America got its name from Amerigo Vespucci , an Italian explorer, through early European mapmaking. The name was first used for part of the New World in 1507, and it later came to refer to the continents more broadly.
How the name spread
A German cartographer, Martin Waldseemüller, used the feminine Latin form “America” on a 1507 world map to honor Vespucci. At the time, mapmakers were still trying to understand the lands Europeans had recently reached, so names often spread through maps before they became fixed in common use.
Why it was called America
The basic idea was simple: Vespucci’s first name, in Latinized form, became “America”. Some later writers argued for other origins, but the Vespucci explanation is the one most widely accepted by historians.
How the United States got the name
The country called the United States was later given the formal name “United States of America” by the Second Continental Congress on September 9, 1776. So the word “America” was already in use before the nation adopted it.
Naming in everyday American life
In the United States, personal names have generally followed English naming patterns, with a given name, optional middle name, and family name. The country has relatively few laws controlling given names, which is one reason American naming practices became so varied over time.