Islamic placenames in the United States

[roadman65]

Getting to heart of the problem with the question, Palestine is a millennia-old name for that region, not for a specific country, that predates the existence of Islam by 1000 years or more. 

Yeah but they are fighting to keep the name, so they kind of adopted it.

[Concrete Bob]

There's Kerman, CA, which is about 20 miles west of Fresno on State Route 180.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerman,_California

Then, there is Kerman, Iran, in the southeast part of Iran.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerman

[Brandon]

What's an Islamic name, by the way?  Do you mean Arabic names, or places referencing people/places/ideas in the Koran and Islamic traditions?

... especially placenames that are inspired by Islam in one way or the other.

[72] Virginia

Similarly, Vestal, Virginia.  "Almost Heaven, Vestal, Virginia"?

A Yahoo Answer.

But, a Vestal Virgin comes from Rome, which predates Islam (and any Arab conquest) by several centuries.

And Virginia, WTF!?!  Virginia was named for Queen Elizabeth I, The Virgin Queen, as she never married.  Now, whether she was a virgin is up for debate, but, that's where the name comes from.

[english si]

Palestine is a millennia-old name for that region, not for a specific country, that predates the existence of Islam by 1000 years or more.

Ditto Syria and Lebanon for the areas to the north, though add another 1000 years for them!

A great many place names in Muslim-majority places pre-date Islam. There's a few that don't (Dar Es Salaam, for instance) and a few (eg Mecca, Medina) that copying is clearly pushing the Islamic connection.

[NE2]

Tulsa

That's the capital of Florida.

[bugo]

Tulsa

Is a Creek word.

[bassoon1986]

Could Alexandria, VA and Alexandria, LA both be considered Muslim names being that one city in Egypt has that name?

No, as they're named after Alexander the Great, who was Greek (technically Macedonian).

Actually, the one in LA was named after Alexander Fulton, a businessman who began the settlement here.

[SP Cook]

Arab is a racial/ethnic group.  An Arab, like anybody else, can be of any or no religion.  Most, but by far not all, Arabs worldwide are Islamic.  Most people of Arabic ethnic background in the USA are, or are descended from persons in the Orthodox Christian minority. 

Muslim/Islam is a religion, not a race.  Most Muslims are not Arabs.  A Muslim can be of any racial or ethnic group.  The largest majority (85%) Muslim country is Indonesia.  Indonesians are an east Asian people, ethnically unrelated to Arabs or any other Caucasian ethnicity.   The largest Islamic country with virtually 100% Muslim population is Pakistan.  Pakistanis are ethnically Indian.

Arabia is an ill defined areas at the junction of Europe, Asia, and Africa, AKA the "Middle East".  Palestine is obviously an alternative word for the area currently controlled by Israel, and flush with political disagreements best not gone into.  It is part of Arabia, as are Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, etc.

The Islam religion did not exist until something around 600 AD.

Therefore any place name, simply because it is in Arabia or any other place in the Middle East such as Iran (Iranians are not Arabs, but rather Persians) is not an "Islamic" placename.  It would simply be a name taken from an area where today most, but not all people are Muslims.  Most having been named long before 600 AD.

An "Islamic placename" would be one named for a character found only in the Koran (about 80% of the Koran was lifted from the Old Testament of the Bible, and thus places like Jerusalem or Abraham would not count, since the namers were obviously referencing the Bible version) or for a Muslim person or for a place founded or named by a Muslim after 600 AD. 

Of all the above suggestions, the only ones that might qualify is Mahomet, IL, which, at least according to Wiki, was named for the local Mason's lodge (Shriners, a subset of the Masons, lift Islamic and Arabic terminology for their club, much to the displeasure of most Muslims and most Arabs), the various  Gibraltars, and the various Meccas (although Mecca existed before Islam, it was an insignificant town). 

[Pete from Boston]

Arab is a racial/ethnic group.  An Arab, like anybody else, can be of any or no religion.  Most, but by far not all, Arabs worldwide are Islamic.  Most people of Arabic ethnic background in the USA are, or are descended from persons in the Orthodox Christian minority. 

Muslim/Islam is a religion, not a race.  Most Muslims are not Arabs.  A Muslim can be of any racial or ethnic group.  The largest majority (85%) Muslim country is Indonesia.  Indonesians are an east Asian people, ethnically unrelated to Arabs or any other Caucasian ethnicity.   The largest Islamic country with virtually 100% Muslim population is Pakistan.  Pakistanis are ethnically Indian.

Arabia is an ill defined areas at the junction of Europe, Asia, and Africa, AKA the "Middle East".  Palestine is obviously an alternative word for the area currently controlled by Israel, and flush with political disagreements best not gone into.  It is part of Arabia, as are Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, etc.

The Islam religion did not exist until something around 600 AD.

Therefore any place name, simply because it is in Arabia or any other place in the Middle East such as Iran (Iranians are not Arabs, but rather Persians) is not an "Islamic" placename.  It would simply be a name taken from an area where today most, but not all people are Muslims.  Most having been named long before 600 AD.

An "Islamic placename" would be one named for a character found only in the Koran (about 80% of the Koran was lifted from the Old Testament of the Bible, and thus places like Jerusalem or Abraham would not count, since the namers were obviously referencing the Bible version) or for a Muslim person or for a place founded or named by a Muslim after 600 AD. 

Of all the above suggestions, the only ones that might qualify is Mahomet, IL, which, at least according to Wiki, was named for the local Mason's lodge (Shriners, a subset of the Masons, lift Islamic and Arabic terminology for their club, much to the displeasure of most Muslims and most Arabs), the various  Gibraltars, and the various Meccas (although Mecca existed before Islam, it was an insignificant town).

It's a flawed premise, one of many on this board. It was addressed, and the original poster has already clarified his question.

What's an Islamic name, by the way?  Do you mean Arabic names, or places referencing people/places/ideas in the Koran and Islamic traditions?

Arabic, Farsi...any of the languages spoken in majority Muslim countries, and especially placenames that are inspired by Islam in one way or the other.