The name Pennsylvania was specified in the original charter given to William Penn by England's King Charles II in 1680. The Latin Sylvania meaning "woodlands" was added to Penn to create "Penn's woods". Pennsylvania was second among the original thirteen colonies in the "new world".

Adopted in 1907, the Pennsylvania's State Flag has a deep solid blue background with the State Coat of Arms embroidered on it. The Coat of Arms contains two harnessed draft horses on opposite sides of a shield picturing a ship, a plow, and three sheaves of wheat. Above the shield is a bald eagle representing the United States. Below are a stalk of corn, an olive branch, and a red ribbon across the bottom that reads,"VIRTUE, LIBERTY, AND INDEPENDENCE."