Editing The Gambia (section)

==Etymology==
The name "Gambia" is derived from the [[Mandinka language|Mandinka]] term ''Kambra''/''Kambaa'', meaning the [[Gambia River]]. (It may be derived from the sacred [[Serer people|Serer]] ''Gamba'',<ref>Allen Meagher, Andrew Samuel, Baba Ceesay, National Council for the Arts and Culture (Gambia), ''Historic Sites of The Gambia: Ada Dinkiralu (Mandinka), Bereb-I-Chosan (Wolof), Tarica Tawal (Fula), Nannin (Jola), Soninke Ada (Serehuli), I-Mofan Chosan (Serer): an Official Guide to the Monuments and Sites of the Gambia'', National Council for the Arts and Culture, 1998, pp. 1, 24.</ref> a special type of [[calabash]] beaten when a Serer elder dies).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Mwakikagile |first1=Godfrey |author1-link=Godfrey Mwakikagile |title=The Gambia and Its People: Ethnic Identities and Cultural Integration in Africa |date=2010 |publisher=New Africa Press |isbn=978-9987-16-023-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZL7wIvRlXSwC&pg=PA141 |page=141 |language=en}}</ref> [[Portuguese explorers]], who reached the region in the 15th century, adopted a variation of this local name, which was later anglicized to ''Gambia'' during [[British colonial rule]].<ref name="MandinkaOrigin">{{cite book |last1=Hughes |first1=Arnold |last2=Perfect |first2=David |title=A political history of The Gambia, 1816-1994 |date=2006 |publisher=University of Rochester Press |location=Rochester, NY |isbn=978-1-58046-682-0 |pages=12–14}}</ref>

Upon independence in 1965, the country used the name ''The Gambia''. Following the proclamation of a republic in 1970, the long-form name of the country became ''Republic of The Gambia''.<ref name=cons1996>{{cite web |url=http://www.ilo.org/dyn/travail/docs/1952/GMB48490.pdf |title=Constitution of the Republic of the Gambia |date=1996 |access-date=29 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204142049/http://www.ilo.org/dyn/travail/docs/1952/GMB48490.pdf |archive-date=4 February 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The Gambia is one of a small number of countries for which the [[definite article]] is commonly used in its English-language name and where the name is neither plural nor descriptive (e.g., "the [[Philippines]]" or "the [[United Kingdom]]").<ref>{{Cite news |last=Geoghegan |first=Tom |date=7 June 2012 |title=Ukraine or the Ukraine: Why do some country names have 'the'? |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-18233844 |access-date=23 February 2023 |quote=[A]ccording to several authoritative sources, such as the CIA World Factbook, the ''Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World'' and the US Department of State, only two countries, The Bahamas and The Gambia, should officially be referred to with the article. |archive-date=30 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200130150639/https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-18233844 |url-status=live }}</ref> The article is also officially used by the country's government and by international bodies. In 1964, shortly prior to the country's independence, Prime Minister [[Dawda Jawara]] wrote to the [[Permanent Committee on Geographical Names for British Official Use]] requesting that the name ''The Gambia'' retain the definite article, in part to reduce confusion with [[Zambia]] which had also recently become independent.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Alfa Shaban |first1=Abdur Rahman |title=Why Africa's 'smiling coast' is officially referred to as 'The' Gambia |url=https://www.africanews.com/2017/01/19/why-africa-s-smiling-coast-is-referred-to-as-the-gambia// |access-date=28 November 2020 |work=Africa News |date=19 January 2017 |archive-date=11 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411013024/https://www.africanews.com/2017/01/19/why-africa-s-smiling-coast-is-referred-to-as-the-gambia/ }}</ref> Some scholars suggest it also emphasizes the nation's connection to the Gambia River, a defining geographical feature.<ref name="Geography">M'Bai, Sheriff Bojang. "The Role of the Gambia River in Shaping National Identity" ''Journal of African Studies'', vol. 45, no. 3, 2001, pp. 234–246.</ref>

The administration of [[Yahya Jammeh]] changed the long-form name to ''Islamic Republic of The Gambia'' in December 2015.<ref name=E1>{{cite web |url=http://www.europe1.fr/international/la-gambie-sautoproclamme-etat-islamique-2635109 |title=La Gambie s'autoproclame 'État islamique' |date=13 December 2015 |publisher=Europe 1 |language=fr |access-date=14 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151214051037/http://www.europe1.fr/international/la-gambie-sautoproclamme-etat-islamique-2635109 |archive-date=14 December 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref> On 29 January 2017 newly elected President [[Adama Barrow]] changed the name back to ''Republic of The Gambia''.<ref name="abr">{{Cite news |last=Adegun |first=Aanu |date=29 January 2017 |title=Adama Barrow removes 'Islamic' title from Gambia's name |url=https://www.naij.com/1085177-adama-barrow-removes-islamic-gambias-name.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170129123855/https://www.naij.com/1085177-adama-barrow-removes-islamic-gambias-name.html |archive-date=29 January 2017 |access-date=31 January 2017 |newspaper=Naij }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/gambia-president-adama-barrow-pledges-reforms-170128194124520.html |title=The Gambia: President Adama Barrow pledges reforms |date=28 January 2017 |website=Al Jazeera |access-date=31 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170131012508/http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/gambia-president-adama-barrow-pledges-reforms-170128194124520.html |archive-date=31 January 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>