USA States: List, Map & Capitals

The nation state USA is one federal Republic and consists of a bunch of 50 stateswho are allowed to make certain decisions (e.g. laws) independently. Washington DC is the capital of the United States.

For comparison: The Republic of Germany consists of 16 federal states that form the overall state of Germany.

All states of the USA

In this section you will learn more about all 50 states of the USA. Among other things, you can see a map so that you can get a better idea of ​​all the states and find out about the special features and abbreviations of the states.

USA states map

The following map shows you the 50 states of the United States. The entire state of USA is in North America and most of the states are between Canada and Mexico. Only Alaska borders western Canada.

Figure 1: The United States

List of USA states – capitals and abbreviations

The following table lists the 50 states of the United States in alphabetical order. You will also see the respective capital, abbreviation and nickname.

StateAbbreviationCallnameCapital

Alabama

AL The Heart of Dixie Montgomery

Alaska

AKLast FrontierJuneauArizonaAZGrand Canyon StatePhoenixArkansasARNatural StateLittle RockCaliforniaCAGolden StateSacramentoColoradoCOCentennial State ConstitutionDenverConnecticutCTConstitution StateHartfordDelawareDEFirst StateDoverFloridaFLSunshine StateTallahasseeGeorgiaGAPeach StateAtlantaHawaiiHIAloha StateHonoluluIdahoIDGem StateBoiseIllinoisILPrairie StateSpringfieldIndianaINHoosier StateIndianapolisIowaIAHawkeye StateDes MoinesKansasKSSunflower StateTopekaKentuckyKYBluegrass StateFrankfortLouisianaLAPelican StateBaton RougeMaineMEThe Pine Tree StateAugustaMarylandMDOld Line StateAnnapolisMassachusettsMABay StateBostonMichiganMIWolverine StateLansingMinnesotaMNNorth Star StateSt. PaulMississippiMSMagnolia StateJacksonMissouriMOShow Mc StateJefferson CityMontanaMTTreasure StateHelenaNebraskaNECornhusker StateLincolnNevadaNVSilver StateCanson CityNew HampshireNHGranite StateConcordNew JerseyNJGarden StateTrentonNew MexicoNMLand of EnchantmentSanta FeNew York NYEmpire StateAlbanyNorth CarolinaNCTar Heel StateRaleighNorth DakotaNDPeace Garden StateBismarckOhioOHBuckeye StateColumbusOklahomaOKSooner StateOklahoma-CityOregonORBeaver StateSalemPennsylvaniaPAThe Keystone StateHarrisburgRhode IslandRIThe Ocean StateProvidenceSouth CarolinaSCPalmetto StateColumbiaSouth DakotaSDMt Rushmore StatePierreTennesseeTNVolunteer StateNashvilleTexasTXLone Star StateAustinUtahUTBeehive StateSalt Lake CityVermontVTGreen Mountain Montpelier Virginia VAOld Dominion StateRichmondWashingtonWAEvergreen StateOlympiaWest VirginiaWVMountain StateCharlestonWisconsinWIBadger StateMadisonWyomingWYEquality StateCheyenneDistrict of ColumbiaDCCapital CityWashi ngton

If you would like to find out more about the states of New York, California and Florida, please have a look at the explanations «New York», «California» and «Florida».

Regions and divisions of the states in the USA

The United States can be in four Greater Regions and nine divisions to be grouped. The four major regions are the Northeast, Midwest, West and Southern states. These major regions are then in turn subdivided into divisions.

northeast

In addition northeast includes the divisions New England Division and Middle Atlantic Division. Here are some characteristics of this Greater Region:

  • industrialized early
  • historically opposed to slavery
  • wealthier states
  • metropolitan areas of the United States
  • politically more democratic (tends towards strong, centralized government)

The following table shows you which cities belong to the divisions.

New England DivisionMiddle Atlantic DivisionConnecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, VermontNew Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania

Middle West

To the Greater Region Middle West includes the West North Central Division and East North Central Division divisions. You can find out what is characteristic of the Midwest here:

  • rather rural and conservative
  • politically more Republican (leaning towards decentralized government)
  • Exception: metropolitan regions tend to be left-leaning and liberal

The following table shows you which cities belong to these divisions.

West North Central DivisionEast North Central DivisionIowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South DakotaIllinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin

west

The Greater Region west includes the Mountain Division and the Pacific Division. Characteristics of the west include:

  • technology and creative industries
  • States on the west coast rather democratic
  • Interior and Alaska more Republican

In the table below you can see which states belong to these divisions.

Mountain DivisionPacific DivisionArizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, WyomingAlaska, California, Oregon, Washington

southern states

The last major region are the southern states. These include the three divisions South Atlantic Division, West South Central Division and East South Central Division. You can see what makes the southern states special here:

  • more rural than the north, which was industrialized early on
  • historically much slavery and plantation economy
  • more politically conservative, more Republican

The following table shows you which cities comprise the divisions.

South Atlantic DivisionWest South Central DivisionEast South Central DivisionDelaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West VirginiaArkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, TexasAlabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee

History of the United States

Since the history of the United States of America is very complex and varied, only a few of the most important events that led to the formation of the 50 states will now be explained in more detail. These include the American Constitution, The Conquest of the WestAbraham Lincoln and the Civil War.

You can find more interesting facts about US history in the «US History» summary.

American constitution

The United States Constitution, in English Constitution of the United States called, regulates the basic legal and political order of the United States. It was signed into law on September 17, 1787, to unite the states into one central authority and functions to this day as the fundamental law of the US system of government.

As the Constitution of the United States was written, only 13 of today’s 50 states belonged to America. These states were founding states named and were Virginia, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maryland, Connecticut, North Carolina, South Carolina, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Georgia.

Do you want to know more about the American Constitution? Then take a look at the summary «Constitution of the United States»!

The Conquest of the West

as Conquest of the West or American Frontier will the expansion Americas described in the 19th century. It began with the sale of Louisiana – Spain bequeathed the state to France, France in turn sold Louisiana to the United States – and was inspired by the Gold Rush, the Oregon Trail, and the ideology Manifest Destiny («obvious determination») driven. With this basic idea, the expansion was perceived and justified as a divine order.

Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States and was an opponent of slavery. This did not sit well with the slave owners in the southern states, as they were primarily dependent on their slaves working in the fields. In contrast, the northern states were already active in the industrial labor sector. Hence it came to civil war between the northern (union) and the southern states (Confederates). When the Union finally won the war, slavery was abolished.

USA states specifics

In this section you will be shown a few peculiarities of the 50 states of America. You will discover the largest, smallest and most beautiful states in America.

area and inhabitants

The following table shows you the peculiarities of the states in terms of their size and population.

StatePopulationAreaFeaturesAlaska700,0001,723 square kilometerslargest state the USAArizona6.4 million295 square kilometersState with the largest capital (Phoenix)Delaware900,0006 square kilometersoldest state the USAHawaii1.4 million28 square kilometersyoungest state of the USA

California

37.2 million424 square kilometersState with the most residents of the United StatesNew York19.4 million141 square kilometershas the biggest town of the USA, New York City, with approx. 8.8 million inhabitants Rhode Island1 million4 square kilometers in area smallest state the USAVermont600,00025 square kilometersState with the smallest capital of the United States (Montpelier)Wyoming600,000253 square kilometersState with the fewest inhabitants

life quality

To the US states with the best quality of life include North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin and New Hampshire. These states have high scores in terms of the natural and social environment. as safest and wealthiest City of United States is known as Plano in Texas.

States with the worst quality of life are New Jersey, Indiana, Illinois, Texas and California, although this is the economically strongest state in the USA. The poor quality of life is often associated with urban air quality, poor drinking water quality and the resulting increased health risk.

The city of Detroit, Michigan is the most criminal and most insecure America’s city because it has 2,100 crimes per 100,000 inhabitants per year. There are around 350 homicides there every year. The most dangerous cities in the USA also include Oakland (California), St. Louis (Missouri) and Memphis (Tennessee).

Most Germans in the US live in the states of Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North and South Dakota, as well as Wisconsin. In addition, almost a quarter of the population in Pennsylvania has German roots.

USA states vocabulary

So that you can better understand and express the topic in English, the following table shows you vocabulary that you can use to talk about the USA States.

EnglishGermanfederated stateBundesstatestaatsovereign stateEinstaatthe Confederatesdie Confederate StatesareaFlächeinhabitantsEinwohner*innensquare kilometresQuadratkilometerquality of lifeQuality of life

USA states – the most important

  • The US is one federal Republicconsisting of a bunch of 50 states consists.
  • The capital of the USA is Washington DC
  • As the biggest States of the USA are Alaska in terms of area and California in terms of population.
  • the smallest States of the USA are Rhode Island in terms of area and Wyoming in terms of population.
  • The major historical events that led to the formation of the US states include colonization, Declaration of Independence, Constitution of the United States, Conquest of the West and the American Civil War.