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Is it called Massachusets, Masachussetts, Massachusetts or Massachussetts? Of course, “Massachusetts” is the correct spelling: two “S”, a “Chu”, an “S” and an “etts” with a double T should be included to keep the geography and English teacher happy.
The state’s peculiar name goes back to the indigenous Algonquian languages. These were still spoken by several ethnic groups in the south-east of the state into the 19th century.
Translated, the name means something like “by the big hills” – a reference to the Great Blue Hill in the Blue Hills Reservation State Park, regarding 15 km southwest of the capital Boston. Massachusetts’ common nickname is “Bay State”.
