Ohio

Ohio
State of Ohio
Nickname(s)
The Buckeye State;
Birthplace of Aviation; The Heart of It All
Motto
Anthem: "Beautiful Ohio"[2]
Map of the United States with Ohio highlighted
Map of the United States with Ohio highlighted
CountryUnited States
Admitted to the UnionMarch 1, 1803 (1803-03-01)[3] (17th,
declared retroactively on
August 7, 1953 (1953-08-07)[4])
Capital
(and largest city)
Columbus[5][6]
Largest metro and urban areasGreater Cleveland (combined and urban)
Cincinnati (metro)
Columbus (metro)
(see footnotes)[a]
Government
 • GovernorMike DeWine (R)
 • Lieutenant GovernorJon Husted (R)
LegislatureGeneral Assembly
 • Upper houseSenate
 • Lower houseHouse of Representatives
JudiciarySupreme Court of Ohio
U.S. senatorsSherrod Brown (D)
J. D. Vance (R)
U.S. House delegation9 Republicans
5 Democrats
1 vacant (list)
Area
 • Total44,825 sq mi (116,096 km2)
 • Land40,948 sq mi (106,156 km2)
 • Water3,877 sq mi (10,040 km2)  8.7%
 • Rank34th
Dimensions
 • Length220 mi (355 km)
 • Width220 mi (355 km)
Elevation
850 ft (260 m)
Highest elevation1,549 ft (472 m)
Lowest elevation455 ft (139 m)
Population
 (2021)
 • Total11,780,017[8]
 • Rank7th
 • Density282/sq mi (109/km2)
  • Rank10th
 • Median household income
$54,021[9]
 • Income rank
36th
Demonym(s)Ohioan; Buckeye[10] (colloq.)
Language
 • Official languageDe jure: None
De facto: English
 • Spoken languageEnglish 93.3%
Spanish 2.2%
Other 4.5%[11]
Time zoneUTC– 05:00 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC– 04:00 (EDT)
USPS abbreviation
ISO 3166 codeUS-OH
Traditional abbreviationO., Oh.
Latitude38°24′ N to 41°59′ N
Longitude80°31′ W to 84°49′ W
Websiteohio.gov
State symbols of Ohio
List of state symbols
SloganThe Heart Of It All
Living insignia
AmphibianSpotted salamander
BirdCardinal (1933)[2]
Flower
FruitPawpaw
InsectLadybug (1975)[2]
MammalWhite-tailed deer (1987)[2]
ReptileBlack racer snake (1995)[2]
TreeBuckeye (1953)[2]
Inanimate insignia
BeverageTomato juice (1965)[2]
FossilIsotelus maximus, a trilobite (1985)[2]
GemstoneOhio flint (1965)[2]
State route marker
Route marker
State quarter
Ohio quarter dollar coin
Released in 2002
Lists of United States state symbols

Ohio (/ˈh./ oh-HAI-oh)[13] is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ohio borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the west, and Michigan to the northwest. Of the 50 U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area. With a population of nearly 11.8 million, Ohio is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated state. Its capital and largest city is Columbus, with other large population centers including Cleveland, Cincinnati, Dayton, Akron, and Toledo. Ohio is nicknamed the "Buckeye State" after its Ohio buckeye trees, and Ohioans are also known as "Buckeyes".[10] Its flag is the only non-rectangular flag of all U.S. states.

Ohio derives its name from the Ohio River that forms its southern border, which, in turn, originated from the Seneca word ohiːyo', meaning "good river", "great river", or "large creek".[14][15] The state was home to several ancient indigenous civilizations, with humans present as early as 10,000 BCE. It arose from the lands west of the Appalachian Mountains that were contested by various native tribes and European colonists from the 17th century through the Northwest Indian Wars of the late 18th century. Ohio was partitioned from the Northwest Territory, the first frontier of the new United States, becoming the 17th state admitted to the Union on March 1, 1803, and the first under the Northwest Ordinance.[3][16] It was the first post-colonial free state admitted to the union and became one of the earliest and most influential industrial powerhouses during the 20th century. Although it has transitioned to a more information- and service-based economy in the 21st century, it remains an industrial state, ranking seventh in GDP as of 2019,[17] with the third-largest manufacturing sector and second-largest automobile production.[18]

Modeled on its federal counterpart, Ohio's government is composed of the executive branch, led by the governor; the legislative branch, consisting of the bicameral Ohio General Assembly; and the judicial branch, led by the state Supreme Court. Ohio occupies 15 seats in the United States House of Representatives, the seventh-largest delegation.[19] Its politics has been described as moderate;[20] the state is known for its status as both a swing state and a bellwether in national elections.[21] Seven presidents of the United States have come from Ohio, earning it the moniker "the Mother of Presidents".[22]

  1. ^ "Ohio's State Motto". Ohio Historical Society. July 1, 2005. Archived from the original on October 6, 2007. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Ohio's State Symbols". Ohio Governor's Residence and State Garden. Archived from the original on April 23, 2009. Retrieved March 26, 2009.
  3. ^ a b Mary Stockwell (2006). Ohio Adventure. Gibbs Smith. p. 88. ISBN 978-1-4236-2382-3. Archived from the original on March 31, 2015. Retrieved June 16, 2015.
  4. ^ "The Admission of Ohio as a State". United States House of Representatives. Archived from the original on November 10, 2019. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  5. ^ "Ohio Quick Facts". Ohio Historical Society. Archived from the original on February 8, 2009. Retrieved March 26, 2009.
  6. ^ "City of Columbus: Fun Facts". City of Columbus, Ohio. 2006. Archived from the original on May 1, 2009. Retrieved March 26, 2009.
  7. ^ a b "Elevations and Distances in the United States". United States Geological Survey. 2001. Archived from the original on July 22, 2012. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  8. ^ "Apportionment population and number of representatives by state: 2020 census" (PDF). US Census Bureau. April 26, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  9. ^ "Median Annual Household Income". The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  10. ^ a b "Why is Ohio known as the Buckeye State and why are Ohioans known as Buckeyes?" (PDF). November 1998. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 12, 2019. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  11. ^ "American FactFinder—Results". factfinder2.census.gov. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved October 17, 2012.
  12. ^ "Official USPS Abbreviations". United States Postal Service. 1998. Archived from the original on March 28, 2009. Retrieved March 26, 2009.
  13. ^ "Ohio". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Retrieved March 8, 2024.
  14. ^ "Quick Facts About the State of Ohio". Ohio History Central. Archived from the original on November 27, 2010. Retrieved July 2, 2010. From Iroquois word meaning 'great river'
  15. ^ "Native Ohio". American Indian Studies. Ohio State University. Archived from the original on February 2, 2007. Retrieved February 25, 2007. Ohio comes from the Seneca (Iroquoian) ohiiyo' 'good river'
  16. ^ William M. Davidson (1902). A History of the United States. Scott, Foresman and Company. p. 265. Retrieved June 16, 2015.
  17. ^ "U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP), by state 2019". Statista. Archived from the original on November 20, 2018. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
  18. ^ Girardi-Schachter, Taylor (September 3, 2019). "Top 10 States For Manufacturing 2019". Global Trade Magazine. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
  19. ^ Berg-Andersson, Richard E. (2000). "The Math Behind the 2000 Census Apportionment of Representatives". The Green Papers. Archived from the original on January 6, 2009. Retrieved March 25, 2009.
  20. ^ Mayer, Jane (August 6, 2022). "State Legislatures Are Torching Democracy". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
  21. ^ Pollard, Kelvin (2008). "Swing, Bellwether, and Red and Blue States". Population Reference Bureau. Archived from the original on December 7, 2008. Retrieved March 25, 2009.
  22. ^ "Ohio Presidents – Ohio Secretary of State". Ohiosos.gov. Archived from the original on January 21, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2020.


Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).