California

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See also: california, californià, Califórnia, and Califòrnia

English[edit]

Map of US highlighting California

Etymology[edit]

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”).

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (US) IPA(key): /ˌkæl.ɪˈfɔɹ.njə/, /ˌkæl.ɪˈfɔɹ.ni.ə/
  • Audio (US)
    		(file)
  • Audio (UK)
    		(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)niə
  • Hyphenation: Cal‧i‧for‧nia

Proper noun[edit]

California (plural Californias)

  1. 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
  2. Several places in the United States.
    1. A census-designated place in Maryland.
    2. A borough of Pennsylvania.
    3. A city in 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.
  3. 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. A hamlet in Kensworth, Bedfordshire.
    7. A coastal resort in Ormesby St Margaret with Scratby, Norfolk.
  4. A community in Ontario, Canada.
  5. A town in Santander department, Colombia.
  6. A town in Usulután department, El Salvador.
  7. A neighborhood of Casablanca, Morocco.
  8. A village in Bohol, Philippines.
  9. A village in Stirlingshire, Scotland.
  10. A town in Trinidad and Tobago.
  11. University of California, Berkeley.

Derived terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

See also[edit]

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[edit]

Anagrams[edit]

Central Nahuatl[edit]

Proper noun[edit]

California

  1. California (a state of the United States)

Danish[edit]

Proper noun[edit]

California (genitive Californias)

  1. Alternative form of Californien

Galician[edit]

Proper noun[edit]

California

  1. California (a state of the United States)

Related terms[edit]

Italian[edit]

Italian Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia it

Etymology[edit]

From English California.

Pronunciation[edit]

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

Proper noun[edit]

California f

  1. California (a state of the United States)

Latin[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Neo-Latin. From Spanish California

Pronunciation[edit]

Proper noun[edit]

California f sg (genitive Californiae); first declension

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

Declension[edit]

First-declension noun, with locative.

Case Singular Plural
Nominative California Californiae
Genitive Californiae Californiārum
Dative Californiae Californiīs
Accusative Californiam Californiās
Ablative Californiā Californiīs
Vocative California Californiae
Locative Californiae Californiīs

Derived terms[edit]

Romanian[edit]

Proper noun[edit]

California f

  1. California (a state of the United States)

Related terms[edit]

Spanish[edit]

Etymology[edit]

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[edit]

  • IPA(key): /kaliˈfoɾnja/, [ka.liˈfoɾ.nja]

Proper noun[edit]

California f

  1. California (a state of the United States)

Derived terms[edit]

References[edit]

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