In many Romance languages, Kos was formerly known as "Stancho", "Stanchio", or "Stinco", and in Ottoman and modern Turkish it is known as "İstanköy", all from the reinterpretation of the Greek expression "εις την Κω" 'to Kos'; "cf." the similar Istanbul and Stimpoli, Crete. Under the rule of the Knights Hospitaller of Rhodes, it was known as Lango or Langò, presumably because of its length. In "The Travels of Sir John Mandeville", the author misunderstands this and treats Lango and Kos as distinct islands.