indicate the level to which a name has been verified.
Gender Feminine
Usage Lithuanian (Modern)
Meaning & History
From the name of the river which flows in Lithuania through it's capital city Vilnius. Official river name is Neris, but it has a second name - Vilija. The reasons for the dual naming of the river as Neris by the Lithuanians and Viliya (formerly Velja, meaning "big, great" in Slavic) by the Slavs are complex. Even in Vilnius, there are toponyms including both names, e. g. Neris remains in the riverside names of Paneriai and Paneriškės while Velja is a part of the name Valakampiai, which means "an angle of Velja" in Lithuanian.
