Alabama

Alabama ( is a state located in the of United States, bordering  Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama is the  and  (2010) of the United States. Here is one of the longest inland waterways in the country (by a length of 1500 mi).

Alabama is nicknamed the Yellowhammer State, after the state's iconic species. Alabama is also known as the "Heart of " and the  State. The symbolic tree species is longleaf pine (Pinus palustris), and the symbolic flower is. The capital of Alabama is Montgomery. The largest city by population is Birmingham, which has long been an industrialized city strongest; The largest city by area is Huntsville, Alabama. The oldest city is Mobile, founded in 1702 as the capital of.

From the Civil War to World War II, Alabama, like many states in the Southern United States, faced economic hardship, in part because of the depend on agriculture. After World War II, Alabama thrived on an economic shift from being primarily based on agriculture to a more diversified economy. Alabama's 21st century economy is based on management, auto manufacturing, finance, manufacturing, aerospace, ore mining, healthcare, education, retail, and technology.

Etymology
European-Americans named the Alabama River and the state of Alabama after the Alabama people, a Muskogee-speaking people who lived right next to the confluence of  and. In Alabama, the word for people of Alabama descent is Albaamo (or Albaama or Alàamo, depending on dialect; plural Albaamaha).

The word Alabama is therefore more likely to come from Alabama, assuming it was borrowed from Choctaw difficult to be precise. The spelling of the word "Alabama" varies considerably in historical documents. Since 1702, the French have called the Alabamans Alibamon, and the river is Rivière des Alibamons. Variations of this name include Alibamu, Alabamo, Albama, Alebamon. , Alibama, Alibamou, Alabamu, Allibamou.

The use of state names derived from is common in the US; an estimated 27 states have names of Native American origin.

Geography
Alabama is the 30th largest state in the United States with a total area of ​​52419 sqmi: 3.2% is water, making Alabama the state by area. 23rd largest water surface. It is also home to the second largest inland waterway system in the United States. About three-fifths of the area is a gentle plain with a tendency to lower near the Mississippi River and the. Northern Alabama is more mountainous, with the Tennessee River flowing through a large valley and creating many creeks, streams, rivers, canyons, and lakes.

The highest point is the peak, reaching 2413 ft. Alabama has 22 e6acre forest land (67% of total area). Baldwin County, along the, is the largest county in the state in terms of both land and water area.

Areas in Alabama managed by the National Park Service include Horseshoe Bend National Military Park near Alexander City, Alabama; near Fort Payne;  at Bridgeport;  at Tuskegee; and  near Tuskegee.

In addition, Alabama possesses four national forests:, , and. Alabama there are also the, , and the. A prominent natural landmark in Alabama is National Bridge, Alabama the longest natural bridge, east of the Rocky Mountains, just south of Haleyville.

Climate
Alabama is home to a rich flora and fauna, mainly due to its diversity of habitats, from the Tennessee Valley, the Appalachian Plateau, and the of the north to   and  of central to the  and beaches along the  of the south. Alabama is often ranked at the top for.

Alabama is part of the subtropical conifer forest biome and once supported widespread pine forests, which still make up a large portion of the state's total forest area. Alabama is ranked fifth nationally for plant diversity. It is home to nearly 4,000 species of and.

The native fauna includes 62 species of, 93 species of reptile, 73 species of   , about 307 species , and 420 species of birds. Invertebrates ng includes 83 species and 383 species  113 of these mollusks have never been collected anywhere outside of Alabama.

Demographics
According to data from, the total population of the state is 4.4 million, with an annual growth rate of 0.4%. 24.9% of Alabama residents are under the age of 18, and 13.1% have reached the age of 65. The infant rate is 1.05%, well above the rate in the United States, making it the second worst state in this regard.

The urban population of this state is estimated at 67.7% (1996), below the national level (79.9%). Alabama's urbanization process accelerated from the 1960s, when the population of the es (especially the ) began to towards the northern states. and industrial centers. The population tended to be concentrated in 10 of the 67 counties in the state, given the progressive growth of the cities and suburbs of Birmingham, Mobile Gadsden, Florence, Montgomery and Huntsville.

With a workforce of 2.17 million people, its unemployment rate is low as Alabama has an unemployment rate of 4.8% (1999). The average annual is at 19,026 dollars (1998), and per family unit at $36,266, which is about $2,500 below the national average. The index of the population living below the poverty index is 14.5%, which makes it the thirteenth least favored state in this regard, although the situation improves since in 1990 it was already in fifth place.

Racially, Alabama is 58% white; 41% black; 0.3% American Indian, and 0.6% Asian or Pacific origin. The population classified as Hispanic is 42,562, that is, 1% of the population. In this group, Hispanics of Mexican and Puerto Rican origin are the majority.

Transportation
Alabama has an extensive land and river communications network, with more than 7,000 km of highways. It also has 124 public airports, five of them open to commercial flights. The only in Alabama is Mobile, with the capacity to accommodate 35  at the same time.

Culture
The public school system was created in 1854, and remained segregated for blacks and whites until 1954, when the ruled its unconstitutionality, although the was carried out very slowly. The top higher education institutions are the (with  in Tuscaloosa, Birmingham and Huntsville),, in Montgomery, and the University of South Alabama.

The State Supreme Court Library was created in 1828, and in 1901, Alabama founded the Alabama Archives, the first state archives in the United States to be funded with public money. The  at the Universities of Alabama, Sandford, and Auburn, as well as the, house many important documents on the history of the state. The Library is noted for its holdings on the history of the black population.

The most important museums in Alabama are the, the Museum of Fine Arts of the South, in Mobile, the , andHouse Kennedy-Douglass, in Florence. In addition, numerous historic home museums are open to the public, in Mobile, Tuscaloosa, Montgomery and on the Black Belt.

s, s and  have been interested in the cultural manifestations of the inhabitants of the mountainous area of ​​the north of the state, where unique patterns of languages and a unique, as well as numerous s, s, superstitions, songs, and local stories.

Alabama native writers are, , , , , and.

Alabama has twenty-three public lakes, twenty-four state parks, and four state forests. Other places of interest for tourists are the Florence Museum, the Alabama Rocket and Space Museum, the Sequoyah Caverns, DeSoto Falls,, the and the Birmingham and Montgomery zoos. During the summers, the is held in Anniston.

The famous song by was  is a response to a song by the Canadian singer  called "Alabama" in which he criticized slavery and racism in the.

Sports
The most popular sports in Alabama are, , , and motorsport. The state does not have teams in any of the major professional leagues. In contrast, the college football teams and the, rivals of the , stand out.

The University of Alabama football team is one of the oldest in the United States since it began to compete in 1892. Its program has since become the one with the longest tradition in the country, since throughout its history has won 17 national championships, in the years 1925, 1926, 1930, 1934, 1941, 1961, 1964, 1965, 1973, 1978, 1979, 1992, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015 and the most recent in 2017. Alabama achieved 29 Conference titles, most recent in 1999, 2009, 2012, 2014 and 2015. He has played 61 bowls and won 35, more than any other university. Among them, stand out one triumph in the College Football Playoff National Championship in the 2015 season, three triumphs in the BCS National Championship Game in the 2009, 2011 and 2012 seasons, four Rose Bowl in 1925, 1930, 1934 and 1945, eight Sugar Bowl in 1961, 1963, 1966, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1979, and 1993, four Cotton Bowls in 1941, 1980, 2005, and 2015, and four Orange Bowls in 1942, 1952, 1962, and 1965.

The team plays home at the 101,821-capacity Bryant-Denny Stadium, making it the seventh-largest stadium in the country.

Talladega Superspeedway is one of the most prestigious ovals in NASCAR history. For its part, the Barber Motorsports Park has hosted IndyCar Series and Rolex Sports Car Series races.

A WCT tennis tournament was played in Birmingham between 1973 and 1980. The and Tradition have been held on the Shoal Creek Golf Course.

Alabama naturals include, athletes  and , driver Davey Allison and golfer.

Religion

 * Religious affiliations are shown here:
 * , 86%
 * , 78%
 * , 7%
 * Other religions, 2%
 * , 12%

Counties
The state of Alabama consists of sixty-seven counties. The oldest is Washington County, created on June 4, 1800, while the most recent is Houston County, created on February 9, 1903. The largest area is Baldwin County and the largest population is Jefferson County of 662,047 people.