State,
federal district,
or territory |
Nickname(s) |
 Alabama |
- Alabama the Beautiful
- Cotton Plantation State
- Cotton State
- Heart of Dixie (used on license plates)
- Lizard State
- Sweet Home Alabama
- Yellowhammer State
|
 Alaska |
- Land of the Midnight Sun
- Land of the Noonday Moon
- The Last Frontier (used on license plates)
- Seward's Folly (named after U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward)
- Seward's Ice Box, Icebergia, Polaria, Walrussia, and Johnson's Polar Bear Garden were satirical names coined by members of the U.S. Congress during debate over the Alaska Purchase
|
 American Samoa |
- Motu o Fiafiaga (a Samoan phrase; in English, it is "Islands of Paradise") (used on American Samoa license plates)
- Football Island[s]
|
 Arizona |
- Apache State
- Aztec State
- Baby State (because Arizona is the newest contiguous state in the Union)
- Copper State
- Grand Canyon State (used on license plates)
- Italy of America
- Sand Hill State
- Sunset State
- Sweetheart State (see below)
- Valentine State (Arizona gained statehood on February 14, 1912)
|
 Arkansas |
- Bear State
- Bowie State
- Hot Springs State
- Land of Opportunity (former official nickname; previously used on license plates)
- The Natural State (used on license plates)
- Razorback State
- Toothpick State
- Wonder State
|
 California |
- El Dorado State
- The Golden State (previously used on license plates)
|
 Colorado |
|
 Connecticut |
- Constitution State (official, used on license plates)
- Nutmeg State
- Provision State
- Blue Law State
- Freestone State
- Land of Steady Habits
|
 Delaware |
- Chemical Capital of the World (due to one time being the corporate headquarters for several international chemical companies.)
- Corporate Capital (due to the state's business-friendly incorporation laws)
- Diamond State (Thomas Jefferson is supposed to have referred to Delaware as being like a diamond – small in size but great in value)
- Blue Hen State or Blue Hen Chicken State
- The First State (Delaware was the first state to ratify the Constitution; used on license plates)
- Peach State (no longer used; see Georgia)
- Small Wonder
|
 District of Columbia |
- Nation's Capital
- DMV (nickname for the broader metropolitan area of the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia)
- Inside the Beltway
- Chocolate City
|
 Florida |
|
 Georgia |
- Peach State (used on license plates)
- Cracker State — Along with Florida, Georgia had been called "The Cracker State" in earlier times, perhaps a derogatory term that referred to immigrants, called "crackers", from the mountains of Virginia and North Carolina. See also Atlanta Crackers: Origin of the name
- Empire State of the South — Georgia is the largest Southern state in land area east of the Mississippi and was the leading industrial state of the Old South.
- Goober State — Refers to peanuts, the official state crop.
- State of Adventure
|
 Guam |
- Tano y Chamorro (Land of the Chamorro) (used on Guam license plates)
- Hub of the Pacific
- Gateway to Micronesia
|
 Hawaii |
- Aloha State (officially the "popular" name, used on license plates)
- Paradise of the Pacific
- Pineapple State
- Rainbow State
- Youngest State
- 808 State (colloquial, refers to the state's area code.)
|
 Idaho |
- Gem State
- Gem of the Mountains
- Little Ida
- Spud State
|
 Illinois |
- Land of Lincoln (used on license plates)
- Prairie State
- Corn State
- Garden of the West
|
 Indiana |
- Hoosier State (Used at various times on license plates)
(Hoosier is also the official demonym of a resident of Indiana)
- Crossroads of America (Also used at various times on license plates and used on highway welcome signs)
|
 Iowa |
|
 Kansas |
- America's Heartland (previously used on Licence Plates)
- Central State
- Dorothy's Home
- Free State
- Midway USA (previously used on Kansas Licence Plates)
- Sunflower State
- Wheat State (previously used on license plates)
|
 Kentucky |
- Bluegrass State (used on license plates)
- Corn-cracker State (reported in 1881) (corn-cracker – the nickname of a Kentucky man; pejorative)
- The Dark and Bloody Ground State (an allusion to battles between the Creek, Shawnee, Chickasaw, and Cherokee tribes)
- Hemp State
- Tobacco State
|
 Louisiana |
- Bayou State (previously used on license plates)
- Creole State
- Pelican State
- Sportsman's Paradise (used on license plates)
|
 Maine |
- Pine Tree State (co-official with Vacationland)
- Vacationland (used on license plates)
- Lumber State
|
 Maryland |
|
 Massachusetts |
- Baked Bean State
- Codfish State (formerly represented on license plates by a codfish)
- The Bay State
- Old Colony State
- Pilgrim State
- The Spirit of America (used on license plates)
- Taxachusetts (colloquial)
|
 Michigan |
- The Great Lakes State (previously used on license plates)
- Water Wonderland and Water-Winter Wonderland (previously used on license plates)
- The Wolverine State
- The Mitten State
|
 Minnesota |
|
 Mississippi |
- Hospitality State (previously used on license plates)
- Magnolia State
- The Birthplace of America's Music (being used on license plates)
- The Bayou State
|
 Missouri |
- Bullion State
- Show-Me State (used on license plates)
- Gateway to the West
- Lead State
- Ozark State
- Mother of the West
- Iron Mountain State
- Pennsylvania of the West
- Cave State
|
 Montana |
- Big Sky Country (previously used on license plates)
- The Last Best Place
- Treasure State (used on license plates)
- Land of the Shining Mountains
|
 Nebraska |
- Antelope State
- Beef State (previously used on license plates)
- Cornhusker State (previously used on license plates)
- Bug-eating State
- Blackwater State
- The Good Life (as seen on state border signs)
- Tree Planters State (formerly the official state nickname)
|
 Nevada |
- Battle Born State (refers to the fact that Nevada joined the Union during the Civil War)
- Sagebrush State
- Silver State (used on license plates)
- Casino State
|
 New Hampshire |
- Granite State
- The Live Free or Die State (official motto; "Live Free or Die" used on license plates)
- Mother of Rivers
- White Mountain State
- Switzerland of America
|
 New Jersey |
- Garbage State (pejorative)
- Garden State (used on license plates)
- The Crossroads of the Revolution (previously used on license plates)
- The Cornerstone State (used colloquially, especially with reference to Pennsylvania when it is called the Keystone State).
- The Suburban State
|
 New Mexico |
- Land of Enchantment (used on license plates)
- Land of Sunshine (predates "Land of Enchantment"; this earlier nickname highlighted the large percentage of sunshine received statewide)
|
 New York |
|
 North Carolina |
- First in Flight
- First in Freedom
- Old North State
- Tar Heel State
- Turpentine State
- Variety Vacationland
|
 North Dakota |
|
 Northern Mariana Islands |
- Håfa Adai (a Chamorro phrase; in English, it is "Hello") (used on Northern Mariana Islands license plates)
- America's Best Kept Secret
|
 Ohio |
|
 Oklahoma |
|
 Oregon |
- Beaver State
- Pacific Wonderland (previously used on license plates and available on an extra cost plate)
- Webfoot State
|
 Pennsylvania |
|
 Puerto Rico |
- Isla del Encanto ("Island of Enchantment") (used on license plates)
- Borinquen (name given by indigenous people, the Tainos)
|
 Rhode Island |
- Little Rhody
- Ocean State (used on license plates)
- Rogues Island
- Smallest State
|
 South Carolina |
|
 South Dakota |
- Artesian State
- Blizzard State
- Coyote State
- Land of Infinite Variety
- The Mount Rushmore State (officially adopted in 1980 in place of the former nickname of Coyote State)
- Sunshine State (no longer used; see Florida)
|
 Tennessee |
- Big Bend State (refers to the Tennessee River)
- Butternut State (refers to the tan color of the uniforms worn by Tennessee soldiers in the American Civil War)
- Hog and Hominy State
- The Mother of Southwestern Statesmen
- Volunteer State (used on license plates)
|
 Texas |
- Lone Star State (used on license plates)
|
 U.S. Virgin Islands |
- America's Caribbean (used on U.S. Virgin Islands license plates until 2015)
- American Paradise
|
 Utah |
|
 Vermont |
|
 Virginia |
|
 Washington |
- Evergreen State (used on license plates)
|
 West Virginia |
- Mountain State (previously used on license plates)
- Panhandle State
- The Switzerland of America
- Almost Heaven
|
 Wisconsin |
- Badger State
- America's Dairyland (also on license plates since a 1939 state law)
- The Mitten State
- The Copper State (historical)
- The Dairy State
|
 Wyoming |
- Cowboy State
- Equality State
- Forever West (on highway welcome signs)
|
