Five Unique Minnesota Town Names and the Meaning Behind Them

Minnesota has some unique town names. I'm a curious one and wonder how things come about. Some of the names are hard to pronounce, while others are just odd enough to make you think who came up with that? Only In Your State put together a list of 11 Minnesota town names and the meaning behind them. I picked my five favorites to talk about because some of them are really funny. A light bulb turned on in my brain after reading this article because I studied French for most of my life and a lot of these town names have French origins. So here is your Minnesota history lesson of the day.

1. Duluth- This name comes from a Frenchman named Daniel Greysolan Sieur du Lhut. He was sent to the area to bring in more French presents to Minnesota. He was one of the first Europeans to be in Duluth, so they named the town after him.

2. Climax- I found this name to be quite interesting. Once again this a super small town in Minnesota... only around 300 people. Climax was home to a chewing tobacco company that many of the baseball players loved, so they decided to name the town after the company. Apparently it was also common tobacco that folks in Minnesota used.

3. Kiester- Located in southern Minnesota, this is a 500 people town. I found it to be super funny name for some reason. I think of the movie Home Alone when I hear Kiester! The name shouldn't be funny because it was named after Judge Jacob Armel Kiester. Not funny at all!

4. Nimrod- Normally used as an insult, but not in Minnesota! It is a town's name. This article says that it is a biblical name. I didn't know this but Nimrod is Noah's great-grandson. That might make you think twice before calling your brother a Nimrod... I will now!

5. Embarrass- Another unique name, but once again this has a French origin. In the 1700's French fur trappers made the area home. They called the river that ran through their town River d'Embarras which translates to River of Obstacles. The town morphed the name into Embarrass and it has stuck since.

There are plenty more unique towns out there, but those are for another day! What do you think is the most unique town name in Minnesota? Let me know inside our station app!

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