How Pensacola Got Its Name

From the Pensacola (or Panzacola) Native American tribe, a Muskogean-speaking group living around the bay. The name likely derives from Choctaw pashi “hair” + okla “people” → “Hair People,” possibly referring to long hair or a distinctive hairstyle. Spanish explorer Tristán de Luna y Arellano recorded it in 1559; the 1698 Presidio Santa María de Galve cemented the name.