Чешка / Češka ) this form had historically been used for Bohemia. Other languages adopted new short - forms such as تشيكيا ( Tšīk ( i ) yā ) in Arabic. In most cases, the new form has more or less completely replaced the formal name for most usages. However, usage in Spanish and French remains mixed, with the forms Chequia and Tchéquie being used alongside the longer, formal name. German In German, the term applicable to the Czech part of Czechoslovakia used to be Tschechei ( comparable to Slowakei, the German name for Slovakia ). However, the usage of that term began to have negative connotations in connection with the National Socialists, who used the term Rest - Tschechei ( remaining Czechia ) when they annexed the western parts of Czechoslovakia in early 1939. Since the restoration of Czechoslovakia and after the Second World War, the term Tschechien is in use instead -- as suggested by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as German and Austrian linguists. Tschechien is a term from the 19th Century that was originally used for the Czech lands that were part of Austria - Hungary. The Federal Foreign Office uses Tschechien on its official list of countries. See also Bohemian Hyphen War References Jump up ^ `` the Czech Republic ''. The United Nations Terminology Database. Retrieved 2 September 2016. Jump up ^ Fallows, James. 2016. A Scandal in Czechia. The Atlantic ( April 22 ). Jump up ^ Bardsley, Daniel ( October 16, 2013 ). `` Czech out the proposed name ''. The Prague Post. ^ Jump up to : Pavel Boháč, Jaroslav Kolář ( 1993 ) : Jména států a jejich územních částí = Names of states and their territorial parts. Český úřad zeměměřický a katastrální, Praha. ^ Jump up to : Rose, Hugh James ; Rose, Henry John ; Wright, Thomas ( 1 January 1841 ). `` A New General Biographical Dictionary Projected and Partly Arranged ''. Fellowes. Retrieved 10 May 2017 -- via Google Books. ^ Jump up to : info@aion.cz, AION CS -. `` 53 / 1990 Sb. Ústavní zákon České národní rady o změně názvu České socialistické republiky ''. Zákony pro lidi. Retrieved 10 May 2017. ^ Jump up to : UNGEGN World Geographical Names Jump up ^ `` Ústava České republiky ''. www.psp.cz. Retrieved 10 May 2017. ^ Jump up to : naserec@ujc.cas.cz, redakce Naše řeč, ÚJČ AV ČR, v.v.i. -. `` Naše řeč -- Česko = Česká socialistická republika ''. nase-rec.ujc.cas.cz. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ Česko ( archivovaná verze z 9. března 2013 ), Na co se nás často ptáte, Jazyková poradna, Ústav pro jazyk český AV ČR, Středisko společných činností AV ČR, nedatováno Jump up ^ Česko, heslo v Internetové jazykové příručce, 2008 -- 2014 Ústav pro jazyk český AV ČR, naposledy změněno 8. ledna 2012 Jump up ^ Spal, Jaromír ( 1953 ). `` Původ jména Čech '' ( Origin of the name Čech ). Naše řeč ( Our Speech ) ( in Czech ). The Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. 36 ( 9 - 10 ) : 263 -- 267. Retrieved 2012 - 10 - 11. Jump up ^ `` Ústava 1968 ''. www.psp.cz. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ Looking for a name -- Radio Prague Radio.cz ( 2011 - 01 - 21 ). Retrieved on 2011 - 01 - 27. Jump up ^ According to the official Czech list of country names ( Jména států a jejich územních částí. Český úřad zeměměřický a katastralní, Praha 2009, ISBN 978 - 80 - 86918 - 57 - 0 ) : Česko je kodifikovaný jednoslovný název státu, který se podle ústavy oficiálně nazývá Česká republika ( `` Česko is a standardized one - word name of the state, which is officially named Česká republika according to its constitution '' ) Jump up ^ `` Official pages ''. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ `` Senát PČR : Náhled dokumentu ''. www.senat.cz. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ `` Senát PČR : Náhled dokumentu ''. www.senat.cz. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ http://www.ceskatelevize.cz/hledani/?q= Česko&cx = 000499866030418304096 % 3Akbwsey4s4jw Jump up ^ http://www.ceskatelevize.cz/hledani/?q= Česká + republika&cx = 000499866030418304096 % 3Akbwsey4s4jw&cs = 000499866030418304096 % 3Akbwsey4s4jw ^ Jump up to : Šitler, Jiří ( July 1, 2017 ). `` Czechia si to bude muset protrpět ''. Lidové noviny ( in Czech ). Retrieved July 6, 2017. Jump up ^ see Moryson 1626 ; https://archive.org/stream/fynesmorysons04moryuoft/fynesmorysons04moryuoft_djvu.txt Jump up ^ `` Czech definition and meaning ''. Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Retrieved 19 November 2012. C19 : from Polish, from Czech Čech Jump up ^ `` Czech ''. American Heritage Dictionary. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Retrieved 24 January 2018. ( Polish, from Czech Čech. ) Jump up ^ `` Czech - Definition in English ''. Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University. Retrieved 11 April 2018. Origin Polish spelling of Czech Čech. Jump up ^ Notes and Queries. Oxford University Press. 1856. Jump up ^ `` LATEST FROM PRUSSIA. - ( From The Times ' own Correspondent. ) BERLIN, May, 23rd. - The Mercury ( Hobart ) - 21 Jul 1866 ''. Trove. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ Beneš, Edvard ( 1917 ). Bohemia 's case for independence. London : Allen & Unwin. ISBN 0 - 405 - 02734 - 6. Jump up ^ Munzar J., Drápela M.V. : Czechia = Bohemia + Moravia + Silesia ( Moravian Geographical Report. Brno : Ústav Geoniky, 1999. s. 58 - 61. Moravian Geographical Report, sv. 7, č. 2. ) ( 1 ), 1999 Jump up ^ `` New York Times : Literary history of Czechs ( Jan. 4, 1925 ) ''. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ `` Soviet Note to Germany ''. 20 March 1939. Retrieved 10 May 2017 -- via NYTimes.com. Jump up ^ `` RUSSIA BETRAYED BY FROST ''. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ `` Dr. Benes Broadcasts To His Countrymen - LONDON, March 15. - Barrier Miner ( Broken Hill, NSW : 1888 - 1954 ) - 16 Mar 1940 ''. Trove. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/search/pages/results/?state=&date1=1789&date2=1943&proxtext=Czechia&x=15&y=10&dateFilterType=yearRange&rows=20&searchType=basic Jump up ^ Names of States and their Territorial Parts, The Terminological Committee of the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadaster, Prague 1993. Jump up ^ Recommendation of Ministry of Foreign Affairs to Czech embassies from 1998 ( 2 ) and Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport from 1999 ( 3 ) Jump up ^ Rocks, David. 1998. After 5 Years, Czech Republic Still Searching for a Short Name. Chicago Tribune ( May 10 ), p. 4. Jump up ^ Horová E. : Record of Proceedings of the 7th Public Hearing of the Senate, May 11, 2004 ( Czech ) recording Portman 's letter from April 4, 2000 from the British embassy in Prague Jump up ^ `` What 's in a name ? Czech Republic mulls shock rebranding as Czechia ''. 11 October 2013. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ `` Vláda schválila doplnení jednoslovného názvu Cesko v cizích jazycích do databází OSN. '' Last modified May 5, 2016. http://www.mzv.cz/jnp/cz/udalosti_a_media/tiskove_zpravy/x_2016_05_02_vlada_schvalila_czechia.html. Jump up ^ `` http://unstats.un.org/unsd/geoinfo/geonames/ Jump up ^ https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/554812/Czechia_Information_Paper-Updated_September_2016.pdf Jump up ^ https://www.iso.org/obp/ui/#iso:code:3166:CZ Jump up ^ https://www.theguardian.com/weather/2016/apr/14/czech-republic-czechia-new-name.html The Guardian, April 14, 2016 Jump up ^ Tait, Robert ( 25 October 2016 ). `` ' Nobody calls it Czechia ' : Czech Republic 's new name fails to catch on ''. Retrieved 10 May 2017 -- via The Guardian. Jump up ^ Tapon, Francis. `` Czechia Has Won The Czech Republic Name Debate ''. Forbes. Retrieved 2017 - 05 - 29. Jump up ^ `` Czechia : mapping progress one year on -- Radio Prague ''. Retrieved 24 January 2018. Jump up ^ `` CIA World Factbook -- Czechia ''. Retrieved 20 June 2017. Jump up ^ `` Czechia ''. Retrieved 20 June 2017. Jump up ^ https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/whats_new_style_guide_en.pdf Jump up ^ http://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/ Jump up ^ http://www.who.int/countries/en/ Jump up ^ https://www.unicef.org/childsurvival/files/Data_newborn_births_and_life_expectancy.pdf Jump up ^ `` Visit Czechia -- ŠKODA Storyboard ''. ŠKODA Storyboard. Retrieved 24 January 2018. Jump up ^ `` CLDR -- Unicode Common Locale Data Repository ''. cldr.unicode.org. Jump up ^ https://global.oup.com/academic/product/atlas-of-the-world-9780190843625?cc=us&lang=en Jump up ^ `` Google Earth ''. earth.google.com. Retrieved 24 January 2018. Jump up ^ `` Britain is the most individualistic country in the EU ''. 19 December 2017. Retrieved 24 January 2018. Jump up ^ https://www.thetimes.co.uk/magazine/the-sunday-times-magazine/rod-liddles-quiz-which-side-are-you-on-in-britains-culture-war-lnt9dfxgm Jump up ^ https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/king-michael-of-romania-obituary-dhl2vhmcf Jump up ^ `` LoL : European Regional Leagues and European Cup replace EU CS ''. Retrieved 24 January 2018. Jump up ^ https://www.ft.com/content/ac130636-0263-11e8-9650-9c0ad2d7c5b5 Jump up ^ https://www.ft.com/content/5d326c8e-12f1-11e8-940e-08320fc2a277 Jump up ^ https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/feb/19/who-warns-over-measles-immunisation-rates-as-cases-rise-400-across-europe Jump up ^ https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/hse-confirms-15-cases-of-measles-this-year-with-35-probable-cases-under-investigation-1.3398593 Jump up ^ http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/canadas-civil-service-is-worlds-most-effective-uk-report Jump up ^ http://edmontonjournal.com/sports/hockey/nhl/cult-of-hockey/edmonton-oilers-at-the-worlds-connor-mcdavid-erupts-with-spectacular-hat-trick Jump up ^ http://buffalonews.com/2018/05/04/u-s-tops-canada-in-world-championship-opener-oreilly-scores/ Jump up ^ `` Zum Begriff `` Tschechei '' : Problematik und Sprachgebrauch ``. Czech Tourist ( Germany ). Retrieved 13 May 2017. Jump up ^ `` Tschechien ''. Auswärtiges Amt. Retrieved 2 August 2017. External links Look up Czech Republic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ( in Czech ) `` Open letter to the Czech Olympic Foundation, Czech Sports Union, politicians, business people, media, etc. '', National Geographic, 2001. ( in English ) `` Looking for a name '' by Daniela Lazarova, Radio Prague, May 13, 2004. ( in English ) `` Česko versus Czechy ? On the geographic name of the Czech Republic '' by Leoš Jeleček, paper presented at the 2nd Slovak - Czech - Polish Geographical Seminar, Bratislava, September 1 -- 5, 1999. ( in English ) `` From Bohemia to Czechia '' Jiří Šitler ( 12 July 2016 ) Radio Prague Name of Europe Sovereign states Albania Andorra Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Georgia Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Italy Kazakhstan Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia Malta Moldova Monaco Montenegro Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Romania Russia San Marino Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine United Kingdom States with limited recognition Abkhazia Artsakh Kosovo Northern Cyprus South Ossetia Transnistria Dependencies and other entities Åland Faroe Islands Gibraltar Guernsey Isle of Man Jersey Svalbard Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Name_of_the_Czech_Republic&oldid=843509241 '' Categories : Geography of the Czech Republic Geographical naming disputes Names of places in Europe Country name etymology Hidden categories : CS1 : Julian -- Gregorian uncertainty CS1 Czech - language sources ( cs ) Articles containing Czech - language text Articles containing French - language text Articles containing Korean - language text Articles containing Polish - language text Articles containing Serbo - Croatian - language text Articles containing Spanish - language text Articles containing German - language text Articles with Czech - language external links All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from September 2017 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Čeština Français Polski Edit links This page was last edited on 29 May 2018, at 16 : 21. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: when did the czech republic change its name
Answer: after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in the so-called "Velvet Divorce" of 1993