Gallery: State of Mississippi symbols
State flag
State map
Quiz: Mississippi, like other states, has official symbols that represent our cultural heritage and natural resources. Challenge yourself with the items below- see how many official state symbols you can name.
(Place your cursor over an Item for the answer.)
1. Answer Beverage
Milk
2. Answer Bird
Northern mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos)
3. Answer Butterfly
Spice Swallowtail (Papilio troilus linnaeus)
4. Answer Dance
Square Dance
5. Answer Fish
Largemouth (Black) Bass (Micropterus salmoides)
6. Answer Flower and tree
Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora)
7. Answer Fossil
Prehistoric Whale (Zygorhiza kochii)
8. Answer Fruit
Blueberry
9. Answer Gemstone
Mississippi Opal
10. Answer Insect
Honeybee (Apis mellifera)
11. Answer Land mammal 1
White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus)
12. Answer Land mammal 2
The Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)
13. Answer Language
English
14. Answer Motto
"By valor and arms" ("Virtute et armis")
15. Answer Nicknames
"The Hospitality State," "The Magnolia State"
16. Answer Poem
Paul Ott's "I Am Mississippi"
Access poem
17. Answer Reptile
American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)
18. Answer Shell
Oyster shell (Crassostrea virginica)
19. Answer Soil
Natchez Silt Loam
20. Answer Song
Originally, Houston Davis' "Go Mississippi." Replaced in 2022 by Steve Azar's "One Mississippi."
Access song
21. Answer Stone
Petrified wood
22. Answer Toy
Teddy Bear
23. Answer Water mammal
Bottlenosed Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)
24. Answer Waterfowl
Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)
25. Answer Wildflower
Tickseed Plant (Coreopsis)
Fun fact: Did you know that the term "Mississippi" was derived from the word "Messipi"? "Messipi" is the French version for either the Ojibwe or Algonquin name for the "Misi-ziibi River" meaning "great river."
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