Why does the English term for a place change? Holland has become known as the Netherlands. Recently we were instructed that Bombay was “wrong”, and it is Mumbai. Who makes the rules?

Holland has not become known as the Netherlands; it is been one of them for centuries. Holland was the most important of the seven provinces in the north of the Netherlands, which became independent from Spanish rule in 1648. It contained the two main cities of the Hague and Amsterdam, so it became an unofficial (and misleading) sobriquet for all those provinces — much as people refer to the UK as “England”. The new country was known as the “United Provinces of the Dutch Republic of the Netherlands”. The southern Netherlands (ten provinces covering much of modern-day Belgium and Luxembourg) continued under Habsburg rule until the Treaty of Vienna in 1815 awarded them to the north, forming the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. The south broke away in 1839 to form the Kingdom of the Belgians, and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg separated in 1890 when Wilhelmina became Queen of the Netherlands as it did not recognise female succession.

Fr Julian G. Shurgold, Sutton, Surrey

The name Bombay dates from colonial times. The decision was taken in 1995 by the Maharasthra state government to revert to the old Marathi name, Mumbai.

Neil Roth, London SE3

Do Germans commemorate Armistice Day in the same way that the British do? Or do they have an equivalent day of remembrance?

The Germans do not celebrate the Great War Armistice but they do remember their war dead on Volkstrauertag (literally, national sorrow or grief day), which since 1952 has been held in mid-November, 14 days before the first Sunday in Advent. When living in Germany in the 1970s, I remember seeing groups of women, dressed in black, paying respects to their loved ones.

The Roman Catholic and Lutheran churches in Germany also have religious remembrance festivals in November (All Souls and Eternity Sunday). Celebration of the dead on All Souls (first Sunday in November) has become more prevalent in the Church of England in recent years.

Edward Green, Lichfield, Staffs

Did the Home Guard have any effect on the outcome of the Second World War?

Many members were trained and served as heavy anti-aircraft gun crews in the huge batteries installed to the southeast of London from 1941 onwards. They were on night shifts and did their ordinary jobs during the day. They were also bombed at night at home. During the day they had sneak raids and fighter strafing to worry about. This became worse with the V1 rocket attacks.

My father did this job for three and a half years, and eventually was injured by a V1. Many other Home Guard members suffered in the same way. There was some very active fighting done by the Home Guard. There was very little “standing and waiting” (Questions Answered, Nov 8) in some parts of the country.

Keith Hill, London SW6

Questions

An American president has to be American-born, but does a British prime minister have to be British born?

Tim Mickleburgh, Grimsby

I remember a children’s rhyme about tying shoelaces which begins “Left over right and through . . .” or it could be “Right over left and through . . .” Can anyone fill in the rest?

Chris Russell, Didcot, Oxon

What is the earliest date to which anyone alive today can trace the birth of a great-grandparent?

Brian McCabe, Liverpool

I have searched most quotation books without success. What is the origin of the phrase “going to hell in a handcart”?

J. Whittington, Ledbury, Herefordshire

E-mail your questions and answers to q&a@thetimes.co.uk, fax them to 020-7782 5870 or write to Questions Answered, The Times, 1 Pennington Street, London E98 1TT. Please include your address and daytime telephone number.