The Cairo bulletin., 1912-04-13
NAMING THE STATES
ORIGIN OF RHODE ISLAND HAS
BEEN A PUZZLE.
Pennsylvania Was Not Named Ter
William Penn, Its Founder, But
for His Father, the Then
Famous Admiral.


Some curious information has been
collected by the Gntiquaries concern
ing the origin of the names OF certain
of our states. OF Massachusetts,, for
instance, 1t is said that when John
Smith explored the coast Of New Eng"
land In 1914 hc found the shores or
this state inhabited by tribe OF In
dams called the Massachusetts. The
word means near the great hills be-
ing composed Of "massa." great,
"wadchuash,' hills, and ct near.
Thus the name In tho Indian tongue
was "Massa- Wadchuash-et, to which
the first explorers added an IS to
make IL plural. and shortened the
name to its present form.
The origin OF Rhode Island has been
a puzzle to historians. Some writer's
tells us the name Is corruption or
the Dutch words Roode Eylandt, sig
nifying Red Island, given to it by the
Dutch discoveries because It's shores
presented a red appearance, But they
do not present red appearance
Others. with more probability, havo
traced the name to Road Island mean
ing the island near the roadstead.
Competent authorities have doubted
the correctness of this explanation
because there Is no piece OF water
near by which sailors would naturally
call roadstead We should not know
where to find a cool riding, IN the
sailors sense of tho term, without
running into Narraeansett bay. The
favorite derivation at present is more
sfmnle, One of the leading settlers
of Newport was a man named Rhodes,
and the island was probably named
after him. perhars in iest perhaps
in compliment. The original order
fixing the island OF Newport, dated
1G44. decreed that the name should
be "The Isle of Rhodes, or Rhode is-
land" The same appellat'on was att
erward applied to the state, OF which
Newport was a part
Connecticut. a name so bathing 10
foreigners, is Indian, and means land
on a long tidal river" The Indian
form OF It Ia Qun-neh-tultquet In
some of the early records II 10 spelled
oulnetuckquet The most curious
thing about the name OF PENNSYLVANIA
is that it was not derived from the
founder of the state, William Penn.
It is william Penn himself who re-
cords the fact:
This day tJanuary s, 1881 my
country was confirmed TO me by the
name Of Pennsylvania, name which
the king Charles IL would give It
in honor of my father" Penn wished
to call the region New Wales, but the
king persisted in naming it after Adj
miral Penn. then a man Of far greater
renown than his son. the Quaker,
whose efigy surmounts the city hall
in Philadelphia.
1t is the opinion Of many authorities
that the Indian word Kentuckee did
not signify dark and bloody battle
ground" az many have supposed.
They incline to the belief that the
word means at the head of river"
and that It was used to designate the
place where the Indians gathered
previous to migration southwark.
This spot was near the source Of the
Kentucky river. The best conjecture
as to the origin Of the name Tonnes
see Is that 1t comes from Tanasse,
the name OF an Indian chief whose
tribe was settled upon one of the
branches Of the Tennessee river.
This, however, is disputed In the
names OF our states several languages
are represented. the English, the
French, the Indian, the Spanish and
the Latin.