This Is How These Biggest US Cities Got Their Names!

Oftentimes, we use so many names, but never actually delve deep into how the names were created, or what they mean, especially in the case of cities. Here are the top cities and the reasons behind their names:

• Los Angeles

The official name of this city is "Los Angeles" or "The Angels" since the very beginning, since 1850 when the city became a part of the United States. It was in the year 1769 when the Spanish arrived. It was Father Juan Crespi who named the river hailing from Southern California, “Señora de los Ángeles de la Porciúncula,” This river today is called the Los Angeles River.

• Houston

It was Sam Houston, a brave soldier who fought Mexico in the Texas Revolution of 1836. After Texas gained independence, the land, that is actually now Houston, was sold off. The soldier was named the very first president of the Republic of Texas.

• Philadelphia

The city is called "The City of Brotherly Love". In Philadelphia literally means "brotherly love" in Greek. It was William Penn who named the city.

• New York

Originally, the Dutch named the city "New Amsterdam", and came to lower Manhattan in the year 1624. Some forty years later, the British took over the colony and named the city New York in honor of the Duke of York.

• Chicago

Long ago, even before the Europeans came to this city, the place was inhabited by the Illinois and Miami people. Therefore, the name of the city is derived from Native American languages. As per the Historical Society of Chicago, it is said that the name comes from the term shikaakwa. This term means "striped skunk". This is also a term used for a particular type of "wild leek". These leeks were usually found surrounding the Chicago River's mouth, and thus the city is named as Chicago. The French spelling transformed the name into the version we use it today.

• Phoenix

Long ago, a very small colony was set up four miles east of present-day Phoenix known as Swillings Mill after Jack Swilling who aided in finding the colony. The name of the city was switched to Helling Mill City, then East Phoenix, before Phillip Darell Duppa suggested the term "Phoenix".

• San Diego

San Diego was earlier named as San Miguel as the very first European sailor coming to the city, Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, reached their the day prior to the feast day of Saint Michael the Archangel in the year 1542. After sixty long years, Sebastian Vizcaino, an explorer's fleet arrived San Diego, and he changes the name of the place after the patron saint of his flagship, San Diego de Alcalá.