The Longest Place Name in the World Won't Fit in This Headline

The airport code may be a simple BKK, but the ceremonial name of this Thai capital is a much longer mouthful. anek.soowannaphoom / Shutterstock

Bangkok holds the Guinness World Record for the longest place name in the world. To be more specific, the title goes to Bangkok’s ceremonial name, not its everyday moniker.

It clocks in at a whopping 168 letters in English transliteration: Krungthepmahanakhon Amonrattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilokphop Noppharatratchathaniburirom Udomratchaniwetmahasathan Amonphimanawatansathit Sakkathattiyawitsanukamprasit.

Translated, it reads like a poem: "City of angels, great city of immortals, magnificent city of the nine precious gems, seat of the king, city of royal palaces..." You get the idea. It’s a proud mouthful that doubles as a cultural résumé.

Why Does Bangkok Have Such a Long Name?

In Thai, Bangkok is called Krung Thep Maha Nakhon, or just Krung Thep, meaning "City of Angels." But its full name is a traditional Pali-Sanskrit-style royal composition dating back to 1782.

When King Rama I founded the new capital, he wanted its name to reflect cosmic significance, religious sanctity, and royal power.

Every segment of the name highlights a feature of the city: an enormous royal palace and even divine aspects. The full translation includes phrases like “city of royal palaces” and “home of gods incarnate,” underscoring its royal and spiritual heritage.

Think of it like giving your town a name that includes every major landmark, spiritual site, and historical reference point. It's less a name and more a title with a built-in tourist guide.

The Hill Where Tamatea Played His Nose Flute

Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu. Michal Durinik / Shutterstock

If Bangkok’s name is a cultural parade, New Zealand offers a lyrical epic. On the North Island, a hill goes by the name: Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu.

In English: "The summit where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, the climber of mountains, the land-swallower who travelled about, played his nose flute to his loved one."

This hill's name serves as a geographical memorial to Tamatea, a legendary Maori explorer. Oral tradition keeps his story alive, and the place name itself preserves that story in a poetic form. The sign at the base of the hill barely contains it all.

Long Place Names With Big Personalities

Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, Wales. Scott Heaney / Shutterstock

Other parts of the world also flex linguistic muscle with extended place names.

In Wales, there's the village of Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, which means "St. Mary's church in the hollow of the white hazel near the rapid whirlpool and the church of St. Tysilio of the red cave."
In the United States, Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg in Massachusetts is often called "Webster Lake" for brevity's sake. The Nipmuck origin roughly translates to "fishing place at the boundaries—neutral meeting grounds."
In India, Venkatanarasimharajuvaripeta is a railway station known for having one of the longest names in the country (the longest single-word station name, with 28 letters).

These names serve different functions. Some honor famous chiefs or religious figures. Others commemorate events, places, or qualities, like land swallowing, mountain climbing, or even happy cities. Each name packs in history, language, and identity.

Is There a Limit to How Long a Name Can Be?

Officially, countries set practical limits on signage and digital databases. But cultural naming traditions often supersede these restrictions. The tongue-twister titles still exist, even if shortened in daily use.

In many cases, the English translation of these names runs longer than the native form. That’s because descriptive naming traditions in languages like Maori, Thai, or Welsh work differently from English.

Instead of condensing ideas, they expand on them, treating the place name like a sentence or story.

So while you might walk into town, they walk into "the town where the great chief once battled the land eater and played the flute."

We created this article in conjunction with AI technology, then made sure it was fact-checked and edited by a HowStuffWorks editor.