The following is a non-exhaustive list of the etymologies of the place names in Los Angeles, California.
A-K Place name Source Abbot Kinney Boulevard Abbot Kinney, founder of Venice, California Aliso Street Named after the aliso, the old sycamore that stood at the entrance of Jean-Louis Vignes' winery Alvarado Street Juan Bautista Alvarado, Mexican Governor of Alta California Baldwin Hills neighborhood E. J. "Lucky" Baldwin, mining and real estate investor Beaudry Avenue Prudent Beaudry, Los Angeles mayor Bel-Air neighborhood Alphonzo E. Bell, Sr., owner of the "Buenos Aires Ranch" Brooklyn Avenue After Brooklyn, New York, in honor of the many Jewish Americans living in Boyle Heights at the time Cahuenga BoulevardCahuenga Pass Cahuenga, the Spanish name for the Tongva village of Kawengna, meaning place of the mountain César E. Chávez Avenue César Chávez Mexican-American farm worker, labor leader, and civil rights activist Crenshaw neighborhoodCrenshaw Boulevard George Crenshaw, banker and real estate developer Figueroa AvenueFigueroa Street José Figueroa, Mexican Governor of Alta California Glassell Park neighborhood Andrew Glassell real estate lawyer and owner Griffith Park and Griffith Observatory Griffith J. Griffith, Welsh-American industrialist and philanthropist Huntington Drive Henry E. Huntington, railroad magnate and business man
L-Z
Place name Source La Brea Avenue La Brea, the Spanish name for the oil fields near present-day Hancock Park, meaning tar Lankershim Boulevard Isaac B. Lankershim, German-American landowner Leimert Park Walter H. "Tim" Leimert Los Feliz neighborhoodLos Feliz Boulevard Rancho Los Feliz, originally granted to José Vincente Feliz Micheltorena Street Manuel Micheltorena, Mexican Governor of Alta California Mulholland Drive Mulholland Highway William Mulholland, water-services pioneer in Southern California Olvera Street Augustín Olvera, early Los Angeles judge Olympic Boulevard Formerly 10th Street; First referred to as Olympic Blvd in 1931 in honor of X Olympiad in 1932 (name change official in 1935) Roth, M. W. (2007). Concrete utopia: The development of roads and freeways in los angeles, 1910--1950. Pico Boulevard Pío Pico, last Mexican Governor of Alta California Rosecrans Avenue William Rosecrans, Civil War general and owner of Rancho San Pedro Sepulveda BoulevardSepulveda Pass Sepúlveda family Sherman Oaks neighborhoodSherman Way Moses Sherman, land developer and streetcar line owner Silver Lake neighborhoodSilver Lake BoulevardSilver Lake Reservoir Herman Silver Slauson Avenue J. S. Slauson, land developer Tarzana neighborhood Tarzana Ranch, owned by the creator of Tarzan, Edgar Rice Burroughs Tujunga neighborhoodTujunga Avenue From the Tongva term Tuyunga, meaning mountain range from tu'xuu = old woman tu'xuunga = place of the old woman Van Nuys neighborhoodVan Nuys Boulevard Isaac Newton Van Nuys, businessman, banker and real estate developer Vignes Street Jean Louis Vignes, French settler in Los Angeles who planted European grapes Watts neighborhood Charles H. Watts, real estate developer Wilmington neighborhood Wilmington, Delaware, birthplace of founder Phineas Banning Wilshire Boulevard Gaylord Wilshire, land developer, publisher and outspoken socialist Workman Street, Lincoln Heights William H. Workman, Los Angeles mayor
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