USA - State Nicknames

Recently heard of how each and every state of the USA is known by its own nickname. In truth there are a number known by more than one. Hence the following list will, where possible, have the official name explained and, when there are more than one, the example I found the most interesting.

Alabama is the Yellowhammer State, so called because of the nickname applied to Confederate soldiers from this state in the US Civil War who wore brilliant yellow cloth trimming the sleeves, collars and coattails.

Alaska is known as the Last Frontier State, and rightly so as it is (quite literally) the most recent wilderness for the US to contend with.

Arizona is the Grand Canyon State and in comes as no surprise to find this tourist magnet is found here.

Arkansas is the Natural State because of its natural scenic beauty.

California is the Golden State because of the Gold Rush of the middle of the 19th century.

Colorado is the Centennial State because it was 100 years since the founding of the Union when it joined.

Connecticut is the Constitution State as it was here at Hartford in 1639 that the first formal constitution was written on American soil.

Delaware is the First State as it was the first to be admitted to the Union, doing so in 1787.

Florida is the Sunshine State because its southern location means it has many hours of sunshine.

Georgia is the Peach State, it having been the official fruit since 1995.

Hawaii is the Aloha State, a Polynesian greeting.

Idaho is the Gem State, often said to be from the Native American reference to the name of Idaho meaning 'the gem of the mountains'. However sources also show how the name came mean 'territory of the fish-eaters' and thus the name refers to the precious metals found here.

Illinois is the Prairie State owing to its location on the prairie lands of North America.

Indiana has no official nickname but is usually known as the Hospitality State, for obvious reasons.

Iowa is the Hawkeye State, nobody really knows for certain why but most often explained by the character in James Fennimore Cooper's book The Last of the Mohicans.

Kansas is the Sunflower State as it is also the state flower.

Kentucky is the Bluegrass State as blue graas grows here. Correctly the grass is, of course, green but appears blue when the flower buds appear in the spring.

Louisiana is the Pelican State as this is the official state bird.

Maine is the Pine Tree State as it has a pine tree on its seal and there are indeed a lot of pine trees here.

Maryland is the Old Line State, from the old Colonial army and the Maryland Line.

Massachusetts is the Bay State as it is, unsurprisingly, where Massachusetts Bay can be found.

Michigan is the Great Lakes State as it borders Lake Michigan.

Minnesota is the North Star State, this appearing on the state seal in French.

Missouri is the Show Me State, reputedly taken from a speech by Missouri congressman William Vandiver.

Montana is the Treasure State because of its gold and silver deposits.

Nebraska is the Cornhusker State, taken from the nickname of the University of Nebraska's sporting teams.

Nevada is the Silver State as it has a wealth of silver.

New Hampshire is the Granite State as the rock was once quarried here in vast quantities.

New Jersey is the Garden State, albeit not officially. This was coined by Abraham Browning in a speech in 1876 at the Centennial Exhibition.

New Mexico is the Land of Enchantment, one of many such enthusiastic names applied to a state

New York is the Empire State as George Washington referred to it as 'the seat of the empire' in 1784.

North Carolina is the Tar Heel State, for the locals were known as 'tarboilers' and later 'tar heels'. While nobody really knows why, one suggestion tells of how a brigade failed to hold their position during a battle in 1869 and the Mississippians blamed this on them failing to tar their heels that morning. Indeed.

North Dakota is the Peace Garden State as the International Peace Gardens are to be found in the north.

Ohio is the Buckeye State, a variety of horse chestnut which is the state tree.

Oklahoma is the Sooner State as many white settlers made claims on land here even before the border restrictions were lifted.

Oregon is the Beaver State as the state animal is the beaver.

Pennsylvania is the Keystone State as it was toasted as 'the keystone to the union' in 1802.

Rhode Island is the Ocean State, abeit not officially, and for obvious reasons.

South Carolina is the Palmetto State after the palmetto palm.

South Dakota is thwe Mount Rushmore State as Mount Rushmore, with its presidential faces, is found here.

Tennessee is the Volunteer State and with several explanations, including the volunteer soldiers at the Battle of New Orleans in 1812 or 1847 and the Mexican War.

Texas is the Lone Star State as this is the symbol found on the flag of Texas.

Utah is the Beehive State, for the Mormon settlers were said to have brought with them swarms of bees.

Vermont is the Green Mountain State, itself from Green Mountain Boy and a reference to any inhabitant since 1772 and named from the militia.

Virgina is the Old Dominion, and earlier Ancient Dominion, as it was the site of the first colonies.

Washington is the Evergreen State because of its vast areas of conifer forest.

West Virginia is the Mountain State for the same reason as some sources give this as the Switzerland of America.

Wisconsin is the Badger State, nothing to do with the animal but to early lead miners who worked underground, just like badgers.

Wyoming is the Equality State as it was here, in 1869, when women's suffrage was granted.

With apologies to our American friends who undoubtedly know most if not all of these, I will redress the balance by giving the origins of the names of counties on this side of the Atlantic next time.

Yet I must end with some of the odder, alternative references used by states for more than two centuries. These include Seward's Ice Box, Cottondom, Baby State, Toothpick State, Mile-High State, the Cracker State, Spud State, Hoosier State, the Cyclone State, Hemp State, Old Dirigo State, Oyster State, Codfish State, Water Wonderland, Cream Pitcher of the Nation, Mudcat State, Stub-Toe State, Divorce State, Clam State, Knickerbocker State, Flickertail State, Boomer's Paradise, Iodine State, Artesian State, Hog and Hominy State, Cheese State, Uncle Sam's Pocket Handkerchief, Land of Steady Habits and, most unusual of all, the Land of Wooden Nutmegs.

Capital Cities of North and South America – etymologically speaking.

Previously I looked at the origins of the names of the countries of (what was once known as) the New World. In there I mentioned defining their capital cities, so I do and in the same alphabetical order of the countries.

Antigua and Barbuda – capital city is St John’s which, as with every other parish on the islands, is named after the dedication of the parish church.

Argentina – where the capital city is Buenos Aries, named by Spanish settlers who arrived here in 1536. Fortunately, at least for the Argentinian postal service, the modern version is an abbreviation of the original name of Ciudad da la Santisima Trinidad y Puerto de nuestra senora la virgin Maria de los beunos aries. The name meaning ‘City of the Most Holy Trinity and port of Our Lady the Virgin Mary of the Good Winds’ has nothing to do with local weather or climate but has a beginning referring to Trinity Sunday, the day on which the settlement was founded, the remainder reminds us the Virgin Mary is the patron saint of sailors.

Bahamas – today the capital is Nassau but, when founded in 1729, was known as Charlestown to honour the English king Charles II. When William III took the throne, he of the House of Orange-Nassau, the name was changed. Incidentally the name of the royal house comes from the Germany duchy of Nassau, itself from Old High German naz ‘damp or marshy’ and augia ‘land’.

Barbados – when discovered by the British they found the remains of a primitive bridge across the Careenage swamp, this built by the Arawak people. This led to them knowing the place as Indian Bridge and yet very soon the place was officially known as the Town of Saint Michael from the dedication of the church. Later, when the same church was given cathedral status, the name was officially changed to the somewhat oxymoronic City of Bridgetown.

Belize – has the capital city of Belmopan, the name only existing since 1967. The capital replaced the former capital, also Belize, destroyed by a hurricane in 1961. The new city was built 50 miles inland on a tributary of the River Belize, the River Molpan, and named as part of the former city and the river.

Bolivia – the constitutional capital is La Paz, an abbreviation of the original name of Pueblo Nuevo de Nuestra Senora de la Paz. Given by the Spanish in 1548, it was named to mark the peace between themselves and the locals and means ‘new town of Our Lady of Peace’.

Brazil – has a capital named Brasilia, a new city founded as recently as 1960 to move the seat of government in this huge country to a more neutral and central location. It is named from a tree, not that which bears brazil nuts but from brazil-wood. The wood was a source of a red dye, known to the Portuguese as braza literally ‘heat’ or ‘coals’. This was used prior to the discovery of the Americas to refer to a red dye obtained from the Far East and known by the Latin brasilium. The earlier name for this region was also Portuguese, named by Cabral in 1500 Vera Cruz meant ‘true cross’. The previous capital, and one still often mistakenly said to have that status, is Rio de Janeiro. It was named as such by the explorer Amerigo Vespucci, who thought the bay on which the city stands to be the estuary of a large river and thus called it ‘the January river’, it being New Years’ Day in 1502.

Canada – has the capital city of Ottawa, taken from the tribe known as the Outaouacs or Outaouais who came here from the around Lake Huron and whose name is thought to mean ‘traders’. Earlier it was known as Bytown, named after Colonel John By, an English soldier who organised the building of the Rideau Canal.

Chile – its capital Santiago was founded in 1541 by Pedro de Valdiva as Santiago del Nuevo Extremo ‘Santiago of the new frontier’. Named in honour of St James, San Jago to the Spanish, is said to have preached in Spain and his body brought there following his martyrdom in Jerusalem.

Colombia – had its capital founded and named by the Spanish explorer Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada on January 6th 1538 as Santa Fe de Bogota. Here Santa Fe means ‘holy faith’, a reference to January 6th being the Feast of the Transfiguration, while Bogota is a Spanish rendering of the name of the tribal chief Bacata.

Costa Rica – where the capital is San Jose, the Spanish for Saint Joseph. When founded it was known as Villa Nueva, simply ‘new town’.

Cuba – the capital of Havana is of uncertain origins, possibly a tribal name or that of a Taino chieftain known as Habaguanex. It is first recorded when the Spanish explorer Diego Velasquez named if San Cristobal de la Habana (St Christopher of Habana) to honour Christopher Columbus.

Dominica – where the capital city is Roseau, named after the River Rouseau, itself named by French explorers from the reeds known as phragmites which grew there.

Dominican Republic – dating from the Spanish settlement of 1496, the capital of Santo Domingo can claim to be the oldest European city in the Americas. The name either means ‘Saint Dominic’ or ‘holy Sunday’, depending upon one’s interpretation as to whether this is after Domenico Columbus (father of Christopher) of Saint Dominic (Domingo de Guzman) and founded on a Sunday. Briefly, from 1936 to 1961, it was known as Ciudad Trujillo after dictator Trujillo Molina, while the native Taino people had known it as Quisqueya or ‘mother of all islands’ before the Europeans arrived.

Ecuador – has the capital city Quito. This was also the name of the entire country until 1830, it was named by Spanish explorers after the local Quitu tribe who were extinct by the nineteenth century.

El Salvador – has the capital city San Salvador, Spanish for ‘holy saviour’ as it was founded on the Feast of Transfiguration August 6th 1525.

Grenada – has the capital St George’s, named after the patron saint of England. Prior to this the settlement was French and named Saint Louis after King Louis IX and then, when rebuilt on higher ground, was renamed Fort Royale.

Guatemala – the name which started it all off, where the capital is Guatemala City. This is a Spanish version of the original Tuendal name uhatzmalha or ‘the mountain that gushes water’.

Guyana – the capital is Georgetown, founded in 1781 and named by the British in honour of George III. Shortly afterward, in 1784, the Dutch gained control and renamed it Stabroek or ‘little pool’, with this returning to Georgetown in 1812.

Haiti – has the capital city Port-au-Prince. Meaning ‘the port of the Prince’ it is held the bay, and later the port and city, were named after a vessel which took shelter here, that vessel named Prince.

Honduras – has the capital city Tegucigalpa, named from the local Nahuatl language where Taguz-galpa apparently means ‘the hills of silver’. However this is disputed as the locals were seemingly unaware of this precious metal being available here. Other explanations, which suggest this came from other languages, provide the alternative meanings of ‘painted rocks’, a Mexican dance, ‘place of residence of the noble’, ‘place on the home of the beloved master’, and ‘in the homes of the sharp stones’.

Jamaica – has the capital Kingston, named to honour the English king William III.

Mexico – was named for its capital city Mexico City, itself named Metzlianan by the Aztecs and coming from the lake named from metz-tli ‘moon’ and atl ‘water’.

Nicaragua – has the capital city Managua, which comes from the local Nahuatl tongue meaning ‘adjacent to the water’ or perhaps ‘surrounded by water’. Ironically this name has also been given to Lake Managua, itself the ‘water’ which gave the settlement its name.

Panama – the country is named from the capital, Panama City. This name was discussed last time, where all theories agree it comes from a native language but the question of which language, and therefore which word, is disputed. Some point to the local trees growing in the forest, others suggest this came about when the first settlers arrived in August, a time when butterflies abound, and called it the place of ‘many butterflies’. Most often cited is the story of the fishing village known by this name which was supposed to mean ‘abundance of fish’. Panamanians, eager to produce something from this confusion, have officially adopted the meaning of ‘abundant with fish, trees, and butterflies’, a tourist winner if ever there was one. This does not take into consideration the native Kuna word bannaba meaning ‘distant’ or ‘afar’.

Paraguay – had its capital Asuncion named by Spanish explorers on August 15th 1536, the feast day of the Assumption or, to the Spanish, Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion ‘Our Lady of the Assumption’.

Peru – has the capital Lima, a city founded in 1535 by Franciso Pizzaro who called it Ciudad de los Reyes ‘city of the kings’. As the years passed it slowly became more often referred to by the same name as the river on which it stands. The River Rimac takes the name of a god whose name means ‘he who speaks’.

St Kitts and Nevis – the capital of Basseterre, a name which is derived from the French for ‘low land’ or ‘down land’. This term is seen several times around the Caribbean.

Saint Lucia – the settlement founded by the French in 1650 was known as Carenage or ‘safe anchorage’. Renamed Castries in 1756, this honoured the commander of the French expeditionary force Eugene Gabriel de La Croix, marquis de Castries.

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – has the capital Kingstown, named to honour the ruling monarch both by the original French and the British who came afterwards.

Suriname – Paramaribo is the capital city, named by the local tribe where para maribo describes ‘the dwellers by the sea’.

Trinidad and Tobago – was settled by the Spanish, hence the capital city being Port of Spain. Previously this settlement was known as Cumucurapo by the local people, this meaning ‘the place of the silk cotton trees’.

United States of America – has the capital Washington, D.C. It is named after George Washington, the first president of the United States of America and a man whose grandfather was lord of the manor of Sulgrave in Northamptonshire and also my great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather.

Uruguay – can boast the southernmost capital city of all the Americas. Montevideo comes from the Portuguese, possibly named by Magellan, monte vidi eo or ‘I saw the mountain’. Another idea of monte VI de O, where ‘VI’ is a Roman numeral and ‘O’ the Portuguese abbreviation for oeste ‘west’ seems highly contrived, especially when defined as ‘sixth mountain from the west’.

Venezuela – has the capital city Caracas. Named by Spanish explorers after the local tribe, it was originally known as Santiago de Leon de Caracas where Saint James, the patron saint of Spain, preceded Don Pedro Ponce de Leon, the provincial governor.

Literary Assassination

November 2013 marked fifty years since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas. I am always interested in how such moments in history were covered by the media and spent some time viewing old reports. Later I looked back to April 1865 and the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Many parallels have been drawn between the two men and the number of coincidences surrounding both their lives and deaths.

One comparison which cannot be drawn between the two is in the media coverage. In 1963 instant communication methods meant the news was reported in the United Kingdom at almost the same time as it did in the USA. A century earlier it took days for the news to filter through and newspapers, at least in local terms, were produced weekly and reports of President Lincoln’s death appeared, in real time, after the ten-day search for John Wilkes Booth had ended in the killer’s death. This also tempered the mood of other reports: in 1963 even the sports pages lacked the usual exuberance, in 1865 columns went unchanged. Alongside the belated reports of the assassination and its aftermath I found the following stories.

No mention of Lincoln’s assassination was found in the first newspaper after the 14th April, news had yet to filter through. However the mood of optimism across the Atlantic was covered, with a mention of how American newspapers had seen the appearance of four eagles circling the Statue of Freedom atop the Capitol Dome in Washington DC. This could only mean a good time for all lay ahead under the new presidency. Note this was simply the local rag repeating what had been printed in US newspapers.

A rather odd story came from Prussian Poland, where but two passenger trains ran between Lissa and Posen each day. A similar number of livestock trains were seen daily but government legislation banned any human passengers save for the handlers of the livestock, for which a perfectly acceptable carriage was coupled up. There were no exceptions to this rule, even medical personnel had been turned away resulting in a number of deaths. It was not clear how many, if any, could have been saved had the doctor been allowed to travel. An enterprising German innkeeper saw a possible loophole and purchased advertising space at the station offering his goat for hire. For the equivalent of sixpence (equivalent of £2 today) for every station travelled in each direction this would allow any passenger to travel on the livestock train. The advert also pointed out the goat could be handled by anyone being “so tame it could be controlled by just a slender silk ribbon.”

Silly season sees all sorts of weird stories being covered. Yet surely we could never be so desperate as to include a conversation such as that following the announcement of an engagement. It seems the lady had been asked time and again just why she was contemplating becoming Mrs (name withheld), when he was clearly so different from other men? She responded the questioning with: “Well if he is very much unlike other men, he is more likely to make a good husband.”

A similarly odd subject was covered in the story of a letter written by a lady from Bristol. It seems Alice had written to a well-respected gentleman of the city, stating how she had tried time and again to be formally introduced to a man she had admired from afar adding, “If you are wondering why a mere girl such as I would wish to meet a man of your stature, meet me at the post box outside the chapel at 7:30 that Sunday evening.” No Victorian gent could ever entertain leaving a young lady standing around and so he turned up. He was not pleased to discover he was one of between thirty and forty gentlemen milling around the post box trying to appear nonchalant. For reasons I have yet to fathom they were still there at 8:00pm when the congregation emerged from the chapel. It was suspected Alice was among those emerging from the chapel as there seemed to be a lot of giggling and glances in their direction.

Another post-war story was covered, that of a US deserter. An Irishman by the name of James Devlin, having enlisted with the Union Army, deserted and was subsequently reported by his wife, who collected the reward money. However he could not be found and no wonder for he had re-enlisted under an alias. This alias was also being sought as a deserter, furthermore his wife had also given evidence against her husband and claimed the reward money. Yet again the deserter could not be found, for Devlin had enlisted a third time under yet another alias and had been turned in by HIS wife who, you guessed it, had again received the reward money. What was proving to be a lucrative ruse came to light when Mrs Devlin found her husband had deserted her and was enjoying the ill-gotten gains with another woman. This time she gave factual details as to his whereabouts and he is subsequently arrested. However she regretted her actions when she witnessed him being led out to face the firing squad within the confines of the army camp on the island. It was said her screams and sobbing could be heard across the water on the mainland.

How many of these would be considered world headlines today?