What is the origin of the name, Kyrene?
The area was known as Kyrene, but it is not known with certainty why the name had been given to the region. It is theorized that Darrell Duppa, who became known as “Lord” Darrell Duppa, may have been responsible for the name. Duppa had a classical education, and from his studies he renamed Pumpkinville as Phoenix, for the mythical bird which rose from its own ashes. This idea came from the fact that the Phoenix area had once been a thriving civilization the Hohokam civilization and now a new civilization was beginning. Duppas education would have made him familiar with the history and geography along the Mediterranean Sea. There are two places along the Mediterranean Sea which bear resemblance to the current spelling of Kyrene. Cyraen/Cyrene was a city in what is now the country of Libya. In the New Testament it is recorded that Simon of Cyrene helped Jesus carry the cross. There was also a seaport on the island of Cyprus near Turkey named Kyrenia. The name, Kyrene, very likely was der
