From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a list of Pennsylvania county name etymologies:
- Adams County, Pennsylvania: Adams is named for U.S. President John Adams.
- Allegheny County, Pennsylvania: Allegheny is named for the Allegheny River, which joins with the Monongahela River to form the Ohio River within the county.
- Armstrong County, Pennsylvania: Armstrong is named for American Revolutionary War general and Continental Congressman John Armstrong.
- Beaver County, Pennsylvania: Beaver is named for the Beaver River, which flows through the county.
- Bedford County, Pennsylvania: Bedford is named for Fort Bedford, which was named in turn for the Duke of Bedford.
- Berks County, Pennsylvania: Berks is named for the English county of Berkshire.
- Blair County, Pennsylvania: Blair is named for local leader John Blair.
- Bradford County, Pennsylvania: Bradford is named for U.S. Attorney General William Bradford.
- Bucks County, Pennsylvania: Bucks is named for the English county of Buckinghamshire.
- Butler County, Pennsylvania: Butler is named for American Revolutionary War general Richard Butler, who was killed at the Battle of Fallen Timbers.
- Cambria County: Cambria is so named because it was originally Cambria Township of Somerset County. Cambria is an ancient name for Wales.
- Cameron County, Pennsylvania: Cameron is named for U.S. Senator Simon Cameron.
- Carbon County, Pennsylvania: Carbon is named for the coal deposits found within its borders.
- Centre County, Pennsylvania: Centre is named for its location in the center of the state of Pennsylvania.
- Chester County, Pennsylvania: Chester is named for the English county of Cheshire, or Chester-shire. The City of Chester, now located in Delaware County, was formerly the county's seat.
- Clarion County, Pennsylvania: Clarion is named for the Clarion River.
- Clearfield County, Pennsylvania: Clearfield is named for the many clearings that were once within the county's forests.
- Clinton County: Clinton was probably named for DeWitt Clinton, a Governor of New York who agitated for the construction of the Erie Canal.
- Columbia County, Pennsylvania: Columbia is named for the mythic Columbia.
- Crawford County, Pennsylvania: Crawford is named for Colonel William Crawford, a soldier of the American Revolutionary War.
- Cumberland County, Pennsylvania: Cumberland is named for the English county of Cumberland.
- Dauphin County, Pennsylvania: Dauphin is named for the Dauphin, the title traditionally given to the oldest son of the King of France.
- Delaware County, Pennsylvania: Delaware is named for the Delaware River, which forms part of the county's southern border. The river, in turn, was named for Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr.
- Elk County, Pennsylvania: Elk is named for the elk once common to the area.
- Erie County, Pennsylvania: Erie is named for its location on Lake Erie, which was named for the Erie tribe of Native Americans.
- Fayette County, Pennsylvania: Fayette is named in honor of the Marquis de la Fayette.
- Forest County, Pennsylvania: Forest is named for the woodland within the county.
- Franklin County, Pennsylvania: Franklin is named for Founding Father Benjamin Franklin.
- Fulton County, Pennsylvania: Fulton is named for steamboat inventor Robert Fulton.
- Greene County, Pennsylvania: Greene is named for U.S. general Nathanael Greene.
- Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania: Huntingdon is named for Huntingdon, Pennsylvania.
- Indiana County, Pennsylvania: Indiana is probably named for Indiana Territory.
- Jefferson County, Pennsylvania: Jefferson is named for U.S. President Thomas Jefferson.
- Juniata County: Juniata is named after the Juniata River which flows through the county; Juniata is a Native American word which translated as people of the standing stone.
- Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania: Lackawanna is named for the Lackawanna River, which flows through the county. Lackawanna is a Native American name meaning stream that forks.
- Lancaster County, Pennsylvania: Lancaster is named for the English county of Lancaster.
- Lawrence County, Pennsylvania: Lawrence is named for the USS Brig Lawrence, Oliver Hazard Perry's first flagship, which was in turn named for naval hero James Lawrence.
- Lebanon County, Pennsylvania: Lebanon is named for a Lebanon Township; Lebanon is a Biblical term meaning White Mountain.
- Lehigh County, Pennsylvania: Lehigh is named for the Lehigh River, which flows through the county. The name of the river derives from the Native American word Lechauwekink, meaning where there are forks in the stream.
- Luzerne County, Pennsylvania: Luzerne is named for the French ambassador to the U.S. in 1786, Chevalier de la Luzerne.
- Lycoming County, Pennsylvania: Lycoming is named for Lycoming Creek, which flows through the county. Lycoming was a Delaware word meaning sandy or gravelly creek.
- McKean County, Pennsylvania: McKean is named for Governor of Pennsylvania Thomas McKean.
- Mercer County, Pennsylvania: Mercer is named for American Revolutionary War general Hugh Mercer.
- Mifflin County, Pennsylvania: Mifflin is named for Governor of Pennsylvania Thomas Mifflin.
- Monroe County, Pennsylvania: Monroe is named for U.S. President James Monroe.
- Montgomery County, Pennsylvania: Montgomery is named for either U.S. general Richard Montgomery, two state legislators with the last named Montgomery who worked for its establishment, or for Montgomeryshire in Wales.
- Montour County, Pennsylvania: Montour is named for Madame Montour, a French-Indian woman involved in Native American affairs.
- Northampton County, Pennsylvania: Northampton is named for Northamptonshire in England, the home of the Earl of Pomfret, father-in-law to Thomas Penn.
- Northumberland County, Pennsylvania: Northumberland was probably named for the English county of Northumberland.
- Perry County, Pennsylvania: Perry is named for naval commander Oliver Hazard Perry.
- Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania: Philadelphia was created by William Penn and named after a city called Philadelphus, meaning city of brotherly love, located in Asia Minor.
- Pike County, Pennsylvania: Pike is named for explorer Zebulon Pike.
- Potter County, Pennsylvania: Potter is named for French and Indian Wars and American Revolutionary War general James Potter.
- Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania: Schuylkill is named for the Schuylkill River, the source of which is in the county; Schuylkill is Dutch for hidden stream.
- Snyder County, Pennsylvania: Snyder is named for Governor of Pennsylvania Simon Snyder.
- Somerset County, Pennsylvania: Somerset is named for the English county of Somerset.
- Sullivan County, Pennsylvania: Sullivan is named for Pennsylvania state legislator Charles C. Sullivan.
- Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania: Susquehanna is named for the Susquehanna River, which flows through the county; Susquehanna is an Algonquian word for muddy water.
- Tioga County, Pennsylvania: Tioga is named for the Tioga River, which flows through the county; Tioga is a Native American word meaning the forks of a stream.
- Union County, Pennsylvania: Union is named for the Union which was threatened by the American Civil War.
- Venango County: Venango's name is taken from the Native American name for French Creek.
- Warren County, Pennsylvania: Warren is named for Joseph Warren, likely the first military officer to die for the Continentals in the American Revolutionary War.
- Washington County, Pennsylvania: Washington is named for U.S. President George Washington.
- Wayne County, Pennsylvania: Wayne is named for Gen. "Mad" Anthony Wayne.
- Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania: Westmoreland is named for the English county of Westmorland.
- Wyoming County, Pennsylvania: Wyoming is a Delaware word meaning meadows.
- York County, Pennsylvania: York is named for the Duke of York or for the city and shire of York in England.
[edit] Source
[edit] See also
