West Virginia Fun Facts
Information About West Virginia, West Virginia Geography,
and West Virginia Schools

West Virginia is abbreviated WV. Charleston is the capital and the largest city of West Virginia. Residents of West Virginia are referred to as "West Virginians."

The state song is "West Virginia My Home." The state of West Virginia was named for Queen Elizabeth I of England (she was known as the Virgin Queen). Sir Walter Raleigh may have suggested this name around 1584.

West Virginia's state motto is "Montani semper liberi," which means, "Mountaineers are always free."

The state bird of West Virginia is the Cardinal. The state flower is the Rhododendron and tree is the Sugar Maple.

West Virginia is ranked 37th in population and received its statehood June 20, 1863.

Bordering Virginia are Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. The Ohio River is West Virginia's major river and Tygart Lake is the major lake in West Virginia.

There were 304,052 K12 students in the West Virginia public schools in 1996. Out of those students 23,092 were first grade students. There were also 20,888 K12 public school teachers in the West Virginia public schools system. There were a total of 869 West Virginia public schools in 1996. (Source: IES National Center for Education Statistics)