Why are Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Virginia and Kentucky called commonwealths?

The United States is made up of 50 states, yet four of them — Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Virginia, and Kentucky — are officially referred to as commonwealths. Their names are technically styled as the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, etc. The term “commonwealth” is frequently associated with Great Britain, and its ongoing alignment with many countries that were formerly part of the British Empire. But in the U.S., which was also once under British rule, the term has a somewhat different meaning. 

A commonwealth is defined as a political entity founded for the good of the people. The word dates back to the mid-15th century and was given weight by political philosophers such as John Locke and Thomas Hobbes throughout the 17th century. The term was also popularized during this period due to the execution of England’s King Charles I in 1649. After the king’s death, the country was declared a republic, and was known as the Commonwealth of England until the monarchy was restored in 1660. 

This concept of a state existing for the benefit of its citizens — not for any one individual, such as a monarch — is the idea behind the use of the word in the United States. Its use dates back to colonial times and the revolutionary ideals of governance and political rhetoric that were paramount to the cause of American independence. 

Virginia — the first British colony established in America — adopted the commonwealth designation for a short time during England’s Interregnum (“between reigns”) period and brought it back when the state adopted its own constitution in 1776. According to the Hornbook of Virginia History, the term was chosen “most likely to emphasize that Virginia’s new government was based upon the sovereignty of the people united for the common good.” Pennsylvania followed suit, officially affirming the authority of its citizens with a commonwealth designation in its 1776 constitution. The name fit well with Pennsylvania founder William Penn’s long-standing ethos of democratic governance and equality. Massachusetts also sought a clear break from monarchical rule. When the state’s constitution was drafted in 1780, it used the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as the state’s official name and to describe the government of the state. The Massachusetts Constitution was primarily authored by founding father John Adams, who was heavily influenced by Enlightenment ideals that promoted the idea of governments existing to help enforce collective well-being.

Unlike the other three commonwealths, Kentucky was not one of the original 13 colonies — it was part of Virginia until it split off and became its own state in 1792. It wasn’t until 1891 and the fourth version of the state’s constitution that Kentucky styled itself a commonwealth. The change was likely influenced by its historical ties to Virginia as well as the impact of the Pennsylvania Constitution, which was seen as one of the most democratic of its time.

Calling a state a commonwealth made no functional or legal difference, however — the distinction was purely symbolic. As the Library of Congress puts it, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Massachusetts, and Virginia are commonwealths “because their constitutional drafters declared they were.” The term has been applied to two U.S. territories, too: Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands are both classified as commonwealths; they’re not U.S. states, but not independent countries, either. 

Beyond U.S. borders, many people still think of the term in tandem with the British monarchy. In fact, the Commonwealth of Nations, often simply referred to as "the Commonwealth," is indeed made up of 56 countries that, for the most part, were once under British rule and today share a mutual interest in democratic values and economic cooperation. Member countries such as Canada, Australia, and India remain independent nations, but maintain symbolic ties to Britain, with King Charles III serving as the symbolic head of state. Unique as they may be, the American commonwealths were established based on these same values of democracy and common welfare.