Jolly old St. Nick probably hasn't time to notice which towns in America have place names with a Christmas theme. But if he did, he would find that "Holly" and "Joy" are among the most popular holiday place names according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Users of the USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) are able to search the national data base of geographic names on CD-Rom or the Internet and locate their favorite holiday names applied to geographic features.

The GNIS is a research tool that was developed in coordination with the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to assist the Board in establishing uniform name usage in the federal government, to provide an index of names on federal maps, to eliminate duplication, and to provide access to related data - such as elevation and coordinates - for research and application. The GNIS is a versatile system that has many uses, including emergency preparedness, local transportation planning, regional planning, site selection, product marketing, and genealogical research.

Among the most widely used holiday place names are:

*CHRISTMAS - There are 142 "Christmas" place names, including Christmas Tree Point in Aleutians West, Alaska; Christmas Tree Creek, Ravalli County, Mt.; Christmas Gift Mine in Pinal County, Ariz.; and Merrie Christmas Park in Miami-Dade County, Fla.

*JOY - There are 260 "Joy" place names, including Joy Lake, Clayton County, Ga.; Joy Praire, Morgan County, Ill.; Joy School, Livingston County, Ky.; and Joy Haven, Cecil County, Md.

*SANTA CLAUS - There are 11 "Santa Claus" place names in eight states - Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Indiana, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, and Utah.

* HOLLY - There are 963 "Holly" place names in 42 states including Holly Branch, Monroe County, Ala.; Holly House, Montezuma County, Colo.; Holly Island, New Castle County, Del.; Holly Tree Park, Charles County, Md.; and Holly Bush Creek, Gloucester, Va.

*NOEL - There are 51 "Noel" place names, including communities named Noel in San Miguel County, Colo.; Ascension Parish, La.; McDonald County, Mo.; Woods County, Okla.; Cambria County, Pa.; and Hanover County, Va.

*MENORAH - There are five "Menorah" place names, including Menorah Hospital in Jackson County, Mo.; and Menorah Gardens in Cook County, Ill.

*REINDEER - There are 34 "Reindeer" place names, including Reindeer Camp in Nome, Alaska; Reindeer Spring in Lincoln County, Nebraska. Twenty-seven of the 34 are located in Alaska.

* RUDOLPH - Twenty-two states use the place name of "Rudolph" including Rudolph in Wood County, Wisc.; Rudolph Creek in Lewis County, Wash.; Rudolph Valley in Phillips County, Mont.; and Rudolph Run in Monongalia County, W.Va. Of course, these places are most likely not named for the legendary reindeer.

* NORTH POLE - There are 24 "North Pole" place names, including communities named North Pole in Kootenai County, Idaho; Essex County, N.Y.; and McCurtain County, Okla.

*MISTLETOE - Twenty four states use the place name of "Mistletoe" including Mistletoe in Owsley County, Ky.; Mistletoe Trail in Prince George's County, Md.; and Mistletoe Gulch in Socorro County, N.M.

*POINSETTIA - There are five "Poinsettia" place names, including Poinsettia Park in Polk County, Fla. and Poinsettia Spring in Mineral County, Nevada.

*WREATH - There is one "Wreath" place name; Wreath Hill in Campbell County, Wyo.

Check out the GNIS at: http://mapping.usgs.gov/www/gnis/

As the nation's largest water, earth and biological science and civilian mapping agency, the USGS works in cooperation with more than 2000 organizations across the country to provide reliable, impartial, scientific information to resource managers, planners, and other customers. This information is gathered in every state by USGS scientists to minimize the loss of life and property from natural disasters, to contribute to the conservation and the sound economic and physical development of the nation's natural resources, and to enhance the quality of life by monitoring water, biological, energy, and mineral resources.