"The" Philippines

[FRITZ JUENGLING]

>From Oregon Geographic Names:

The name The Dalles is derived from the French word 'dalle,' meaning 'flagstone'... The word dalles, to the voyageurs, the river flowing swiftly through a narrow channel over flat, basaltic rocks.

The entry is fairly long, though.
Fritz

"The Bronx"---I can only suggest that "Bronx" is a Dutch word referring to  a
landform or something similar.  Compare "The Wisconsin Dells".   Similarly I
wonder if "dalles" from "The Dalles" is an Indian word meaning  perhaps
"rapids" or "canyon".

       James A. Landau

If you cross an artillery battery with a tank of sulfuric acid, you get a
21-gun solute.