Politics of Alaska

Politics Of Alaska

Coordinates: 64°N 150°W / 64°N 150°W / 64; -150

State of Alaska
Flag Seal
Nickname(s): The Last Frontier
Motto(s): North to the Future
Official language(s) None
Spoken language(s) English 89.7%
Native (Eskimo–Aleut and Na-Dene languages) 5.2%
Spanish 2.9%
Demonym Alaskan
Capital Juneau
Largest city Anchorage
Area Ranked 1st in the U.S.
- Total 663,268 sq mi
(1,717,854 km2)
- Width 2,261 miles (3,639 km)
- Length 1,420 miles (2,285 km)
- % water 13.77
- Latitude 51°20'N to 71°50'N
- Longitude 130°W to 172°E
Population Ranked 47th in the U.S.
- Total 731,449 (2012 est)
- Density 1.26/sq mi (0.49/km2)
Ranked 50th in the U.S.
- Median household income US$64,333 (4th)
Elevation
- Highest point Mount McKinley (Denali)
20,320 ft (6194 m)
- Mean 1900 ft (580 m)
- Lowest point Ocean
sea level
Before statehood Alaska Territory
Admission to Union January 3, 1959 (49th)
Governor Sean Parnell (R)
Lieutenant Governor Mead Treadwell (R)
Legislature Alaska Legislature
- Upper house Senate
- Lower house House of Representatives
U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R)
Mark Begich (D)
U.S. House delegation Don Young (R) (at-large) (list)
Time zones
- east of 169° 30' Alaska: UTC-9/-8
- west of 169° 30' Aleutian: UTC-10/-9
Abbreviations AK US-AK
Website www.alaska.gov

Alaska (i/əˈlæskə/) is a state in the United States, situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with the international boundary with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait. Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area, the 4th least populous and the least densely populated of the 50 United States. Approximately half of Alaska's 731,449 residents live within the Anchorage metropolitan area. Alaska's economy is dominated by the oil, natural gas, and fishing industries; it has these resources in abundance.

Alaska was purchased from Russia on March 30, 1867, for $7.2 million ($118 million adjusted for inflation) at approximately two cents per acre ($4.74/km²). The land went through several administrative changes before becoming an organized (or incorporated) territory on May 11, 1912, and the 49th state of the U.S. on January 3, 1959.

The name "Alaska" (Аляска) was already introduced in the Russian colonial period, when it was used only for the peninsula and is derived from the Aleut alaxsxaq, meaning "the mainland" or, more literally, "the object towards which the action of the sea is directed". It is also known as Alyeska, the "great land", an Aleut word derived from the same root.

Read more about Politics Of Alaska:  Geography, Demographics, Economy, Cities, Towns and Boroughs, Education, Public Health and Public Safety, Culture, State Symbols, Alaska Heritage Resources Survey, See Also

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