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Quiz about What Does That US State Name Mean

What Does That U.S. State Name Mean? Quiz

Ten U.S. states whose names weren't recycled from Europe. Good luck!

A multiple-choice quiz by wjames. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
wjames

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
365,389

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
7 / 10

Plays
2004

Awards
Top 20% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Which U.S. New England state is named after a group of Native Americans whose name means "near the great hill" or "at the little big hill" or "at the range of hills"? Hint

Massachusetts

Vermont

Montana

New Hampshire

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Question 2 of 10

2. Which U.S. state, where two major rivers meet, is named after a native tribe whose name means "those with dugout canoes"? Hint

Mississippi

Missouri

Oregon

Louisiana

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Question 3 of 10

3. Which U.S. state name comes from the Choctaw for "red people", referring to all Native Americans? Hint

Colorado

Illinois

Delaware

Oklahoma

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Question 4 of 10

4. Which U.S. state's name is the Spanish for the color of its major river, which carries heavy silt down from the mountains? Hint

California

Mississippi

Vermont

Colorado

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Question 5 of 10

5. Spanish again: Which U.S. state name means "Flowery Land"? Hint

Florida

California

Alabama

Colorado

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Question 6 of 10

6. Which U.S. state on the Great Lakes has a native name meaning "large water"? Hint

Wisconsin

Michigan

Mississippi

Ohio

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Question 7 of 10

7. Which large U.S. state's name is derived from the Caddo Native American language word for "friend"? Hint

Texas

Arkansas

Alaska

Pennsylvania

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Question 8 of 10

8. Which U.S. State is supposedly named for a European queen, but also may be named for a religious figure? Hint

Louisiana

Indiana

Georgia

Maryland

9. The meaning of many US state names have been lost. Which U.S. state had myths, later debunked, that its name meant "dark and bloody ground" or was a combination of the words "turkey" and "cane"? Hint

Tennessee

Kentucky

Connecticut

Hawai'i

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Question 10 of 10

10. One Native American tribe has two U.S. states named after it - which two? Hint

Kansas & Arkansas

South Carolina & North Carolina

Virginia & West Virginia

New Mexico & Mexico

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Which U.S. New England state is named after a group of Native Americans whose name means "near the great hill" or "at the little big hill" or "at the range of hills"?

Answer: Massachusetts

The Massachusett tribe name is generally segmented as "mass-adchu-s-et" meaning, in the native language, "large-hill-small-at". The hills referred to are the Blue Hills in present-day Norfolk County, Massachusetts.

2. Which U.S. state, where two major rivers meet, is named after a native tribe whose name means "those with dugout canoes"?

Answer: Missouri

The Missouri Indians were known as the "Ouemessourita" or "Wimihsoorita" by neighboring tribes of the Miami-Illinois language group. Not only historical natives but modern-day residents of the state pronounce the name differently: some as "Missour-ee" and others as "Missour-uh". The Missouri River joins the Mississippi just north of St. Louis.

3. Which U.S. state name comes from the Choctaw for "red people", referring to all Native Americans?

Answer: Oklahoma

The land that is now Oklahoma was originally set aside by the U.S. government as Indian Territory and many tribes, such as the eastern Cherokee, were forced to move there. The native Choctaw used the phrase "okla humma" to refer to all Native Americans, and it was their belief that the Indian Territory would eventually become a state solely for Native Americans.

4. Which U.S. state's name is the Spanish for the color of its major river, which carries heavy silt down from the mountains?

Answer: Colorado

Colorado means "red" or "ruddy" in Spanish, the color of the Colorado River that is packed with silt from the Rocky Mountains. The name for residents, or demonym, is "Coloradan", although the older term "Coloradoan" is still occasionally used.

5. Spanish again: Which U.S. state name means "Flowery Land"?

Answer: Florida

Juan Ponce de Leon first sighted what is now Florida during the Easter season, known in Spanish as "Pascua Florida" or "feast of flowers". The governor of Florida usually designates April 2nd as the State Day, and the preceding week is celebrated as Pasqua Florida Week.

6. Which U.S. state on the Great Lakes has a native name meaning "large water"?

Answer: Michigan

The native Ojibwa called the land "mishigamaa", which the French pronounced "michigan". Michigan is truly a land of "large water"; it borders four of the five Great Lakes and has the longest freshwater shoreline of any political entity in the world. With that and almost 65,000 lakes, you are never more than six miles from a natural waterway in Michigan.

7. Which large U.S. state's name is derived from the Caddo Native American language word for "friend"?

Answer: Texas

The Caddo word "taysha" or "tejas" is the root for the state name of Texas. The Caddo language group includes tribes that inhabited what is now East Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

8. Which U.S. State is supposedly named for a European queen, but also may be named for a religious figure?

Answer: Maryland

George Calvert, First Lord Baltimore, named Maryland but didn't explain why before he died in 1632. Calvert owed much to King Charles I, and may have named the territory after Charles' consort, Queen Henrietta Maria of France. Calvert, however, was an avowed Catholic at a time when that was very unpopular, and so may have named the territory for the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Answer: Kentucky

Although Kentucky has both cane and turkeys, its name is not so simple to decipher. Although not certain as the origin, the closest Native words from the Mohawk and Seneca are "kenhtake" or "kehtakeh" that mean roughly "meadow".

10. One Native American tribe has two U.S. states named after it - which two?

Answer: Kansas & Arkansas

The Kansa (or Kaw) tribe gave their name to both Arkansas and Kansas, areas they inhabited at one time. "Kansa" and variants mean "people of the south wind".

Source: Author wjames

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