List of demonyms for US states and territories

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is a list of official and notable unofficial terms used to designate the citizens of specific states, federal district, and territories of the United States of America.

List[]

State
federal district
or territory 		Official
(recommended by US GPO)[1] 		Official, unofficial, or informal alternatives
 Alabama Alabaman Alabamian[2][3]
 Alaska Alaskan Russian: Аляскинский, romanized: Alyaskinskiy
 American Samoa American Samoan, Samoan: Amerika Samoa
 Arizona Arizonan Spanish: Arizonense
 Arkansas Arkansian Arkansawyer,[4] Arkie[5]
 California Californian Californian, Prune Picker,[6][7][8][9][10][11] Californio (archaic)
 Colorado Coloradan Coloradoan (archaic)[12][13]
 Connecticut Connecticuter Connecticotian,[14][15] Connecticutensian,[14][15] Nutmeg,[14][15] Nutmegger[14][15]
 Delaware Delawarean Blue Hen's Chicken,[16] Muskrat[16]
 District of Columbia Columbian, D.C.-er Washingtonian (see also nicknames of people of Washington state)
 Florida Floridian Alligator,[17] Cracker,[18] Fly-Up-the-Creek,[17] Florida Man[19] Spanish: Floridano
Georgia (U.S. state) Georgia Georgian Buzzard, Cracker, Goober-grabber[20]
 Guam Guamanian, Chamorro: Tåotåo Guåhån
 Hawaii Hawaii resident Islander,[21] Kamaʻāina. The Associated Press Stylebook restricts use of "Hawaiian" to people of Native Hawaiian descent.[22]
 Idaho Idahoan Fortune Seekers[23]
 Illinois Illinoisan Illinoisian, Illinoian, Flatlander,[24] Sucker, Sand-hiller, Egyptian[25]
 Indiana Hoosier Indianan (former GPO demonym replaced by Hoosier in 2016),[1] Indianian (archaic)[26]
 Iowa Iowan Hawkeye[27]
 Kansas Kansan Grasshopper, Sunflower[28]
 Kentucky Kentuckian Corncracker,[29] Kentuckyan
 Louisiana Louisianian Louisianan, French: Louisianais, Spanish: Luisiano
 Maine Mainer Down Easter or Downeaster,[30] Mainiac,[31] Yankee (rare)
 Maryland Marylander
 Massachusetts Massachusettsan Bay Stater (official term used by state government) and Citizen of the Commonwealth (identifier used in state law),[32] Massachusettsian,[33] Massachusite,[34][35] Masshole (derogatory[36] as an exonym; however, it can be affectionate when applied as an endonym[37])
 Michigan Michiganian Michigander,[38] Wolverine,[39][40] Michiganite, Yooper/Troll (for residents of the Upper Peninsula and Lower Peninsula, respectively),[41] Michigoose (used specifically for female residents, as a play on "Michigander")[41]
 Minnesota Minnesotan
 Mississippi Mississippian
 Missouri Missourian French: Missourien, Spanish: Misuriano
 Montana Montanan
 Nebraska Nebraskan Bugeaters or Cornhuskers[42]
 Nevada Nevadan
 New Hampshire New Hampshirite New Hampshireman or New Hampshirewoman, Granite Stater[43]
 New Jersey New Jerseyan New Jerseyite
 New Mexico New Mexican Spanish: Neomexicano, Neomejicano[44]
New York (state) New York New Yorker Knickerbocker[45][46]
 North Carolina North Carolinian Tar Heel, Tar Boiler[47]
 North Dakota North Dakotan
 Northern Mariana Islands Mariana Islander, Chamorro: Tåotåo Mariånas
 Ohio Ohioan Buckeye,[48] Ohian (obsolete)[49]
 Oklahoma Oklahoman Okie,[50] Sooner[51]
 Oregon Oregonian
 Pennsylvania Pennsylvanian Pennamite,[52] Pennsylvania German: Pennsylfaanier[53]
 Puerto Rico Puerto Rican Boricua[54]
 Rhode Island Rhode Islander Swamp Yankee[55]
 South Carolina South Carolinian Sandlapper[56]
 South Dakota South Dakotan
 Tennessee Tennessean Volunteer, Big Bender (archaic), Butternut[57]
 Texas Texan Texian (Anglo-Texan - historical),[58] Tejano (Hispano-Texan), Texican (archaic)
 Utah Utahn Utahian, Utahan
 Vermont Vermonter
United States Virgin Islands Virgin Islands Virgin Islander
 Virginia Virginian
Washington (state) Washington Washingtonian
 West Virginia West Virginian
 Wisconsin Wisconsinite Badger,[59] Cheesehead,[60][61] Sconnie,[62] Wisconsonian, Wisconsese
 Wyoming Wyomingite Wyomese,[63] Wyomingian


Map[]

Map of state demonyms for the United States.
Map of official demonyms as recommended by the US GPO.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b U.S. Government Publishing Office Style Manual. 2016. §5.23.
  2. ^ Safire, William (June 26, 1994). "On Language: Foam Fell on Alabama". The New York Times. Safire reports that after he used the word "Alabaman" in a column, he received a letter from Vic Gold that said in part, "The natives, I have learned to my sorrow, prefer Alabamian."
  3. ^ "The State of Alabama". Netstate.
  4. ^ Arkansawyer definition - Dictionary - MSN Encarta. Archived from the original on November 15, 2009.
  5. ^ "Ar•kie". Dictionary.infoplease.com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  6. ^ Kincheloe, Joe L. (2000). White Reign: Deploying Whiteness in America. New York: St. Martin's Press. p. 239. ISBN 9780312224752.
  7. ^ Trombley, William (August 12, 1985). "Boom Area's Missing Link--Jobs : Lack of Local Employment a Major Problem for 'Inland Empire'". The Los Angeles Times.
  8. ^ King, Susan (December 6, 2007). "Cowboy, biker ... rabbit?". The Los Angeles Times.
  9. ^ Armstrong, Bill (May 20, 2014). Surf, Sun and Prune Pickers. ISBN 978-1499629552.
  10. ^ "CALIFORNIA ODYSSEY: The 1930s Migration to the Southern San Joaquin Valley" (PDF). University of California Bakersfield. January 19, 1981. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  11. ^ Hadden, B.; Luce, H.R. (1991). "Time Magazine". Time : 2003. Vol. 138. Time Incorporated. ISSN 0040-781X. LCCN 25011669.
  12. ^ Writers Style Guide. Colorado State University. p. 62. Retrieved January 2, 2009. The correct name for a person from Colorado is Coloradan (not Coloradoan).
  13. ^ Quillen, Ed (March 18, 2007). "Coloradan or Coloradoan?". The Denver Post.
  14. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Connecticut's Nicknames". Connecticut State Library. April 20, 2017. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
  15. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "The State of Connecticut - An Introduction to the Constitution State from". Netstate.Com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b "The State of Delaware - An Introduction to the First State from". Netstate.Com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  17. ^ Jump up to: a b "The State of Florida". Netstate.
  18. ^ "'Cracker' Means Something Entirely Different In Florida: A Source Of 'Pride'". Mediaite. June 27, 2013. Retrieved May 18, 2014.
  19. ^ "'Florida Man' On Twitter Collects Real Headlines About World's Worst Superhero". NPR.org. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  20. ^ "The State of Georgia". Netstate. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  21. ^ "The State of Hawaii - An Introduction to the Aloha State from". Netstate.Com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  22. ^ Christian, Darrel; Jacobsen, Sally A.; Minthorn, David, eds. (2013). The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law. New York, NY: Basic Books. p. 112. ISBN 9780465082995.
  23. ^ "The State of Idaho". Netstate.
  24. ^ Jim Fitzgerald (October 6, 1987). "A Friend Escapes To Illinois . . . And Now Is A Flatlander!". ChicagoTribune.com.
  25. ^ "The State of Illinois - An Introduction to the Prairie State from". Netstate.Com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  26. ^ "Indianian". Oxford Dictionaries.
  27. ^ "The State of Iowa". Netstate.com.
  28. ^ "The State of Kansas - An Introduction to the Sunflower State from". Netstate.Com. Retrieved July 22, 2012. People who live in or come from Kansas are called Kansans. Kansans are sometimes referred to as Jayhawkers. Kansans have also been referred to as Grasshoppers and Sunflowers, names derived from some of the state nicknames described above.
  29. ^ Corncracker, - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary
  30. ^ The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2007. New York: World Almanac Books. 2006. ISBN 978-0-88687-995-2.
  31. ^ "Mainiac". Time. June 20, 1938. (term used in reference to Maine author Kenneth Roberts)
  32. ^ "Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 2, Section 35: Designation of citizens of commonwealth". The Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved February 29, 2008.: "Bay Staters shall be the official designation of citizens of the commonwealth."
  33. ^ Safire, William (June 6, 1982). "On Language". The New York Times.
  34. ^ Collections. Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society. 1877. p. 435.
  35. ^ Jones, Thomas (1879). DeLancey, Edward Floyd (ed.). History of New York During the Revolutionary War. New York: New York Historical Society. p. 465.
  36. ^ Nagy, Naomi; Irwin, Patricia (July 2010). "Boston (r): Neighbo(r)s nea(r) and fa(r)". Language Variation and Change. 22 (2): 270. doi:10.1017/S0954394510000062.
  37. ^ "'Masshole' among newest words added to Oxford English Dictionary". masslive.com. June 25, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
  38. ^ "The State of Michigan - An Introduction to the Great Lakes State from". Netstate.Com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  39. ^ Marckwardt, Albert H. (1952). "Wolverine and Michigander". Michigan Alumnus Quarterly Review. LVIII: 203–8.
  40. ^ Sperber, Hans (February 1954). "Words and Phrases in American Politics: Michigander". American Speech. 29 (1): 21–7. doi:10.2307/453592. JSTOR 453592.
  41. ^ Jump up to: a b "MDE - Michigan Glossary". Michigan.gov. January 30, 2008. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  42. ^ "Football Players to Eat Corn, Not Bugs". History Nebraska. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  43. ^ "The State of New Hampshire - An Introduction to the Granite State from". Netstate.Com. April 13, 2009. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  44. ^ Neomexicano definition by Royal Spanish Academy (Real Academia Española)
  45. ^ Merriam-Webster Dictionary
  46. ^ New York Knicks, What's a Knickerbocker?
  47. ^ Powell, William S. (March 1982). "What's in a Name?: Why We're All Called Tar Heels". Tar Heel. Tar Heel Magazine, Inc. OCLC 005457348. Retrieved July 17, 2009.
  48. ^ "The State of Ohio - An Introduction to the Buckeye State". Netstate.Com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  49. ^ "Ohian". Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online.
  50. ^ Stewart, Roy P. (December 20, 1968). "Postal Card Proves Sooners Were 'Okies' Way Back In 1907". The Daily Oklahoman. p. 9, col. 2. Now comes Mrs. Agness Hooks of Thomas with a postal card mailed at Newcastle, Ind. in 1907, address to a Miss Agness Kirkbridge, with the salutation: 'Hello Okie — Will see you next Monday night.' Signed: Myrtle M. Pence. Mrs. Hooks says Agness Kirkbridge was an aunt of hers. The Kirkbridge family came to Oklahoma Territory in 1904 and settled south of Custer City.
  51. ^ "The State of Oklahoma - An Introduction to the Sooner State from". Netstate.Com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  52. ^ "History of". Luzerne County. Archived from the original on March 27, 2013. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  53. ^ "der Pennsylfaanier". Pennsylvania Dutch Dictionary. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  54. ^ "Commonwealth of Puerto Rico". Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  55. ^ "The Providence Journal | Rhode Island breaking news, sports, politics, business, entertainment, weather and traffic - providencejournal.com - Providence Journal". Projo.com. July 17, 2012. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  56. ^ "South Carolina - Origin of the Terms Sandlapper, Sand-lapper, and Sand Lapper".
  57. ^ "The State of Tennessee - An Introduction to the Volunteer State from". Netstate.Com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  58. ^ de la Teja, Jesus F. (1997). "The Colonization and Independence of Texas: A Tejano Perspective". In Rodriguez O., Jaime E.; Vincent, Kathryn (eds.). Myths, Misdeeds, and Misunderstandings: The Roots of Conflict in U.S.–Mexican Relations. Wilmington, DE: Scholarly Resources Inc. p. 79. ISBN 0-8420-2662-2.
  59. ^ "Do You Want to Be a Badger?". Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
  60. ^ Kapler, Joseph, Jr. (Spring 2002). On Wisconsin Icons: When You Say 'Wisconsin', What Do You Say?. Wisconsin Historical Society. pp. 18–31. Retrieved April 29, 2009.
  61. ^ Foamation: About Us. Foamation. Archived from the original on March 2, 2009. Retrieved April 29, 2009.
  62. ^ Partridge, Eric (2006). The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English: J-Z. Taylor & Francis. p. 1678. ISBN 9780415259385. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
  63. ^ "Chicago Daily Tribune". June 2, 1903. Archived from the original on March 12, 2017. Retrieved March 9, 2017.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

External links[]

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