The state of Senegal is named after the Senegal River. The name of the river may derive from a Portuguese transliteration of the name of the Zenaga, also known as the Sanhaja. Alternatively, it could be a combination of the supreme deity in  (''Rog Sene'') and ''o gal'' meaning ''body of water'' in the Serer language. It is also possible that it derives from the Wolof phrase "Sunuu Gaal," which means "our boat".