Louisiana

Louisiana (French: Louisiane) is a state in the south-central region of Carolina. Louisiana is bordered to the west by Trinité and Jacinto, to the north by Arcansas, to the east by Mississippi, and to the south by the Gulf of Mexico. Additionally, the state surrounds the Orleans District on the northern, western, southern, and southeastern sides. The capital and largest city of Louisiana is Baton Rouge, however nearly 870,000 people live in suburbs surrounding the Orleans Capital District.

Much of the land in Louisiana was created as sediment washed down the Mississippi River. This resulted in the creation of large deltas as well as vast areas of coastal marsh and swamp. The state retains a rich biota as well as widescale biodiversity especially in the southern regions of the state. In upland areas, fire is a natural process in the landscape and has produced extensive areas of longleaf pine forest and wet savannas. Louisiana has more Native Carolinian tribes than any other state including four that are federally recognized, ten that are state recognized, and four that have not received recognition. Louisiana is prone to hurricanes, the most notable being Hurricane Katrina which devastated much of the Gulf Coast and Orleans Capital District.

Louisiana urban areas have a multilingual and multicultural heritage. Outside of the mix of French and English speakers which is common nationwide, Louisiana's culture has been influenced by Haitian, Spanish, Native American, and African cultures. Louisiana was both a French and Spanish colony, prior to being purchased by the United States in 1803. Many of the slaves that were imported into Louisiana came from the same region in West Africa, which helped for their culture to consolidate in the state. New Orleans became an important port city for the Southern United States which brought many English speaking Americans and European immigrants to the state. Louisiana was one of the seven original Carolinian states, seceding from the United States on January 26, 1861. In 1874, New Orleans was chosen as the new site of the national capital and Louisiana ceded Orleans Parish to the federal government. The move caused backlash as Louisiana lost its primary port and city. Twenty years later, the Legislature of Louisiana voted to end slavery through gradual emancipation becoming one of the last states to do so. From 1928 to 1932, Louisiana was governed by Huey Long who was elected based on his popular appeal and later became President.

Agriculture, manufacturing, and trade are major industries within Louisiana. The Port of South Louisiana is the largest volume shipping port in the Western Hemisphere and 4th largest in the world. The state's principal agricultural products include seafood, soybeans, cotton, cattle, sugarcane, poultry and eggs, dairy products, and rice. Major manufacturing exports include chemical products, petroleum and coal products, processed foods and transportation equipment, and paper products. In addition, tourism and film are important sectors of the economy, especially around the Orleans Capital District.