TOPOGKAPHICAL NAMES. 423 



reached it. Thus it is that nearly all the settlements made by 

 or under the missionaries are sanctified. 



The male saints have " San," the females " Santa" to pre- 

 cede their Christian names, as in Enghsh we have " St.'* 

 Some uneducated Americans corrupt the " San" or " Santa" 

 before certain Spanish names into " St.," and say " St. Fran- 

 cisco," " St. Lucas ;" but the more intelligent Americans ad- 

 here strictly to the Spanish spelling and pronunciation of 

 topographical names. 



The Missions were all named from saints or sacred dogmas. 

 There are San Miguel, San Gabriel, and San Rafael (from the 

 three highest angels, Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael), San Juan 

 Bautista and San Juan Capistrano (St. John the Baptist and 

 St. John of Capistrano), San Francisco de Assisi and San 

 Francisco de Solano, San Luis Rey and San Luis Obispo (St. 

 Louis the king and St. Louis the bishop), San Carlos, Santa 

 Clara, Santa Barbara, San Jose (St. Joseph), Santa Inez Vir- 

 gen y Martyr (St. Inez the virgin and martyr), San Antonio 

 de Padua (St. Anthony), San ^Fernando Rey (St. Ferdinand 

 the king), San Buenaventura (St. Good Fortune), La Purisi- 

 ma Concepcion (the Most Pure Conception), Nuestra Seiiora 

 de Soledad (our Lady of Solitude), and Santa Cruz (the Holy 

 Cross). 



Among the saints whose names are applied to places not 

 missions, are San Pedro (Peter), San Pablo (Paul), San Mateo 

 (Matthew), San Andres (Andrew), San Marcos (Mark), San 

 Simeon, San Joaquin (Joachim), San Nicolas, San Clemente, 

 San Lorenzo (Lawrence), San Leandro (Leander), San Pascual, 

 San Ramon, San Felipe (Philip), San Cayetano (Cayetan), San- 

 ta Marta (Martha), Santa Maria, Santa Paula (Pauline), Santa 

 Rosa, Santa Isabel, Santa Margarita, Santa Cataiina, Santa Su- 

 sana, Santa Lucia, and Santa Gertrudis. Otiier Spanish sa- 

 cred names, not derived from saints, are Trinidad (Trinity), 

 Sacramento (Sacrament), Jesus Maria (Jesus the Son of Ma- 

 ry), and Nuestra Sefiora La Reina de los Angeles (Our Lady 

 the Queen of the Argels). 



