Lower Peninsula of Michigan

The Lower Peninsula of Michigan is the southern of the two major landmasses of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is surrounded by water on all sides except its southern border, which it shares with Ohio and Indiana. Geographically, the Lower Peninsula has a recognizable shape that many people associate with a mitten, with the mid-eastern region identified as The Thumb. This has led to several folkloric creation myths for the area, one being that it is a hand print of Paul Bunyan, a giant lumberjack and favorite folk character in Michigan. This has also led to the distinctive phenomenon of Lower Peninsula residents holding out their hand and pointing to a spot on it when asked where they are from. The peninsula is sometimes divided into the Northern Lower Peninsula and Southern Lower Peninsula.

The Lower Peninsula has been nicknamed "The Mitten", "Below the Bridge", and occasionally "The L.P." (in parallel with "the U.P." for the Upper Peninsula). Residents of the Lower Peninsula are jokingly referred to as "Trolls" by residents of the Upper Peninsula, because they live "under the bridge".