Finally! San Clemente's Spanish Street Names Translated

Have you ever wondered what all the Spanish Street names in San Clemente actually mean? Well, here are some that we see all the time around town and we've translated them for you.

Because Ole Hanson, the founder of San Clemente, wanted this town to be "The Spanish Village by the Sea," he insisted that all streets have Spanish names. Now, while this DOES make the city seem more "Spanish," it also drives non-Spanish-speaking visitors and newcomers from Eastern states crazy.

So, to help everyone out a bit, here are some San Clemente Spanish words that we see all the time around town and that we've translated for you.

San Clemente ———— Saint Clement.
El Camino Real ————The King's Highway.
Amanecer —————–Daybreak.
Frontera ——————Frontier
Bandera ——————-A flag. (Antonio Banderas?)
Las Flores ——————The Flowers.
Grande Vista —————Grand View
Avenida Pico —————Pico was California's last Mexican governor and he once owned the land that became our city. ("pico" as an common noun can mean "peak," or "pick," and a number of other pointy things. "Pico de Gallo" salsa means "Rooster's Beak" salsa, for instance.)
Calle Cortez —————–Cortez conquered Mexico in 1521 for the Spaniards.
Ave Del Mar —————-From the sea.
Alta ————————–High.
Hidalgo ———————–Nobleman.
Baja ————————–Lower.
Esperanza ——————–Hope.
Los Mares ——————–The seas.
Cerrito ————————Small hill.
Las Palmas ——————–The Palms.
Estrella ————————Star.
Gaviota ————————Sea gull.
Los Alimos ———————The poplar trees.
Buena Vista ———————Good view.
Pescador ———————–Fisherman.
Ave Serra ———————-Serra Ave---Father Junipero Serra founded San Diego and San Juan Capistrano Missions.

Cerro----------------------Hill

Calle Portola ——————–Portola Road---Portola, a Spanish explorer led the first Europeans to what is now known as the city of San Clemente.

Coronado——— Spanish explorer circa 1540.

Ave Montalvo ——————-A Spaniard, Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo wrote about Amazons and Calafia, a fictional warrior queen who ruled over a kingdom of black women living on the mythical Island of California.

San ——————————Signifies a male saint.
Santa —————————-Female saint.
Mariposa ————————-Butterfly.
Encino —————————–Oak.
La Costa ————————–The shore. The coast.
Presidio —————————Military fort.

Carretera ------------------Road
Corona —————————-Crown (and you always thought it was a beer, huh?)
La Cuesta ————————–The Ridge.
Verde ——————————Green.
Palizada—————————Palisade.

Vaquero —————————-Cowboy.

Camino Vera Cruz-------True Cross Road 

As a home buyer’s Realtor, I come in contact with more new residents and out-of-towners every few days and they have difficulty with our street names. One blessing for them and for those of us who are Spanish language challenged---at least we don’t have to find streets named with Chinese characters.

El Camino Real ____________ 埃尔卡米诺房地产

Avenida Pico  _____________  马路微微

(Translations courtesy of Debbie Ferrari, 37-year home buyer’s Realtor and General Manager of the new Nextage Realty – The Mantelli Group office in San Juan Capistrano and soon in San Clemente.  Note: Send me YOUR street sign translations and I'll post them later, too. Contact me via my web site to buy or sell South Orange County homes.