Known as the North Star State, Minnesota is the northern-most state of the United States of America. Be it the rural countryside or the urban landscapes, Minnesota is breathtakingly beautiful with lush greenery, thousands of lakes and historic sites.
Spread around an area of 86,943 sq.miles, Minnesota has North Dakota and South Dakota on its West, Iowa on its South, and Wisconsin in the East. It is bordered by Canada on the North. This American state has 87 counties.
‘Minnesota’ means sky-tinted or cloudy water. The name originates from the language of Sioux Indians, in which 'minni' means water and 'sotah' means sky-tinted or cloudy.
Minnesota joined the United States of America on May 11’ 1858 and was the 32nd state to join the union.
Minnesota is known as "The Land of 10,000 Lakes", and the state is home to more than 15,000 lakes.
Minnesota has more than 69,200 miles of rivers and streams. The state has 90,000 miles of shoreline, which is more than Florida, California and Hawaii put together.
With so much of waterways in the state, it is not surprising that Minnesota has the most number of recreational boats in America. The state has one boat for every 6 people.
Minnesota has the largest mall in the USA. The Mall of America is the largest mall in the country as per total floor area. Measuring 9.5 million square feet, it is the size of 78 football fields.
Apart from 520 retail stores that sell everything from fashion to tech, Mall of America is also home to a large indoor theme park.
Minnesota has made several crucial and remarkable contributions in the field of medicine. Apart from being home to Mayo Clinic, the first bone marrow transplant and open heart surgery in the US was conducted in the University of Minnesota.
Minnesota has the largest number of state parks in the country. Spread over 200 thousand hectares, the state has more than 75 state parks and recreation areas, which include forests, grasslands, lakes, rivers, marshes, etc.
Some of the most popular state parks are Itasca, Gooseberry Falls, Split Rock Lighthouse, Fort Snelling, Tettegouche, etc. The state parks of Minnesota are perfect for sailing, camping, boating, swimming, fishing and walking.
Minnesota is home to the twin cities: Minneapolis and Saint Paul. While Saint Paul is the capital of the state, Minneapolis is its largest city filled with skyscrapers. Several Fortune 500 companies like Target, Best Buy, General Mills, etc. have their offices in The Twin Cities.
Minneapolis is the coldest major city in the USA, as the temperature goes to -23°C to -25°C during the winter months.
The city of Minneapolis is home to the largest urban sculpture garden in the USA, the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. Spread around 11 acres, this sculpture garden has more than 40 unique art installations.
Minnesota is known as the birthplace of several popular innovations, including Scotch tape, water skis, Wheaties cereal, Snickers, the stapler, roller blades, in-the-ear Hearing aid and the automatic pop-up toaster.
The Guthrie Theater is the largest regional playhouse in the United States of America.
Minnesota ranks No.1 in the USA for fitness. The percentage of residents exercising is the highest in this state.
Minnesota has the largest network of skywalks in the world. The Minneapolis Skywalk System covers a distance of 9.5 miles linking 80 blocks, making it possible for people to move throughout the city without stepping out in the open.