How All 50 States of America Got Their Names

You may have lived all your life in the U.S. but do you really know where each of the 50 American states got their names? It’s a bit embarrassing if you lived your whole life in one state but realize that you never know so much about its history, especially its etymology.

Maybe you have an idea about where Alabama or Georgia got its name but what if you’re wrong and you’ve been wrong the entire time? Check out the origins of the state names below and see what you’ve been missing all those years.

#1. Alabama

The name “Alabama” originally referred to the natives who resided along what is now called the Alabama River. The exact meaning of the word remains unclear but it’s somewhat close to “clearer of thickets” or “herb gatherers.”

#2. Alaska

The word means “mainland” or if you want to take it literally, an “object to which the action of the sea is directed.”

#3. Arizona

The state name is derived from the native word, ali sonak or “small spring.” Over time, it became Arissona and eventually to its modern spelling. Some people believe that the word came from the Basque phrase, aritz ona, which means “good oak.”

#4. Arkansas

The word came from Quapaw Indians. Explorers met a group of Native Americans — the Ugakhpah, or “people who live downstream.” They came to be known Quapaw or Arkansaw.

#5. California

California was the name given to the mythical island with gold and monsters found in the 16th-century fantasy-adventure novel by Spanish author Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo.

#6. Colorado

Spanish settlers described the territory as colorado, or “red-colored.”

#7. Connecticut

The word is derived from the language of the Algonquian people, who originally called the place “Quinnehtukqut.”

#8. Delaware

The state name comes from Sir Thomas West, Lord De La Warr, the governor-general of Jamestown and the original governor of the colony in Virginia.

#9. Florida

Spanish explorers discovered Florida in Easter and if you know the language, the territory should have been named pascua. However, “pascua” in Spanish means both Christmas and Easter. They ended up with Florida (flowering) to avoid the confusion.

#10. Georgia

The state was named for King George II of Great Britain and also in honor of England’s patron saint, Saint George.

#11. Hawaii

In Hawaiian myths, the state name is derived from Hawaiki, or home of the gods. But in other versions, it is named after Hawai’iloa, the hero who discovered the territory.

#12. Idaho

Lobbyist George M. Willing suggested the name, which according to him was derived from a Shoshone language term, meaning “the sun comes from the mountains” or “gem of the mountains.”

#13. Illinois

Another state name that was derived from the Algonquian word, ilenweewa, but given a French twist. The word means “speaking normally.”

#14. Indiana

The name is Latin for “land of the Indians.”

#15. Iowa

The state was named after the Iowa River, which got its name from the territory residents, the Iowa Indians. The tribal name “Ayuxwa” was given a French twist,” Ayoua” and the English “Ioway.”

#16. Kansas

The Sunflower State got its name from the American Kaws or Kansa people, a Sioux tribe.

#17. Kentucky

The Bluegrass State’s name is of Native American origin with different possible meanings, including “land of tomorrow” from the Iroquois word, “ken-tah-ten.”

#18. Louisiana

The territory is named after Louis XIV, King of France from 1643 to 1715.

#19. Maine

The name was first used to distinguish the offshore islands from the mainland. It was also a compliment to Henrietta Maria, queen to Charles I of England. It was said that she owned the French province, Mayne.

#20. Maryland

The state was named for Henrietta Maria when the territory was still an English province.