The European-American naming of the Alabama River and state was derived from the Alabama people, a Muskogean-speaking tribe whose members lived just below the confluence of the Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers on the upper reaches of the river.
ðə jˌʊɹɹəpˈiənɐmˈɛɹɪkən nˈeɪmɪŋ ʌvðɪ ˌæləbˈæmɚ ɹˈɪvɚ ænd stˈeɪt wʌz dᵻɹˈaɪvd fɹʌmðɪ ˌæləbˈæmə pˈiːpəl, ɐ mˌʌskoʊdʒˈiənspˈiːkɪŋ tɹˈaɪb hˌuːz mˈɛmbɚz lˈɪvd dʒˈʌst bᵻlˌoʊ ðə kˈɑːnfluːəns ʌvðə kˈuːsə ænd tˈælɐpˌuːsɚ ɹˈɪvɚz ɔnðɪ ˌʌpɚ ɹˈiːtʃᵻz ʌvðə ɹˈɪvɚ.