It is believed the name Indiana comes from the fact that the land was purchased from Native Americans. Similar to the way other states were named at the time, the name attributes back to those who were the starting point of the importance of the land.

The etymology of Indiana reveals that its name means “Land of the Indians” or simply “Indian Land.” This name stems from Indiana’s territorial history. In 1800, the United States Congress passed legislation to divide the Northwest Territory, and the western section was designated as the Indiana Territory.

Formal use of the word Indiana dates from 1768, when a Philadelphia -based trading company gave its land claim in present-day West Virginia the name "Indiana" in honor of its previous owners, the Iroquois.