Kentucky, the official name of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the eastern United States, one of the so-called states of the Southeast Center. The capital is Frankfort. The largest city is Louisville, other large cities are Lexington Fayette, Owensboro, Bowling Green, Hopkinsville.
The official mottos of the state are “Together we stand, divided we fall” (eng. United We Stand, Divided We Fall) and “Let us give thanks to the Lord” (lat. Deo Gratiam Habeamus). The official nickname is Bluegrass State.
The origin of the name
The origin of the name of the state of Kentucky is still debated among researchers, although everyone agrees that it came from the language of the indigenous people of America – the Indians.
According to one version, “Kentucky” means “dark and bloody land” or “dark and bloody hunting territory.” It is believed that this name was given to the lands of the modern state of Kentucky back in the 13th century, when the Iroquois Indians ousted other tribes from this territory as a result of bloody wars.
There is also an assumption that in the language of the Huron Indians (one of the Iroquois tribes), “Kentucky” means “land of tomorrow.”
The most popular version today about the origin of the name of the state of Kentucky is from the Iroquois word kenhtake, which means “meadow” or “prairie”.
Kentucky is one of four US states (along with Virginia, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania) that have the word “Commonwealth” in their official name (i.e. ”
The state of Kentucky is located in the South of the United States and belongs to the southeastern central states (“Upper South of the United States”). The territory of the state of Kentucky is 104,659 km2 (37th place among the US states).
Kentucky is bordered by seven states – Illinois to the northwest, Indiana and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the east, Virginia to the southeast, Tennessee to the south, and Missouri to the west.
Kentucky is the only US state bordered on three sides by rivers. The western border of Kentucky runs along the great Mississippi River, the northern – along the Ohio River, the eastern – along the Big Sandy and Tag Fork rivers.
Kentucky is usually divided into several regions: the Cumberland Plateau, the Outer and Inner Bluegrass, the Mississippi Plateau, the Western Coalfields, and the Jackson Purchase.
CLIMATE
Kentucky has a humid subtropical climate with distinct seasons. Winters are usually mild, cool, with precipitation in the form of rain and snow. The average January temperature in the state’s largest city, Louisville, ranges from -4°C to 5°C, in the second largest city, Lexington, from -5°C to 4°C.
Summers in Kentucky are typically hot and humid, with frequent fogs. The average temperature of the hottest month, July, is between 214°C and 31°C in Louisville and 19°C to 30°C in Lexington.
Set aside from “tornado alley” and the ocean coastline with its storms, Kentucky is nonetheless hit by the elements from time to time. Over the past decade, the most serious were the consequences of a series of tornadoes in February 2008, Hurricane Ike in September of that year,
ECONOMY
Kentucky’s main economic sectors are industry, mining, agriculture, and tourism.
Kentucky produces oil and natural gas, but coal remains the state’s “main” mineral. Coal mined in Kentucky, as well as fuel cells produced by the state’s only uranium enrichment plant for nuclear power plants located in the state, are believed to provide almost a quarter of the electricity in the United States.
Kentucky’s industry is mainly concentrated in the north of the state, along the Ohio River, where most of the Kentucky population lives. The auto industry is very well developed in the state, the state ranks fourth in the United States in terms of the number of assembled cars, providing more than 10% of the production of cars in the United States. Kentucky factories assemble Fords, Chevrolets, Cadillacs, and Toyotas.
In addition to cars, the state produces electric cars, clothing, food, and printing products.
TOURISM
Tourism is an important branch of the state’s economy. There is a joke in Kentucky: “Bourbon, horses and cigars are what attract tourists to the Bluegrass State” (although, of course, in addition to bourbon and horse racing, Kentucky is also interesting for its unique natural sites, such as, for example, Mammoth Cave), and also numerous historical sights)
.Kentucky is the birthplace of bourbon, a traditional American whiskey and one of the symbols of the United States. This drink even got its name from Bourbon County in Kentucky. Although bourbon is produced in several states of the United States, but the “real” American whiskey is bourbon from Kentucky (though residents of Tennessee may not agree with this :).
To popularize their drinks and attract tourists, the Kentucky Whiskey Association has created a special tourist program – the “Kentucky Bourbon Trail”, within which tourists are offered not only tours of bourbon-producing distilleries and stories about their history, but also tasting different varieties of whiskey.
Every year in early May, Louisville hosts the Kentucky Derby, the most popular and prestigious horse race in the United States. The Kentucky Derby is preceded by a two-week festival that attracts tens of thousands of tourists. The festival program includes the “Thunder over Louisville” fireworks, claiming to be the largest balloon and steamboat race in the USA, a parade and many other interesting events.
