List of counties in Arizona - wikipedia List of counties in Arizona See also : List of United States counties and county - equivalents Counties of Arizona APH CHS CNO GLA GHM GLE LPZ MCP MHV NVO PMA PNL SCZ YVP YMA Federal Unit Location State of Arizona Number 15 Populations 7,754 ( Greenlee ) -- 3,990,181 ( Maricopa ) Areas 1,238 square miles ( 3,210 km ) ( Santa Cruz ) -- 18,661 square miles ( 48,330 km ) ( Coconino ) Government County government Subdivisions cities, towns, unincorporated communities, census designated place There are 15 counties in the U.S. state of Arizona. Four counties ( Mohave, Pima, Yavapai and Yuma ) were created in 1864 following the organization of the Arizona Territory in 1862. The now defunct Pah - Ute County was split from Mohave County in 1865, but merged back in 1871. All but La Paz County were created by the time Arizona was granted statehood in 1912. Eight of Arizona 's fifteen counties are named after various Native American groups that are resident in parts of what is now Arizona, with another ( Cochise County ) being named after a native leader. Four other counties, Gila County, Santa Cruz County, Pinal County, and Graham County, are named for physical features of Arizona 's landscape : the Gila River, the Santa Cruz River, Pinal Peak, and Mount Graham, respectively. Another county, La Paz County, is named after a former settlement, while the final county, Greenlee County, is named after one of the state 's early pioneers. Under Arizona laws, a county shall not be formed or divided by county initiative unless each proposed county would have all of the following characteristics : ( 1 ) at least three - fourths of one percent of the total state assessed valuation and at least the statewide per capita assessed valuation ; ( 2 ) a population of at least three - fourths of one percent of the total state population according to the most recent United States decennial census ; ( 3 ) at least one hundred square miles of privately owned land ; ( 4 ) common boundaries with either ( a ) at least three other existing or proposed counties ; or ( b ) at least two other existing or proposed counties and the state boundary. A county formation commission is required to be formed to evaluate the feasibility of the proposed county. A proposal to divide a county must be approved by a majority of the votes cast in each proposed new county. Under the Arizona Constitution, counties are politically and legally creatures of the state, and do not have charters of their own. Counties are governed by boards of supervisors which act in the capacity of executive authority for the county within the statutes and powers prescribed by Arizona state law. The state legislature devotes considerable time to local matters, with limited discretion granted to the Board of Supervisors on minor ordinance and revenue collection issues. Arizona 's postal abbreviation is AZ and its FIPS code is 04. Contents 1 Alphabetical listing 2 Defunct counties 3 Proposed counties 4 See also 5 References Alphabetical Listing County FIPS code County seat Est. Formed from Etymology Population Area Map Apache County 001 St. Johns 1879 Yavapai County The Apache ( Ndee ) people. Apache is an exonym from Zuni ʔapaču `` Navajos '' or Yavapai ʔpačə `` enemy ''. 7004699800000000000 ♠ 69,980 7004112180000000000 ♠ 11,218 sq mi ( 7004290540000000000 ♠ 29,054 km ) Cochise County 003 Bisbee 1881 Pima County Cochise, a Chiricahua Apache chief and leader of an 1861 uprising. Cochise is an anglicisation of K'uu - ch'ish `` oak ''. 7005127866000000000 ♠ 127,866 7003621900000000000 ♠ 6,219 sq mi ( 7004161070000000000 ♠ 16,107 km ) Coconino County 005 Flagstaff 1891 Yavapai County Coconino is a former designation for the Havasupai, Hualapai, and / or Yavapai, derived from the Hopi exonym Kohonino. 7005134421000000000 ♠ 134,421 7004186610000000000 ♠ 18,661 sq mi ( 7004483320000000000 ♠ 48,332 km ) Gila County 007 Globe 1881 Maricopa and Pinal Counties The Gila River, a tributary of the Colorado. Possibly from Apache dzil `` mountain, '' via Spanish Xila. 7004519940000000000 ♠ 51,994 7003479600000000000 ♠ 4,796 sq mi ( 7004124220000000000 ♠ 12,422 km ) Graham County 009 Safford 1881 Apache and Pima Counties Mount Graham, in the Pinaleños. Mt. Graham itself is named for topographical engineer James Duncan Graham. 7004347690000000000 ♠ 34,769 7003464100000000000 ♠ 4,641 sq mi ( 7004120200000000000 ♠ 12,020 km ) Greenlee County 011 Clifton 1909 Graham County Mason Greenlee, early prospector. Named by an amendment initially intended to delay the bill creating `` Lincoln County ''. 7003775400000000000 ♠ 7,754 7003184800000000000 ♠ 1,848 sq mi ( 7003478600000000000 ♠ 4,786 km ) La Paz County 012 Parker Yuma County La Paz, Arizona, a historic boomtown on the Colorado River. A common placename, La Paz means `` The Peace '' in Spanish. 7004201720000000000 ♠ 20,172 7003451300000000000 ♠ 4,513 sq mi ( 7004116890000000000 ♠ 11,689 km ) Maricopa County 013 Phoenix 1871 Pima and Yavapai Counties The Maricopa ( Piipaash ) people. First attested in Spanish as Cocomaricopa, no origin or meaning is definitively known. 7006399018100000000 ♠ 3,990,181 7003922400000000000 ♠ 9,224 sq mi ( 7004238900000000000 ♠ 23,890 km ) Mohave County 015 Kingman 1864 -- The Mohave ( Aha Makhav ) people. The Mohave endonym means `` along the water, '' referring to the Colorado. 7005194944000000000 ♠ 194,944 7004134700000000000 ♠ 13,470 sq mi ( 7004348870000000000 ♠ 34,887 km ) Navajo County 017 Holbrook 1895 Apache County The Navajo ( Diné ) people. Navajo is an exonym from Tewa Navahu `` big field, '' referring to the San Juan River Valley 7005111273000000000 ♠ 111,273 7003995900000000000 ♠ 9,959 sq mi ( 7004257940000000000 ♠ 25,794 km ) Pima County 019 Tucson 1864 -- The Pima ( Akimel O'odham ) people. Pima is a Spanish exonym from the O'odham phrase pi mac `` ( I ) do n't know, '' presumably heard during initial encounters. 7006100323500000000 ♠ 1,003,235 7003918900000000000 ♠ 9,189 sq mi ( 7004237990000000000 ♠ 23,799 km ) Pinal County 021 Florence 1875 Maricopa and Pima counties Pinal Peak, possibly from Spanish pinal `` place of pines ''. Pinal Peak is now within the borders of Gila County. 7005324962000000000 ♠ 324,962 7003537400000000000 ♠ 5,374 sq mi ( 7004139190000000000 ♠ 13,919 km ) Santa Cruz County 023 Nogales 1899 Cochise and Pima counties Santa Cruz River, a tributary of the Gila. A common placename, Santa Cruz means `` Holy Cross '' in Spanish. 7004428450000000000 ♠ 42,845 7003123800000000000 ♠ 1,238 sq mi ( 7003320600000000000 ♠ 3,206 km ) Yavapai County 025 Prescott 1864 -- The Yavapai people. The Yavapé are one of four major Yavapai bands. 7005212635000000000 ♠ 212,635 7003812800000000000 ♠ 8,128 sq mi ( 7004210510000000000 ♠ 21,051 km ) Yuma County 027 Yuma 1864 -- Yuma is a former name of the Quechan people, derived from the O'odham exonym Yumĭ. 7005190557000000000 ♠ 190,557 7003551900000000000 ♠ 5,519 sq mi ( 7004142940000000000 ♠ 14,294 km ) Defunct counties Pah - Ute County ( 1865 -- 1871 ), now part of Clark County, Nevada and Mohave County, Arizona Proposed counties Butte County : In 1897, James C. Goodwin, with the support of Charles T. Hayden and others, introduced a bill at the Territorial Legislature to split Maricopa County into two, with Tempe being the county seat. There have also been proposals, introduced in 1900 and 1913, to divide Maricopa County, with Mesa as the new county 's seat. Sierra Bonita County : proposed at the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature in 1885, with Willcox proposed as the county seat. The proposal died by one vote. See also Bannon County, a fictional county in Arizona, was the site of the UFO crash in the film Hangar 18. Arizona Association of Counties References Jump up ^ `` Find A County ''. uscounties.org. Archived from the original on September 5, 2012. Retrieved 2012 - 04 - 07. ^ Jump up to : Adams, Ward R. ( 1997 ). History of Arizona. Higginson Book Company. ISBN 0 - 8328 - 7044 - 7. ^ Jump up to : Kane, Joseph & Aiken, Charles ( 2004 ). The American Counties : Origins of County Names, Dates of Creation, and Population Data, 1950 -- 2000. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0 - 8108 - 5036 - 2. Jump up ^ Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 11 - 132 ( B ) Jump up ^ Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 11 - 136 Jump up ^ Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 11 - 137 ( H ) Jump up ^ `` EPA County FIPS Code Listing ''. EPA. Archived from the original on September 28, 2004. Retrieved 2007 - 04 - 09. ^ Jump up to : National Association of Counties. `` NACo -- Find a county ''. Archived from the original on 2005 - 04 - 10. Retrieved 2008 - 04 - 30. ^ Jump up to : `` Arizona QuickFacts ''. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 2008 - 10 - 06. Retrieved 2007 - 07 - 17. ( 2000 Census ) Jump up ^ `` A Little Bit of Mount Graham History ''. University of Arizona. Archived from the original on February 27, 2014. Retrieved 2015 - 03 - 0. Check date values in : accessdate = ( help ) Jump up ^ `` History of Greenlee County : Mason Greenlee ''. Greenlee County Government. Archived from the original on February 19, 2014. Retrieved 2007 - 07 - 20. Jump up ^ `` The Name Mojave ''. Mojave Desert Heritage and Cultural Association. Archived from the original on February 13, 2015. Retrieved 2015 - 03 - 01. Jump up ^ Rowe, Jeremy ( 2011 ). Early Maricopa County : 1871 -- 1920. Arcadia Publishing. p. 39. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7385 - 7416 - 5. Retrieved November 15, 2017. ^ Jump up to : Mark, Jay ( January 12, 2017 ). `` Tempe history : Tempe -- Seat of Butte County ''. The Arizona Republic. Retrieved November 15, 2017. Jump up ^ McClintock, James H. ( 1916 ). Arizona, Prehistoric, Aboriginal, Pioneer, Modern : The Nation 's Youngest Commonwealth Within a Land of Ancient Culture, Volume 2. Arizona : S.J. Clarke publishing Company. p. 334. Retrieved February 17, 2017. 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State of Arizona Phoenix ( capital ) Topics Index Delegations Senators Representatives Geography Government Constitution Governor Legislature History World War II Museums Music People Transportation Tourist attractions Society Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Politics Regions Arizona Strip Arizona Sun Corridor Coconino Plateau Colorado Plateau Grand Canyon Kaibab Plateau Mogollon Plateau Mogollon Rim Mojave Desert Monument Valley North Central Arizona Northeast Arizona Northern Arizona Oak Creek Canyon Phoenix Metropolitan Area Safford area San Francisco Volcanic Field Sonoran Desert Southern Arizona ( Traditional Arizona ) Transition zone Verde Valley White Mountains Counties Apache Cochise Coconino Gila Graham Greenlee La Paz Maricopa Mohave Navajo Pima Pinal Santa Cruz Yavapai Yuma Cities Buckeye Casa Grande Chandler Flagstaff Gilbert Glendale Kingman Lake Havasu City Mesa Peoria Phoenix Prescott Scottsdale Sierra Vista Tempe Tucson Yuma Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_counties_in_Arizona&oldid=841053643 '' Categories : Lists of counties of the United States by state Arizona counties Arizona geography - related lists Hidden categories : CS1 errors : dates Use mdy dates from December 2017 Featured lists Talk Contents About Wikipedia Boarisch Català Deutsch Español فارسی Français Gaeilge 한국어 Italiano עברית Limburgs Magyar Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Română Русский Shqip Simple English Suomi Svenska Türkçe Українська اردو 中文 19 more Edit links This page was last edited on 13 May 2018, at 19 : 43 ( UTC ). 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Question: how many counties in the state of arizona
Answer: 15