A U.S. state is any one of the 50 subnational entities Many sovereign independent states are made up of a number of subnational entities also called states . In some cases, such as the United States, the national government arose from a union of sovereign entities, which transferred some of their powers to the national government, while retaining the remainder of their sovereignty. These are sometimes of the United States of America The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the that share sovereignty Sovereignty is the right to exercise, within a specific territory of a kingdom or a nation-state, the highest authority by the law. It is an important part of the three main political perspectives of realism, rationalism, and internationalism, as these three theories differ most in their views on sovereignty. Sovereignty has existed throughout with the federal government The Federal Government of the United States is the central United States governmental body, established by the United States Constitution. The federal government has three branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial. Through a system of separation of powers and the system of "checks and balances," each of these branches has some (four states use the official title of commonwealth rather than state). Because of this shared sovereignty, an American The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile In Conflict of Laws, domicile is the basis of the choice of law rule operating in the characterisation framework to define a person's status, capacity and rights. The international term for this as a connecting factor is the lex domicilii, i.e. the law of the domicile.[1] However, state citizenship State citizenship usually refers to citizenship of one of the states of the United States of America. Citizenship was initially defined by Article 4 of the United States Constitution, and later clarified by the 14th Amendment, which states: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are is very flexible, and no government approval is required to move between states (with the exception of convicts on parole Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole, meaning " word." Following its use in late-medieval Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their word of honor to abide by).

The United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of the United States of America and the Federal Government of the United States. It provides the framework for the organization of the United States Government. The document allocates power between the two levels of government. By ratifying the Constitution, each state transferred certain, but limited Limited government is a government outline where any more than minimal governmental intervention in personal liberties and the economy is not usually allowed by law, usually in a written Constitution. It is closely related to libertarianism, classical liberalism, and some tendencies of liberalism and conservatism in the United States, sovereign Sovereignty is the exclusive right to exercise, within a specific territory, the functions of a Nation-state and be answerable to no higher authority. It is an important part of the three main political perspectives of realism, rationalism, and internationalism, as these three theories differ most in their views on sovereignty. Sovereignty has powers to the federal government The Federal Government of the United States is the central United States governmental body, established by the United States Constitution. The federal government has three branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial. Through a system of separation of powers and the system of "checks and balances," each of these branches has some. Under the Tenth Amendment The Tenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, was ratified on December 15, 1791. The Tenth Amendment restates the Constitution's principle of Federalism by providing that powers not granted to the national government nor prohibited to the states are reserved to the states or the people, all powers not explicitly mentioned are retained by the states A U.S. state is any one of the 50 subnational entities of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government . Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. However, state citizenship is very flexible, and no government approval is required, or the people The people of the United States, U.S. Americans, or simply Americans or American people, are citizens or nationals of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds. As a result, some Americans don't take their nationality as an ethnicity, but identify themselves with both. Historically, the tasks of public education, public health, transportation and other infrastructure have been considered primarily state responsibilities, although they now have significant federal funding and regulation as well.

Over time, the Constitution has been amended, and the interpretation and application of its provisions have changed. The general tendency has been toward centralization and incorporation Incorporation is the American legal doctrine by which portions of the Bill of Rights are applied to the states through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, although some have suggested that the Privileges or Immunities Clause would be a more appropriate textual basis. Prior to the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment and the, with the federal government playing a much larger role than it once did. There is a continuing debate over "states' rights The principle of the supremacy of federal powers over those powers held by the states is based on the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. In McCulloch v. Maryland, Chief Justice John Marshall asserted that the laws adopted by the federal government, when exercising its constitutional powers, are generally paramount over any conflicting laws", which concerns the extent and nature of the states' powers and sovereignty in relation to that of the federal government and their power over individuals.

Contents

Federal power

Since the 1930s, the Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States, and leads the federal judiciary. It consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices, who are nominated by the President and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the Senate. Once appointed, Justices effectively has interpreted the Commerce Clause The Commerce Clause is an enumerated power listed in the United States Constitution . The clause states that Congress has the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations, among the states, and with the Native American tribes. Courts and commentators have tended to discuss each of these three areas of commerce as a separate power granted to the of the Constitution of the United States The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of the United States of America and the Federal Government of the United States. It provides the framework for the organization of the United States Government. The document in an expansive way that has dramatically expanded the scope of federal power Federalism is a political philosophy in which a group of members are bound together with a governing representative head. The term federalism is also used to describe a system of the government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and constituent political units (like states or provinces).[citation needed] For example, Congress can regulate railway traffic across state lines, but it may also regulate rail traffic solely within a state, based on the theory that wholly intrastate traffic can still have an impact on interstate commerce.

Another source of Congressional power is its "spending power"—the ability of Congress to impose uniform taxes across the nation and then distribute the resulting revenue back to the states (subject to conditions set by Congress). A classic example of this is the system of "federal-aid highways", which includes the Interstate Highway System The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly called the Interstate Highway System , is a network of limited-access highways (also called freeways or expressways) in the United States that is named for President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who championed its creation. The entire system, as of 2006[update], has a. The system is mandated and largely funded by the federal government, but also serves the interests of the states. By threatening to withhold federal highway The system of United States Numbered Highways is an integrated system of roads and highways in the United States numbered within a nationwide grid. As these highways were coordinated among the states, they are infrequently referred to as Federal Highways, but they have always been maintained by state or local governments since their initial funds, Congress has been able to pressure state legislatures to pass a variety of laws. Although some object that this infringes on states' rights, the Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States, and leads the federal judiciary. It consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices, who are nominated by the President and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the Senate. Once appointed, Justices effectively has upheld the practice as a permissible use of the Constitution's Spending Clause.

State governments

States are free to organize their state governments Structured in accordance with state law , most state governments are modeled on the federal system, with three branches of government—executive, legislative, and judicial any way they like, as long as they conform to the sole requirement of the U.S. Constitution that they have "a Republican Form of Government". In practice, each state has adopted a three branch system of government A form of government, or form of state governence, refers to the set of political institutions by which a government of a state is organized in order to exert its powers over a body politic. Synonyms include "regime type" and "system of government". This definition holds even if the government is unsuccessful in exerting its generally along the same lines as that of the federal government—though this is not a requirement.

Despite the fact that each state has chosen to follow the federal model, there are significant differences in some states. One of the most notable is that of the unicameral Unicameralism is the practice of having only one legislative or parliamentary chamber. Many countries with unicameral legislatures are often small and homogeneous unitary states and consider an upper house or second chamber unnecessary Nebraska Legislature The Nebraska Legislature is the supreme legislative body of the State of Nebraska, in the Great Plains region of the United States. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in the City of Lincoln, Lancaster County, which, unlike the legislatures of the other 49 states, has only one house. While there is only one federal president, who then selects a Cabinet responsible to him, most states have a plural executive, with members of the executive branch In the study of political science the executive branch of government has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the democratic idea of the separation of powers elected directly by the people and serving as equal members of the state cabinet alongside the governor. And only a few states choose to have their judicial branch leaders—their judges on the state's courts—serve for life terms.

A key difference between states is that many rural states have part-time A part-time job is a form of employment that carries fewer hours per week than a full-time job. Workers are considered to be part-time if they commonly work fewer than 30 or 35 hours per week. According to the International Labour Organization, the number of part-time workers has increased from one-fourth to a half in the past 20 years in most legislatures, while the states with the highest populations tend to have full-time A permanent full-time job usually has benefits , while temporary full-time jobs usually do not have benefits. Full-time jobs are often considered careers. They usually pay more than part-time jobs, and always carry more hours per week. The most common full-time work week in the U.S. is between 32-40 hours. In France it is a government-mandated 35 legislatures. Texas, the second largest state in population, is a notable exception to this: excepting special sessions, the Texas Legislature The Texas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. The legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house Texas Senate with 31 members, and the lower Texas House of Representatives with 150 members. The Legislature meets at the Texas State Capitol in Austin. In Texas, the legislature is arguably considered the most is limited by law to 140 calendar days out of every two years. In Baker v. Carr Baker v. Carr, 369 U.S. 186 , was a landmark United States Supreme Court case that retreated from the Court's political question doctrine, deciding that reapportionment (attempts to change the way voting districts are delineated) issues present justiciable questions, thus enabling federal courts to intervene in and to decide reapportionment cases, the U.S. Supreme Court held that all states are required to have legislative districts which are proportional in terms of population.

States can also organize their judicial systems differently from the federal judiciary The United States federal courts comprises the Judiciary Branch of government organized under the Constitution and laws of the federal government of the United States. See also United States federal judge, as long as due process Due process is the principle that the government must respect all of the legal rights that are owed to a person according to the law of the land. As developed through a large body of case law in the United States, this principle gives individuals a varying ability to enforce their rights against alleged violations by governments and their agents ( is protected. See state court In the United States, a state court has jurisdiction over disputes with some connection to a U.S. state. Cases are heard before and evidence is presented in a trial court, which is usually located in a courthouse in the county seat. Territory outside of any state in the United States, such as the District of Columbia or American Samoa, often have and state supreme court In the United States, the state supreme court is the highest state court in the state court system for more information. Most have a trial level court, generally called a District Court District Court is the name given to the intermediate court in most Australian States. They hear indictable criminal offences excluding treason, murder and, in some States, manslaughter. Their civil jurisdiction is also intermediate, typically being for civil disputes where the amount claimed is greater than a $50 000 but less than $250 000. The or Superior Court In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general competence which typically has unlimited jurisdiction with regard to civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" relative to a court with limited jurisdiction , which is restricted to civil cases involving monetary amounts with a specific limit, or criminal, a first-level appellate court An appellate court is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In most jurisdictions, the court system is divided into at least three levels: the trial court, which initially hears cases and reviews evidence and testimony to determine the facts of the case; at least one intermediate appellate, generally called a Court of Appeal (or Appeals), and a Supreme Court. However, Oklahoma and Texas have separate highest courts for criminal appeals. New York state is notorious for its unusual terminology, in that the trial court is called the Supreme Court. Appeals are then taken to the Supreme Court, Appellate Division, and from there to the Court of Appeals. Most states base their legal system on English common law Common law refers to law and the corresponding legal system developed through decisions of courts and similar tribunals , rather than through legislative statutes or executive action (with substantial indigenous changes and incorporation of certain civil law innovations), with the notable exception of Louisiana, which draws large parts of its legal system from French civil law Civil law is the most prevalent and oldest surviving legal system in the world. It is based on a code, or "a systematic collection of interrelated articles written in a terse, staccato style." The two other major legal systems in the world are common law and Islamic law.

Relationships among the states

Under Article IV of the Constitution Article Four of the United States Constitution relates to the states. It provides for the responsibilities states have to each other, and the responsibilities the federal government has to the states. Furthermore, it provides for the admission of new states and the changing of state boundaries, which outlines the relationship between the states, the United States Congress The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives. Both senators and representatives are chosen through direct election has the power to admit new states to the union. The states are required to give "full faith and credit Article IV, Section 1 of the United States Constitution, commonly known as the Full Faith and Credit Clause, addresses the duties that states within the United States have to respect the "public acts, records, and judicial proceedings" of other states. According to the Supreme Court, there is a difference between the credit owed to laws" to the acts of each other's legislatures and courts, which is generally held to include the recognition of legal contracts, marriages, criminal judgments, and—at the time—slave status. States are prohibited from discriminating against citizens of other states with respect to their basic rights Human rights refer to the "basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled." Examples of rights and freedoms which have come to be commonly thought of as human rights include civil and political rights, such as the right to life and liberty, freedom of expression, and equality before the law; and economic, social and cultural, under the Privileges and Immunities Clause The Privileges and Immunities Clause prevents a state from treating citizens of other states in a discriminatory manner, with regard to basic civil rights. The clause also embraces a right to travel, so that a citizen of one state can go and enjoy privileges and immunities in any other state. The text of the clause reads:. The states are guaranteed military and civil defense Civil defense, civil defence or civil protection is an effort to prepare civilians for military attack. It uses the principles of emergency operations: prevention, mitigation, preparation, response, or emergency evacuation, and recovery. Programmes of this sort were initially discussed at least as early as the 1920s but only became widespread by the federal government, which is also required to ensure that the government of each state remains a republic.

Admission of states into the union

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be and removed. (January 2009)
Main article: List of U.S. states by date of statehood This is a list of U.S. states by date of statehood, that is, the date when each U.S. state joined the Union. Although the first 13 states can be considered to have been members of the United States from the date of the Declaration of Independence – Thursday, July 4, 1776 – they are presented here as being "admitted" on the date each U.S. states by date of statehood This is a list of U.S. states by date of statehood, that is, the date when each U.S. state joined the Union. Although the first 13 states can be considered to have been members of the United States from the date of the Declaration of Independence – Thursday, July 4, 1776 – they are presented here as being "admitted" on the date each 1776–1790 1791–1799 1800–1819 1820–1839 1840–1859 1860–1879 1880–1899 1900–1950 1950- The order in which the original 13 states ratified the constitution, then the order in which the others were admitted to the union.

Since the establishment of the United States, the number of states has expanded from 13 to 50. The Constitution is rather laconic on the process by which new states can be added, noting only that "New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union", and forbidding a new state to be created out of the territory of an existing state or the merging of two or more states as one without the consent of both Congress and all the state legislatures involved.

In practice, nearly all states admitted to the union after the original thirteen have been formed from U.S. territories (that is, land under the sovereignty of the United States federal government but not part of any state) that were organized (given a measure of self-rule by Congress). Generally speaking, the organized government of a territory made known the sentiment of its population in favor of statehood; Congress then directed that government to organize a constitutional convention to write a state constitution. Upon acceptance of that Constitution, Congress then admitted that territory as a state. The broad outlines in this process were established by the Northwest Ordinance, which predated the ratification of the Constitution.

However, Congress has ultimate authority over the admission of new states, and is not bound to follow this procedure. A few U.S. states (outside of the original 13) that were never organized territories of the federal government have been admitted:

Congress is also under no obligation to admit states even in those areas whose population expresses a desire for statehood. For instance, the Republic of Texas requested annexation to the United States in 1836, but fears about the conflict with Mexico that would result delayed admission for nine years.[citation needed] The Utah Territory was denied admission to the union as a state for decades because of discomfort with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' dominance in the territory, and particularly with the Mormon's then-practice of polygamy.[citation needed] Once established, state borders have been largely stable. There have been exceptions, such as the cession by Maryland and Virginia of land to create the District of Columbia (Virginia's portion was later returned) and the creation of states from other states, including the creation of Kentucky and West Virginia from Virginia, Maine from Massachusetts, and Tennessee from North Carolina.

Possible new states

See also: 51st state, Politics of Puerto Rico, Political status of Puerto Rico, and District of Columbia voting rights

Today, there are very few U.S. territories left that might potentially become new states. The most likely candidate may be Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico has been under U.S. sovereignty for over a century, and Puerto Ricans have been U.S. citizens since 1917. Puerto Rico currently has limited representation in the U.S. Congress in the form of a Resident Commissioner, a nonvoting delegate.[2] President George H. W. Bush issued a memorandum on November 30, 1992 to heads of executive departments and agencies establishing the current administrative relationship between the federal government and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. This memorandum directs all federal departments, agencies, and officials to treat Puerto Rico administratively as if it were a state, insofar as doing so would not disrupt federal programs or operations.

The commonwealth's government has organized several referendums on the question of status over the past several decades, though Congress has not recognized these as binding; all shown resulted in narrow victories for the status quo over statehood, with independence supported by only a small number of voters. On December 23, 2000, President Bill Clinton signed executive Order 13183, which established the President's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status and the rules for its membership. Section 4 of executive Order 13183 (as amended by executive Order 13319) directs the task force to "report on its actions to the President ... on progress made in the determination of Puerto Rico’s ultimate status."

President George W. Bush signed an additional amendment to Executive Order 13183 on December 3, 2003, which established the current co-chairs and instructed the task force to issue reports as needed, but no less than once every two years. In December 2005, the presidential task force proposed a new set of referendums on the issue; if Congress votes in line with the task force's recommendation, it would pave the way for the first congressionally mandated votes on status in the island, and (potentially) statehood by 2010. The task force's December 2007 status report reiterated and confirmed the proposals made in 2005.[3][4][5]

The intention of the Founding Fathers was that the United States capital should be at a neutral site, not giving favor to any existing state; as a result, the District of Columbia was created in 1800 to serve as the seat of government. The inhabitants of the District do not have full representation in Congress or a sovereign elected government (they were allotted presidential electors by the 23rd amendment, and have a non-voting delegate in Congress). Some residents of the District support statehood of some form for that jurisdiction—either statehood for the whole district or for the inhabited part, with the remainder remaining under federal jurisdiction. While statehood is always a live political question in the District, the prospects for any movement in that direction in the immediate future seem dim. Instead, an emphasis on continuing home rule in the District while also giving the District a vote in Congress is gaining support.

For the remaining permanently inhabited U.S. non-state jurisdictions—the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa—the prospects of statehood are remote. All have relatively small populations—Guam, with the most inhabitants, has a population less than 35 percent that of Wyoming, the least populous state—and have governments that are heavily reliant on federal funding. If these territories ever sought statehood, they would probably have to combine to maximize their population and territory—possibly with the addition of the former United States Trust Territories: Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands.

Constitutionally, a state may only be divided into more states with the approval both of Congress and of the state's legislature, as was the case when Maine was split off from Massachusetts. When Texas was admitted to the union in 1845, it was much larger than any other state and was specifically granted the right to divide itself into as many as five separate states. However, according to Article IV, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution, "New states may be admitted by the Congress into this union; but no new states shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other state; nor any state be formed by the junction of two or more states, or parts of states, without the consent of the legislatures of the states concerned as well as of the Congress."[6][7]

Unrecognized states

See also: Historical regions of the United States

Secession

The Constitution is silent on the issue of the secession of a state from the union. The Articles of Confederation had stated that the earlier union of the colonies "shall be perpetual". In 1860 and 1861, eleven southern states seceded, but were brought back into the Union by force of arms during the Civil War. Following the war, the federal judicial system, in the case of Texas v. White, held that the preamble to the Constitution, which states that the Constitution was intended to "form a more perfect union," meant states did not have a right to secede. The court did allow some possibility of the divisibility "through revolution, or through consent of the States."[8][9]

States called commonwealths

Main article: Commonwealth (U.S. state)

Four of the states bear the formal title of commonwealth: Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. In these cases, this is merely a historically based name and has no legal effect. Somewhat confusingly, two U.S. territories — Puerto Rico and the Northern Marianas — are also referred to as commonwealths, and do have a legal status different from the states (both are unincorporated territories).

Origin of states' names

State names speak to the circumstances of their creation. See the lists of U.S. state name etymologies and U.S. county name etymologies.

List of states

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Delaware Maryland New Hampshire New Jersey Massachusetts Connecticut West Virginia Vermont Rhode Island

The following sortable table lists each of the 50 states of the United States with the following information:

  1. The common state name
  2. The preferred pronunciation of the common state name as transcribed with the International Phonetic Alphabet (see Help:IPA for English for a key)
  3. The United States Postal Service (USPS) two-character state abbreviation[10] (also used as the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Standard 3166-2 country subdivision code)
  4. An image of the official state flag
  5. The date the state ratified the United States Constitution or was admitted to the Union
  6. The United States Census Bureau estimate of state population as of July 1, 2007[11][12]
  7. The state capital
  8. The most populous incorporated place or Census Designated Place within the state as of 2007-07-01, as estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau[13]
The 50 United States of America
Official State Name Common IPA USPS Flag Date Population Capital Most Populous City
State of Alabama Alabama /ˌæləˈbæmə/ AL 1819-12-14 4,627,851 Montgomery Birmingham
State of Alaska Alaska /əˈlæskə/ AK 1959-01-03 683,478 Juneau Anchorage
State of Arizona Arizona /ˌærɪˈzoʊnə/ AZ 1912-02-14 6,338,755 Phoenix Phoenix
State of Arkansas Arkansas /ˈɑrkənsɑː/ AR 1836-06-15 2,834,797 Little Rock Little Rock
State of California California /ˌkælɪˈfɔrnjə/ CA 1850-09-09 36,553,215 Sacramento Los Angeles
State of Colorado Colorado /ˌkɒləˈrædoʊ/ CO 1876-08-01 4,861,515 Denver Denver
State of Connecticut Connecticut /kəˈnɛtɪkət/ CT 1788-01-09 3,502,309 Hartford Bridgeport[14]
State of Delaware Delaware /ˈdɛləwɛər/ DE 1787-12-07 864,764 Dover Wilmington
State of Florida Florida /ˈflɔrɪdə/ FL 1845-03-03 18,251,243 Tallahassee Jacksonville[15]
State of Georgia Georgia /ˈdʒɔrdʒə/ GA 1788-01-02 9,544,750 Atlanta Atlanta
State of Hawaii Mokuʻāina o Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian) Hawaii /həˈwaɪi/, [haʋaiʔi] HI 1959-08-21 1,283,388 Honolulu Honolulu
State of Idaho Idaho /ˈaɪdəhoʊ/ ID 1890-07-03 1,499,402 Boise Boise
State of Illinois Illinois /ɪlɪˈnɔɪ/ IL 1818-12-03 12,852,548 Springfield Chicago
State of Indiana Indiana /ˌɪndiˈænə/ IN 1816-12-11 6,345,289 Indianapolis Indianapolis
State of Iowa Iowa /ˈaɪəwə/ IA 1846-12-28 2,988,046 Des Moines Des Moines
State of Kansas Kansas /ˈkænzəs/ KS 1861-01-29 2,775,997 Topeka Wichita
Commonwealth of Kentucky Kentucky /kənˈtʌki/ KY 1792-06-01 4,241,474 Frankfort Louisville
State of Louisiana Louisiana /luˌiziˈænə/ LA 1812-04-30 4,293,204 Baton Rouge New Orleans
State of Maine Maine /ˈmeɪn/ ME 1820-03-15 1,317,207 Augusta Portland
State of Maryland Maryland /ˈmɛrələnd/ MD 1788-04-28 5,618,344 Annapolis Baltimore[16]
Commonwealth of Massachusetts Massachusetts /ˌmæsəˈtʃuːsɪts/ MA 1788-02-06 6,449,755 Boston Boston
State of Michigan Michigan /ˈmɪʃɪgən/ MI 1837-01-26 10,071,822 Lansing Detroit
State of Minnesota Minnesota /ˌmɪnɪˈsoʊtə/ MN 1858-05-11 5,197,621 Saint Paul Minneapolis
State of Mississippi Mississippi /ˌmɪsɪˈsɪpi/ MS 1817-12-10 2,918,785 Jackson Jackson
State of Missouri Missouri /mɪˈzʊəri, mɪˈzʊərə/ MO 1821-08-10 5,878,415 Jefferson City Kansas City[17]
State of Montana Montana /mɑnˈtænə/ MT 1889-11-08 957,861 Helena Billings
State of Nebraska Nebraska /nəˈbræskə/ NE 1867-03-01 1,774,571 Lincoln Omaha
State of Nevada Nevada /nəˈvædə/ NV 1864-10-31 2,565,382 Carson City Las Vegas
State of New Hampshire New Hampshire /nuˈhæmpʃɚ/ NH 1788-06-21 1,315,828 Concord Manchester[18]
State of New Jersey New Jersey /nuˈdʒɝzi/ NJ 1787-12-18 8,685,920 Trenton Newark[19]
State of New Mexico New Mexico /nuˈmɛksɪkoʊ/ NM 1912-01-06 1,969,915 Santa Fe Albuquerque
State of New York New York /nuːˈjɔrk/ NY 1788-07-26 19,297,729 Albany New York[20]
State of North Carolina North Carolina /ˌnɔrθˌkɛrəˈlaɪnə/ NC 1789-11-21 9,061,032 Raleigh Charlotte
State of North Dakota North Dakota /ˌnɔrθdəˈkoʊtə/ ND 1889-11-02 639,715 Bismarck Fargo
State of Ohio Ohio /oʊˈhaɪoʊ/ OH 1803-03-01 11,466,917 Columbus Columbus[21]
State of Oklahoma Oklahoma /ˌoʊkləˈhoʊmə/ OK 1907-11-16 3,617,316 Oklahoma City Oklahoma City
State of Oregon Oregon /ˈɔrɪgən/ OR 1859-02-14 3,747,455 Salem Portland
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania /ˌpɛnsɪlˈveɪnjə/ PA 1787-12-12 12,432,792 Harrisburg Philadelphia
State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations Rhode Island /roʊdˈaɪlənd/ RI 1790-05-29 1,057,832 Providence Providence
State of South Carolina South Carolina /ˌsɑʊθkɛrəˈlaɪnə/ SC 1788-05-23 4,407,709 Columbia Columbia[22]
State of South Dakota South Dakota /ˌsɑʊθdəˈkoʊtə/ SD 1889-11-02 796,214 Pierre Sioux Falls
State of Tennessee Tennessee /ˌtɛnɪˈsiː/ TN 1796-06-01 6,156,719 Nashville Memphis[23]
State of Texas Texas /ˈtɛksəs/ TX 1845-12-29 23,904,380 Austin Houston[24]
State of Utah Utah /ˈjuːtɑː/ UT 1896-01-04 2,645,330 Salt Lake City Salt Lake City
State of Vermont Vermont /vɚˈmɑnt/ VT 1791-03-04 621,254 Montpelier Burlington
Commonwealth of Virginia Virginia /vɚˈdʒɪnjə/ VA 1788-06-25 7,712,091 Richmond Virginia Beach[25]
State of Washington Washington /ˈwɑʃɪŋtən/ WA 1889-11-11 6,468,424 Olympia Seattle
State of West Virginia West Virginia /ˌwɛstvɚˈdʒɪnjə/ WV 1863-06-20 1,812,035 Charleston Charleston
State of Wisconsin Wisconsin /wɪsˈkɑnsɪn/ WI 1848-05-29 5,601,640 Madison Milwaukee
State of Wyoming Wyoming /waɪˈoʊmɪŋ/ WY 1890-07-10 522,830 Cheyenne Cheyenne

Grouping of the states in regions

U.S. Census Bureau regions: The West, The Midwest, The South and The Northeast. Note that Alaska and Hawaii are shown at different scales, and that the Aleutian Islands and the uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands are omitted from this map.

States may be grouped in regions; there are endless variations and possible groupings, as most states are not defined by obvious geographic or cultural borders. For further discussion of regions of the U.S., see the list of regions of the United States.

State lists

Washington Oregon California Idaho Nevada Utah Arizona Montana Wyoming Colorado New Mexico North Dakota South Dakota Nebraska Kansas OK Texas Minnesota Iowa MO AR Louisiana Wisconsin IL Michigan IN Ohio KY TN MS AL Maine Vermont New Hampshire Massachusetts Connecticut Rhode Island New York PA New Jersey DC Maryland Delaware WV Virginia North Carolina South Carolina Georgia Florida Alaska Hawaii

See also

U.S. Census Bureau statistical areas by state, district, or territory AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY AS GU PR MP VI

References

  1. ^ See the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
  2. ^ Rules of the House of Representatives
  3. ^ Report By the President's Task Force On Puerto Rico's Status (December 2005)
  4. ^ Report By the President's Task Force On Puerto Rico's Status (December 2007)
  5. ^ [1] -Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007 H.R. 900
  6. ^ http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.articleiv.html#section3
  7. ^ http://www.snopes.com/history/american/texas.asp
  8. ^ Aleksandar Pavković, Peter Radan, Creating New States: Theory and Practice of Secession, p. 222, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2007.
  9. ^ Texas v. White, 74 U.S. 700 (1868) at Cornell University Law School Supreme Court collection.
  10. ^ "Official USPS Abbreviations" (HTML). United States Postal Service. 1998. http://www.usps.com/ncsc/lookups/abbreviations.html. Retrieved on 2007-02-26.
  11. ^ "Table 1: Annual Estimates of the Population for the United States and States, and for Puerto Rico: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2007" (CSV). 2007 Population Estimates. United States Census Bureau, Population Division. 2007-12-27. http://www.census.gov/popest/states/tables/NST-EST2007-01.csv. Retrieved on 2008-02-21.
  12. ^ "United States -- States; and Puerto Rico: GCT-T1-R. Population Estimates (geographies ranked by estimate) Data Set: 2007 Population Estimates" (HTML). 2007 Population Estimates. United States Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. 2007-07-01. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/GCTTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=&-ds_name=PEP_2007_EST&-_lang=en&-redoLog=true&-mt_name=PEP_2007_EST_GCTT1R_US9S&-format=US-9. Retrieved on 2008-05-03.
  13. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Population for All Incorporated Places: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2007" (CSV). 2007 Population Estimates. United States Census Bureau, Population Division. 2008-07-09. http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/files/SUB-EST2007-all.csv. Retrieved on 2008-09-08.
  14. ^ The Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic Combined Statistical Area is the most populous metropolitan area in Connecticut.
  15. ^ The Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area is the most populous metropolitan area in Florida.
  16. ^ Baltimore City and the 12 Maryland counties of the Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia Combined Statistical Area form the most populous metropolitan region in Maryland.
  17. ^ The City of Saint Louis and the 8 Missouri counties of the St. Louis-St. Charles-Farmington Combined Statistical Area form the most populous metropolitan region in Missouri.
  18. ^ The 5 southeastern New Hampshire counties of the Boston-Worcester-Manchester Combined Statistical Area form the most populous metropolitan region in New Hampshire.
  19. ^ The 13 northern New Jersey counties of the New York-Newark-Bridgeport Combined Statistical Area form the most populous metropolitan region in New Jersey.
  20. ^ New York City is the most populous city in the United States.
  21. ^ The Cleveland-Akron-Elyria Combined Statistical Area is the most populous metropolitan area in Ohio.
  22. ^ The Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson Combined Statistical Area is the most populous metropolitan area in South Carolina.
  23. ^ The Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Columbia Combined Statistical Area is the most populous metropolitan area in Tennessee.
  24. ^ The Dallas-Fort Worth Combined Statistical Area is the most populous metropolitan area in Texas.
  25. ^ The 10 Virginia counties and 6 Virginia cities of the Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia Combined Statistical Area form the most populous metropolitan region in Virginia.

External links

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