Columbia is an old poetic name for the United States. This name is rarely used to refer to the United States now. "District of Columbia" means "District of the United States". The Chinese translation usually adds the word "special" to indicate its special status, such as Washington, District of Columbia. Due to the importance of Columbia to American history, many American things were named after Columbia, including many warships, place names, and even the command module of Apollo 11, the first U.S. moon landing mission. Columbia, America's first space shuttle.
The Republic of Colombia is referred to as "Colombia". This name was named in commemoration of Columbus's discovery of America in 1492, which means "the country of Columbus". But it is said that Columbus never visited the Colombian mainland.