150+ Cities Around the World That Start With T

So many places in the world have interesting origins. When it comes to cities and towns in global countries — especially those with different alphabets — finding out where a name comes from becomes even more engaging. 

Out of the 10,000 cities on the planet, several hundred start with the letter T. Keep reading to discover which cities in the world start with the letter T.

Most Famous Cities that Start with T

Tacoma

Tacoma, Washington in the United States is known for its natural beauty, art, and proximity to Seattle. The Museum of Glass and the Tacoma Art Museum stand as fixtures in the artistic community. At the same time, Mount Rainier National Park and Point Defiance Park dazzle tourists and residents with stunning views year-round.

How it got its name: One of the early explorers and settlers named the mountain the city sits at the base of “Rainier” after an influential admiral at the time. However, the natives of the land called it Tacoma in their dialect. The town soon adopted that name. 

Taipei

The capital city of Taiwan, Taipei, is an explosion of lights, shopping, history, food, and culture. It has dozens of night markets and public spaces, gorgeous temples, and a bamboo-shaped skyscraper at its heart. 

How it got its name: Using the Chinese alphabet, officials in the 1870s chose a name that meant “northern Taiwan.”

Takaoka

Located in Japan, Takaoka is a coastal city with gorgeous mountains, a stunning coastline, and significant religious sites. It was registered as one of Japan’s first 30 cities during the Meiji Restoration period. Today, you can see impressive sights like The Great Buddha of Takaoka, The Zuiryū-ji Temple, and Kanamachi, a town with architecture preserved since the Meiji period.

How it got its name: Though there’s no official record, some say when official Maeda Toshinaga ruled the city in the 1600s, he named it after a verse in Shinen that included the word. 

Tampa

Tampa, Florida, United States is a coastal town with theme parks, business centers, and museums among many other activities. One of the major destinations in the city is the Ybor City neighborhood, which flourished by the hands of cigar factory workers from Cuba and Spain in the 1900s.

How it got its name: One historical account places Bernard Romans, a mapmaker, as the person who accidentally tabled the name of the town “Tanpa” after the Calusa tribal village south of the bay. Another account, given to A-Z Animals by a Tampa native and local historian, says it comes from the Timucua language.

Jasmine Charbonier of YourTampaBestie provides travelers with stellar information on Tampa Bay attractions, food, events, and more. She told A-Z Animals a little more about what she’s heard regarding the origin of Tampa’s name.

“The earliest known residents of the Tampa Bay area were the Tocobaga people,” said Charbonier. “However, when Spanish explorers first arrived in the 1500s, the area was inhabited by the Safety people. The Safety language was a dialect of the Timucua language, which was spoken by indigenous peoples in northern Florida and southeastern Georgia. In the Safety/Timucua language, Tampa meant sticks of fire. This likely referred to the way the Safety people navigated at night by carrying flaming sticks. Over time, Tampa became associated with the wider Bay Area. When Spanish colonists established a Catholic mission at the site in the late 1600s, they adopted the native Tampa to refer to the body of water. As more settlers arrived and the area grew into a town, the name Tampa remained in use because it was familiar to the indigenous peoples still living there.”

Tangerang

Located in Indonesia, Tangerang is a huge urban center near Jakarta with many different activities to do. Massive indoor shopping malls, historic mosques, museums, nature parks, and more dot the metropolitan city.

How it got its name: Like many older cities, the origin of the name has been lost amid the passage of time.

Tehran

The capital of Iran, Tehran is an ornately decorated, culturally significant city with rich history and modern conveniences. It sits at the foot of the Elburz mountain range. 

How it got its name: According to information from the city of Tehran’s website, the name means “bottom of the mountain” in Persian.

Tianjin

The stunning city of Tianjin — with its iconic Tianjin Eye over the thoroughfare — is an educational hub and one of the largest cities in China. Full of art, history, architecture, and culture, Tianjin stands as a bright light in China.

How it got its name: No one is quite sure about how Tianjin got its name, though some myths and stories discuss an homage to a Chinese poet.

Tokyo

The capital city of Tokyo blends history and modern technology to create a unique metropolis. The Imperial Palace of Japan sits in the capital city surrounded by greenery, museums, nightlife, art, food, and more.

How it got its name: Originally named Edo, Tokyo was renamed during the Meiji Restoration. The kanji of its name means eastern capital.

Toronto

As the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario, Toronto is a large city with skyscrapers, green spaces, and incredible amenities. Visitors to Toronto can experience exciting sports events, unique local cuisine, and beautiful arts and culture. 

How it got its name: According to the Canadian Encyclopedia, Toronto may have gotten its name from the word tkaronto, a Mohawk word meaning “where trees stand in water.”

Turin

Turin is an important religious and cultural city in Italy. It’s well known for being the birthplace of the Shroud of Turin. The architecture and art in the city span a variety of periods including Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassical, and Art Nouveau.

How it got its name: Some believe the city’s name comes from the Celtic word “tau” which means mountain. Others believe it’s derived from a Celtic tribe that used to live there called the Taurini.

Cities that Start with T in America

Based on 2024 population numbers, there exist over 100 U.S. cities with populations over 1,000 residents that start with T.

• Tallahassee
• Tamarac
• Tavares
• Tea
• Tecumseh
• Tempe
• Temple
• Terre Haute
• Texarkana
• Texas City
• Thousand Oaks
• Tigard
• Titusville
• Tokepa
• Toledo
• Torrance
• Tracy
• Trenton
• Trinidad
• Troy
• Truckee
• Tucker
• Tucson
• Tukwila
• Tulsa
• Tumwater
• Tuscaloosa
• Tuskegee
• Tustin
• Twentynine Palms
• Twin Falls
• Tyler

Cities that Start with T in China

China uses its own alphabet. The city names below have been romanized.

• Tacheng
• Taicang
• Taiyuan
• Taizhou
• Tangshan
• Tengchong
• Tianchang
• Tianshui
• Tieli
• Tieling
• Tongcheng
• Tonghua
• Tongliao
• Tongling
• Tongren
• Tumen
• Turpan

Cities that Start with T in the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom — England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland — has dozens of cities that start with T within their limits. Here are a handful across the country.

• Tadley
• Tadworth
• Tain
• Talgarth
• Tansley
• Taunton
• Tayport
• Teddington
• Telford
• Tenby
• Thame
• Thetford
• Theale
• Thirsk
• Thorne
• Thornhill
• Thornton
• Thurso
• Tickhill
• Thintagel
• Tiptree
• Tiverton
• Tockwith
• Tollesbury
• Topsham
• Torquay
• Totnes
• Totton
• Troston
• Truro
• Tufnell Park
• Tywyn

Cities that Start with T in Russia

Like China, Russia uses its own alphabet. The city names below have been romanized.

• Taldom
• Talitsa
• Tara
• Tarusa
• Tatarsk
• Tayga
• Tayshet
• Terek
• Tetyushi
• Tobolsk
• Tolyatti
• Tomari
• Tommot
• Topki
• Tosno
• Troitsk
• Tryokghorny
• Tuapse
• Tula
• Turan
• Tver
• Tyumen

Cities that Start with T in Australia

Australia doesn’t have a plethora of cities that start with the letter T. Some of the largest include:

• Toowoomba
• Townsville
• Thuringowa
• Tamworth

​​Cities that Start with T in South Korea

Like China and Russia, South Korea uses its own alphabet. The city names below have been romanized.

• Taebaek
• Tongyeong

Cities that Start with T in Germany

There are over 300 cities in Germany that start with the letter T. Here are a handful of them.

Note: some cities have two names. Their secondary name, sometimes better known, is in parentheses. 

• Tacherting
• Talheim (Heilbronn)
• Tangerhütte
• Tangermünde
• Tangstedt (Stormarn)
• Tarp
• Tauberbischofsheim
• Taucha
• Taufkirchen (Munich)
• Taufkirchen (Vils)
• Taunusstein
• Tecklenburg
• Teisendorf
• Telgte
• Teltow
• Templin
• Teningen
• Teterow
• Tettnang
• Teublitz
• Teuchern
• Teutschenthal
• Thale
• Thalheim (Erzgebirge)
• Thalmassing
• Thannhausen
• Tharandt
• Thedinghausen
• Tholey
• Thum
• Tiefenbach (Passau)
• Tiefenbronn
• Tittmoning
• Titz
• Todtnau
• Tonesch
• Trebbin
• Trebur
• Treffurt
• Trier
• Triftern
• Trittau
• Trostberg
• Tutzing
• Twist

The photo featured at the top of this post is © iStock.com/SeanPavonePhoto