The SGI decided to standardize district names on geographical location.

The article below is from a few years back, and, while the SGI leadership of course had all sorts of plausible-sounding explanations for the change (earlier, districts had been named after the leader), I think it is to actually address a problem I noticed early on. If memory serves, George Williams was replaced with Fred Zaitsu in 1991, I think, and after a year or so, Danny Nagashima replaced Zaitsu. The article says Nagashima's in his 3rd year, which means it's probably about 1995 or so.

Back when I started (1987), they still had groups - and junior groups! Each district had at least 2 groups, and some groups had 2 or more junior groups. Now, the smallest organizational unit is district, which I think betrays the fact that there are so few active members that there's really no point in slicing and dicing further.

So the group I was assigned to as "Karchner Group". That wasn't the real name - all I can remember now is that it was a woman's last name that began with a "K". And I never saw her. Not once. I kept asking WHY the group continued to be named with her name, when she was never seen - I was told she was just busy. I think she was busy being taiten.

So finally, I got the group named after me. I was the most active, after all, and I was the one doing the planning and all the rest reliably. I was the only one who always attended. But when I got promoted from Group YWD Chief to District YWD Chief, I was not allowed to have the group any more - my new responsibility required that I "float" and interact with all the district's groups equally. So my group was folded back into the district, and a coupla years later, the groups went away.

Here is an article from early 1990s that explains this change, but keep in mind what I experienced, how the person whom the organizational unit was named for would DISAPPEAR, never to be seen again. How awkward! And remember what I heard a former national-level YWD leader recount: "In my 20 years of practice, I have helped over 400 people get gohonzons!" Wild applause! "Do you know how many are still practicing? TWO." Awkward silence.