Caillech (Cale, Kali) was known as the Black Queen in medieval legends, and to the Celts as the mother of many races.

Caillech (Cale, Kali) was known as the Black Queen in medieval legends, and to the Celts as the mother of many races.

Caillech (Cale, Kali) was known as the Black Queen in medieval legends, and to the Celts as the mother of many races.

The Spanish called her Califia and gave her name to their newly discovered paradise which is now called California.

California’s name is believed to originate from a 16th-century novel called “Las Sergas de Esplandián” (The Adventures of Esplandián) by Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo, which was published in 1510.

The novel is set on an island east of the Indies called California, which was inhabited by black women warriors and ruled by a queen named Calafia.

Calafia is derived from the Arabic word “khalifa,” which means leader or ruler, and was also influenced by the Spanish word “califa,” meaning a leader of an Islamic community.