Illinois comes from the Native American word "Illini".  The Illini were a Native American tribe that lived in the area that is now Illinois.  Illinois is the French spelling of the word "Illini" which means man.  "Land of Lincoln" is what many people call Illinois because Lincoln lived there, and it has the monument where he was buried.  Springfield has many historic sites honoring Abe Lincoln.  The other nickname for Illinois is Prairie State.  It is called that because most of the land is flat in Illinois.

    The state capital of Illinois is Springfield.  The largest city is Chicago with 11,846,544 people census of 1996.  Illinois became the 21st state on December 3, 1818.

    Illinois's natural resources are coal, oil, clay, sand, and gravel.  Illinois's manufactured goods are electronics, foods, and farm machinery.  Illinois' crops are soybeans, corns,  apples, and wheat.

    The agricultural products of Illinois are wheat, cattle, dairy products, hogs, soy beans, and corn.  The states bordering Illinois are Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Kentucky, Missouri, and Wisconsin.

    The highest point in Illinois is Charles Mound.  It is 1,235 feet, it ranks 45th.  The largest cities in Illinois Springfield, Chicago, Rockford, Aurora, Naperville, Peoria, Cicero, Waukegan, Elgin, and Joliet.  The lowest point in Illinois is the Mississippi River.  It is at 279 feet, 33rd.  The motto for Illinois is State Sovereignty, and National Union.  There are a couple of nicknames for Illinois.  They are the Prairie State, and Land of Lincoln.
 
 

Illinois made the cardinal their state bird in 1933.  Illinois is one of seven states to choose the cardinal as their state bird. Male cardinals are some of the most beautiful of the North American song birds.  The red feathers, black "mustache", and crest make the cardinal unmistakable.  Both the male and the female sing as nesting time comes.

    The White Oak was made the state tree in 1973.  For many years Illinois regarded all oak trees as their state tree, but they finally settled on the White Oak.
 
 

    The native violet is the state flower of Illinois.  It grows in the moist forests in Illinois.  Some nicknames for this plant are sister violet, and the blue violet.  Illinois has many types of blue violets which bloom almost everywhere.