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Most of the early settlers came from England (hence New England) and simply named their new settlements after their place of origin; (New) York, (New) Jersey, (New) Hampshire, Plymouth, London, Portland, Portsmouth, Dunkirk, Burlington, Manchester, Birmingham, Cambridge, Salisbury, Camden, Dover, Bangor, even Woodstock. Immigrants from Germany brought Berlin, New Hampshire; from Italy Rome, New York; and those from The Netherlands brought New Amsterdam (later New York)NY. As expansion Westward took place the place naming became a little more imaginative. For example: Pennsylvania after William Penn, Pittsburgh after the British Prime Minister William Pitt. With the Louisianna (named after King Louis XV of France) Land Purchase the need to find new names for new states became quite serious. Some were named after the original names given by the French (New Orleans) or Spanish (Florida, Texas, New Mexico etc., still others simply Indiana (Indian Country). I can't help any further West than this.
ANSWER
AlabamaFrom Alabama River by early European explorers and named "Alibamu" after the local Indian tribeAlaskaCorruption of Aleut word meaning "great land" or "that which the sea breaks against"ArizonaUncertain. Perhaps from the O'odham Indian word for "little spring"ArkansasFrom the Quapaw IndiansCaliforniaFrom a book, Las Sergas de Esplandián, by Garcia Ordóñez de Montalvo, c. 1500ColoradoFrom the Spanish, "ruddy" or "red"ConnecticutFrom an Indian word (Quinnehtukqut) meaning "beside the long tidal river"DelawareFrom Delaware River and Bay; named in turn for Sir Thomas West, Baron De La WarrFloridaFrom the Spanish Pascua Florida, meaning "feast of flowers" (Easter)GeorgiaIn honor of George II of EnglandHawaiiUncertain. The islands may have been named by Hawaii Loa, their traditional discoverer. Or they may have been named after Hawaii or Hawaiki, the traditional home of the Polynesians.IdahoAn invented name whose meaning is unknown.IllinoisAlgonquin for "tribe of superior men"IndianaMeaning "land of Indians"IowaFrom the Iowa River which was named after the Ioway Indian tribeKansasFrom a Sioux word meaning "people of the south wind"KentuckyFrom an Iroquoian word "Ken-tah-ten" meaning "land of tomorrow"LouisianaIn honor of Louis XIV of FranceMaineFirst used to distinguish the mainland from the offshore islands. It has been considered a compliment to Henrietta Maria, queen of Charles I of England. She was said to have owned the province of Mayne in France.MarylandIn honor of Henrietta Maria (queen of Charles I of England)MassachusettsFrom Massachusett tribe of Native Americans, meaning "at or about the great hill"MichiganFrom Indian word "Michigana" meaning "great or large lake"MinnesotaFrom a Dakota Indian word meaning "sky-tinted water"MississippiFrom an Indian word meaning "Father of Waters"MissouriNamed after the Missouri Indian tribe. "Missouri" means "town of the large canoes."MontanaFrom the Spanish word meaning "mountain."NebraskaFrom an Oto Indian word meaning "flat water"NevadaSpanish: "snowcapped"New HampshireFrom the English county of HampshireNew JerseyFrom the Channel Isle of JerseyNew MexicoFrom Mexico, "place of Mexitli," an Aztec god or leaderNew YorkIn honor of the Duke of YorkNorth CarolinaIn honor of Charles I of EnglandNorth DakotaFrom the Sioux tribe, meaning "allies"OhioFrom an Iroquoian word meaning "great river"OklahomaFrom two Choctaw Indian words meaning "red people"OregonUnknown. However, it is generally accepted that the name, first used by Jonathan Carver in 1778, was taken from the writings of Maj. Robert Rogers, an English army officer.PennsylvaniaIn honor of Adm. Sir William Penn, father of William Penn. It means "Penn's Woodland."Rhode IslandFrom the Greek Island of RhodesSouth CarolinaIn honor of Charles I of EnglandSouth DakotaFrom the Sioux tribe, meaning "allies"TennesseeOf Cherokee origin; the exact meaning is unknownTexasFrom an Indian word meaning "friends"UtahFrom the Ute tribe, meaning "people of the mountains"VermontFrom the French "vert mont," meaning "green mountain"VirginiaIn honor of Elizabeth "Virgin Queen" of EnglandWashingtonIn honor of George WashingtonWest VirginiaIn honor of Elizabeth, "Virgin Queen" of EnglandWisconsinFrench corruption of an Indian word whose meaning is disputedWyomingFrom the Delaware Indian word, meaning "mountains and valleys alternating"; the same as the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania
Read more: Origin of State Names - Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0854966.html#ixzz1Gi0Rsafl
Wiki User
∙ 8y ago
Wiki User
∙ 15y agoA great number of state names are from American Indian tribes or nations which once occupied the areas that became states, or from words in their languages. The following states are American Indian names: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware (I think), Illinois; Indiana is not Indian but means Indian land (in French, I think); Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Dakota, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Wyoming. I'm not sure about Arizona. Idaho, I have read, was the name first proposed by someone for Colorado before Colorado became a state. It turned out to be a fake Indian name. Not knowing this, when Idaho was being made a state, the name Idaho was remembered by someone and that name stuck. Unfortunately, I cannot recall where I read this. Additionally, many, many cities, rivers and lakes were given Indian names -- Natchez, Wabash, Pawnee, Osage, Winnebago, Wichita, Ouachita and many more. A good clue to the possibility that a name is an Indian name is if the word ends in the "aw" sound like Ouachita, Arkansas, or has an "ee" sounds like Tennessee, Tallahassee, Kissimmee. For a people who drove the Indians from their land, U. S. citizens nevertheless had a fascination with Indian names. They are all over the country.
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoListed below are how the six New England states acquired their names:
Connecticut - From an Indian word (Quinnehtukqut) meaning "beside the long tidal river."
Maine - First used to distinguish the mainland from the offshore islands. It has been considered a compliment to Henrietta Maria, queen of Charles I of England. She was said to have owned the province of Mayne in France.
Massachusetts - From Massachusett tribe of Native Americans, meaning "at or about the great hill."
New Hampshire - From the English county of Hampshire.
Rhode Island - From the Greek Island of Rhodes.
Vermont - From the French "vert mont," meaning "green mountain"
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoUtah-from the Ute Indians that is one
New York-people from york made a new place for themselves
New Mexico-people from Mexico made a new place for themselves
P.S. all the New _____________ states come from that idea
that is all I know.
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