Nothing But a Woman

Diomira
Isidora
Dorothea
Zaira
Anastasia
Tamara
Zora
Despina
Zirma
Isaura
Maurilia
Fedora
Zoe
Zenobia
Euphemia
Zobeide
Hypatia
Armilla
Chloe
Valdrada
Olivia
Sophronia
Eutropia
Zemrude
Aglaura
Octavia
Baucis
Leandra
Melania
Esmeralda
Phyllis
Pyrrha
Adelma
Eudoxia
Moriana
Clarice
Eusapia
Beersheba
Leonia
Irene 
Argia
Thekla
Trude
Laudomia 
Perinthia
Procopia
Raissa
Andria
Cecilia
Marozia
Penthesilea
Theodora
Berenice
 
Maybe the description of the cities doesn't exactly relate to one another...but what about their names? If you look closely, their typography is very similar. Also, when Marco Polo talks about them, it seems as he were describing a woman. And I don't know about you, but I would never name a man "Thekla" or "Isidora." They are clearly female names. 
 
The description of these women comes together and it could almost fit into the description of one woman. This could mean they are all one and these descriptions just form part of the way we perceive them/it. 
 
"Clarice, the glorious city, has a tormented history. Several times it decayed, then burgeoned again, always keeping the first Clarice as an unparalleled model of every splendor..." (Pg. 106, Cities and Names). For a person that hasn't read the book, they could assimilate it more to a woman...but, a city? Neh.