Ponce de Leon claimed the land for Spain, calling it La Florida, the Spanish name for flowery, covered with flowers, or abounding in flowers. ... Some historians think Ponce de Leon chose the name because his arrival in Florida occurred at the time of the Easter feast (in Spanish, Pascua Florida).

What does the state name Florida mean?

Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon, who led the first European expedition to Florida in 1513, named the state in tribute to Spain's Easter celebration known as “Pascua Florida,” or Feast of Flowers. During the first half of the 1800s, U.S. troops waged war with the region's Native American population.

Is Florida named after a flower?

THE STATE NAME:

As mentioned above, Florida was named by Ponce de Leon in 1512. "la Florida," he called this land, Spanish for flowery, covered with flowers, or abounding in flowers. Historians favor the idea that Ponce de Leon named the state because he discovered it on Easter or Palm Sunday.