The name Macau (Portuguese pronunciation: [mɐˈkaw])[1] is thought to be derived from the Templo de A-Má (Temple of A-Ma or Ma Kok Temple) (媽閣廟, Cantonese Jyutping: Maa1 Gok3 Miu6, local pronunciation: Maa5 Gok3 Miu6 or Maa5 Gok3 Miu2), a still-existing landmark built in 1448 dedicated to the goddess Matsu - the goddess of seafarers and fishermen.
The young lady walked ashore to the top of the Barra Hill where, in a glowing aura of light and fragrance; she immediately ascended into heaven.
Several hundred years later (circa 1513), when Portuguese sailors landed and asked the name of the place, the locals replied "媽閣" (Jyutping: "Maa1 Gok3").
The corrupted "Macão" appeared in 1641, before finally losing the nasal tilde into the near-modern form of "Macao" in a 1652 Jesuit publication.
[4] The Chinese name Aomen 澳門 (pinyin: Àomén, Cantonese: Ou3 Mun4*2 [ʔōu mǔːn]) means "Inlet Gates".
Alternately, Ao may derive from Macau's previous name Heong San Ou, as it is geographically situated at "Cross' Door".
The Macau authorities issued an internal circular on the matter since when government publications in English use the spelling Macao.
[citation needed] The preference for "Macao" may be explained by a similarity to 馬交 Mǎjiāo, in particular the pinyin pronunciation of "ao" is approximately as in cow; the a is much more audible than the o.