BUDAPEST - The View - 1

The name "Budapest" is the composition of the city names "Buda" and "Pest", since they were united (together with Óbuda) to become a single city in 1873. One of the first occurrences of the combined name "Buda-Pest" was in 1831 in the book "Világ"  , written by Count István Széchenyi. 

The origins of the words "Buda" and "Pest" are obscure. According to chronicles from the Middle Ages, the name "Buda" comes from the name of its founder, Bleda (Buda), the brother of the Hunnic ruler Attila. The theory that "Buda" was named after a person is also supported by modern scholars.   An alternative explanation suggests that "Buda" derives from the Slavic word   ("water"), a translation of the Latin name "Aquincum", which was the main Roman settlement in the region.