# Alabama

| Alabama |
| --- |
| State |
| FlagSeal |
| Nicknames: the Yellowhammer State, the Heart of Dixie, the Cotton State |
| Motto(s): Latin: *Audemus jura nostra defendere* (We dare defend our rights) |
| Anthem: "Alabama" |
| Map of the United States with Alabama highlighted |
| Country | United States |
| Before statehood | Alabama Territory |
| Admitted to the Union | December 14, 1819 (22nd) |
| Capital | Montgomery |
| Largest city | Huntsville |
| Largest county or equivalent | Jefferson |
| Largest metro and urban areas | Greater Birmingham |
| Government |
|  • Governor | Kay Ivey (R) |
|  • Lieutenant Governor | Will Ainsworth (R) |
| Legislature | Alabama Legislature |
|  • Upper house | Senate |
|  • Lower house | House of Representatives |
| Judiciary | Supreme Court of Alabama |
| U.S. senators | Tommy Tuberville (R) Katie Britt (R) |
| U.S. House delegation | 5 Republicans 2 Democrats (list) |
| Area |
|  • Total | 52,419 sq mi (135,765 km2) |
|  • Land | 50,744 sq mi (131,426 km2) |
|  • Water | 1,675 sq mi (4,338 km2)  3.2% |
|  • Rank | 30th |
| Dimensions |
|  • Length | 330 mi (531 km) |
|  • Width | 190 mi (305 km) |
| Elevation | 500 ft (150 m) |
| Highest elevation (Mount Cheaha) | 2,413 ft (735.5 m) |
| Lowest elevation (Gulf of Mexico) | 0 ft (0 m) |
| Population (2020) |
|  • Total | 5,024,279 |
|  • Rank | 24th |
|  • Density | 99.2/sq mi (38.3/km2) |
|   • Rank | 27th |
|  • Median household income | $52,000 |
|  • Income rank | 46th |
| Demonym(s) | Alabamian, Alabaman |
| Language |
|  • Official language | English |
|  • Spoken language | As of 2010* English 95.1%
* Spanish 3.1%
 |
| Time zones |
| Entire state (legally) | UTC– 06:00 (Central) |
|  • Summer (DST) | UTC– 05:00 (CDT) |
| Phenix City area (unofficially) | UTC– 05:00 (Eastern) |
|  • Summer (DST) | UTC– 04:00 (EDT) |
| USPS abbreviation | AL |
| ISO 3166 code | US-AL |
| Traditional abbreviation | Ala. |
| Latitude | 30°11' N to 35° N |
| Longitude | 84°53' W to 88°28' W |
| Website | alabama.gov |

| Alabama state symbols |
| --- |
| Flag of Alabama |
|  |
| Living insignia |
| Amphibian | Red Hills salamander |
| Bird | Yellowhammer, wild turkey |
| Butterfly | Eastern tiger swallowtail |
| Fish | Largemouth bass, fighting tarpon |
| Flower | Camellia, oak-leaf hydrangea |
| Horse breed | Racking horse |
| Insect | Monarch butterfly |
| Mammal | American black bear |
| Reptile | Alabama red-bellied turtle |
| Tree | Longleaf pine |
| Inanimate insignia |
| Beverage | Conecuh Ridge Whiskey |
| Colors | Red, white |
| Dance | Square dance |
| Food | Pecan, blackberry, peach |
| Fossil | *Basilosaurus* |
| Gemstone | Star blue quartz |
| Mineral | Hematite |
| Rock | Marble |
| Shell | Johnstone's junonia |
| Slogan | *Share The Wonder*, *Alabama the beautiful*, *Where America finds its voice*, *Sweet Home Alabama* |
| Soil | Bama |
| State route marker |
|  |
| State quarter |
| Released in 2003 |
| Lists of United States state symbols |

Interactive map
**Alabama** (/ˌæləˈbæmə/ Alabama) is a state in the United States. Its capital city is Montgomery. The largest city is Huntsville. It became a state in 1819. Native American tribes such as Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Creek first lived in Alabama.

## Geography

Terrain map of Alabama, showing lakes, rivers, and roads. Mount Cheaha can also be seen in the right center, east of Birmingham.Population density map of Alabama.
Alabama is the thirty-first largest state in the United States with 52,419 square miles (135,760 km2) of total area. 3.18% of the area is water, making Alabama twenty-third in the amount of surface water, also giving it the second-largest inland waterway system in the United States. About three-fifths of the land area is a plain with a general downward slope towards the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. North Alabama has mostly mountains, with the Tennessee River cutting a large valley creating many creeks, streams, rivers, mountains, and lakes.

The states bordering Alabama are Tennessee to the north; Georgia to the east; Florida to the south; and Mississippi to the west. Alabama has a coastline at the Gulf of Mexico, at the very southern edge of the state. Alabama ranges in height from sea level at Mobile Bay to over 1,800 feet (550 m) in the Appalachian Mountains in the northeast. The highest point is Mount Cheaha, at a height of 2,407 feet (734 m). Alabama's land has 22 million acres (89,000 km2) of forest or 67% of the total land area. Baldwin County is the largest county in the state in both land area and water area.

### Climate

The state is classified as subtropical Cfa under the Köppen climate classification. The normal yearly temperature is 64 °F (18 °C). Temperatures are often warmer in the southern part of the state because it is closer to the Gulf of Mexico, while the northern parts of the state, mostly in the Appalachian Mountains in the northeast, tend to be slightly cooler. Most of the time, Alabama has very hot summers and mild winters with lots of rain throughout the year. Alabama receives an average of 56 inches (1,400 mm) of rainfall annually and enjoys a lengthy growing season of up to 300 days in the southern part of the state.

Summers in Alabama are among the hottest in the United States, with high temperatures averaging over 90 °F (32 °C) throughout the summer in some parts of the state. Alabama also gets many tropical storms and rarely hurricanes. Areas of the state far away from the Gulf of Mexico can still feel the effects of the storms, which often dump big amounts of rain as they move inland and weaken.

## Population

The number of people who live in Alabama was 5,024,279 on April 1, 2020, This is 244,543 more people living in the state than in 2010. This includes the migration of 104,991 people into the state.

The top countries of origin for immigrants were Mexico (27 percent of immigrants), China (6 percent), India (6 percent), Guatemala (5 percent), and Germany (5 percent).

## Economy

According to the United States Bureau of Economic Analysis, the 2008 total gross state product was $170 billion, or $29,411 per capita. In 1999, the per capita income for the state was $18,189.

Alabama's agricultural outputs are poultry and eggs, cattle, plant nursery items, peanuts, cotton, grains (such as corn and sorghum), vegetables, milk, soybeans, and peaches. Although known as "The Cotton State", many reports say that Alabama is between eight and ten in national cotton making, with Texas, Georgia, and Mississippi making up the top three.

Alabama's company outputs are iron and steel products (like cast-iron and steel pipe); paper, lumber, and wood items; mining (mostly coal); plastic things; cars and trucks; and apparel. Alabama also makes aerospace and electronic products, mostly in the Huntsville area. Huntsville also has the Redstone Arsenal.

## Education

### Primary and secondary education

Public primary and secondary education in Alabama is under the review of the Alabama State Board of Education as well as local oversight by 67 county school boards and 60 city boards of education. Together, 1,479 schools have education for 743,012 elementary and secondary students.

### Colleges and universities

Alabama's programs of higher education are 14 four-year public universities, two-year community colleges, and 17 private, undergraduate and graduate universities. In the state are two medical schools, University of Alabama at Birmingham and University of South Alabama, two veterinary colleges, Auburn University and Tuskegee University, a dental school for African Americans, University of Alabama, an optometry college, two pharmacy schools, Auburn University and Samford University, and several law schools, Birmingham School of Law, Cumberland School of Law, Miles Law School, and the Thomas Goode Jones School of Law. Public, post-secondary education in Alabama is overseen by the Alabama Commission on Higher Education. Colleges and universities in Alabama offer degree programs from two-year associate degrees to 16 doctor level programs.

## Government

The Governor of Alabama is Kay Ivey. The Lieutenant Governor is Will Ainsworth. The Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court is Sarah Hicks Stewart. Both the Governor and Lieutenant Governor are members of the Republican Party.

## Notable people from Alabama

* Nat King Cole, singer (Montgomery)
* Rosa Parks, Civil Rights Activist (Tuskegee)
* Jesse Owens, track and field athlete (Oakville)
* Terrell Owens, American football player (Alexander City)
* Helen Keller, (Tuscumbia)
* Bobby Eaton, pro wrestler (Huntsville)
* Mia Hamm, soccer star (Selma)
* Harold E. Martin, newspaperman (Montgomery)
* Scott Oden, writer (Somerville)
* Spooner Oldham; songwriter, keyboardist (Center Star)
* Stanley O'Neal, chairman & CEO of Merrill Lynch (Roanoke)
* Osceola, Seminole leader (Tallassee)
* Randy Owen, lead singer- Alabama (Fort Payne)
* Condoleezza Rice, former U.S. Secretary of State (Birmingham)
* Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia founder (Huntsville)

## Related pages

* List of counties in Alabama
* List of law enforcement agencies in Alabama
* List of rivers of Alabama