Capital In 36 editions of 36.

time difference:

there are 21 world entities (20 countries and 1 dependency) with multiple time zones: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ecuador, France, Greenland (part of the Danish Kingdom), Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, Mexico, Micronesia, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Portugal, Russia, Spain, United States

note 1: in some instances, the time zones pertain to portions of a country that lie overseas

note 2: in 1851, the British set their prime meridian (0° longitude) through the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England; this meridian became the international standard in 1884 and thus the basis for the standard time zones of the world; today, GMT is officially known as Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) and is also referred to as "Zulu time"; UTC is the basis for all civil time, with the world divided into time zones expressed as positive or negative differences from UTC

note 3: each time zone is based on 15° starting from the prime meridian; in theory, there are 24 time zones based on the solar day, but there are now upward of 40 because of fractional hour offsets that adjust for various political and physical geographic realities; see the Standard Time Zones of the World map included with the World and Regional Maps

daylight saving time:

• some 67 countries -- including most of the world's leading industrialized nations -- use daylight savings time (DST) in at least a portion of the country;
• China, Japan, India, and Russia are major industrialized countries that do not use DST;
• Asia and Africa generally do not observe DST, and it is generally not observed near the equator, where sunrise and sunset times do not vary enough to justify it;
• some countries observe DST only in certain regions;
• only a minority of the world's population -- about 20% -- uses DST

name:

Algiers

geographic coordinates:

36 45 N, 3 03 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

name derives from the Arabic al-jazair , meaning "the islands," and refers to the four islands formerly off the coast of the capital but joined to the mainland since 1525

name:

Luanda

geographic coordinates:

8 50 S, 13 13 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

does not observe daylight savings time

etymology:

• the Portuguese named the city São Paulo da Assunção de Loanda (Saint Paul of the Assumption of Loanda);
• over time, it was shortened to "Luanda," which may derive from a Bantu word meaning "tax" or "duty," in reference to local people paying their dues to the king of the Congo

name:

Porto-Novo (constitutional capital); Cotonou (seat of government)

geographic coordinates:

6 29 N, 2 37 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name Porto-Novo is Portuguese for "new port"; Cotonou means "mouth of the river of death" in the native Fon language

name:

Gaborone

geographic coordinates:

24 38 S, 25 54 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• named after GABORONE (ca. 1825-1931),
• a chief of the Tlokwa tribe,
• whose name means "it is not unbecoming"

name:

Ouagadougou

geographic coordinates:

12 22 N, 1 31 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

Ouagadougou is a Francophone spelling of the native name "Wogodogo," which may come from the personal name "Waga" or "Woga" and the Dyula word "dugu," meaning "village"

name:

Gitega (political capital), Bujumbura (commercial capital)

geographic coordinates:

3 25 S, 29 55 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the origin of the name Bujumbura is unclear, but "bu-" is a Bantu prefix meaning "place"

note: in January 2019, the Burundian parliament voted to make Gitega the political capital of the country while Bujumbura would remain its economic capital; as of 2023, the government's move to Gitega remains incomplete

name:

Praia

geographic coordinates:

14 55 N, 23 31 W

time difference:

UTC-1 (4 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the earlier Portuguese name was Villa de Praia ("Village of the Beach"); it was shortened to Praia in 1974

name:

Yaounde

geographic coordinates:

3 52 N, 11 31 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

Germans founded the city in 1888, but the name comes from the native Ewondo people; the meaning of the name is unclear

name:

Bangui

geographic coordinates:

4 22 N, 18 35 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• established as a French military post in 1889;
• the name means "rapids" in the local Bobangui language, because of the city's location above the first great rapid on the Ubangi River

name:

N'Djamena

geographic coordinates:

12 06 N, 15 02 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

said to derive its name from a local word meaning "place of rest"

name:

Moroni

geographic coordinates:

11 42 S, 43 14 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name means "at the place of fire," referring to the capital's location below the active volcano Mt. Karthala

name:

Kinshasa

geographic coordinates:

4 19 S, 15 18 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

time zone note:

the DRC has two time zones

etymology:

• founded as a trading post in 1881 and named Leopoldville in honor of King LEOPOLD II of the Belgians;
• in 1966, Leopoldville was renamed Kinshasa, a Bantu name of unknown meaning

name:

Brazzaville

geographic coordinates:

4 15 S, 15 17 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

named after the Italian-born French explorer and humanitarian, Pierre Savorgnan de BRAZZA (1852-1905), who founded the town in 1883

name:

Yamoussoukro (legislative capital), Abidjan (administrative and economic capital); note - the US Embassy is in Abidjan

geographic coordinates:

6 49 N, 5 16 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• formerly a village named N'Gokro, Yamoussoukro is named after Queen YAMOUSSOU, who ruled during the early 20th century;
• Abidjan's name may have come from a misunderstanding when a French explorer asked a group of women the name of the village -- thinking it was a question about what they were doing, they replied "t'chan m’bi djan," which in the Ebrie language means "I return from cutting leaves," so the explorer recorded the name of the locale as Abidjan

name:

Djibouti

geographic coordinates:

11 35 N, 43 09 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is said to derive from the Afar word gabouri , meaning "plate," in reference to a palm-fiber plate used for ceremonial purposes

name:

Cairo

geographic coordinates:

30 03 N, 31 15 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Friday in April; ends last Friday in October

etymology:

• the ancient Egyptian name of the original city was Khere-ohe or Kheri-aha;
• the modern city's name may also derive from the Arabic al-qahir , meaning "the victorious;" this is an Arabic name for the planet Mars, which was in the ascendant on the day in 969 A.D. when construction on the new part of the city began

name:

• Malabo;
• note - Malabo is on the island of Bioko;
• some months of the year, the government operates out of Bata on the mainland region.

geographic coordinates:

3 45 N, 8 47 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• English settlers who founded the city in 1827 named it Port Clarence after the Duke of CLARENCE;
• the Spanish renamed it Santa Isabel in 1843, for Queen ISABELLA II of Spain;
• it was renamed again in 1973 after King MALABO (1837–1937), the last king of the Bubi (local ethnic group)

name:

Asmara

geographic coordinates:

15 20 N, 38 56 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the name's origin is unclear;
• according to Tigrinya oral tradition, the name is part of a phrase meaning "the women made them unite," referring to a group of women who made four clans unite to defeat a common enemy;
• asmara also means "flowery wood" in the Tigrinya language

name:

Mbabane (administrative capital); Lobamba (royal and legislative capital)

geographic coordinates:

26 19 S, 31 08 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the origin of the name is unclear;
• it may come from the Mbabane River next to the city, whose name is said to derive from the word lubabe , a type of shrub;
• another theory cites a local chief, Mbabane KUNENE, as the source of the name

name:

Addis Ababa

geographic coordinates:

9 02 N, 38 42 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name in Amharic means "new flower;" Empress TAITU gave the name to the new capital city in 1887

name:

Libreville

geographic coordinates:

0 23 N, 9 27 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the city was founded in 1849 by freed slaves, and the name means "free town" in French

name:

Banjul

geographic coordinates:

13 27 N, 16 34 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the name derives from a misunderstanding between Portuguese colonists and inhabitants in the 15th century;
• when asked what the area was called, the inhabitants thought they were being asked what they were doing and replied, " bangjulo," or "rope making"

name:

Accra

geographic coordinates:

5 33 N, 0 13 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name derives from the Akan word nkran , meaning "ant," and may refer to the nickname local forest dwellers gave to the Nigerian tribes who settled in the area in the 16th century

name:

Conakry

geographic coordinates:

9 30 N, 13 42 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the name derives from konakri , a Susu word meaning "over the water" and referring to the city's location on a peninsula;
• it was originally the name of a local village

name:

Bissau

geographic coordinates:

11 51 N, 15 35 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is derived from the local Bijuga people and is used to distinguish the country from neighboring Guinea

name:

Nairobi

geographic coordinates:

1 17 S, 36 49 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name derives from the Maasai expression meaning "cool waters," which was used to refer to a local water hole, Enkare Nairobi

name:

Maseru

geographic coordinates:

29 19 S, 27 29 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name means "[place of] red sandstones" in the Sesotho language

name:

Monrovia

geographic coordinates:

6 18 N, 10 48 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

named after James MONROE (1758-1831), the fifth president of the United States and supporter of Liberia's colonization by freed slaves

name:

Tripoli (Tarabulus)

geographic coordinates:

32 53 N, 13 10 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name derives from the Greek words tri and polis , meaning "three cities;" the modern-day city was founded in the 14th century to replace the three ancient cities of Pallantium, Tegea, and Mantineia

name:

Antananarivo

geographic coordinates:

18 55 S, 47 31 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the name means "City of the Thousand," from the Malagasy an - (a prefix denoting a place name), tanana (town), and arivo (thousand);
• in the 17th century, King ADRIANJAKA named the original fortress after the 1,000 soldiers stationed there

name:

Lilongwe

geographic coordinates:

13 58 S, 33 47 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

named after the Lilongwe River that flows through the city; the origin of the river's name is unclear

name:

Bamako

geographic coordinates:

12 39 N, 8 00 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the origin of the name is unclear, but it comes from the Bambara language and can refer either to a crocodile or to a person's name

name:

Nouakchott

geographic coordinates:

18 04 N, 15 58 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the meaning of the name is unclear; it may derive from the Berber nawakshut , meaning "place of the winds;" other variants could translate as "the place where water appears in a new well," "the land where shells abound," "a place with pasture," "a windy place," or "without ears" (the last referring to a local chieftain who could have been the place's namesake)

name:

Port Louis

geographic coordinates:

20 09 S, 57 29 E

time difference:

UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

named after LOUIS XV, who was king of France in 1736 when the port became the administrative center of Mauritius

name:

Rabat

geographic coordinates:

34 01 N, 6 49 W

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• derives from the Arabic name Ribat el-Fath, from the words ribat (fortified monastery) and fath (conquest);
• the third Almohad sultan, Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Manṣur, gave the name to a fort on the site in the 12th century

name:

Maputo

geographic coordinates:

25 57 S, 32 35 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• named after the Maputo River, which drains into Maputo Bay south of the city;
• the river is said to be named after the son of Muagobe, a local chief in the 18th century

name:

Windhoek

geographic coordinates:

22 34 S, 17 05 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is an Afrikaans word meaning "windy corner;" a local Khoikhoin chief first used the name in the 19th century and may have derived it from the name of his childhood South African village of Winterhoek

name:

Niamey

geographic coordinates:

13 31 N, 2 07 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the origin of the name is unclear; one of many stories says that an African chief told his seven slaves " Wa niammane ," meaning "stay here," and the name was later shortened to its present form

name:

Abuja

geographic coordinates:

9 05 N, 7 32 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the newly built city of Abuja replaced Lagos as the capital city in 1991;
• Abuja takes its name from a nearby town, now renamed Suleja, that was named after Abu JA ("Abu the Red") in 1828

name:

Kigali

geographic coordinates:

1 57 S, 30 03 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the city takes its name from nearby Mount Kigali;
• the name is composed of the Bantu prefix ki- and the Rwandan word gali , meaning "broad," which is probably meant to describe the terrain

name:

Jamestown

geographic coordinates:

15 56 S, 5 43 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

founded in 1659 and named after James, Duke of York, who would become King JAMES II of England

name:

Sao Tome

geographic coordinates:

0 20 N, 6 44 E

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

named after Saint THOMAS the Apostle by the Portuguese, who discovered the island on 21 December 1470 (or 1471), the saint's feast day

name:

Dakar

geographic coordinates:

14 44 N, 17 38 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, D.C., during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name comes from the Wolof word n'dakar , meaning "tamarind tree"

name:

Victoria

geographic coordinates:

4 37 S, 55 27 E

time difference:

UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the British named the town Port Victoria in 1841 after Queen VICTORIA; the name was later shortened

name:

Freetown

geographic coordinates:

8 29 N, 13 14 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name described the original settlement in 1781, which served as a haven for free-born and freed African Americans

name:

Mogadishu

geographic coordinates:

2 04 N, 45 20 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is probably derived from the Arabic word mukaddas , meaning "holy"

name:

• Pretoria (administrative capital);
• Cape Town (legislative capital);
• Bloemfontein (judicial capital)

geographic coordinates:

25 42 S, 28 13 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• Pretoria was named in honor of Boer statesman Andries PRETORIUS in 1855;
• Cape Town's name refers to its location on the Cape of Good Hope;
• Bloemfontein was named after the farm on which it was built in 1846, whose name combined the Dutch words bloem (flower) and fontein (fountain)

name:

Juba

geographic coordinates:

04 51 N, 31 37 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name comes from the name of a small Bari village that was located near the present-day city

name:

Khartoum

geographic coordinates:

15 36 N, 32 32 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name derives from the Arabic words ras (head or end) and al-khurtum (elephant's trunk), referring to the narrow strip of land between the Blue and White Niles where the city is located

name:

Dodoma

geographic coordinates:

6 48 S, 39 17 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name comes from the name of a nearby mountain; the origin of the mountain's name is unclear

name:

Lome

geographic coordinates:

6 07 N, 1 13 E

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name comes from a local word meaning "little market"

name:

Tunis

geographic coordinates:

36 48 N, 10 11 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the origin of the ancient name is unclear; it is sometimes associated with the name of the Phoenician goddess Tanith

name:

Kampala

geographic coordinates:

0 19 N, 32 33 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is said to come from an African antelope, the impala

name:

Lusaka

geographic coordinates:

15 25 S, 28 17 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

named after a village with a headman (chief) called LUSAAKAS

name:

Harare

geographic coordinates:

17 49 S, 31 02 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• named after a village of Harare at the site of the present capital;
• the village name derived from a Shona chieftain, NE-HARAWA, whose name meant "he who does not sleep"

name:

Nuuk

geographic coordinates:

64 11 N, 51 45 W

time difference:

UTC-2 (3 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

time zone note:

Greenland has three time zones

etymology:

nuuk is the Inuit word for "cape;" until 1979, the name was Godthab, from the Danish words meaning "good hope"

name:

Reykjavik

geographic coordinates:

64 09 N, 21 57 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name means "smoky bay" in Icelandic and refers to the steam from the hot springs in the area

name:

Longyearbyen

geographic coordinates:

78 13 N, 15 38 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

• the name in Norwegian means Longyear Town;
• the site was established by and named after John Munro LONGYEAR, whose Arctic Coal Company began mining operations there in 1906

name:

Kabul

geographic coordinates:

34 31 N, 69 11 E

time difference:

UTC+4.5 (9.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

does not observe daylight savings time

etymology:

named for the Kabul River, but the river's name is of unknown origin

name:

Yerevan

geographic coordinates:

40 10 N, 44 30 E

time difference:

UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

name origin is unclear; it may derive from the name of a local ethnic group, or from the ancient fortress of Erebuni that was built on the current site of Yerevan in 782 B.C.

name:

Baku (Baki, Baky)

geographic coordinates:

40 23 N, 49 52 E

time difference:

UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

does not observe daylight savings time

etymology:

the name may derive from the Old Persian word badkuba , meaning "windward" and referring to its windy location on the shore of the Caspian Sea

note: at approximately 28 m below sea level, Baku's elevation makes it the lowest capital city in the world

name:

Dhaka

geographic coordinates:

23 43 N, 90 24 E

time difference:

UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the origins of the name are unclear, but it may be derived from either the dhak tree or Dhakeshwari, a goddess with a shrine in the city

name:

Thimphu

geographic coordinates:

27 28 N, 89 38 E

time difference:

UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the origins of the name are unclear; the traditional explanation, dating to the 14th century, is that thim means "dissolve" and phu means "rock," in reference to a local deity who dissolved before a traveler's eyes, becoming a part of the rock on which the present city stands

name:

administered from London; often regarded as being on Diego Garcia

geographic coordinates:

7 18S, 12 24E

time difference:

UTC+6 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

name:

Beijing

geographic coordinates:

39 55 N, 116 23 E

time difference:

UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

time zone note:

China is the largest country (in terms of area) with just one time zone; before 1949 it was divided into five

etymology:

the name comes from the Chinese words bei (north) and jing (capital)

name:

Tbilisi

geographic coordinates:

41 41 N, 44 50 E

time difference:

UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name comes from the Georgian word tbili , meaning "warm" and referring to the hot sulfur springs in the area

name:

New Delhi

geographic coordinates:

28 36 N, 77 12 E

time difference:

UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is of unknown origin; one theory says it may come from the Hindi word dehli (threshold), because of the city's location between the Indus and the Ganges Rivers

name:

Tokyo

geographic coordinates:

35 41 N, 139 45 E

time difference:

UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• originally known as Edo, meaning "estuary" because of its location on a bay;
• the name was changed to Tokyo, meaning "eastern capital," in 1868, as a contrast to Kyoto, the previous capital to the west

name:

Astana

geographic coordinates:

51 10 N, 71 25 E

time difference:

UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

time zone note:

On 1 March 2024, Kazakhstan moved from using two time zones to one

etymology:

the name means "capital city" in Kazakh

note: founded in 1830 as Akmoly, the capital city became Akmolinsk in 1832, Tselinograd in 1961, Akmola (Aqmola) in 1992, Astana in 1998, and Nur-Sultan in 2019; the latest name change back to Astana in 2022 occurred just three and a half years after the city was renamed to honor a former president, who subsequently fell out of favor

name:

Pyongyang

geographic coordinates:

39 01 N, 125 45 E

time difference:

UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

time zone note:

on 5 May 2018, North Korea reverted to UTC+9, the same time zone as South Korea

etymology:

the name translates as "flat land" in Korean

name:

Seoul

geographic coordinates:

37 33 N, 126 59 E

time difference:

UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name originates from the Korean word meaning "capital city;" it was the capital of the unified Korea from 1392 to 1910

note: Sejong, located some 120 km (75 mi) south of Seoul, serves as an administrative capital for segments of the South Korean government

name:

Bishkek

geographic coordinates:

42 52 N, 74 36 E

time difference:

UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the meaning of the name is unknown;
• the city was founded in 1862 as a Russian settlement on the site of an Uzbek fortress named Bishkek;
• the Russian version of the name was Pishpek, and the original name only came back into use in 1991

name:

Malé

geographic coordinates:

4 10 N, 73 30 E

time difference:

UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name may come from the Sanskrit word mala , or "garland"

name:

Ulaanbaatar

geographic coordinates:

47 55 N, 106 55 E

time difference:

UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Saturday in March; ends last Saturday in September

time zone note:

Mongolia has two time zones - Ulaanbaatar Time (8 hours in advance of UTC) and Hovd Time (7 hours in advance of UTC)

etymology:

the name means "red hero" in Mongolian and honors national hero Damdin SUKHBAATAR, leader of the partisan army that, with Soviet help, liberated Mongolia from Chinese occupation in the early 1920s

name:

Kathmandu

geographic coordinates:

27 43 N, 85 19 E

time difference:

UTC+5.75 (10.75 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name comes from the Nepalese words kath (wooden) and mandu (temple), referring to the local temples that are often still built from wood

name:

Islamabad

geographic coordinates:

33 41 N, 73 03 E

time difference:

UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name means "city of Islam" and derives from the Arabic islam , referring to the Islamic faith, and the Persian suffix -abad , meaning "inhabited place" or "city"

name:

Moscow

geographic coordinates:

55 45 N, 37 36 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

does not observe daylight savings time (DST)

time zone note:

Russia has 11 time zones, the largest number of contiguous time zones of any country in the world; in 2014, two time zones were added and DST dropped

etymology:

named after the Moskva River; the origin of the river's name is unclear

name:

Colombo (commercial capital); Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital)

geographic coordinates:

6 55 N, 79 50 E

time difference:

UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the origin of Colombo's name is unclear;
• it may derive from the Sinhalese words kola (leaves) and amba (mango), referring to local mango trees, or from the name Kelantotta, referring to a ferry that crossed the Kelani River;
• the name was corrupted to Kolambu by Arab traders, and 16th-century Portuguese settlers then called it Colombo, possibly referring to explorer Christopher COLUMBUS;
• the legislative capital's name, Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte, is composed of the Sanskrit honorific sri, the name of Sri Lankan President J.R. JAYEWARDENE, and the Hindi word pura (town)

name:

Dushanbe

geographic coordinates:

38 33 N, 68 46 E

time difference:

UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name means Monday in Persian; today's city was originally at the crossroads where a large bazaar was held on Mondays, or the second day ( du ) after Saturday ( shambe )

name:

Ashgabat (Ashkhabad)

geographic coordinates:

37 57 N, 58 23 E

time difference:

UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

derived from the Turkmen words ushq , meaning "love," and abad , meaning "inhabited place" or "town;" the city was originally a military outpost built in 1881 that took its name from an ancient settlement on the site

name:

Tashkent (Toshkent)

geographic coordinates:

41 19 N, 69 15 E

time difference:

UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the current name of the ancient city was first used in the 11th century and comes from the Sogdian (Turkic) words tash ( stone) and kent (town);
• the city was first recorded in the 5th or 4th century B.C. with the name of Chach or Shash

name:

The Valley

geographic coordinates:

18 13 N, 63 03 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

name may derive from the capital's location among several hills

name:

Saint John's

geographic coordinates:

17 07 N, 61 51 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

named after Saint John the Apostle

name:

Oranjestad

geographic coordinates:

12 31 N, 70 02 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

translates as "orange city" in Dutch; in 1824, the city was named after the royal family of the Netherlands, the House of Orange-Nassau

name:

Nassau

geographic coordinates:

25 05 N, 77 21 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November

etymology:

named after King WILLIAM III of England (1650-1702), who was a member of the House of Orange-Nassau

name:

Bridgetown

geographic coordinates:

13 06 N, 59 37 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• originally named Indian Bridge in 1628 for a bridge built beside Carlisle Bay, then called St. Michael's Town until the 19th century;
• now named after a bridge built over the Constitution River that flows through the center of the city

name:

Belmopan

geographic coordinates:

17 15 N, 88 46 W

time difference:

UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is formed from two words: "Belize," the name of the longest river in the country, and "Mopan," one of the rivers in the area that empties into the Belize River

name:

Road Town

geographic coordinates:

18 25 N, 64 37 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

name refers to the nautical term "roadstead" or "roads," a body of water less sheltered than a harbor but where ships can still lie at anchor

name:

George Town (on Grand Cayman)

geographic coordinates:

19 18 N, 81 23 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

originally named Hogstyes, the town was renamed in honor of English King GEORGE III (1738-1820) around 1800

name:

San José

geographic coordinates:

9 56 N, 84 05 W

time difference:

UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

Spanish settlers originally named the city Villa Nueva in 1736; it was later renamed for Saint Joseph

name:

Havana

geographic coordinates:

23 07 N, 82 21 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

• +1hr, begins second Sunday in March;
• ends first Sunday in November;
• note - Cuba has been known to alter the schedule of DST on short notice in an attempt to conserve electricity for lighting

etymology:

• Spanish soldier Diego VELAZQUEZ named the city San Cristobal de la Habana, or Saint Christopher of the Habana;
• "Habana" may have been the name of a local ethnic group, but the meaning of the word is unknown

name:

Willemstad

geographic coordinates:

12 06 N, 68 55 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name means "William's Town" in Dutch; named after Prince WILLEM of Orange (1533-84), the first stadtholder of the United Provinces of the Netherlands

name:

Roseau

geographic coordinates:

15 18 N, 61 24 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is French for "reed;" the first settlement was named after the river reeds that grew in the area

name:

Santo Domingo

geographic coordinates:

18 28 N, 69 54 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

named after Saint Domingo de GUZMAN (1170-1221), founder of the Dominican Order; the city's full name was originally Santo Domingo de Guzman

name:

San Salvador

geographic coordinates:

13 42 N, 89 12 W

time difference:

UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

Spanish colonists founded the city in 1526 on the feast day of the Transfiguration of the Savior (Jesus Christ), and the name means "Holy Savior" in Spanish

name:

Saint George's

geographic coordinates:

12 03 N, 61 45 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• originally named Ville de Fort Royal (Fort Royal Town), the name was changed to Saint George's Town in 1764, in honor of the patron saint of England, when the English took over Grenada from the French;
• the name was eventually shortened to Saint George's

name:

Guatemala City

geographic coordinates:

14 37 N, 90 31 W

time difference:

UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the Spanish conquistadors' first capital (established in 1524) was a former Mayan settlement called "Quauhtemallan" by their Nahuatl-speaking Mexican allies, a name that means "land of the eagle" but that the Spanish probably pronounced "Guatemala"

name:

Port-au-Prince

geographic coordinates:

18 32 N, 72 20 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November

etymology:

the name means "the port of the prince" and probably came from a ship called The Prince that anchored in the bay in the early 18th century

name:

Tegucigalpa

geographic coordinates:

14 06 N, 87 13 W

time difference:

UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is a Nahuatl word meaning "silver mountain," probably referring to nearby silver mines

note: the Honduran constitution states that Tegucigalpa and Comayaguela jointly constitute the capital of Honduras, but virtually all governmental institutions are on the Tegucigalpa side

name:

Kingston

geographic coordinates:

18 00 N, 76 48 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is a blend of the words "king's" and "town;" named after the English king at the time of the city's founding in 1692, WILLIAM III

name:

Plymouth

geographic coordinates:

16 42 N, 62 13 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• now entirely deserted because of volcanic activity,
• the city was named after Plymouth,
• England

note: Plymouth was abandoned in 1997 because of volcanic activity; interim government buildings have been built at Brades Estate, the de facto capital, at the northwest end of Montserrat

name:

Managua

geographic coordinates:

12 08 N, 86 15 W

time difference:

UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name comes from Lake Managua, whose name is composed of the Guaraní words ama (rain) and nagua (spirit) and refers to a local deity

name:

Panama City

geographic coordinates:

8 58 N, 79 32 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

origin is unclear; may come from a Guaraní word meaning "place of many fish"

name:

San Juan

geographic coordinates:

18 28 N, 66 07 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

Spanish explorer Juan PONCE de Leon named the city in 1511 both for himself and for his name saint, Saint John

name:

Gustavia

geographic coordinates:

17 53 N, 62 51 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• named in honor of King GUSTAV III of Sweden, who was ruler when Sweden bought the island from France in 1784;
• the name was retained when the island was sold back to France in 1878

name:

Basseterre

geographic coordinates:

17 18 N, 62 43 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the French name translates as "low land" in English; the reference is probably to the city's location in a valley

name:

Castries

geographic coordinates:

14 00 N, 61 00 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

in 1785, the village of Carenage was renamed Castries, after Charles Eugene Gabriel de La Croix de CASTRIES, who was then the French Minister of the Navy and Colonies

name:

Marigot

geographic coordinates:

18 04 N, 63 05 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the name is taken from the French word marigot , meaning "backwater" or "swampy area;" it probably comes from the original fishing village's location next to a water-logged area on a lagoon

name:

Kingstown

geographic coordinates:

13 08 N, 61 13 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

name:

Philipsburg

geographic coordinates:

18 1 N, 63 2 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

founded and named in 1763 by John PHILIPS, a Scottish captain in the Dutch navy

name:

Port of Spain

geographic coordinates:

10 39 N, 61 31 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

translation of the name the Spanish gave the town in 1595, Puerto de España; the name was anglicized after the British captured Trinidad in 1797

name:

Grand Turk (Cockburn Town)

geographic coordinates:

21 28 N, 71 08 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November

etymology:

named after Sir Francis COCKBURN, who served as governor of the Bahamas from 1837 to 1844

name:

Charlotte Amalie

geographic coordinates:

18 21 N, 64 56 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

named in honor of Danish King CHRISTIAN V’s wife, Charlotte AMALIE of Hesse-Kassel, after the colony was established in 1672

name:

Tirana (Tirane)

geographic coordinates:

41 19 N, 19 49 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

the name "Tirana" first appears in a 1418 Venetian document; the origin of the name is unclear

name:

Andorra la Vella

geographic coordinates:

42 30 N, 1 31 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

translates as "Andorra the Old" in Catalan

name:

Vienna

geographic coordinates:

48 12 N, 16 22 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

the name may have evolved from the Roman name Vindobona, which was taken from the Celtic words vindo (white) and bona (fort)

name:

Minsk

geographic coordinates:

53 54 N, 27 34 E

time difference:

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

the origin of the name is disputed; it may be derived from the Menka River

name:

Brussels

geographic coordinates:

50 84 N, 4 35 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

the name is of Germanic origin, from broca (marsh) and sali (room or building)

name:

Sarajevo

geographic coordinates:

43 52 N, 18 25 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

the name derives from the Turkish word saray , meaning "palace" or "mansion"

name:

Sofia

geographic coordinates:

42 41 N, 23 19 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

named after the Church of Saint Sofia in the city, parts of which may date to the 4th century

name:

Zagreb

geographic coordinates:

45 48 N, 16 00 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

• the city's name means "beyond the bank (or ditch)";
• za in Old Croat means "beyond," and greb means "bank" or "ditch," relating to the city's original site above the Sava River

name:

Prague

geographic coordinates:

50 05 N, 14 28 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

the name may derive from the old Slavic word "praga" or "prah," meaning "threshold;" it could also be related to the same Slavic root word as the modern Czech "pražiti," a term for woodland cleared by burning

name:

Copenhagen

geographic coordinates:

55 40 N, 12 35 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

• +1hr, begins last Sunday in March;
• ends last Sunday in October;
• note - applies to continental Denmark only, not to its North Atlantic components

etymology:

name derives from the Danish words køber (merchant or buyer) and havn (harbor or port)

name:

Tallinn

geographic coordinates:

59 26 N, 24 43 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

the name derives from the Old Estonian term tan-linn , meaning "Danish fort," a reference to Danish King VALDEMAR II founding the city in 1219

name:

• Brussels (Belgium),
• Strasbourg (France),
• Luxembourg,
• Frankfurt (Germany)

geographic coordinates:

(Brussels) 50 50 N, 4 20 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1 hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

time zone note:

the 27 European Union member states are spread across three time zones

note: the European Council and the Council of the European Union meet in Brussels, Belgium, except for Council of the EU meetings held in Luxembourg in April, June, and October; the European Parliament meets in Brussels and Strasbourg, France, and has administrative offices in Luxembourg; the Court of Justice of the European Union is located in Luxembourg; and the European Central Bank is located in Frankfurt, Germany

name:

Torshavn

geographic coordinates:

62 00 N, 6 46 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

the name means "Thor's harbor" in Danish

name:

Helsinki

geographic coordinates:

60 10 N, 24 56 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

• the modern name is a Finnish derivation;
• King Gustav VASA of Sweden founded the city in 1550 as Helsingfors;
• the name came from Helsing , the Old Norwegian name for a local people, and the word fors , or "waterfall," referring to a waterfall at the city's original location on the Vantaa River