Place Names

When allowing a crowd to decide the name of something important, make sure to add a layer of self-control.

August 24, 2018 - Quartz

It's surprising to see places named with racially offensive words in 2016—no matter what your take on political correctness.

April 2, 2016 - Crosscut

Make a note of these places for tomorrow when you realize Christmas is 364 days away.

December 25, 2015 - CityLab

Did you know there's a place called Point No Point, in Hansville, Washington? It's quite pretty, actually, but is that reason enough to go there?

October 9, 2015 - Quartz

Route Fifty created a ranking system to judge the "gravitas" of each of the avenues in the nation's capital named after the 50 states in the Union.

July 18, 2015 - Route Fifty

If you're into place names and the history of presidential politics, we have just the map for you.

January 23, 2015 - The Atlantic

David Conde discusses the new reality taking hold in traditionally Latino neighborhoods on the Northside of Denver, especially the reactions to the name for the area adopted by newcomers: the Highlands.

August 28, 2014 - La Voz

Nomenclature changes, especially for cities with chronologies spanning centuries and even millennia. Test your knowledge of historic, even ancient, place names.

February 1, 2014 - Guardian Cities

As Midwesterners flocked to Southern California in the first decades of the last century, place names associated with the region's Spanish settlers were anglicized. A return to proper pronunciations reflects the area's changing demographics.

May 8, 2013 - Los Angeles Times

The word "squaw" is considered a racial slur by Native Americans. In 2001, women from the Warm Springs Tribe convinced Oregon lawmakers to take the word out of state place names, but little has happened so far.

August 8, 2010 - The Oregonian