traced the character of the people who originally gave name to, and inhabited, the particular regions of country in question.

England, which was colonized by Normans, Danes, Saxons, Romans, etc., retains the names given by the descendants of these to the several parts occupied by them. The course pursued by the Teutonic, Gothic, and Celtic nations, from which sprang the present people of Europe, can be traced as well by the names they respectively gave to the countries through which they passed in their migrations, as by the more usual method of tracing the affinities of languages, or by an etymological analysis.

These remarks are made, to show how closely the names of places are identified with the history of the countries in which they are found. This is very far from being the case in our own country. How many names are there in the United States, which are employed to designate our numerous cities and towns, that convey a meaning expressive of any peculiarity connected with their situation or history? And how few there are, in proportion to the great number, derived from the aboriginal inhabitants!

It would seem that the first settlers of the Union were not satisfied with exterminating the lawful possessors of the soil, but in order that their memory might die with them, they altered the names which the aborigines gave to their country, and which were always expressive, for others, borrowed from foreign countries, wholly inapplicable to designate them. The Indian names were well calculated to perpetuate the memory of the several tribes, beside being more melodious in sound than the English ones. The copiousness of their languages, and the method of compounding words, enabled the Indian. nations to express in a single word what we could only do in a dozen.

Who will deny that the ancient name of the island of New-York, Manhattan, is not more beautiful than that by which it is now known? Beside, it is a lasting monument of an event which must forever remain a foul blot upon the first Dutch navigators who landed on the island an event but a prelude of what was to follow, and which, even at the present moment, is occurring in our western borders, as the march of the whites encroach upon the soil of the aborigines. Manhattan is derived from the Indian word Manahactaniend, which means The island where we all became intoxicated.'* Comment is

unnecessary.

Nine only of our states have Indian names; the remainder are English or French. Our rivers have more generally retained the names by which they were known to the aborigines; but a city or town with an appellation of that character is extremely rare. In the eastern states, aboriginal names are more frequent than in other parts of the Union; but they merely designate small sections of country, where there were formerly Indian settlements, and have only been preserved by those in the immediate vicinity. Handed down from father to son, they will, in a few generations, become totally extinct, save where English names have not been substituted by public authority.

* See HECKWELDER on the Indian languages.

Although the subject is not an important one, yet, in a literary point of view, and as a matter of curiosity, the investigation of the names of American towns may not be entirely destitute of interest.

In New-England, the names of towns and counties are chiefly borrowed from Great Britain. It would seem that the puritan fathers were desirous of preserving some memento of the country from which religions persecution drove them, to seek an asylum among the wilds of America. Where there had been native settlements, the Indian names were for a while retained. Such was the case with Salem, Boston, and Providence. But the determination of the colonists was to eradicate every thing that perpetuated the native tribes, and the ancient names of Naumkeag, Shawmut, and Mooshasuck, gave place to those above-mentioned. Towns which received their names previous to the revolution, borrowed them from well known places in England. Those named after, were from the heroes and patriots who made themselves conspicuous during that contest. Worcester, Leicester, Gloucester, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Bristol, Warwick, Somerset, Cambridge, Chelsea, Newport, Northampton, etc., are of the former class, and among the latter, are Hancock, Adams, Warren, Greene, Washington, Franklin, etc. It was quite a fashion, in those primitive days, to prefix the word new to many of their towns, and although they have attained the age of two centuries, they still retain it. New-York will probably retain her name until she is as old as London is now, or perhaps until she has shared the fate of Rome and Carthage.

These names would do very well, did not every state in the Union resort to the same vocabulary; and in many instances several counties in the same state have selected the same name. This is not only bad taste, but it causes much perplexity, and obliges one to designate the particular county as well as state, in which the town is located. The state of Maine includes among her towns many named after the European states and cities, both ancient and modern. The names of the patriots of the revolution, Washington, Franklin, Hancock, Jefferson, Lee, Montgomery, Hamilton, and Adams, have been given to counties and towns in all of the New-England states. There is a Washington in each of them, and a Franklin in all, save one. The great state of New-York - or the Empire State,' as it is called seems to have ransacked the globe for appellations for her numerous towns. Every kingdom and empire has contributed its part. From the ancient kingdoms and states, she has borrowed Greece, Athens, Sparta, Troy, Jerusalem, Palmyra, Tyre, Utica, Corinth, Carthage, and Rome: Marathon and Macedon, also, have places among her towns. From the modern states, she has taken her Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Russia, Holland, Sardinia, Italy, Wales, China, Delhi, Peru, Chili, Mexico, etc., together with the following capitals: Stockholm, Petersburg, Copenhagen, Dresden, Berlin, Wilna, Rotterdam, Hamburg, Paris, Naples, Edinburgh, Lisbon, Madrid, Milan, Amsterdam, Turin, Geneva, Vienna, Florence, Antwerp, Warsaw, Batavia, Canton, Cairo, Lima, etc. Well may she be called the Empire State,' when the greatest kingdoms and empires, as well as their capitals, have places within her boundaries!

Not content with these, she has transplanted the names of their heroes, philosophers, law-givers and poets to her towns, and occasionally thrown in an Indian, French, and English name among them. The ancient names are, Homer, Hector, Lysander, Marcellus, Solon, Horace, Pompey, Brutus, Cato, Scipio, Hannibal, Romulus, Tully, Camillus, Manlius, Cincinnatus, Cicero, Seneca, Plato, Milo, Virgil, Fabius, Euclid, and Ovid! In scriptural names, she has an Eden, a Bethany, a Bethlehem, a Jericho, a Canaan, a Lebanon, a Hebron, and a Goshen !

Diana alone represents the ancient mythology - from which circumstance, one would suppose it to be meant for the Ephesian goddess of nature, denoting the nutritive power of the soil, as well as the mother of nations. The great men of England have contributed their part, and are as well represented as the learned of olden times. Scott, Byron, Milton, Dryden, Hume, and the unknown Junius, are each the appellations of her towns. All the revolutionary heroes, all the eminent statesmen, all the celebrated geniuses, and all the large land-speculators, have, with their names, added a link to the heterogeneous and conglomerated mass of counties, towns, and villages, which constitute the state of New-York.

The cities and towns in the middle and southern states are generally named from European places, or from the surnames of individuals, with the words, town, field, boro', ville, etc., affixed to them. The names of distinguished Americans are common, as they should be, to all the states.

There is a county or town of Washington in every state and territory of the Union, except Delaware; and in the majority of them, there is both a county and a town of this name. The name of Franklin occurs twenty-one times, exclusive of numerous Franklinvilles, and Franklintons. Jefferson, Madison, and Munroe, including a few with the termination of ville, and ton, each occur from fifteen to twenty times. Adams nearly as many. Jackson, with the terminations, thirty-six times. Hancock and Montgomery are about as frequent as Adams. Distinguished generals appear to have the preference over philosophers and statesmen, in having their names given to towns. Twenty-five towns, some of which are places of considerable importance, bear the appellation of Warren; nineteen that of Fayette and Fayetteville; and the residence of the latter general, 'La Grange,' has been given to ten more. Steuben, De Kalb, Pulaski, Knox, Lee, Macon, Jay, Pinckney, and Livingston, have their places. Columbia is found in sixteen different states, exclusive of ten Columbus's and as many Columbiana's and Columbiaville's. Fredonia, Freedom, Freehold, Freeman, Freeport, Freetown, and other names commencing with Free, occur twenty-two times.

Milton, England's favorite bard, has not been sufficiently immortalized by the country that gave him birth. Sixteen towns in the United States feel pride in bearing his name.

The capitals and principal cities of foreign countries seem to have been favorite names with the founders, or the persons by whom our towns were christened. Athens, with which so many interesting events are associated, occurs eleven times; Berlin, eight; Canton, eleven; Dover, ten; Dublin, six; Paris, nine; Troy, eleven, and Salem, sixteen times

The name of Union, including its terminations, is found to occur thirty-nine times; but as these notes were made a year ago, since when the mania for building towns and cities in the West has raged to an alarming extent, it would not be unreasonable to add some half dozen more Unions to the list. As it is, several states must contain two towns of the same name.

Liberty, so closely connected with Union, appears not to have been as attractive as the latter, ten towns only bearing the name, and Independence still less so, as it occurs but six times.

The name of the brave and lamented Perry has not been forgotten; nor would it be, if alone confined to him. Twenty-one towns now bear his name. Clinton is deservedly another favorite with his countrymen. His great work in the state of New-York has immortalized his name. Fourteen towns of the name are known in the country. Centreville is found seventeen times; Springfield, sixteen; Richmond, sixteen; Brownsville, fourteen; Fairfield, fourteen; Concord, twelve; Manchester, sixteen; Kingston, twelve; Middleborough, Middlebrook, Middlebury, Middlefield, Middleford, Middleport, Middlesex, Middletown, Middleville, and Middleway, collectively, occur fifty times.

Native animals have contributed their part in furnishing appellations for our towns, as Elkhill, Elkhart, Elkhorn, Elkland, Elklick, Elkmarsh, Elkridge, Elkrun, Elkcreek, Elkgrove, Elkton, and Elkville. Twenty-three places have names derived from Buck, nine Buffaloes, six Bulls, ten Beavers, including those with dam, kill, creek, valley, etc., affixed: Raccoon, Wolf, Swan, Sunfish, Eagle, Doe-Run, Crab-Run, Butterfly, and other choice selections from animated nature, may be found.

Our noble forest trees have generously lent their names, and constitute no inconsiderable part of the innumerable array we have attempted to describe. The oak, in particular, is prolific with its appendages, occurring thirty-six times, in the following names: Oakdale, Oakhill, Oakgrove, Oakham, Oakflat, Oakfield, Oakland, Oakorchard, and Oakville. There are also places named after the Cedar, Chestnut, Hickory, Locust, Maple, Mulberry, Cherry, Pine, Hazle, Poplar, Elm, Laurel, Butternut, Sycamore, Walnut, and Willow trees, with and without terminations.

The name of Greene has contributed largely in furnishing appellations for our towns, both singly and with its numerous terminations. It occurs no less than eighty-five times, in Greenfield, Greenford, Greenhill, Greenville, Greenock, Greenbush, Greenport, Greenriver, Greenboro', Greenbury, Greenfork, Greenstone, Greenvalley, Greenwich, Greenwood, Greenmont, Greenland, Greenbay, and Greenbank.

The name of Smith, as in Smithfield, Smithford, Smithdale, and with similar terminations to the name previously mentioned, occurs twenty-six times. Sandwich, Sandhill, Sandplains, Sandbluff, and names commencing with sand, are found forty times. Pleasant, with Pleasant Valley, hill, mount, ridge, plain, vale, view, and ville, occurs forty-three times. Williams, with its terminations, thirty-five times. Fairhaven, Fairplay, Fairport, Fairtown, Fairview, Fairgrove, Fairmont, eighteen times. Brown, with the common terminations, thirty-nine times. Wood, with the usual terminations of

land, lawn, bury, etc., and the unusual names of Woodpecker and Woodcock, forty-four times. Belleville, Bellefonte, Belleview, etc., twentyeight times. White, with the terminations of creek, deer, field, hall, haven, lake, house, land, ville, town, river, and White Horse, White Eyes, White Pigeon, White Post, etc., occurs fifty times. Bloomingdale, Bloomfield, and words beginning with Bloom, twenty-two times. Clarksville, Clarksboro', Clarkson, twenty-nine times.

Towns and villages situated on hills or mountains are frequently named after celebrated mountains, but this class of names are equally used to designate places situated on plains. They seem to have been favorite names with those whose privilege it was to apply them. One hundred and twenty-six towns are found in the United States with names commencing with Mount. Mount Vernon occurs sixteen times. As specimens of others, may be selected Mount Zion, Mount Pleasant, Mount Olympus, Mount Hope, Mount Jackson, Mount Washington, Tabor, Pizgah, Carmel, Gilead, Horeb, Lebanon, Israel, etc.

The most prolific source, however, of American names, is that of old and foreign names, prefixed by the word New-as New-London and New-York. Of towns with this class of names, there are two hundred and fifty-seven. The following are examples of them: Newark, Newport, Newton, Newcastle, Newcomb, Newbury, Newburg, New-Haven: also, New Egypt, New Paris, New Troy, New Jerusalem, New Sweden, New Britain, New Canaan, etc. The latter few - which are but specimens of about two hundredcertainly in very bad taste, and exhibit a want of information on the part of those by whom they were named.

are

The attempt to Grecianize modern names, has not been attended with success, and is the most ridiculous method yet resorted to. Jackson-opolis, Perry-opolis, and a few others, are all that exist.

There is another variety of names which, for their singularity, should not be omitted in this list. Many may doubt their existence : all we know is, that there are places of these names, and that they are of sufficient importance to contain a Post Office. The same remark will apply to every place here mentioned. To designate the states where the following towns or villages are situated, would be useless; it is sufficient to say that they may be found. They are: Horse-shoe, Split-Rock, Horse-head, Hat, Long-a-coming, One-Leg, Painted Post, Spread-Eagle, Thoroughfare, Traveler's-Rest, WildCat, English Neighbor, Good Intent, Good-Luck, White-Horse, HalfMoon, Temperance, Economy, Harmony, Industry, Trinity, and Unity. The most singular thing connected with the subject, is, that our country itself is destitute of a name, and our countrymen cannot assume to themselves the distinctive appellation which the natives of all other countries in the world are enabled to. Our country is called the United States - but there are the United States of Mexico, the South American States, and, in Europe, the German and Italian States. All of these, save the former, have a name - for we can say Mexico, Columbia, Guatemala, Germany, Italy, etc.; but by what name shall we call the United States of North America? What its natives? It is true, they are generally called Americans, but this is coming no nearer the mark, than to call an Irishman a Eu