2. Mississippi, constituent state of the United States
of America. Its name derives from a Native
American word meaning “great waters” or
“father of waters.” Mississippi became the 20th
state of the union in 1817. Jackson is the state
capital.
3. Mississippi is smaller than most of the U.S. states and
is bounded on the north by Tennessee, on the east
by Alabama, on the south by Louisiana and the Gulf
of Mexico, and on the west by Louisiana and
Arkansas. Mississippi is naturally well suited to
agriculture; its soil is rich and deep, and its
landscape is laced with many rivers. Until the mid-
20th century the dominance of a rural, unhurried
lifestyle generally worked to the state’s advantage.
This way of life was manifest in part in a culture of
gentility, the legacy of which is still evident in the
many historic mansions located in such old towns as
Columbus, Biloxi, Natchez, Vicksburg, and Holly
Springs.
4. With increasing urbanization and industrialization, however,
the leisurely approach to life in many ways became a
hindrance to Mississippi’s economic and social
development. For decades an unusually large dependent
population, a predominantly agricultural economy, and a
prevailing resistance to change have kept Mississippi’s
per capita income low and created an inadequate
standard of living for many families. Moreover, the state
has been the site of intense interracial conflict, sitting
centre stage during the civil rights movement of the mid-
20th century. In the early 21st century roughly half of all
Mississippians still lived in rural areas—though not
necessarily on farms—and the state continued to rank
low in many economic indexes. Area 47,692 square
miles (123,522 square km). Population (2010) 2,967,297;
(2012 est.) 2,984,926.
5. LandLand
Mississippi is a low-lying state, its highest point
reaching only about 800 feet (240 metres) above sea
level. Except for its hilly northeast corner, Mississippi
lies entirely within the eastern gulf segment of the
broader Coastal Plain physiographic region. It has
generally low topographic elevations and extensive
tracts of marshy land. Its major soil areas
encompass hills, plains, prairies, river lowlands, and
pine woods.
6. Relief and soils
In the northwestern part of the state, the great fertile crescent
called the Delta is the old floodplain of the Yazoo and
Mississippi rivers, comprising some 6,250 square miles
(16,200 square km) of black alluvial soil several feet deep.
Once subject to disastrous floods, the land is now protected
by levee and reservoir systems.
On the eastern rim of the Delta are the loess bluffs, marking the
beginning of the highlands. On the Delta’s western rim a
highly fertile band of lowlands parallels the Mississippi River
from Vicksburg, south to the Louisiana border. A brown loam
belt of varying width extends from Tennessee to Louisiana.
Most of southern Mississippi lies in the gently rolling Piney
Woods. The coastal area, sometimes called the Coastal
Meadows, or Terrace, borders the Gulf of Mexico. This
region’s soil is sandy and not well suited to crops.....
7. DrainageDrainage
Mississippi has many rivers, creeks, bayous, and other
natural drainage networks. The state’s principal river
systems include the Tombigbee, now joined with the
Tennessee to form the Tennessee-Tombigbee
Waterway, which links the Tennessee River with the
Gulf of Mexico; the Pascagoula in the southeast; the
Pearl in the south-central section; and the Mississippi
and its tributaries, notably the Yazoo and the Big
Black, in the west. These streams all empty into the
gulf, either directly or through the Mississippi and
other rivers.
8. ClimateClimate
Mississippi’s location endows it with a favourable climate for
agriculture. The growing season is long (virtually year-round
on the coast), precipitation is abundant, and extreme
temperatures are unusual. Summers are warm, with daily
temperatures typically rising from the upper 60s F (about 20
°C) into the low 90s F (about 33 °C) in July and August.
Autumn’s bright, crisp days have the least precipitation and
are considered by many to be the most agreeable of the year.
Daily temperatures in January generally range from the low
30s F (about 0 °C) to the mid-50s F (about 12 °C). Snowfall is
rare but does occur. The state’s annual precipitation averages
more than 50 inches (1,270 mm), varying by region. The
coastal area is subject to tropical cyclones (hurricanes) from
June to October; in 2005 the cities of Gulfport and Biloxi were
heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina, one of the strongest
Atlantic storms on record.
9. Population compositionPopulation composition
People of white European ancestry—primarily British, Irish, or
northern European—account for about three-fifths of
Mississippi’s residents, while African Americans make up
nearly all of the remainder. Hispanics, Asians, and Native
Americans each constitute just a tiny fraction of the
population, with Hispanics being the largest of the three
groups. The vast majority of Mississippians were born in-
state, although in the late 20th century there was a wave of
immigrants, mainly from Vietnam and India.
10. Until about 1940, people of African descent constituted the
majority of Mississippi’s population. By the late 20th century,
however, they had become a minority (albeit a large one),
owing primarily to a very high rate of out-migration.
Nevertheless, in the early 21st century Mississippi had a
greater percentage of African American residents than did
any other state. The small Chinese population, concentrated
mostly in the Delta, is descended from farm labourers brought
there from California in the 1870s. The Chinese did not adjust
well to the Mississippi plantation system, however, and most
of them became small merchants. Many of the Southeast
Asian immigrants of the late 20th century were attracted by
the state’s coastal fishing industry. Much of the Native
American population lives in the central section of the state.
The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, the state’s only
federally recognized Native American group, has reservation
lands in the vicinity of Jackson.......
