 | Flytrippers cofounder |
It’s very rare for countries to change their name, but it happens! This time it’s of one of the least populated countries in the world, which is therefore also one of the least known in the world. Nauru, a micro-state and island country in the South Pacific Ocean, is now officially called Naoero.
The reason is exactly the same as for several of the recent country name changes (including the most recent one, which was Türkiye 3 years ago).
If you’re interested in traveling, you’re probably interested in this kind of thing too. Flytrippers helps you travel for less with our 3 types of content, namely flight deals, travel rewards, and tips/inspiration/news.
Here are the details of the name change from Nauru to Naoero.
Why did Nauru change its name to Naoero?
It’s so that the pronunciation and spelling of the name match those in their national language. It’s a return to the “real” name.
It makes so much sense. Personally, I’ve always absolutely hated the concept of changing the name of any country whatsoever.
(Or even a city’s; we’re capable of pronouncing “Roma” in English too, I think… and that’s the name of the city, not Rome!)
It’s so much simpler to always use to the real name in every language.
And it’s obviously the country that should decide what the country is called.
So it’s Naoero.
Naoero’s government states that the only reason the country was called Nauru is that foreigners had trouble pronouncing the real name (poor us, right?).
How do you pronounce Naoero?
You have to pronounce it “Now-ero,” rather than “Now-roo” like before.
The world’s third-smallest country, the Pacific island of Nauru, has changed its name in a return to its roots.
The country’s president says the new name — the Republic of Naoero — stays truer to its national language than “Nauru,” which was considered easier for foreigners to… pic.twitter.com/E3xIs5tPWk
— PBS News (@NewsHour) August 3, 2026
Note that the inhabitants (the very rare ones) should now officially be called “dei-Naoero” rather than Nauruans, but that one I’m a bit less of a fan of.
The country’s international code has also been changed from NRU to NRO.
What should you know about traveling to Naoero?
That very few people do it. It’s literally the least visited country in the world!
Believe it or not, the country only gets about 200 tourists a year. To put that in perspective, France gets an average of 194 per minute (24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year).
It’s definitely a very remote country.
In short, unless your goal is to visit every country in the world like us, you’ll probably never go… there really aren’t many travelers who go to Naoero.
If you go, you can go all around the country in under an hour. Among all the countries in the world, Naoero is the 3rd smallest and the 3rd least populated.
Naoero has a total land area of 21 square kilometers, about 20 times smaller than the Island of Montreal.
Naoero has only 12,000 inhabitants, a bit more than half the capacity of the Bell Centre during a Montreal Canadiens game.
You can find beautiful scenery there.
What’s unique is that the country was once one of the world’s richest per capita (it really isn’t anymore). The phosphate industry was booming (it really isn’t anymore). You can now see unique mining leftovers from that era.
But let’s be honest: it’s clearly not a country to put at the very top of your bucket list.
It’s just math: we tell you often, but as a general rule, the more populated a country is, the more cultural attractions it has, and the bigger a country is, the more natural attractions it has.
It’s one of the rare countries (maybe even the only one?) served by absolutely no foreign airline: the flights at Naoero’s airport (INU) are all operated by Nauru Airlines (I imagine they’re going to change that name too).
The easiest gateway is from Brisbane (Australia) or Nadi (Fiji).
What other countries have recently changed their names?
In recent years, several other countries have also changed their names. And so many people still (wrongly) use the old names, but maybe they just don’t know.
In 2023, Turkey became Türkiye, with a slight change in pronunciation too. It was for the same reason (and to avoid having the same name as the bird).
In 2019, Macedonia became North Macedonia, to resolve a conflict with neighboring Greece (which has a region called Macedonia and wanted to avoid confusion).
In 2018, Swaziland became Eswatini, also to return to its heritage and distance itself from British colonialism (and avoid being confused with Switzerland; having been to both, I can confirm they’re very different).
In 2016, the Czech Republic became Czechia, to remove the unnecessary and implied “republic” (about 160 of the world’s 193 countries are republics and have “republic” in their full formal name).
In 2013, Cape Verde became Cabo Verde, to keep the name in their language (Portuguese). Fun fact about the recent World Cup’s Cinderella country: it’s one of the rare countries in the world named after a place located outside the country (the Green Cape, Cap Vert, is in Senegal).
Learning how to travel for less
Join over 100,000 savvy Canadian travelers who already receive Flytrippers’ free newsletter so we can help you travel for less (and keep you updated on all things travel)!
Sign up for our free newsletter
Sign up for our newsletter
Summary
Nauru, the country you’ll probably never go to, is now called Naoero. It’s entirely reasonable, and so much simpler, to use each country’s real name in every language. If only everyone else would do the same…
What would you like to know about the name change from Nauru to Naoero? Tell us in the comments below.
See the flight deals we spot: Cheap flights
Discover free travel with rewards: Travel rewards
Explore awesome destinations: Travel inspiration
Learn pro tricks: Travel tips
Featured image: Beach in Naoero (photo credit: Winston Chen)
