Kansas has 105 counties, the fifth-highest total of any state. The first counties were established while Kansas was a Territory from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when Kansas became a state. Many of the counties in the eastern part of the state are named after prominent Americans from the late 18th and early-to-mid-19th centuries, while those in the central and western part of the state are named for figures in the American Civil War. Several counties throughout the state bear names of Native American origin.