Editing List of counties in Arizona

{{Short description|None}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2017}}
{{Infobox subdivision type
| name               = Counties of Arizona
| alt_name           = 
| map                = {{Arizona County Labelled Map}}
| category           = [[Federal State|Federal Unit]]
| territory          = [[State of Arizona]]
| start_date         =
| current_number     = 15
| number_date        =
| population_range   =  9,410 ([[Greenlee County|Greenlee]]) – 4,673,096 ([[Maricopa County|Maricopa]])
| area_range         =  {{Convert|1238|sqmi}} ([[Santa Cruz County, Arizona|Santa Cruz]]) – {{Convert|18661|sqmi}} ([[Coconino County, Arizona|Coconino]])
| government         = [[County government]]
| subdivision        = cities, towns, unincorporated communities, [[census designated place]]
}}
There are 15 [[County (United States)|counties]] in the U.S. state of [[Arizona]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uscounties.org/cffiles_web/counties/state.cfm?statecode=az|access-date=2012-04-07|title=Find A County|work=uscounties.org|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120905210041/http://www.uscounties.org/cffiles_web/counties/state.cfm?statecode=AZ|archive-date=September 5, 2012}}</ref> Four counties (Mohave, Pima, Yavapai and Yuma) were created in 1864 following the organization of the [[Arizona Territory]] in 1862. The now defunct [[Pah-Ute County, Arizona Territory|Pah-Ute County]] was split from Mohave County in 1865, but merged back in 1871. All but La Paz County were created by the time Arizona was granted statehood in 1912. La Paz County was established in 1983 after many years of pushing for independence from Yuma County.<ref name="Hist">{{cite book | last=Adams, Ward R.| title =History of Arizona | publisher =Higginson Book Company | year =1997 | isbn =0-8328-7044-7 }}</ref>

Eight of Arizona's fifteen counties are named after various [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]] groups that are resident in parts of what is now Arizona, with another ([[Cochise County, Arizona|Cochise County]]) being named after a native leader. Four other counties, [[Gila County, Arizona|Gila County]], [[Santa Cruz County, Arizona|Santa Cruz County]], [[Pinal County]], and [[Graham County, Arizona|Graham County]], are named for physical features of Arizona's landscape: the [[Gila River]], the [[Santa Cruz River (Arizona)|Santa Cruz River]], [[Pinal Peak]], and [[Mount Graham]], respectively. Another county, [[La Paz County, Arizona|La Paz County]], is named after a former settlement, while the final county, [[Greenlee County]], is named after one of the state's early pioneers.<ref name="Orig">{{cite book |author1=Kane, Joseph  |author2=Aiken, Charles  |name-list-style=amp| title =The American Counties: Origins of County Names, Dates of Creation, and Population Data, 1950–2000 | publisher =Scarecrow Press | year =2004 | url = https://archive.org/details/americancounties0000kane|url-access=registration  |page=[https://archive.org/details/americancounties0000kane/page/333 333]  |quote=arizona county origins.  | isbn =0-8108-5036-2 }}</ref>

Under Arizona laws, a county shall not be formed or divided by county initiative unless each proposed county would have all of the following characteristics: (1) at least three-fourths of one percent of the total state assessed valuation and at least the statewide per capita assessed valuation; (2) a population of at least three-fourths of one percent of the total state population according to the most recent United States decennial census; (3) at least one hundred square miles of privately owned land; (4) common boundaries with either (a) at least three other existing or proposed counties; or (b) at least two other existing or proposed counties and the state boundary.<ref>Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 11-132(B)</ref> A county formation commission is required to be formed to evaluate the feasibility of the proposed county.<ref>Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 11-136</ref> A proposal to divide a county must be approved by a majority of the votes cast in each proposed new county.<ref>Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 11-137(H)</ref>

Under the [[Arizona Constitution]], counties are politically and legally creatures of the state, and do not have charters of their own. Counties are governed by boards of supervisors which act in the capacity of executive authority for the county within the statutes and powers prescribed by Arizona state law. With few exceptions, these powers are narrowly construed. The state legislature devotes considerable time to local matters, with limited discretion granted to the Board of Supervisors on minor ordinance, zoning, and revenue collection issues.

Arizona's [[United States postal abbreviations|postal abbreviation]] is AZ and its [[FIPS state code|FIPS code]] is 04.
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==Alphabetical listing==
{{Countytabletop
| region_width      =
| fips_ref          =<ref name="FIPS">{{cite web|url=http://www.epa.gov/enviro/html/codes/az.html |title=EPA County FIPS Code Listing |publisher=EPA |access-date=2007-04-09 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040928115234/http://www.epa.gov/enviro/html/codes/az.html |archive-date=September 28, 2004 }}</ref>
| region_seat_title = County seat
| region_seat_width = 100px
| region_seat_ref   =<ref name="NACO">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Template.cfm?Section=Find_a_County&Template=/cffiles/counties/state.cfm&state.cfm&statecode=AZ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050410084803/http://www.naco.org/Template.cfm?Section=Find_a_County&Template=%2Fcffiles%2Fcounties%2Fstate.cfm&state.cfm&statecode=AZ |url-status=dead |archive-date=2005-04-10 |title=NACo – Find a county |author=National Association of Counties |access-date=2008-04-30 }}</ref>
| data2_title       = Est.
| data2_width       =
| data2_ref         =<ref name="NACO"/>
| data3_title       = Formed from
| data3_width       =
| data3_ref         =<ref name=Hist/>
| data4_title       = Etymology
| data4_width       =
| data4_ref         =<ref name=Orig/>
| data4_unsortable  = yes
| population_ref    =<ref name="Cen">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/AZ/PST045219 |title=Arizona QuickFacts |work=U.S. Census Bureau |access-date=2025-03-14 }} (2024 Census estimate)</ref>
| area_ref          =<ref name="NACO"/><ref name=Cen/>
}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=001|Name=Apache|Seat=St. Johns|Data2=1879|Data3=Yavapai County|Data4=The [[Apache]] (''Ndee'') people. ''Apache'' is an [[exonym]] from [[Zuni language|Zuni]] ''ʔapaču'' "[[Navajo people|Navajo]]s" or [[Yavapai language|Yavapai]] ''ʔpačə'' "enemy".|Population=64800|Area=11218 |Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=003|Name=Cochise|Seat=Bisbee |Data2=1881|Data3=Pima County|Data4=[[Cochise]] (1805-1874), a [[Chiricahua]] [[Apache]] chief and leader of an 1861 uprising. ''Cochise'' is an [[anglicisation]] of ''K'uu-ch'ish'' "oak".|Population=125773|Area=6219|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=005|Name=Coconino|Seat=Flagstaff |Data2=1891|Data3=Yavapai County|Data4=''Coconino'' is a former designation for the [[Havasupai people|Havasupai]], [[Hualapai people|Hualapai]], and/or [[Yavapai people|Yavapai]], derived from the [[Hopi language|Hopi]] [[exonym]] ''Kohonino''.|Population=145161|Area=18661|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=007|Name=Gila|Seat=Globe |Data2=1881|Data3=Maricopa and Pinal Counties|Data4=The [[Gila River]], a [[tributary]] of the [[Colorado River|Colorado]]. Possibly from [[Western Apache language|Apache]] ''dzil'' "mountain," via Spanish ''Xila''.|Population=54073|Area=4796|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=009|Name=Graham|Seat=Safford |Data2=1881|Data3=Apache and Pima Counties|Data4=[[Mount Graham]], in the [[Pinaleño Mountains|Pinaleños]]. Mt. Graham itself is named for [[Corps of Topographical Engineers|topographical engineer]] [[James Duncan Graham]] (1799-1865).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mgio.arizona.edu/history-mount-graham|title=A Little Bit of Mount Graham History|publisher=University of Arizona|access-date=2015-03-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227123316/http://mgio.arizona.edu/history-mount-graham|archive-date=February 27, 2014}}</ref>|Population=40242|Area=4641|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=011|Name=Greenlee|Seat=Clifton|Data2=1909|Data3=Graham County|Data4=Mason Greenlee (1835-1903), early prospector. Named by an amendment initially intended to delay the bill creating "Lincoln County".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.co.greenlee.az.us/History/MasonGreenlee.aspx|title=History of Greenlee County: Mason Greenlee|publisher=Greenlee County Government|access-date=2007-07-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140219192902/http://www.co.greenlee.az.us/historymason.aspx|archive-date=February 19, 2014}}</ref>|Population=9410|Area=1848|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=012|Name=La Paz|Seat=Parker|Data2=1983|Data3=Yuma County|Data4=[[La Paz, Arizona]], a historic boomtown on the [[Colorado River]]. A [[La Paz (disambiguation)|common placename]], ''La Paz'' means "The Peace" in Spanish.|Population=16992|Area=4513|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=013|Name=Maricopa|Seat=Phoenix |Data2=1871|Data3=Pima and Yavapai Counties|Data4=The [[Maricopa people|Maricopa]] (''Piipaash'') people. First attested in Spanish as ''Cocomaricopa'', no origin or meaning is definitively known.|Population=4673096|Area=9224|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=015|Name=Mohave|Seat=Kingman |Data2=1864|Data3=—|Data4=The [[Mohave people|Mohave]] (''Aha Makhav'') people. The [[Mohave language|Mohave]] [[endonym]] means "along the water," referring to the [[Colorado River|Colorado]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mdhca.org/local-history/the-name-mojave|title=The Name Mojave|publisher=Mojave Desert Heritage and Cultural Association|access-date=2015-03-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150213012903/http://mdhca.org/local-history/the-name-mojave|archive-date=February 13, 2015}}</ref>|Population=226479|Area=13470|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=017|Name=Navajo|Seat=Holbrook |Data2=1895|Data3=Apache County|Data4=The [[Navajo people|Navajo]] (''Diné'') people. ''Navajo'' is an [[exonym]] from [[Tewa language|Tewa]] ''Navahu'' "big field," referring to the [[San Juan River (Colorado River)|San Juan River Valley]]|Population=109516|Area=9959|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=019|Name=Pima|Seat=Tucson |Data2=1864|Data3=—|Data4=The [[Pima people|Pima]] (''Akimel O'odham'') people. ''Pima'' is a Spanish [[exonym]] from the [[O'odham language|O'odham]] phrase ''pi mac'' "(I) don't know," presumably heard during initial encounters.|Population=1080149|Area=9189|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=021|Name=Pinal|Seat=Florence|Data2=1875|Data3=Maricopa and Pima counties|Data4=[[Pinal Peak]], possibly from Spanish ''pinal'' "place of pines". Pinal Peak is now within the borders of [[Gila County]].|Population=513862|Area=5374|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=023|Name=Santa Cruz|Seat=Nogales|Data2=1899|Data3=Cochise and Pima counties|Data4=[[Santa Cruz River (Arizona)|Santa Cruz River]], a [[tributary]] of the [[Gila River|Gila]]. A [[Santa Cruz (disambiguation)|common placename]], ''Santa Cruz'' means "[[Christian cross|Holy Cross]]" in Spanish.|Population=50508|Area=1238|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=025|Name=Yavapai|Seat=Prescott |Data2=1864|Data3=—|Data4=The [[Yavapai people]]. The ''Yavapé'' are one of four major [[Yavapai people#Yavapai bands|Yavapai bands]].|Population=252013|Area=8128|Size=100px}}
{{Countyrow|N=04|Num=027|Name=Yuma|Seat=Yuma|Data2=1864|Data3=—|Data4=''Yuma'' is a former name of the [[Quechan people]], derived from the [[O'odham language|O'odham]] [[exonym]] ''Yumĭ''.|Population=220310|Area=5519|Size=100px}}
|}

===Excluded counties===
[[File:Santa Ana County, New Mexico Territory.png|300px|thumb|right|Counties of the [[New Mexico Territory|Territory of New Mexico]], 1852.]]
* [[Doña Ana County, New Mexico Territory]]
* [[Rio Arriba County, New Mexico Territory]]
* [[Santa Ana County, New Mexico Territory]]
* [[Socorro County, New Mexico Territory]]
* [[Taos County, New Mexico Territory]]
* [[Valencia County, New Mexico Territory]]

===Extinct counties===
* [[Pah-Ute County, Arizona Territory]] (1865–1871), now part of [[Clark County, Nevada]] and [[Mohave County, Arizona]]
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== Proposed counties ==
* '''Butte County''': In 1897, James C. Goodwin, with the support of [[Charles T. Hayden]] and others, introduced a bill at the Territorial Legislature to split Maricopa County into two, with [[Tempe, Arizona|Tempe]] being the county seat.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Rowe|first1=Jeremy|title=Early Maricopa County: 1871–1920|date=2011|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|isbn=978-0-7385-7416-5|page=39|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zl9VCIQy09MC&q=divide+maricopa+county&pg=PA39|access-date=November 15, 2017}}</ref><ref name="RepublicButteCounty">{{cite news|last1=Mark|first1=Jay|title=Tempe history: Tempe – Seat of Butte County|url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe-history/2017/01/12/tempe-history-tempe-seat-butte-county/96219408/|access-date=November 15, 2017|work=[[The Arizona Republic]]|date=January 12, 2017}}</ref> There have also been proposals, introduced in 1900 and 1913, to divide Maricopa County, with [[Mesa, Arizona|Mesa]] as the new county's seat.<ref name="RepublicButteCounty"/>
* '''Sierra Bonita County''': proposed at the [[13th Arizona Territorial Legislature]] in 1885, with [[Willcox, Arizona|Willcox]] proposed as the county seat. The proposal died by one vote.<ref>{{cite book|last1=McClintock|first1=James H.|title=Arizona, Prehistoric, Aboriginal, Pioneer, Modern: The Nation's Youngest Commonwealth Within a Land of Ancient Culture, Volume 2|date=1916|publisher=S. J. Clarke publishing Company|location=Arizona|pages=334|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xEQOAAAAIAAJ|access-date=February 17, 2017}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Arizona Association of Counties]]

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite web |last1=writer |first1=Statf |author-link1= |collaboration= |df= |year=2022 |location= |title=ARIZONA COUNTY GOVERNMENT OVERVIEW |url=https://ce.naco.org//app/profiles/CountyGov/CountyGov_04000.pdf |url-access= |format= |department= |website=ce.naco.org |type= |language= |edition= |agency=National Association of Counties (NACo) |arxiv= |asin= |asin-tld= |bibcode= |bibcode-access= |biorxiv= |citeseerx= |doi= |doi-access= |doi-broken-date= |eissn= |hdl= |hdl-access= |isbn= |ismn= |issn= |jfm= |jstor= |jstor-access= |lccn= |medrxiv= |mr= |oclc= |ol= |ol-access= |osti= |osti-access= |pmc= |pmc-embargo-date= |pmid= |rfc= |sbn= |ssrn= |s2cid= |s2cid-access= |zbl= |id= |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-format= |archive-date= |access-date=January 3, 2025 |quote-page= |quote-pages= |quote= |ref= }}

{{U.S. Counties}}
{{Arizona}}

{{featured list}}

[[Category:Lists of counties of the United States by state|Arizona, List of counties in]]
[[Category:Arizona counties| ]]
[[Category:Arizona geography-related lists|Counties]]