Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
and “mountain gem.” Another suggestion is that it is from the Shoshonean
Ee-dah-how
, which
translates “Sunup!” or “Behold the Sun Coming Down the Mountain.” Known as the Gem State
for its many precious and semiprecious stones, it is also the Spud State because it produces—and
processes—about one fourth of America's potato crop.
•
Illinois
(21st state—1818) comes from the Indian tribal name Inini, meaning “tribe of superior
men” or “perfect and accomplished men” and adapted by the French as Illini. The Prairie State
is also affectionately known as the Land of Lincoln because the sixteenth president, while born
in Kentucky, eventually settled in Illinois and pursued his political career there.
•
Indiana
(19th state—1816) means simply “land of Indians,” which is what it used to be. Al-
though the state officially adopted the modest title “The Center of the Commercial Universe” in
1937, it is much better known as the Hoosier State, and its residents are called Hoosiers. The ori-
gin of the word is obscure, although some claim it comes from a common early pioneer greeting,
“Who'shyer?” (“How are you?”).
•
Iowa
(29th state—1846) is another obscure Indian word. It probably means “this is the place”
or “the beautiful land,” but others have suggested a meaning related to “cradle” or a derisive
name for a tribe, meaning “sleepy.” Schoolchildren should be happy that they settled on the name
Iowa: a French map from 1763 spelled the name
Ouaouiatonon.
It is also called the Hawkeye
State in honor of the Indian chief Hawkeye.
•
Kansas
(34th state—1861) comes from the Siouan word
kansa
, meaning “people of the south
wind.” Its unhappy name “Bleeding Kansas,” or “Bloody Kansas,” comes from the several years
of vicious fighting between abolitionists and proslavery settlers who fought over the fate of the
state as either a free or slave state. A most interesting nickname is the Salt of the Earth, as the
state apparently has enough salt reserves to last for several hundred thousand years.
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Kentucky
(15th state—1792) is derived from an Iroquoian word,
ken-tah-ten
, meaning “land of
tomorrow.” It is best known as the Bluegrass State for the native grass characteristic of its famed
race-horse-breeding region.
•
Louisiana
(18th state—1812) is part of the large territory named by the French explorer La Salle
for King Louis XIV, the Sun King. It is known as the Pelican State and the Sugar State.
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Maine
(23rd state—1820) was thought to be first used to distinguish the “mainland” from the
offshore islands but may also be associated with the English Queen Henrietta, wife of Charles I,
who owned the French province of Mayne. With nearly 89 percent of its territory forested, it is
easy to understand its nickname, the Pine Tree State.
•
Maryland
(7th state—1788) was named in honor of Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles II of Eng-
land. Its only nicknames are the rather colorless monikers, the Free State and the Old Line State,
but it does lay claim to an official state crustacean, the Maryland blue crab.
•
Massachusetts
(6th state—1788) comes from two Indian words meaning “great mountain place.”
The second British colony in America, it was founded as the Massachusetts Bay Colony, provid-
ing the obvious nicknames, the Bay State and the Old Colony State. Less appealing is its claim
to being the Bean-Eating State.
