Franklin
Franklin is a place name in Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States:
- In Canada the District of Franklin was a district of the Northwest Territories, consisting of some of the Arctic islands: Banks and Prince Patrick islands, and parts of Victoria and Melville islands, and some smaller islands. It was named after the Arctic explorer, John Franklin. There is also a Fort Franklin, Northwest Territories.
- In New Zealand, the Franklin District is a municipality in the Auckland region, consisting of the towns of Pukekohe and Waiuku and four other wards.
- Franklin is a small town in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa
- In the United States, there are quite a few places of that name, usually in honor of Benjamin Franklin:
- There was a state of Franklin (1784-1789), in North Carolina, now eastern Tennessee;
- Several states include a county named Franklin, including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington;
- Several townships in Michigan, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania are named Franklin;
- Several towns and cities are named Franklin, in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, and New Jersey;
- In New York there are two towns, one in Franklin County and one in Delaware County; there is also a village in Delaware County;
- There are also towns and cities named Franklin in North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia; and
- Several places in Wisconsin are called Franklin.
Franklin has a number of additional meanings:
- In medieval England, a franklin was a free landowner who was nonetheless not part of the aristocracy.
- It is part of the centimeter-gram-second system of units, equal to one statcoulomb;
- It is the name of a sporting goods company, and is also a well-known brand of jockstrap.
- Franklin Electronic Publishers is a consumer electronics company responsible for the eBookMan and REX 5000, and was formerly an Apple II clone manufacturer under the name Franklin Computer Corporation.
- It is a make of motor car;
- It is the name of a children's television series and a series of children's books; and
- It is the first black character in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.
Franklin is also a names of several people:
- Aretha Franklin - Motown vocalist
- Benjamin Franklin - Scientist, publicist and US founding father
- John Franklin - Arctic explorer who searched for the Northwest passage
- Larry Franklin - Israeli spy and US Air Force Reserve Colonel