The Sun Also Rises (1926) and The Garden of Eden (1986) contain a large number of place names, particularly European ones. This essay examines Hemingway's use of place names as a poetic strategy that forms part of an inquiry into the meaning of space and place. While place names appear to be stable referents denoting specific geographical locations, the background of war underscores the arbitrariness involved in borders, place, and location. Hemingway's novels challenge the view of place names as stable referents and demonstrate the crucial role played by artistic representation in the creation of place.