Angel Falls (Kerepakupai Merú), Canaima National Park, Bolívar State, Venezuela

Let’s start, shall we, with the name of the highest waterfall on Earth. From its discovery in 1933 until 2009, the world knew it as Angel Falls — after the American pilot Jimmy Angel, who reported it to the National Geographic Society.

Of course, local people had known it long before. They called it Churún Merú — after the Churún River on which it stands. Another name was Aparamay or Apemey, which means “maiden’s eyebrow”.