Long before Batman fought crime in comic-book panels or caped crusaders watched over fictional skylines, New York City had already claimed Gotham as one of its most mysterious and enduring nicknames.
Today, the name appears throughout the city in places such as Gotham Comedy Club, Gotham Hall, and the Gotham Lounge inside the Peninsula New York. It also survives in the wider metropolitan area through Gotham FC and in New York history through institutions such as the early Gotham Base Ball Club.
But where did the name actually come from? Was it invented by comic-book creators in the twentieth century, or does it have much older roots?…