California

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See also: Califórnia, Califòrnia, california, and californià

English

Map of US highlighting California

Etymology

Probably Spanish after California, a Utopian island of the Amazons described in Las sergas de Esplandián, a 16th-century Spanish novel. The name comes from the fictional island's Muslim-allied queen, Calafia, whose name is a play on Arabic خَلِيفَة (ḵalīfa, “caliph”). For more information see: Etymology of California.

Pronunciation

Proper noun

California (countable and uncountable, plural Californias)

  2. The most populous state of the United States. Capital: Sacramento. Largest city: Los Angeles.
    Synonyms: (abbreviation) CA, (slang) Cali, (derogatory) Commiefornia
    • 1971, Joni Mitchell (lyrics and music), “California”, in Blue:
      But my heart cried out for you, California / Oh, California, I'm coming home
  3. (chiefly historical) A region on the west coast of North America comprising the US state of California and the Baja California peninsula in Mexico; historically also including other areas in Alta California and Baja California.
  4. Several places in the United States.
    1. A census-designated place in Maryland.
    2. A borough of Pennsylvania.
    3. A city, the county seat of Moniteau County, Missouri.
    4. A neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio.
    5. A city in Campbell County, Kentucky.
    6. A neighborhood of Louisville, Kentucky.
    7. A village in Maine.
    8. A ghost town in West Virginia.
  5. Several places in England:
    1. A village in Berkshire.
    2. A neighbourhood of Birmingham, West Midlands (OS grid ref SP0182).
    3. An area in Derby, Derbyshire.
    4. A district of Ipswich, Suffolk.
    5. A hamlet in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire.
    6. An outer suburb of Dunstable, Bedfordshire (OS grid ref TL0120).
    7. A coastal resort in Ormesby St Margaret with Scratby, Norfolk.
  6. A community of Ontario, Canada.
  7. A town in the Santander department, Colombia.
  8. A town in the Usulután department, El Salvador.
  9. A neighborhood of Casablanca, Morocco.
  10. A village in Bohol, Philippines.
  11. A village in Stirlingshire, Scotland.
  12. A town in Trinidad and Tobago.
  13. University of California, Berkeley.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

Divisions of the United States of America in English (layout · text)
States: Alabama · Alaska · Arizona · Arkansas · California · Colorado · Connecticut · Delaware · Florida · Georgia · Hawaii · Idaho · Illinois · Indiana · Iowa · Kansas · Kentucky · Louisiana · Maine · Maryland · Massachusetts · Michigan · Minnesota · Mississippi · Missouri · Montana · Nebraska · Nevada · New Hampshire · New Jersey · New Mexico · New York · North Carolina · North Dakota · Ohio · Oklahoma · Oregon · Pennsylvania · Rhode Island · South Carolina · South Dakota · Tennessee · Texas · Utah · Vermont · Virginia · Washington · West Virginia · Wisconsin · Wyoming
Federal district: Washington, D.C.
Territories: American Samoa · Guam · Northern Mariana Islands · Puerto Rico · United States minor outlying islands · United States Virgin Islands

Further reading

Anagrams

Central Nahuatl

Proper noun

California

  1. California (a state of the United States)

Danish

Proper noun

California (genitive Californias)

  1. Alternative form of Californien

Galician

Proper noun

California

  1. California (a state of the United States)

Italian

Italian Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia it

Etymology

Borrowed from English California.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ka.liˈfɔr.nja/
  • Rhymes: -ɔrnja
  • Hyphenation: Ca‧li‧fòr‧nia

Proper noun

California f

  1. California (a state of the United States)

Latin

Latin Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia la

Etymology

New Latin, borrowed from Spanish California.

Pronunciation

Proper noun

California f sg (genitive Californiae); first declension

  1. (New Latin) California
    California regiō magna est. ― California is a big region.

Declension

First-declension noun, singular only.

singular
nominative California
genitive Californiae
dative Californiae
accusative Californiam
ablative Californiā
vocative California

Derived terms

Romanian

Proper noun

California f

  1. California (a state of the United States)

Spanish

Etymology

Mentioned in Montalvo's Las sergas de Esplandián as the name of Calafia's monarchy. A name invented by the author to remind Spanish readers of the recent Reconquista, probably related to califa (“caliph”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /kaliˈfoɾnja/ [ka.liˈfoɾ.nja]
  • Rhymes: -oɾnja
  • Syllabification: Ca‧li‧for‧nia

Proper noun

California f

  1. California (a state of the United States)
  2. A town in the Usulután department, El Salvador

Derived terms

References

  • Putnam, Ruth (1917). Herbert Ingram Priestley (ed.). California: the name. Berkeley: University of California.
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