2022-04-17 17:19:03 +02:00
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---
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title: How to Remember U.S. State Abbreviations
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tags: post
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layout: post
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date: 2022-04-17
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permalink: remember-us-state-abbreviations/
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---
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I like maps and recently learnt the U.S. state abbreviations by heart for no particular reason.
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The abbreviations are highly irregular, both for logical reasons and historical reasons, which makes them especially
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hard to learn.
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I created a set of rules that may help you remember the abbreviations more easily.
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The rules are very straightforward, as my goal was to avoid creating rules that have multiple levels of exceptions.
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2022-11-20 23:13:24 +01:00
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<!-- excerpt -->
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2022-04-17 17:19:03 +02:00
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There are eight rules divided into three categories.
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Firstly, states that consist of two words have one very simple rule.
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Secondly, states that start with M, A, I, or N have a complicated rule each.
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Finally, the remaining states have a very simple rule depending on the first letter.
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1. **Two-word states**
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If the state consists of two words, the abbreviation is the **first letter of each word**.
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| State | Abbreviation |
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|------------------------|--------------|
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| New Hampshire | NH |
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| New Jersey | NJ |
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| New Mexico | NM |
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| New York | NY |
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| North Carolina | NC |
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| North Dakota | ND |
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| Rhode Island | RI |
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| South Carolina | SC |
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| South Dakota | SD |
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| West Virginia | WV |
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| _District of Columbia_ | _DC_ |
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| _Puerto Rico_ | _PR_ |
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2. **MAIN states**
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The following four rules describe states that start with M, A, I, or N.
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These are the most frequent first letters, and are the most complicated to remember.
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1. **M states**
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These are by far the hardest to remember, because there is no real structure to them.
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But we can sub-divide this into three categories:
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starting with MA, starting with MI, and starting with MO.
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Once you figure that out, you can use mnemonics to distinguish them from each other.
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| State | Abbreviation | Mnemonic |
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|---------------|--------------|-------------------------------------------------|
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| Maine | ME | All other options are taken |
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| Maryland | MD | Medical Doctors live in Maryland |
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| Massachusetts | MA | Easternmost MA state gets simplest abbreviation |
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| Michigan | MI | Easternmost MI state gets simplest abbreviation |
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| Minnesota | MN | All other options are taken |
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| Mississippi | MS | Many S's |
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| Missouri | MO | Miss Ouri |
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| Montana | MT | MounTain |
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2. **A states**
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We actually have two sets of two here: two states starting with AL, and two starting with AR.
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I've come up with a few mnemonics to help you distinguish them.
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| State | Abbreviation | Mnemonic |
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|---------------|--------------|--------------------------------------|
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| Alabama | AL | Al lives in Alabama |
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| Alaska | AK | Alaskans like Kalashnikovs? |
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| Arizona | AZ | Z is unique, so use it when you can! |
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| Arkansas | AR | Pirate says "Arr" |
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3. **I states**
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Use the **first two letters, unless it's Iowa**.
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As a mnemonic, try "I owes an A".
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| State | Abbreviation |
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|---------------|--------------|
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| Idaho | ID |
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| Illinois | IL |
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| Indiana | IN |
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| Iowa | IA |
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4. **N states**
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This one requires a bit of deduction.
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Both Nebraska and Nevada could use NE, but if we give NE to Nevada then Nebraska becomes NB, and no abbreviation
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ever uses the letter B.
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Therefore, we **must give NE to Nebraska**.
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| State | Abbreviation |
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|---------------|--------------|
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| Nebraska | NE |
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| Nevada | NV |
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3. **Simple rules**
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All remaining states are very regular, and we can determine the abbreviation by looking at the first letter.
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1. **Texassee**
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If we're talking about Tennessee or Texas, the abbreviation is the **first and third letter**.
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| State | Abbreviation |
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|-----------|--------------|
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| Tennessee | TN |
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| Texas | TX |
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2. **WOODRUFF states**
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If the name starts with a letter of WOODRUFF, the abbreviation is the **first two letters**.
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Remember that Rhode Island is already covered by the very first rule!
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| State | Abbreviation |
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|------------|--------------|
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| Delaware | DE |
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| Florida | FL |
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| Ohio | OH |
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| Oklahoma | OK |
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| Oregon | OR |
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| Utah | UT |
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| Washington | WA |
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| Wisconsin | WI |
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| Wyoming | WY |
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3. **HYPERCLEVER GEEK states**
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If the name starts with a letter of HYPERCLEVER GEEK, the abbreviation is the **first and last letter**.
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Alternatively, remember that these are the states that start with a consonant, but are not covered by MAIN,
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WOODRUFF, or Texassee.
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Either way, remember that Rhode Island is already covered by the very first rule.
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| State | Abbreviation |
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|--------------|--------------|
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| California | CA |
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| Colorado | CO |
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| Connecticut | CT |
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| Georgia | GA |
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| Hawaii | HI |
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| Kansas | KS |
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| Kentucky | KY |
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| Louisiana | LA |
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| Pennsylvania | PA |
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| Vermont | VT |
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| Virginia | VA |
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And that wraps up the list of rules!
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Good luck with learning!
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