The Origin of English Names in Macau

The name Macao comes from Mazu. In the thirty-second year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty (1553), the Portuguese obtained the right of abode in Macau from the Guangdong local government in the Ming Dynasty, becoming the first Europeans to enter China.

At that time, the Portuguese landed near Mazu Tempel and asked the local people about the place names here. Because it is next to Mazu Tempel, the locals answer Mazu, so Macau is named Macau (Portuguese transliteration of Mazu Tempel), and the mainland is often spelled Macau.

Extended data

Topography of Macao: The topography of Macao is composed of low hills peacefully, with high topography in the south and low topography in the north. The lowest point in Macao is the sea level in the South China Sea, with an altitude of 0 meters, and the highest point is KoloaneAlto, with an altitude of 172.4 meters.

Macao used to be an island at the southern tip of Zhongshan City (formerly known as Xiangshan County) in Guangdong Province, standing in the sea, no different from the contemporary offshore islands. Later, due to the sediment alluvial of the Xijiang River, a sandbar (Liangan, now Guanzha Road) was alluvial between Macao and the mainland, which was connected with the mainland and became a peninsula.

Baidu Encyclopedia-Macau