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Australia -

This country was once known as New Holland and New South Wales.

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Myanmar - The Southeast Asian country was once called Burma and this name is still used in some countries.

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Philippines - This country was once part of the Spanish East Indies. The country earned its independence in 1898, and was named the Philippines.

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Ethiopia - Before 1974, the land of Ethiopia was combined with Eritrea to form Abyssinia.

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Bangladesh - This South Asian country used to be called Eastern Bengal and Assam, then East Bengal, East Pakistan, and now Bangladesh.

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Sri Lanka - From the beginning of British colonial rule, this country was known as Ceylon.

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Lesotho - The enclaved country was once a British Crown colony by the name of Basutoland.

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Belarus - From 1920 to 1991, this country was known as Byelorussia ("White Russia").

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Moldova - Historically, the country known as Moldova was named Bessarabia.

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Iraq - In 1932, this country was granted full independence, and was formally named Iraq. Before that, it was named the British Mandate of Mesopotamia.

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Belgium - Belgium has had plenty of name changes. It has been previously known as Duchy of Brabant, Burgundian Netherlands, and the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.

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Benin - The West African country was previously named Dahomey.

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Zimbabwe - Zimbabwe is another country that has had several name changes. Previous names include Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia, and Zimbabwe-Rhodesia.

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Bolivia - Until 1825, this country was named Upper Peru.

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Bosnia and Herzegovina - Until 1853, this nation was known as Bosnia.

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Zambia - Up until 1964, this landlocked country was called Northern Rhodesia.

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Vanuatu - Before it became Vanuatu, this country was known as New Hebrides.

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Tuvalu - This Polynesian island country was previously known as the Ellice Islands.

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Suriname - The South American country was once known as Dutch Guiana.

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Togo - Togo was once part of French Togoland, a colonial League of Nations that lasted from 1916 to 1960.

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Thailand - This country was known as Siam before it formally became Thailand in 1949.

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Singapore - Temasek was an early name of Singapore, which got its latter name in 1819.

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Papua New Guinea - Papua New Guinea has endured a couple of name changes. It has been formerly known as the Territory of Papua and Territory of New Guinea and the Territory of Papua and New Guinea.

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Netherlands - This nation was previously known as the County of Holland, the Dutch Republic, and the Batavian Republic.

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Belize - Belize was once named British Honduras.

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Namibia - Namibia went by German Southwest Africa and Southwest Africa before its last name change in 1990.

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Mexico - Mexico was once part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain until its iconic name change in 1821, following a war of independence.

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Mali - Before it was named Mali in 1960, this country was called French Sudan after its European colonizers.

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Jordan -

This area was named the Emirate of Transjordan before it formally became the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in 1949.

See also: Everyday items originally developed for the military

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