The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States, normally included in the group of Southern states, but sometimes partially included, geographically and culturally, in the Midwest. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states established as a commonwealth. Originally a part of Virginia, in 1792 it became the 15th state to join the Union. Kentucky is the 37th largest state in terms of land area, and ranks 26th in population.
More than half of Kentucky's population and over 80% of the state's population growth are concentrated in what is referred to as the Golden Triangle, framed by Louisville, Lexington and the suburban Northern Kentucky region. The capital is Frankfort and the largest city is Louisville.
Kentucky is known as the "Bluegrass State," a nickname based on the fact that bluegrass is present in many of the lawns and pastures throughout the state. It is a land with diverse environments and abundant resources. It has expansive cave and karst systems, valuable coalfields, critical wetlands and lush forests. These features are some of the most prized treasures of Kentucky residents. Kentucky is also well known for thoroughbred horses, horse racing, local bourbon whisky distilleries, bluegrass music and college basketball.
Variously spelled "Cane-tuck-ee", "Cantucky", "Kain-tuck-ee", and "Kentuckee" before its modern spelling was accepted, the origin of Kentucky's name has never been definitively identified. George Rogers Clark, an early Kentucky pioneer, suggested that the name means "the river of blood", while The Encyclopedia Americana claims that it is a Cherokee word meaning "prairie" or "the barrens".
Kentucky borders states of both the Midwest and the Southeast. West Virginia and Virginia lie to the east; Tennessee to the south; Missouri to the west; and Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north. The Commonwealth's northern border is formed by the Ohio River, and the western border is formed by the Mississippi River.
Kentucky is the only U.S. state to have a non-contiguous part exist as an exclave surrounded by other states. Far western Kentucky includes a small part of land, Kentucky Bend, on the Mississippi River bordered by Missouri and accessible via Tennessee, created by the New Madrid Earthquake.
Kentucky can be divided into five primary regions: the Cumberland Plateau in the east, the north-central Bluegrass region, the south-central and western Pennyroyal Plateau, the Western Coal Fields and the far-west Jackson Purchase. The Bluegrass region is commonly divided into two regions, the Inner Bluegrass — the encircling 90 miles (145 km) around Lexington — and the Outer Bluegrass, the region that contains most of the Northern portion of the state, above the Knobs. Much of the outer Bluegrass is in the Eden Shale Hills area, made up of short, steep, and very narrow hills.
Kentucky has 120 counties, third in the U.S. behind Texas' 254 and Georgia's 159. The original motivation for having so many counties was to ensure that residents in the days of poor roads and horseback travel could make a round trip from their home to the county seat and back in a single day. Later, however, politics began to play a part, with citizens who disagreed with the present county government simply petitioning the state to create a new county.
Metropolitan areas by population
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