Travel Oregon cancel The Meanings Behind Oregon’s Place Names The Meanings Behind Oregon’s Place Names A region-by-region guide to some of the state’s most commonly mispronounced names. Advertisements Editor’s note: Call destinations before you visit to make sure they’re open. Follow all get vaccinated before you travel and remember to bring your face covering. The land Oregon occupies precedes the concept of Oregon. This is true for any land within the United States, so it remains important to acknowledge the original inhabitants, past and still very much present, whose cultures, traditions and contributions helped form the places around us.