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U.S. Geography by Letter - D

Can you guess these American geographical answers that start with the letter D?
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Last updated: August 11, 2025
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First submittedAugust 25, 2014
Times taken56,822
Average score65.0%
Rating4.08
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Clue
Answer
"The Mile-High City"
Denver
The most populous city in the U.S. that starts with D
Dallas
The first U.S. state
Delaware
Capital of the above
Dover
Iowa's most populous city
Des Moines
Official name of Mt. McKinley from 2015–2025
Denali
The Mojave or Sonoran, for example
Desert
City that hosts the most prestigious race on the NASCAR calendar
Daytona Beach
City in North Carolina's Research Triangle
Durham
Prestigious university in the above city
Duke
International airport serving Washington D.C.
Dulles
Has the lowest elevation of any place on land in the United States
Death Valley
City whose population has declined by more than 1 million since 1950
Detroit
Minnesota port city on Lake Superior
Duluth
Boom town from the Black Hills gold rush
Deadwood
Dormant volcanic cone just outside Honolulu
Diamond Head
Washington D.C. neighborhood known for its many embassies
Dupont Circle
Wisconsin peninsula jutting into Lake Michigan
Door Peninsula
County that Miami is part of
Miami-Dade
Most photographed arch at Arches National Park
Delicate Arch
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28 Comments
sillie
+2
Level 75
Nov 15, 2017
Couldn't think of "Des Moines" when it clearly starts with an M. You can't count "des" like an article, can you? Does "The Gambia" belong with the Ts or the Gs? Or the Dutch (and other) surnames where you got someone van/von something. Catherine of Aragorn, is her surname Of Aragorn? or just Aragorn? Language is hard.
Qikiq
+23
Level 89
Nov 15, 2017
I don't remember Catherine of Aragorn from the Lord of the Rings. Was she in the extended features on the DVD?
DonTheLamplighter
+13
Level 87
Nov 17, 2017
Catherine of Aragon's surname was "Aragon". "Of" was her middle name.
roleybob
+3
Level 73
Jul 13, 2018
I always thought Catherine was her official title and of was her first name
solocro
+1
Level 69
Feb 21, 2026
I always thought she was Catherine's Monster, and the doctor who made her was Catherine.
Djilas
+21
Level 86
Nov 15, 2017
As an English place name it's not an article any more, I don't see any problem here. It's not pronounced the French way either.
Dontforget
+1
Level 76
Dec 14, 2024
Agreed. You wouldn't put Vancouver under C, even though it comes from "van Coevorden". The accepted English name starts with a V
TheodoreE45
+2
Level 94
Aug 11, 2025
Vancouver is named after George Vancouver
Dontforget
+1
Level 76
Aug 12, 2025
Yes, but the name itself was anglicized from that. I gave that example because the original commenter mentioned excluding "van/von". Not the best example though, fair enough.

I would consider a city like Los Angeles to be categorized under L even though the first word's an article

onegonecat
+15
Level 72
Nov 15, 2017
Life long Des Moines resident here! We pronounce it like "DUH MOYNS," instead of the French pronunciation which would be more like "DEH MWAN." It, for all intents and purposes, appears to be from the French for "some monks" but the etymology is a bit hazy. It's actually such a running joke in the area that a popular local screen printing company, RAY GUN, sells T-shirts that read " Des Moines: French for the Moines." So despite being an article in French, it's definitely an indispensable part of the city name. Hope that helps clear up any confusion!
ander217
+11
Level 73
May 30, 2018
I was always, always, taught that your city is pronounced without the "s" at the end - "duh moyn". This old dog learned something new today. Thanks.
Djilas
+1
Level 86
Aug 11, 2025
That's still what it says in wiki. Or here: Many locals and visitors mistakenly say “Dez Moines” or “Des MOE-in,” but these are incorrect. If you want to sound like a native, stick with duh MOYN for the best results.
Gassu
+11
Level 69
Nov 15, 2017
Does „El Salvador“ start with an E or an S? Personally, I wouldnt have thought of Des Moines if it was stored under M. Same with Los Angeles or Las Vegas.
FolgoreCZ
+4
Level 59
Aug 1, 2020
/\This. The original complaint is stupid. Yes, grammaticaly, "des" is an article, but "Des Moines" is a name and therefore, it's not bound by standart grammar, yet alone one of a different language. Like you said. Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Diego, etc. Names have different grammar than standart language.
ReyFer
+2
Level 67
Nov 23, 2017
Aragón is not a surname, it just means she was form the Reign of Aragón. Her father was King Fernando.
AmyD85
+2
Level 74
May 30, 2018
No, her father was Ferdinand II of Aragon.

Her mother was Isabella I of Castile.

Note they have the same middle name - "of", which they also passed to their daughter. ;)

divantilya
+1
Level 36
Aug 17, 2018
The rules differ in English (as usual). The name "van der Bilt", for example, would be listed under "B" in Dutch, while In English, it is automatically changed to Vanderbilt and listed under "V". I can't speak about Des Moines, since I'm not sure how it was originally written.
Algernon
+1
Level 74
Nov 16, 2017
Got all of the first ten, then two of the last eight. Face palmed on forgetting Des Moines, the other five are tougher.
cpgatbyu
+4
Level 88
May 2, 2018
The Ticket to Ride board is proof positive that Duluth is not on Lake Superior.
cornflakesfu
+5
Level 89
May 30, 2018
Wow. Never played Ticket to Ride with the U.S. board before, but just googled it. That's . . . that's an interesting spot for "Duluth."
aschulke
+2
Level 95
Aug 11, 2025
One could argue that 'Double Arch' is as famous as the other one. It's the tallest. Great quiz series!
Quizmaster
+1
Level ∞
Aug 11, 2025
Changed to "most photographed arch" which is most definitely Delicate Arch.
kitshef
+1
Level 88
Aug 11, 2025
Probably not a good idea to have both Dayton and Daytona on the quiz; I only got the former while typing the latter.
Quizmaster
+1
Level ∞
Aug 11, 2025
Replaced with Duke
KittMonroe
+5
Level 80
Aug 22, 2025
There would be literally no reason to include the Denali question if you didn't want to make a political statement about supporting the false name change. You updated the quiz just to let everyone know you agree with this administration's incorrect choice.
TheMightyQ
+5
Level 86
Sep 11, 2025
I don't read it that way at all. It's just a statement of fact that the "official" name was changed back. There's no judgement on whether that change is positive or negative.
GAH1968
+1
Level 70
Jan 2, 2026
Wrong. She is correct they wanted to make the statement. The question could have been framed as: "What natives call the tallest peak in the USA." And that be it.
CdMor
+1
Level 69
Jan 2, 2026
Whereas you are totally politically unbiased and didn't just call one of the name changes false even though it was done in exactly the same way as the one in 2015. Oh wait, that's exactly what you did.

The U.S. Government is allowed to rename places in the U.S. whether or not you agree with them.

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