Minnehaha County | |
|---|---|
 Minnehaha County Courthouse in Sioux Falls | |
 Location within the U.S. state of South Dakota | |
 South Dakota's location within the U.S. | |
| Coordinates: 43°41′N 96°47′W / 43.68°N 96.79°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  South Dakota |
| Founded | 1862 (created) 1868 (organized) |
| Named for | "rapid water" |
| Seat | Sioux Falls |
| Largest city | Sioux Falls |
| Area | |
• Total | 814 sq mi (2,110 km2) |
| • Land | 807 sq mi (2,090 km2) |
| • Water | 6.7 sq mi (17 km2) 0.8% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 197,214 |
• Estimate (2023) | 206,930  |
| • Density | 239/sq mi (92/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | At-large |
| Website | www |
Minnehaha County is a county on the eastern border of the state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 197,214,[1] making it the state's most populous county. It contains over 20% of the state's population. Its county seat is Sioux Falls,[2] South Dakota's most populous city. The county was created in 1862 and organized in 1868.[3] Its name was derived from the Sioux word Mnihaha, meaning "rapid water," or "waterfall" (often incorrectly translated as "laughing water").[4]
Minnehaha County is part of the Sioux Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, the state's largest.
- ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ "Dakota Territory, South Dakota, and North Dakota: Individual County Chronologies". Dakota Territory Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2006. Archived from the original on April 2, 2018. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
- ^ Stewart, George R. (1945). Names on the Land. Random House. p. 291.
In the language of the Sioux, a waterfall was haha; water itself was minne. White men by a misunderstanding had coupled the two words, and produced Minnehaha Falls, a name thus meaning "water-waterfalls-falls". By a complete though natural misunderstanding of haha, the name had been romantically translated as Laughing Water