North America: Plan your Journey

Illinois

Illinois constitutes the 21st state of the United States, located in the former Northwest Territory. Its name was given by the state's French explorers after the indigenous Illiniwek people, a consortium of Algonquin tribes that thrived in the area. The word Illiniwek means simply "the people." The capital of Illinois is Springfield, while its largest city is Chicago. The U.S. postal abbreviation for the state is IL. The USS Illinois was named in honor of this state. more...

Nickname: Prairie State
National name: Illinois
Area: 149,998 sq.km
Capital City: Springfield
Population: 12,713,634 (official estimate 2004)
Language: English
State bird: cardinal (1929)
State flower: violet (1908)
Secy. of State: Jesse White, D (to Jan. 2007)
Governor: Rod R. Blagojevich, D (to Jan. 2007)
Senators: Richard J. Durbin, D (to Jan. 2009); Barack Obama, D (to Jan. 2011)
Atty. General: Lisa Madigan, D (to Jan. 2007)

History of Illinois

Cahokia, the urban center of the pre-Columbian Mississippian culture, was located near present-day Collinsville, Illinois. That civilization vanished circa 1400–1500 for unknown reasons. The next major power in the region was the Illiniwek Confederation, a political alliance among several tribes. The Illiniwek gave Illinois its name. The Illini suffered in the seventeenth century as Iroquois expansion forced them to compete with several tribes for land. The Illini were replaced in Illinois by the Potawatomi, Miami, Sauk, and other tribes. more...

Overview of Illinois's Economy

Number of counties: 102
Public use areas: 186 (275,000 ac.), incl. state parks, memorials, forests and conservation areas

Also Read: A Brief insight in The Economy of Illinois | Demographics of Illinois

Political System of Illinois

- Government of Illinois
- Politics in Illinois

Climate, Vegetation and Fauna

- Education: The Illinois State Board of Education or ISBE, autonomous of the governor and the state legislature...more
- Climate: Wide variation between hot summers and freezing winters, especially in the north of the State. more...
- Shopping: The main shopping areas in Chicago include State Street, North Michigan Avenue’s Magnificent Mile, Woodfield Mall and the quaint specialty stores in Old Town, Lincoln Avenue and New Town.
- Nightlife: Chicago is known for its prime rib steaks and deep pan Chicago pizza. more...

Facts for Travellers

Visa:United States entry requirements are the same in all states, with most foreign travelers requiring a visa. The US State Department issues all US visas. more...
Time Zone
: Central (GMT - 6).

Geography of Illinois

Illinois is in the north-central U.S. and borders on Lake Michigan. Surrounding states are Wisconsin to the north, Iowa and Missouri to the west, Kentucky to the south, and Indiana to the east. Illinois also borders Michigan, but only via a water boundary in Lake Michigan. Illinois has three major geographical divisions. The first is Chicagoland, including the city of Chicago, its suburbs, and the adjoining exurban area into which the metropolis is expanding. This region includes a few counties in Indiana and Wisconsin and stretches across much of northern Illinois toward the Iowa border, generally along Interstates 80 and 90. This region is cosmopolitan, densely populated, industrialized, and settled by a variety of ethnic groups. more...

Illinois Tourism Destinations

Chicago
Nicknamed the 'Windy City', Chicago is one of the world's giant trade, industry and transportation centers and the birthplace of the skyscraper. In contrast, its Lake Michigan shoreline is dotted with sandy beaches, hundreds of parks, harbors, zoos and vast expanses of forest reserve. It is one of the USA's largest cities and the hub of the Midwest, with a population of nearly 3 million (8.5 million in the metropolitan area) and more than 69,000 hotel rooms in the downtown and metropolitan areas alone. The inhabitants in the 'Chicagoland' area speak more than 50 languages, making it the most ethnically diverse city in the USA. It is also known for its distinct neighborhoods, each with its own unique character. For visitors to the USA, it is the gateway to the farmlands and cities of Illinois and Indiana, and the recreation areas of Wisconsin. the best view of the famous Chicago skyline. more...

Elsewhere
Springfield is the capital of Illinois. It was here that Abraham Lincoln married and began his legal career. Attractions include Lincoln's Tomb (a State Historical Site) and the Illinois State Museum. New Salem State Park, nearby, is a recreation of the pioneer community as it was in Lincoln's day. more...

Sport

The Chicago Bears play American football from September to December at Soldier Field. The baseball teams, Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox, play during the summer months at Wrigley Field and Comiskey Park. The Chicago Bulls take to the basketball court from January to April at the Chicago Stadium, which is also home to the ice hockey team, the Chicago Blackhawks. Illinois has the highest number of public and championship golf courses in the USA; there are 700 of these, 200 of which can be found in the immediate Chicagoland area.

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Climate of United States of America Mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the Great Plains west of the Mississippi River, mediterranean in coastal California, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook [...]
Washington, D.C. is the capital city of the United States of America. “D.C.” stands for the “District of Columbia”, the federal district containing the city of Washington. The city is named after George Washington, military leader of the American Revolution and the first President of the United States. The District of Columbia and the city [...]
Sports in the United States of America The major team sports in America are home-grown. American football, baseball (often called “The National Pastime”), auto racing (especially NASCAR), and basketball, are the top four main sports in America. Ice hockey is also popular in the U.S., especially in Minnesota and the Northeast. Soccer does not have a [...]
Culture of the United States America U.S. popular culture has a significant influence on the rest of the world, especially the Western world. U.S. music is heard all over the world, and it is the sire of such forms as blues and jazz and had a primary hand in the shaping of modern rock and roll [...]
Languages in the United States of America The United States does not have an official language at the federal level. English is the language generally used for official pronouncements, though there is legislation that assists non-English speakers, such as the Voting Rights Language Assistance Act of 1992, which prohibits covered States and political subdivisions from [...]
Education in the United States of America Education in the United States is provided mainly by the government, with control and funding coming from all three levels: federal, state, and local. Curricula, funding, teaching, and other policies are set through locally elected school boards with jurisdiction over school districts. School districts can be (but are not [...]
Religion in the United States Polls estimate that just under 80 percent of Americans are Christians of various denominations, a decline from 90 percent as recently as 1990. The other 20 percent comprises other religions such as Judaism, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, and other faiths and those without a religion. The United States is noteworthy among developed [...]
Demographics in USA Population The mean center of the U.S. population continues to drift farther west and south. The fastest growing region is the West followed by the South. According to Census 2000, the states that saw the greatest increases from 1990 were: Nevada (66.3%), Arizona (40%), Colorado (30.6%), Utah (29.6%), Idaho (28.5%), Georgia (26.4%), Florida (23.5%), [...]
Transportation in the United States Because the United States is a relatively young nation, much of the development of U.S. cities has taken place since the invention of the automobile. To link its vast territory, the United States built a network of high-capacity, high-speed highways, of which the most important element is the Interstate Highway system. [...]
Economy of the United States The United States has the largest single-country economy in the world, with a per-capita annual gross domestic product of USD 41,747 (as of Q2 2005 [1]). In this market-oriented economy, private individuals and business firms make most of the decisions, and the federal and state governments buy needed goods and services [...]

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North America Travel Guide