Douchlista (or Ntouchlista), today’s Doliche in the Elassona area (Larissa Prefecture), is most likely a Slavic toponym (Duhlišta). The name is connected with the Bulgarian word duhlo (“an opening for the entry of air”) and with the verbs dъham, dъhnati, dyhnati, meaning “to breathe.” This meaning refers to an enclosed place, such as a gorge, that “breathes” with difficulty.

Ntouglista, today’s Trilofon in the Argithea area (Karditsa Prefecture), is likewise attributed to a Slavic root (Duglica), deriving from the words dud(ъ)lo / dulo, meaning “the mouth of a spring.” The original form Dud(ъ)lica and the comparison with Mount Duglica in Serbia support this etymological interpretation.¹

Despite the different approaches, both settlement names appear to describe natural openings in the landscape—passages for air or water. Their phonetic affinity, common Slavic origin, and emphasis on geomorphology suggest that they belong to the same toponymic logic: the naming of a place based on the way it “breathes” or gives rise to water.

1. Χαράλαμπος Συμεωνίδης, Ετυμολογικό λεξικό των νεοελληνικών οικωνυμίων (α΄ και β΄ τόμος), Λευκωσία – Θεσσαλονίκη 2010, αρ. λημ.: 4714, 4784, 12751. ↩︎