Indigenous
Miami
Florida (FL)est. 1896pop. 455,924/my-AM-ee/
The meaning
“Big water”
How it got the name
The Miami River took its name from Lake Mayaimi — today's Lake Okeechobee — and the people who lived on its shores. In their language the word meant simply 'big water.' The name has no connection to the unrelated Miami tribe of Ohio and Indiana, a coincidence that has confused schoolchildren for a century.
Former names
- Fort Dallas settlement
- Miami