Penna.

Geography & Places abbreviation · US State Traditional

Penna. stands for Pennsylvania, a US state traditional abbreviation.

Four-letter abbreviation of Pennsylvania that was standard in the 19th and early 20th centuries, notably in railroad names (Penna. R.R. for the Pennsylvania Railroad), court documents, commonwealth publications and stock certificates.

Example: The stock certificate, issued by the Penna. R.R. in 1925, sold at auction last week.

Usage notes

Some Pennsylvania lawyers and agencies still write Penna. out of habit, but AP, GPO and The Bluebook all use Pa. today. On envelopes only PA is correct. Collectors of railroadiana and old maps see Penna. constantly.

Related abbreviations

More US state traditional abbreviations

• Nebr. – Nebraska
• Nev. – Nevada
• Okla. – Oklahoma
• Ore. – Oregon
• Oreg. – Oregon
• Penn. – Pennsylvania
• S.Dak. – South Dakota
• Tenn. – Tennessee
• Tex. – Texas
• W.Va. – West Virginia
• Wash. – Washington
• Wis. – Wisconsin

See all 36 US state traditional abbreviations →

Edited by the AbbreviationList.com team. Spotted an error or a missing meaning? Contact us.