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While it is true that Jonas Bronck, a Swede, was the first European to settle in the Bronx in 1639, when he died in 1643, only the Broncks (Bronx) River was named for him. What is now the Bronx was originally the southern part of Westchester County. In 1874, New York City annexed the area west of the Bronx River and in 1895, the part east of it. Manhattan residents called the territory the Annexed District; those who lived there called it the North Side.

In 1898, the city established the borough system. Since the Bronx River ran through the northernmost borough, it was decided to name it after the river. Thus The Bronx -- (with a capital T, since that is part of its name). LLOYD ULTAN The writer is a historian with the Bronx County Historical Society.