Arizona Wallpapers

Arizona USA: State of Arizona (Flag of Arizona) (Seal of Arizona); State nickname: The Grand Canyon State, The Copper State; Other U.S. States; Capital Phoenix; Largest city Phoenix; Governor Janet Napolitano; Official languages None [br]Area 295,254 km� (6th) - Land 294,312 km� - Water 942 km� (0.32%) Population (2000) - Population 5,130,632 (20th) [br] - Density 17.43 /km� (36th) Admittance into Union - Date February 14, 1912 - Order 48th; Time zone Mountain: UTC-7 [br](Arizona doesn't observe DST except in the Navajo Nation); Latitude 31�20'N to 37�N; Longitude 109�3'W to 114�50'W [br]Width 500 km; Length 645 km; Elevation - Highest 3,851 m - Mean 1,250 m - Lowest 21 m; Abbreviations - USPS AZ [br] - ISO 3166-2 US-AZ (FIPS Code 04); Web site www.az.gov. The Grand Canyon State; State bird: Cactus Wren; State mammal: Ringtail Cat; State tree: Palo Verde; State flower: Saguaro Blossom; State gem: Turquoise; State fossil: Petrified wood; State neckwear: Bola Tie; State capital: Phoenix; State motto: Ditat Deus (God Enriches); State; nicknames: "The Grand Canyon State"; "The Copper State"; State songs: "Arizona March Song"; "Arizona"; Arizona was the 48th state admitted to the United States and is part of the Southwest United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, south and east of the Colorado River, bordering New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, California and Mexico. Its major cities are Phoenix, Tucson, Yuma and Flagstaff. Besides the Grand Canyon, a number of other National Forests, Parks, Monuments and Indian reservations are located in the state. Historians disagree about the origin of the name "Arizona" and its attachment to the region. Three possible derivations are: O'odham words "alĭ ṣon" ("small spring"), actually the name of a town which is called "Arizonac" in English. Arizonac is a small town about eight miles south of the United States-Mexican border. Historically, it may have been "alĭ son" or even "alĭ sona". The O'odham "l" is a lateral voiced alveolar fricative, which might sound to a Spanish or English speaker like an "r" sound. Later in the mid 18th century Spanish missionaries changed Father Eusebio Francisco Kino's maps of the area; they renamed the town Arizonac as Arizona. As the maps were republished and circulated in Europe, the name Arizona became attached to the whole northern part of New Spain. Spanish words "�rida zona" ("arid zone"). Aztec word "arizuma" ("silver bearing"). In 1736, a small silver-mining camp called "Real Arissona" by the Spanish was established near Arizonac. USS Arizona was named in honor of this state. History: Beyond its original native inhabitants, Marcos de Niza, a Franciscan, explored the area in 1539. Coronado's expedition entered the area in 1540-42 during its search for Cibola. Father Kino developed a chain of missions and taught the Indians Christianity in Pimer�a Alta (now southern Arizona and northern Sonora) in the 1690's and early 1700's. Spain founded fortified towns (presidios) at Tubac in 1752 and Tucson in 1775. All of what is now Arizona became part of Mexico's northwest frontier upon the Mexican assertion of independence from Spain in 1821. The United States took possession of most of Arizona at the end of the Mexican War in 1848. In 1853 the land below the Gila River was acquired from Mexico in the Gadsden Purchase. Arizona was administered as part of the Territory of New Mexico until it was organized into a separate territory on February 24, 1863. At the direction of Brigham Young, Mormons came from Utah in the mid to late 1800s to the Phoenix Valley (or "Valley of the Sun"), Mesa, Tempe, Prescott, Snowflake, Heber and many other Arizona towns to settle there. One of the first Latter-day Saint temples built in the Southwest was the Mesa temple, finished in 1927. Arizona was admitted into the Union on February 14, 1912. [br]Law and government; See: List of Congressmen. Arizona's legislature consists of a thirty-member Senate and a 60-member House of Representatives. The majority party is the Republican party, which has held power since 1950. The 2002 budget of the Arizona state legislature was $14.3 billion, while the executive budget was $13.8 billion. Besides the money spent on state agencies, money has also been allocated for tax cuts, pay raises for government employees, and health insurance for government employees. The executive budget has allocated money to previously passed legislation. Arizona state senators and representatives are elected for two year terms and there are no terms limits. However, no more than four terms may be served consecutively. Arizona's executive branch is headed by a governor elected for a four-year term. The governor may serve any number of terms, though no more than two in a row. The current Governor of Arizona is Janet Napolitano, a Democrat. She has been governor since 2003. See:List of Arizona Governors. The two Arizona US Senators are Senator John McCain (Republican) and Senator Jon Kyl (Republican). Arizona's representatives in the United States House of Representatives are Rick Renzi (R-1), Trent Franks (R-2), John Shadegg (R-3), Ed Pastor (D-4), J.D. Hayworth (R-5), Jeff Flake (R-6), Raul Grijalva (R-7), and Jim Kolbe (R-8). Arizona gained two seats in the House of Representatives due to redistricting based on Census 2000. In 1998, Arizona voters elected the "fabulous five" -- five women candidates elected to the state's top posts: Governor Jane Dee Hull (R); State Attorney General Janet Napolitano (D); State Treasurer Carol Springer (R) Secretary of State Betsey Bayless (R); Superintendent of Public Instruction Lisa Graham Keegan (R). Geography: State Topography Image: ArizonaSee: List of Arizona counties List of Arizona rivers List of Arizona lakes. Arizona state parks List of U.S. National Forests. Like other states of the Southwest, Arizona has an abundance of topographical characteristics in addition to its desert climes. More than half of the state features mountains and plateaus and contains the largest stand of Ponderosa pine in the United States. The Mogollon Rim, a 2000-foot escarpment, cuts across the central section of the state and marks the southwestern edge of the Colorado Plateau, where the state experienced its worst forest fire ever in 2002. Statistics: Largest City: Phoenix [br]Highest Point: Humphreys Peak - 12,633 ft. near Flagstaff; Lowest Point: Colorado River - 70 ft. Economy: Early in its history, Arizona's economy relied on the "five C's": copper, cotton, cattle, citrus and climate (i.e., tourism). At one point Arizona was the largest producer of cotton in the country. Copper is still found in abundance from many of its small mining towns. (See, for instance, Bisbee, Ajo or Globe.) While the state government itself is the state's largest employer, Wal-Mart is the state's largest private employer with 17,343 employees in 2003. Arizona lost much of its advantage as a high-technology industry leader between 1990 and 2001, according to a state Department of Commerce (http://www.commerce.state.az.us/) report. In 2001, 161,166 Arizonans were employed in the high-tech sector, accounting for about 8.3 percent of total private-sector employment of more than 1.9 million. High-tech payroll in 2001 was $2.2 billion, or 14.7 percent of the private-sector total. High-tech employment was led by software and computers, with 34,314; electronics components manufacturing, 30,358; aerospace manufacturing, 25,641; architectural and engineering services, 21,378; telecommunications, 21,224; and instruments manufacturing, 13,056. [br]From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

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