why was California named California ?

103 day(s) ago

Comment(s) (0)

Report Abuse

Find Intereseting

E-Mail to Friends

Bookmark

Subscribe to Answer Alert

Add Comment

No comments yet !!! Be the first to comment

Answers (1)

Johnny

The name California is the fifth-oldest surviving European place-name in the U.S. and was applied to what is now the southern tip of Baja California as the island of California by a Spanish expedition led by Diego de Becerra and Fortun Ximenez who landed there in 1533 at the bequest of Hernán Cortés.

Cortés, on his third journey of exploration (1535–36), tried unsuccessfully to establish a colony at La Paz near the southern tip of the recently discovered Baja California Peninsula under a royal charter granting him that land

It is suggested that the word California may signify that it is a place that is "hot as an oven", because in Catalan "cal" means hot and "forn" means oven. (From the latin roots calida > hot, fornax > oven).
Another suggested source is kali forno, an indigenous phrase meaning "high mountains"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_the_name_California

Posted 101 days ago

( 0 )