Editing San Francisco (section)

== Etymology ==
{{see also|List of San Francisco placename etymologies}}
San Francisco, which is Spanish for "Saint Francis", takes its name from [[Mission San Francisco de Asís]], which in turn was named after [[Francis of Assisi|Saint Francis of Assisi]]. The mission received its name in 1776, when it was founded by the Spanish under the leadership of Padre [[Francisco Palóu]]. The city has officially been known as San Francisco since 1847, when [[Washington Allon Bartlett]], then serving as [[List of pre-statehood mayors of San Francisco|the city's alcalde]], renamed it from [[Yerba Buena, California|Yerba Buena]] (Spanish for "Good Herb"), which had been the name of the first civilian {{lang|es-US|pueblo}} in San Francisco. Earlier in San Francisco's history, the uninhabited area on the northeastern side of San Francisco was called {{lang|es-MX|El Paraje de Yerba Buena}}, after the herb that was growing abundantly there. The name Yerba Buena continues to be used in locations in the city, such as on [[Yerba Buena Island]].

When using a nickname or abbreviation, local residents most commonly refer to San Francisco as "the City" or "SF."<ref name="TBI20130630"/><ref name="is-it-ever-ok">{{cite web |last1=Brinklow |first1=Adam |title=Is it ever okay to use "San Fran?" |url=https://sf.curbed.com/2018/1/26/16936872/san-fran-frisco-survey-nickname-francisco |work=Curbed SF |access-date=February 17, 2020 |date=January 26, 2018}}</ref> Although the nickname "Frisco" has a local pedigree dating at least to 1850 and has been used by some local residents in every generation since then, the uses of both "Frisco" and the historically more recent "San Fran" tend to elicit sharp divisions among residents.<ref name="is-it-ever-ok"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Don't Call It 'Frisco': The History of San Francisco's Nicknames |url=https://thebolditalic.com/don-t-call-it-frisco-the-history-of-san-francisco-s-nicknames-the-bold-italic-san-francisco-5c14348d49c |work=The Bold Italic|access-date=February 17, 2020 |date=December 20, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Gilson |first1=Dave |title=Why San Francisco's "Frisco" debate will never, ever die |url=https://www.motherjones.com/media/2016/01/san-francisco-frisco-timeline/ |work=Mother Jones |access-date=February 17, 2020}}</ref>

The [[California Cantonese]] who came for the [[California Gold Rush]] named California and specifically San Francisco  {{lang|yue-US|金山}}, {{Transliteration|yue|Gāmsāan}}, "[[Gold Mountain (toponym)|Gold Mountain]]".
When gold was discovered in [[Bendigo]], Victoria, Australia, it was named "New Gold Mountain" ({{langx|yue|新金山}}, {{Transliteration|yue|Sān Gāmsāan}}) and California and San Francisco as "Old Gold Mountain" ({{lang|yue-US|舊金山}}, {{Transliteration|yue|Gāu Gāmsāan}}).<ref name="Yip">{{cite book |last1=Yip |first1=Liping Wong |title=From Wah Lee to Chew Keen |date=2017 |publisher=FriesenPress |isbn=978-1-4602-9430-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fjADDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA74 |access-date=24 March 2025 |language=en |quote=To distinguish between the two gold fields, the Chinese nicknamed San Francisco as Kui Gum San (Old Gold Mountain) and the Victoria gold fields of Australia, Sun Gum San (New Gold Mountain)}}</ref>