States by their nicknames and symbols
Choose one answer below.
The correct answer is Delaware.
Delaware earned the nickname by becoming the first state to ratify the United States Constitution on December 7, 1787. The legislature made the familiar nickname official in 2002 after a request from a first-grade class. The title refers to ratification, rather than the earliest European settlement.
A state symbol can be a familiar bird at a feeder, a flower beside a highway, or a rock whose colorful interior is hidden beneath an ordinary exterior. Official choices also reveal how states describe their history and natural surroundings. The dates of adoption are sometimes surprisingly recent. A symbol can be widely recognized for years before a legislature formally approves it, and schoolchildren have helped bring some proposals to lawmakers. Scientific names and legal categories matter. A state bird may share its title with the same species elsewhere, while a designation for one kind of animal need not replace a separate designation for another. State lists can distinguish trees, flowers, mammals, and minerals as well as historical nicknames. The legislation records a choice at a particular moment; conservation accounts describe how the living species fares in its habitat. Together, those records explain more than the emblem alone. Reading the designation alongside its category helps avoid confusing a broad title with a more specific official one.