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Saturday, August 5, 2017

How to Learn Spanish From American Place Names


Problem
How do I make a list of Spanish place names which translate easily into English?

Answer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_place_names_of_Spanish_origin_in_the_United_States

Some of them are not well known.

The obvious ones which came to my mind were Las Angeles, the Angels, and El Paso, but I was not sure what it meant.

Here's my list:

Spanish Names in the USA
los alamos - (White poplars)
Amarillo - yellow
Buena Vista - good view
Casa Granda - big house
Colorado - red coloured
costa - coast
Del Norte - northern
El Paso - the pass or steps
Esmeralda (County, Nevada) - emerald
Florida - florid / flowery
La Paz (County, Arizona) - peace
Mariposa (County) butterfly
Mateo - Mathew
Mesa (County, Colorado) table
Miguel - Michael
Montana - mountainous
Nevada - covered in snow
Plumas - feathers
Puerto Rico - rich port
Refugio - shelter
Rio Grande - big river
San Juan - Saint John
Santa Cruz - Sacred CrossSan Francisco - St Francis (of Assisi)

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker, teacher of English and other languages.
 I have another post on Costa Rica and pineapples, another on Saints' names, and several more on Spanish and other languages. Please share links to your favourite posts.

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