"Indiana" means "Indian Lands." The use of that word to describe
the territory now called Indiana dates back to at least 1768 and
the "Indiana Land Company." The name was used in 1800 when creating
the Indiana Territory out of the Northwest Territory when Ohio was
being prepared for admission as a state. At that time, most of the
Indiana Territory was land held by the Indians (as Native Americans
were then called) and not controlled by the US government.