1500 California Place Names: Their Origin and Meaning

by William Bright, Erwin G. Gudde

This is the new "pocket" version of the classic California Place Names, first published by California in 1949. Erwin G. Gudde's monumental work, which went through several editions during its author's lifetime, has now been released in an expanded and updated edition by William Bright. The abridged version, originally called 1000 California Place Names, has grown to a dynamic 1500 California Place Names in Bright's hands. Those who have used and enjoyed 1000 California Place Names through the decades will be glad to know that 1500 California Place Names is not only bigger but better. This handbook focuses on two sorts of names: those that are well-known as destinations or geographical features of the state, such as La Jolla, Tahoe, and Alcatraz, and those that demand attention because of their problematic origins, whether Spanish like Bodega and Chamisal or Native American like Aguanga and Siskiyou.
Names of the major Indian tribes of California are included, since some of them have been directly adapted as place names and others have been the source of a variety of names. Bright incorporates his own recent research and that of other linguists and local historians, giving us a much deeper appreciation of the tangled ancestry many California names embody. Featuring phonetic pronunciations for all the Golden State's tongue-twisting names, this is in effect a brand new book, indispensable to California residents and visitors alike.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

William Oliver Bright was an American linguist and toponymist who specialized in Native American and South Asian languages and descriptive linguistics.

Reviews

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun book to have on hand when you get curious. Will keep this as a reference.

[Glenn Anaiscourt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I believe every Californian should own a copy of this book, and read it through. By its title, this may seem to be light reading to entertain oneself with trivia, but it’s a substantial work in etymology put out by the University of California Press. It contains the kernels of stories about place names we use every day, usually without knowing why, such as Alhambra, Antelope Valley, Azusa, Beverly Hills, Daly City, Castaic, the Golden Gate, La Tijera, Los Angeles, Ojai, Pasadena, Tijuana, Temescal Canyon and countless others. Because it is compact, this is indeed the sort of book one can digest a page at a time, here and there. After reading it all, the 1,500 etymologies come together like a jigsaw puzzle to give a much more complete picture of what the state has been like at different times, and how it got to be what it is today. The entries point toward a more detailed look at whatever happens to catch your fancy. Many times the origins of a name come as a surprise, and other times an entry dispels a common myth or supposition about how a particular place name came to be.

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an avid student of history as well as a California native I find myself thoroughly enjoying referring to this slim and portable volume whenever I roam across the state. It gives you answers to those little questions that arise when you notice interesting or curiously named places as you drive to your destination.

For instance, my imagination initially ran wild when I first came across the name of "Putah Creek," which happens to be the Spanish word for "whore." How on earth did come by this name? Was there once a brothel here at one time where the soiled doves would wash their soiled linens? Disappointingly, the answer is no. Instead, after consulting this handy reference book I learned that the name comes from the Miwok Indians word for "grassy creek."