Hebron(Settlement)English From Hebrew חֶבְרוֹן (Ḥevrōn), ultimately from northwest Semitic ḥbr meaning "unite, colleague, friend, alliance". Several sites in the United States were named for the city in Palestine.
Hemet(Settlement, Body of Water & Other)English (American) Etymology uncertain. Possibly from Swedish hemmet meaning "home, homeland". Other theories claim that the name is derived from an unspecified Native American language, possibly meaning "box", "acorn valley", "surrounded by trees", or derived from a female given name, Hemetica... [more]
Hennepin(Political Subdivision)English (American), French The name of a county in Minnesota, from the French surname Hennepin, after Louis Hennepin, a Belgian Catholic priest and missionary.
Herculaneum(Settlement)Ancient Roman An ancient Roman town in Italy destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE. Derived from the name of Hercules, a mythological figure whom some claimed had founded the settlement.
Iola(Settlement)English Transferred use of the English given name Iola. The city in Kansas is named for Iola Colborn, the wife of Josiah Colborn, one of the town's founders.
Janesville(Settlement)English From the English surname Janes and ville, meaning "city". The city in Wisconsin is named after the settler and city planner Henry F Janes.
Joliet(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the French surname Joliet. The city in Illinois was named for Louis Joliet, one of the first Europeans to map the Upper Mississippi area.
Kabekona(Body of Water)English (American) A lake in Minnesota. From Ojibwe gabekana meaning "end of the trail".
Kabetogama(Body of Water)English (American) A lake in Minnesota. From Ojibwe gaa-biitoogamaag-zaaga'igan meaning "the lake that lies parallel with another lake, the lake that doubles with another lake, the place where there is one lake after another."
Kailua(Settlement)Hawaiian From Hawaiian kailua meaning "two seas", from kai meaning "sea, seawater" and ʻelua, meaning "two". The community in Hawaiʻi is named for two former fishponds located nearby.
Kandiyohi(Settlement)English (American) A city in Minnesota. From Dakota kandi, "buffalo fish" and ohi, "arrive in".
Kaneohe(Settlement)Hawaiian From Hawaiian kāne ʻohe meaning "bamboo man", after the story of a local woman who compared her husband's cruelty to the sharp edge of cutting bamboo.
Kapaa(Settlement)English (American) A city in Hawaiʻi. From Hawaiian kapaʻa meaning "the solid one".
Kaposia(Settlement)Sioux A Dakota settlement in Minnesota. From Dakota kaposia meaning "light, light-footed".
Ketchikan(Settlement & River)English (American) The city in Alaska is named for the nearby Ketchikan Creek, which itself comes from Tlingit kichx̱áan, of disputed meaning.
Laccadive(Political Subdivision, Body of Water & Other)English Probably an Anglicized version of Lakṣadvīpa.
Lac Qui Parle(Body of Water)English (American) A lake and city in Minnesota. From French lac qui parle meaning "lake which speaks".
La Crosse(Settlement)English (American) From French la crosse, meaning "crozier". The city in Wisconsin was named for a game played by the Native Americans living in the area, which used sticks resembling, in the eyes of Euro-American colonists, a bishop's crozier.
Lafayette(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the French surname Lafayette. Several places in the United States are named Lafayette after the the French general Marquis de Lafayette, who fought in the American Revolutionary War.
Lahaina(Settlement)English, Hawaiian A city in Hawaiʻi. From the Hawaiian language, but of uncertain etymology.
Lajas(Settlement & Other)Spanish (Latin American) A valley in Puerto Rico and various settlements in Latin American and the Caribbean. From Spanish lajas meaning "slabs, stones".
Lakshadweep(Political Subdivision)English A union territory of India. An Anglicized form of Sanskrit लक्षद्वीप (lakṣadvīpa) meaning "hundred thousand islands", from लक्ष (lakṣa) meaning “hundred thousand” and द्वीप (dvīpa) meaning "island".
Lamar(Settlement)English Transferred use of the surname Lamar. The city in Colorado is named for Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II, U.S. Secretary of the Interior, author of the Mississippi Ordinance of Secession, and soldier for the Confederacy in the American Civil War.
Laramie(Settlement, River & Mountain)English (American) From the French surname Laramie. Several places in the United States were named for Jacques LaRamie, a French or French-Canadian trapper who was one of the first people of European descent to come to the Wyoming area.
Laurel(Settlement)English From the English word "laurel". The city in Montana was named for a laurel shrub which was growing in the area.
Livingston(Settlement)English Transferred use of the surname Livingston. The city in Montana was named for Johnston Livingston, a Northern Pacific Railway stockholder and director.
Lodi(Settlement)English (American), Italian A city in Caliornia, likely named for the city in Italy, which in turn is likely derived from Latin laude, "praise".
Lomita(Settlement)English (American) A city in California. From Spanish lomita meaning "little hill".
Lompoc(Settlement)English (American) A city in California. From Chumash Purisimeño lumpo'o̥ meaning "in the cheeks".
Mandan(Settlement)English (American) The city in North Dakota was named for the Mandan people, who are indigenous to the area.
Manitowoc(Settlement & River)English (American) A river and city in Wisconsin. From Ojibwe manidoowaak meaning "spirit spawn", "spirit woods" or "spirit land".
Manoominikaani-zaaga'igan(Body of Water)Ojibwe A lake in Minnesota. From the Ojibwe word manoominikaani-zaaga'igan meaning "plenty of wild rice lake".
Mantua(Settlement)English, Dutch, German, Ancient Roman, Spanish A city in Italy, the birthplace of the famous Ancient Roman poet Vergil. Etymology uncertain; possibly from the name of the Etruscan god Mantus.
Mare Nostrum(Body of Water)Ancient Roman, Late Roman Ancient Roman term for the Mediterranean Sea. Meaning "our sea", from Latin mare meaning "sea" and nostrum meaning "our, ours".
Marion(Settlement)English Transferred use of the surname Marion. The city in Iowa was named after Francis Marion, a hero of the Revolutionary War.
Marquette(Settlement & Body of Water)English (American) Transferred use of the French surname Marquette. A city in Michigan and a lake in Minnesota were named for Jacques Marquette, a French Jesuit missionary.
Mashpee(Settlement)English (American) A city in Massachusetts. From Wampanoag mass-nippe meaning "greater cove, great pond, land near great cove", itself from mass meaning "great, greater" and nippe meaning "water".
Mde Lyedan(Body of Water)Sioux A lake in Minnesota. From Dakota mde lyedan meaning "lake which speaks".
Menahga(Settlement)English (American) A city in Minnesota. From Ojibwe miinikaa meaning "there are blueberries".
Mendota(Settlement)English (American) A city in Minnesota. Its name is derived from the Dakota word bdóte, which refers to the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers.
Menifee(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the given name Menifee. The city in California was named for Luther Menifee Wilson, a local miner.
Mequon(Settlement)English (American) A city in Wisconsin. From Ojibwe emikwaan or miguan meaning "ladle", or possibly Menominee mēkon meaning "feather".
Mesabi(Region)English (American) A mining district and mountain range in Minnesota. From Ojibwe misaabe-wajiw meaning "giant mountain".
Methuen(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the surname Methuen. The city in Massachusetts was named for Sir Paul Methuen, an English diplomat and politician.
Mille Lacs(Political Subdivision & Body of Water)English (American) A lake in Minnesota. From the French mille lacs meaning "thousand lakes".
Minas Tirith(Settlement)Literature A city in JRR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series. Meaning "tower of guard, tower of watch," from the fictional Sindarin language, minas meaning "tower, fort" and tirith, meaning "watch, guard, vigilence".
Minnehaha(River)English (American) The name of several places and bodies of water in the United States and Canada, derived from Dakota mniȟáȟa meaning "waterfall, rapid water". A popular but false legend translates the name as "laughing water".
Minot(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the surname Minot. The city in North Dakota is named for Henry Minot, an ornithologist and investor in the Great Northern Railway, around which the city was built.
Mishiguaganan(Mountain)Spanish (Latin American) A mountain in Peru. Possibly from Ancash Quechua mishi meaning "cat" and waqay meaning "crying, to cry".
Moraga(Settlement)English Transferred use of the Spanish surname Moraga. The city in California was named for the rancher and local landowner Joaquín Moraga.
Muncie(Settlement)English (American) A city in Indiana named for the term Euro-American settlers used for local Lenape people, who speak the Munsee language.
Murrieta(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the Spanish surname Murrieta. The city in California was named for its founder, the ranchero Juan Murrieta.
Muskego(Settlement)English (American) A city in Wisconsin. From Potawatomi mus-kee-guaac meaning "sunfish".
Muskoda(Settlement)English (American) A ghost town in Minnesota. From Ojibwe mashkode meaning "meadow, grassland, large prairie".
Namekagon(River)English (American) A tributary of the St Croix River. From Ojibwe namekaagong-ziibi meaning "river abundant with sturgeons".
Naticocha(Mountain)Spanish (Latin American) A mountain in Peru. Possibly from Quechua ñat'i or nati meaning "sickness, bowels, the most hidden" and qucha meaning "lake".
Ñausacocha(Mountain)Spanish (Latin American) A mountain in Peru. Possibly meaning "blind lake", from Quecha ñawsa meaning "blind" and qucha meaning "lake".
Neandertal(Other)German, English From the surname Neander and German Tal meaning "valley". The valley in Germany was named for Joachim Neander, a pastor and hymn writer.
Neenah(Settlement)English (American) A city in Wisconsin. From Hoocąk nįįňą meaning "water, running water".
Nemadji(River)English (American) A river in Minnesota. From Ojibwe ne-madji-tic-guay-och or nemanjitigweyaag meaning "left river".
Nininger(Settlement)English Transferred use of the surname Nininger. The township in Minnesota was named for John Nininger, the brother-in-law of Alexander Ramsey, an early governor of Minnesota.
Noblesville(Settlement)English From the English surname Noble and ville meaning "city". The city in Indiana was named for either James Noble, one of the first two Senators from Indiana, or Lavina Noble, the fiance of city founder Josiah Polk.
Nokomis(Body of Water)English (American) A lake in Minnesota. Its name derives from the Ojibwe nookomis meaning "my grandmother".
Númenor(Country & Island)Literature An island empire in JRR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series. From the fictional Quenya language númen, meaning "west", and nórë, meaning "land".
Ogema(Settlement)English (American) A township in Minnesota. From Ojibwe ogimaa meaning "chief".
Okemos(Settlement)English (American) A city in Michigan, named after Chief John Okemos of the Ojibwe people. The surname Okemos is an anglicized form of Ojibwe ogimaans meaning "little chief".
Onalaska(Settlement & Body of Water)English (American) Various cities in the United States and a lake in Wisconsin. After Unalaska, a volcanic island in Alaska which was mentioned in the poem "The Pleasures of Hope" by the Scottish poet Thomas Campbell.
Onamia(Settlement & Body of Water)English (American) A city and lake in Minnesota. From Ojibwe onamanii-zaaga'iganiing, which itself is derived from onaman meaning "red ochre, vermilion" and zaaga'igan meaning "lake".
Oneida(Settlement)English (American) A city in New York. From the name of the Oneida people, who are indigenous to the area.
Oneka(Body of Water)English (American) A lake in Minnesota. From Dakota onakan meaning "strike, knock off", referring to the practice of gathering wild rice by knocking it into a canoe.
Opa-locka(Settlement)English (American) A city in Florida. From Seminole opa-tisha-wocka-locka or opatishawockalocka meaning "wooded hummock, hot and dry hummock".
Opelousas(Settlement)English (American) A city in Louisiana. From the Opelousa people, who were indigenous to the area.
Øresund(Body of Water)Danish, Norwegian From Danish øre meaning "gravel/sand beach" and sund meaning "sound, strait".
Orinda(Settlement)English A transferred use of the given name Orinda. The city in California was likely named for the Anglo-Welsh poet Katherine Philips, who wrote under the pen name Orinda.
Orthanc(Settlement)Literature A fortress in JRR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series. Likely from the fictional Sindarin language orod, "mountain", and thanc, "cleft, split".
Osawatomie(Settlement)English (American) A city in Kansas. Its name derives from a portmanteau of Osage and Potawatomi, two Native American nations indigenous to the area.
Osgiliath(Settlement)Literature A city in JRR Tolkien's 'Lord of the Rings' series. Meaning "city of the stars", from the fictional Sindarin language ost, "fortress, city" and gil "star".
Oshawa(Settlement)English (Canadian) A city in Ontario. From Ojibwa aazhawe, meaning "a cross, the crossing place".
Oshkosh(Settlement)English (American) Transferred use of the Menominee name Oshkosh meaning "claw". Chief Oshkosh was a leader of the Menominee Native Americans, who are indigenous to the area.
Oskaloosa(Settlement)English (American) A city in Iowa. Meaning "black rain", from Mvskoke-Creek oske "rain" and lvste "black". A local legend claims that Ouscaloosa was the Creek wife of Seminole chief Osceola... [more]
Oswego(Settlement & River)English (American) Various locations in the United States. From Iroquois os-we-go meaning "pouring out place."
Otsego(Settlement)English (American) From Mohawk or Oneida otsego, meaning "place of the rock". The city in Minnesota is named for the county in New York.
Owámniyomni(Other)Sioux A waterfall near Minneapolis, Minnesota, the only natural major waterfall on the Mississippi River before the construction of a series of locks. From Dakota owámniyomni, "whirlpool".
Owatonna(Settlement)English (American) From the Dakota name for the nearby Straight River, Wakpá Owóthaŋna.
Patagonia(Region)Spanish, English A geographical region in South America. From the Spanish word patagón, referring to a legendary race of giants, which the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan used to describe the peoples indigenous to the area.
Pepperell(Settlement)English Transferred use of the English surname Pepperell. The town in Massachusetts was named for Sir William Pepperell, a colonial soldier who led the Siege of Louisbourg during the French and Indian War.
Pittsburgh(Settlement)English From the English surname Pitt and burg meaning "fortress, citadel". The city in Pennsylvania was named for William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, a Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Pocatello(Settlement)English (American) A city in Idaho named for the Shoshone leader Tondzaosha, who was called Pocatello in American military accounts. The name Pocatello is of unclear etymology and does not appear to be derived from the Shoshoni language.
Pokegama(Body of Water & River)English (American) A lake and river in Minnesota. From Ojibwe bakegamaa meaning "the water which juts off from another water".
Pomona(Settlement)English Various cities are named for Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit.