what does the dc in washington dc stand for
District of Columbia
title: Washington, D.C. text: Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington or D.C., is the capital of the United States. Founded after the American Revolution as the seat of government of the newly independent country, Washington was named after George Washington, first President of the United States and Founding Father. Washington is the principal city of the Washington metropolitan area, which has a population of 6,131,977. As the seat of the United States federal government and several international organizations, Washington is an important world political capital. The city is also one of the most visited cities title: Washington, D.C. text: the city's first gas lights in the Capitol, the White House, and along Pennsylvania Avenue. Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington or D.C., is the capital of the United States. Founded after the American Revolution as the seat of government of the newly independent country, Washington was named after George Washington, first President of the United States and Founding Father. Washington is the principal city of the Washington metropolitan area, which has a population of 6,131,977. As the seat of the United States federal government and several international organizations, Washington is title: Washington, D.C. text: government are centered in the District: U.S. Congress (legislative), President (executive), and the U.S. Supreme Court (judicial). Washington is home to many national monuments and museums, primarily situated on or around the National Mall. The city hosts 177 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of many international organizations, trade unions, non-profit, lobbying groups, and professional associations, including the Organization of American States, AARP, the National Geographic Society, the Human Rights Campaign, the International Finance Corporation, and the American Red Cross. A locally elected mayor and a 13‑member council have governed the District since 1973. However, Congress maintains supreme authority title: Statehood movement in the District of Columbia text: in which "D.C." stands for "Douglass Commonwealth", a reference to African-American abolitionist Frederick Douglass, who lived in Washington, D.C. from 1877 to 1895. In March 2017, the District's congressional delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton introduced a bill to propose DC statehood in the U.S. House of Representatives. In May 2017, the Washington, D.C. Admission Act was introduced in the U.S. Senate. Prior to the District's founding, James Madison argued (in Federalist No. 43) that the national capital needed to be distinct from the states in order to provide for its own maintenance and safety. He wrote, "but a dependence of the title: Washington, D.C. text: Ellicott and several assistants, including a free African American astronomer named Benjamin Banneker, surveyed the borders of the federal district and placed boundary stones at every mile point. Many of the stones are still standing. A new federal city was then constructed on the north bank of the Potomac, to the east of Georgetown. On September 9, 1791, the three commissioners overseeing the capital's construction named the city in honor of President Washington. The federal district was named Columbia (a feminine form of "Columbus"), which was a poetic name for the United States commonly in use at that time. Congress