'Antwerpen' originates from Old Dutch/Germanic, specifically an early form often reconstructed as 'anda-werpa' or similar, where 'anda-' meant 'at/against' and 'werpa/werp' related to 'throw' or to a 'wharf/yard' (cf. Dutch 'werf' meaning shipyard/wharf).

'Antwerpen' changed from older forms such as Old Dutch/Germanic *anda-werpa (and medieval forms recorded in various spellings) and eventually became the modern Dutch name 'Antwerpen'.

Initially the elements may have referred to a descriptive phrase (legend: 'thrown hand' or a location 'at the wharf'), but over time these components fused into a fixed place-name now used simply as the city's name 'Antwerpen'.