Early Spanish explorers named the mountain El Capitán meaning The Leader. American explorer Zebulon Pike named the mountain Highest Peak in 1806, and the mountain was later commonly known as Pike's Highest Peak. American explorer Stephen Harriman Long named the mountain James Peak in honor of Edwin James who climbed to the summit in 1820. The mountain was later renamed Pike's Peak in honor of Pike. The name was simplified to Pikes Peak by the United States Board on Geographic Names in 1890.