U.S. Lake Naming Protocol

[box o rocks]

So I was doing my crossword the other day, and one of the clues had to do with a location based on a lake. That got me wondering...
Why are some U.S. lakes named "Lake so-and-so" and others named "so-and-so Lake"? Example: Lake Michigan, Lake Erie... as opposed to: Bear Lake, Crystal Lake...
I'm thinking it might have to do with size?

 

[gropouce]

Hmm...

I guess it depends on the names origins and the people who named it.
Example: Pyramid Lake, in Nevada. The english name was given by an american.
But, you say "Lake Superior" because this name was given by a french;
In french grammar, adjective comes after the name. We don't say "a red hammer", but "a hammer red" ("un marteau rouge")
If Lake Superior wasn't names by a [strike]frog[/strike] french, you may have call it "Upper Lake".

 

[teddymines]

All I know is that in Maine, virtually every body of water is referred to as a pond.

 

[box o rocks]

Hmm...

I guess it depends on the names origins and the people who named it.
Example: Pyramid Lake, in Nevada. The english name was given by an american.
But, you say "Lake Superior" because this name was given by a french;
In french grammar, adjective comes after the name. We don't say "a red hammer", but "a hammer red" ("un marteau rouge")
If Lake Superior wasn't names by a [strike]frog[/strike] french, you may have call it "Upper Lake".

That's the best answer I've heard yet.