Pennsylvania
/ˌpɛn.səlˈveɪ.ni.ə/noun
A state in the northeastern United States, named by William Penn for his family and the wooded land.
Did you know?The name was coined in 1681 by King Charles II as part of William Penn’s charter, combining Penn’s surname with Latin *sylvania* from *silva* (“forest”), so the state’s name is basically a colonial branding spell.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*swel-
“to grow dark, forested, or wooded”
Latin
Latin
silva
“forest, wood, woodland”
Late Latin
Latin
-sylvanus / silvaticus
“of the woods; wooded”
1681
English
Pennsylvania
“the wooded land of Penn; the proprietary colony named for William Penn”
Modern English
English
Pennsylvania
“a U.S. state and historical colony named after William Penn”