There are five US capitals with names from Native American languages, and there are also tens of non-capital cities with the same name origin.
The US capitals with names in native American languages are the following:
- Cheyenne the capital of Wyoming. There is a lot of information about the origin of the word on Wikipedia.
- Honolulu the capital of Hawaii. The name appears to mean ‘sheltered harbor’ or ‘calm port’ in Hawaiian.
- Oklahoma City the capital of Oklahoma. The name is derived from the Choctaw words ‘okla’ (people) and ‘humma’, which translates as red.
- Tallahassee the capital of Florida. The name is a Muskogean language word translated as ‘old fields’ or ‘old town’.
- Topeka the capital of Kansas. According to Wikipedia, this is a Kansa-Osage word that means ‘place where we dig potatoes’.
All the cities from the list above are shown in the interactive map below. The map is zoomable so you can see all the details:
- Pago Pago on American Samoa.
- Hagåtña on Guam.
- Saipan on Northern Marianas Islands.
Other US cities with Native American origin name
Here are some more cities given in alphabetical order:
- Alapocas, DE.
- Chattahoochee Hills, GA.
- Chattanooga, TN.
- Clackamas, OR.
- Cherokee, NC.
- Chicago, IL.
- Chillicothe, OH.
- Kalispell, MT.
- Kanawha City, WV.
- Kiawah Island, SC.
- Kodiak, AK.
- Madawaska, ME.
- Mandan, ND.
- Manitou Springs, CO.
- Minnetonka, MN.
- Mishawaka, IN.
- Mojave, CA.
- Nampa, ID.
- Nantucket, MA
- Natchitoches, LA.
- Naugatuck, CT.
- Neosho, MO.
- Omaha, NE.
- Oskaloosa, IA.
- Ossipee, NH.
- Paducah, KY.
- Panguitch, UT.
- Pawtucket, RI.
- Potomac, MD.
- Quechee, VT.
- Roanoke, VA.
- Sioux Falls, SD.
- Spokane, WA.
- Taos, NM.
- Tupelo, MS.
- Tuscaloosa, AL.
- Yuma, AZ.
- Watchung, NJ.
- Wausau, WI.
- Wichita Falls, TX.
- Winnemucca, NV.
So these are the names of the US cities with Native American origin. Please let me know if I have missed some, I shall be happy to add them in the list. There is a comment box below. Thank you for reading.