Norwalk
In 1961 the club started in Los Angeles and they named the team the Angels to reflect that. In 1966, the team moved to Anaheim and became the California Angels. When Disney bought the team in 1997, they began renovations on Anaheim Stadium with the City of Anaheim contributing $30 million dollars under the agreement that "Anaheim" appear in the team name. Hence the Anaheim Angels were born. In 2005, new owner Arte Moreno changed the name to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, in order to tap into the large media market in LA and also coincide with legal agreements with the City of Anaheim.
Los Angeles's full name means "the city of angels" and the Angels started out in L.A. before they moved to Anaheim.
There are 2 Major League Baseball teams that have Los Angeles as part of their team name but only the Los Angeles Dodgers (which is a National League team) actually plays in Los Angeles, California whereas theother team with the city name, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (who are an American League team) actually play in Anaheim, California.
They started out as the Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers. The name comes from so many trolley tracks in the city of Brooklyn that people were dodging and it was a popular nickname for people who lived there. It was later shortened to Dodgers.
"Los Angeles" is Spanish for "The Angels." Or, perhaps more to the point would be, "The Angels" is English for "Los Angeles." The Angels were originally called the Los Angeles Angels; the name "Angels" coming from the city's name, "The City of Angels." Los Angeles translated means "City of the Angels". This is most likely how the team got their moniker. Los Angeles means "city of Angles" so the team in result the team named the Angels.
They played in Los Angeles as the Los Angeles Angels for five years from 1961 through the 1965 season. They played in Anaheim as the California Angels from 1966 through 1996. They played as the Anaheim Angels beginning the 1997 season through the 2004 season. They officially became the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on 3 January, 2005. They were the LA Angels for about 1 year. Then when they moved to Aneheim, they became the California Angels. Then, of course, the Anaheim Angels. And now, The Los Angeles Angels of Aneheim.
The Angels were previously known as the Los Angeles Angels from 1961-1964, they were then known as the California Angels from 1965-1996 and then they were known as the Anaheim Angels from 1997-2004 and then they changed their name to what it is today (as of 2009) which is the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
Los Angelas Angels 1961-1965California Angels 1965-1996Anaheim Angles 1997-2004Los Angeles Angeles Of Anaheim 2005-Present
Probably for the same reason the Texas Rangers are not called the Arlington Rangers. They wish to have a greater spear of influence than just the city in which they are located. Thus, the Los Angeles Angels of Ananeim wish to attract fans from the greater Los Angeles area, so they include the name of the larger metropolitan area into their name. Other examples of such naming would be the NBA's Golden State Warriors, or the NFL's Minnesota Vikings, and, of course, the Minnesota Twins.
Los Angeles
Angeles City
LA los angeles