Contents
Illinois
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Flag Seal
Nickname(s): Land of Lincoln; The Prairie State
Motto(s): State sovereignty, national union
before statehood, known as
the Illinois Territory
Official language(s) English[1]
Spoken language(s) English (80.8%)
Spanish (10.9%)
Polish (1.6%)
Other (6.7%)[2]
Demonym Illinoisan
Capital Springfield
Largest city Chicago
Largest metro area Chicago metropolitan area
Area Ranked 25th in the US
- Total 57,918 sq mi
(140,998 km2)
- Width 210 miles (340 km)
- Length 395 miles (629 km)
- % water 4.0/ Negligible
- Latitude 36° 58′ N to 42° 30′ N
- Longitude 87° 30′ W to 91° 31′ W
Population Ranked 5th in the US
- Total 12,910,409 (2009 est.)[3]
- Density 223.4/sq mi (86.27/km2)
Ranked 12th in the US
- Median income $54,124[4] (17)
Elevation
- Highest point Charles Mound[5]
1,235 ft (377 m)
- Mean 600 ft (182 m)
- Lowest point Mississippi River[5]
279 ft (85 m)
Admission to Union December 3, 1818 (21st)
Governor Pat Quinn (D)
Lieutenant Governor vacant
U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D)
Roland Burris (D)
U.S. House delegation 12 Democrats, 7 Republicans (list)
Time zone Central: UTC-6/-5
Abbreviations IL, Ill., US-IL
Website http://www.illinois.gov
The Flag of Illinois.
The Seal of Illinois.
Animate insignia
Amphibian Eastern Tiger Salamander
Bird(s) Northern Cardinal
Butterfly Monarch Butterfly
Fish Bluegill
Flower(s) Violet
Grass Big Bluestem
Mammal(s) White-tailed deer
Reptile Painted Turtle
Tree White oak
Inanimate insignia
Dance Square dance
Food Gold Rush Apple • Popcorn
Fossil Tully Monster
Mineral Fluorite
Slogan(s) "Land of Lincoln"
Soil Drummer silty clay loam
Song(s) "Illinois"
Route marker(s)
State Quarter
Released in 2003
Lists of United States state insignia
Illinois 
i /ˌɪlɪˈnɔɪ/ IL-i-NOY, the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation.[6] With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and western Illinois, and natural resources like coal, timber, and petroleum in the south, Illinois has a broad economic base. Illinois is an important transportation hub; the Port of Chicago connects the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River via the Illinois River. Illinois is often viewed as a microcosm of the United States; an Associated Press analysis of 21 demographic factors found Illinois the "most average state", while Peoria has long been a proverbial social and cultural bellwether.[6]
With a population near 40,000 between 1300 and 1400 AD, the Mississippian-culture city of Cahokia, in what is now southern Illinois, was the largest city within the future United States until after 1790, when it was surpassed by New York City. Gradually Cahokia and the area were abandoned, and at the time of the American Revolution, only about 2,000 Native American hunters and a small number of French villagers inhabited the Illinois area.[7] United States migrant settlers began arriving from Kentucky in the 1810s; Illinois achieved statehood in 1818. The future metropolis of Chicago was founded in the 1830s on the banks of the Chicago River, one of the few natural harbors on southern Lake Michigan.[8] Railroads and John Deere's invention of the self-scouring steel plow made central Illinois' rich prairie into some of the world's most productive and valuable farmlands, attracting immigrant farmers from Germany and Sweden.
By 1900, the growth of industrial jobs in the northern cities and coal mining in the central and southern areas attracted immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe. Its manufacturing made the state a major arsenal in both World wars. The Great Migration of African Americans from the rural South to Chicago formed a large and important community that created the city's famous jazz and blues cultures.
Approximately 74% of the population of Illinois resides in the northeastern corner of the state, primarily within the city of Chicago and the surrounding area. Three U.S. Presidents have been elected while they were living in Illinois — Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, and Barack Obama. Ronald Reagan was born in Tampico, grew up in Dixon, and attended college at Eureka. Lincoln is interred at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield.
Etymology
"Illinois" is the modern spelling for the early French missionary/explorers' name for the Illinois people, a name that was spelled endless ways in the early records. One very highly regarded reference book gives this very concise and widely accepted summary of the expressions in question: "Illinois (Ilinwek, from ilini 'man', iw 'is', ek plural termination, changed by the French to ois)". The book lists dozens of spellings for "Illinois" and "Illiniwek" before 1800. Among the earliest are "Alimouek", "Alini8ek", (The French alphabet had no 'w' so '8' was often used for that sound.) "Eriniouai", "Eriniwek", "Ilinioüetz", "Ilinioüek", and "Ilinois".[9]