What's in a State Name?

California takes its name from an island that never existed. Oklahoma was coined in 1866 by a Choctaw leader. Most of Rhode Island isn't on Rhode Island at all.

Each name on the U.S. map gets its own page here: 50 states, Washington, D.C. and the five inhabited territories, Puerto Rico and Guam among them. An entry traces the word to its roots, explains the history around it, follows it on a timeline from first use to statehood, lists the names it nearly had, says what residents are called and ends on one fact you'll remember.

The research leans on Census Bureau data, National Park Service records, state historical societies and the laws Congress passed to create the territories. Seven names still divide historians, and the book admits it.

The back of the book adds a section on ten states that never happened (Deseret, Sequoyah and Absaroka among them), a guide organized by region, a 20-question quiz with answers, and a short glossary.

Book two in the What's in a Name? series, and a natural fit for trivia fans, teachers, homeschoolers and road trips.