| State of Oklahoma | |
| Coordinates | 35°30’NB, 98°0’WL |
| General | |
| Surface | 181.196 km² (1,8% water) |
| Residents | 3.991.508 (21,3 inhabitants/km²) |
| Capital city | Oklahoma City |
| Politics | |
| Governor | Kevin Stitt (R) |
| Other | |
| Time zone | −6 / −7 |
| Joined | 16 november 1907 |
| Nickname | Sooner State |
| Website | ok.gov |
Oklahoma is one of the 50 states of the United States. The state is also referred to as the “Sooner State” after settlers who were able to settle sooner in the state to claim land. The default abbreviation is OK. The capital is Oklahoma City.
History
The area now called Oklahoma was originally settled by Native American tribes such as the Caddo, whose descendants still live today. [source?]
After that, the region was in the hands of the French for a long time . Spain dominated the area for several decades at the end of the 18th century. France eventually sold it to the United States in 1803 (see Louisiana Purchase).
In the 1830s- 40s, many Native Americans were transferred to the region from other parts of the country. The Choctaw Indians, one of the tribes that suffered this fate, gave Oklahoma its current name. In their language okla means something like “people” and homa “red”. Places like Tulsa, Tahlequah, and Muskogee were founded by Native Americans.
Some Indian tribes employed black slaves. During the American Civil War, certain tribes sided with the Confederacy, for which they were severely punished by the federal government afterwards.
In 1889 the government took most of the land given to them from the Indians. From April 22 of that year it could be taken into possession by settlers free of charge. Those who claimed land a little earlier were called Sooners. Oklahoma formally became the 46th state of the United States on November 16, 1907.
In the early 20th century, large-scale oil extraction began in the Tulsa area, attracting even more people to the area. During the Depression years, drought and land misuse led to the Dust Bowl. Fertile soil was blown away in great storms, forcing many farmers to flee the state. This was the subject of John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath and of Dorothea Lange ‘s photographs .
On April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh bombed a federal government building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people (the Oklahoma City Bombing).
Oklahoma is located in the part of the United States that has been nicknamed Tornado Alley because of the large number of tornadoes that occur here. On May 3, 1999, Oklahoma was hit by a series of tornadoes, one of which with wind speeds of up to 510 kilometers per hour is the heaviest ever recorded. This tornado reached the suburbs of Oklahoma City. 46 people lost their lives. Oklahoma City has a 345% greater chance of a tornado than the US average.
The death penalty is carried out in Oklahoma. In early 2014, Oklahoma was in the news because an execution went wrong and the death row inmate suffered unnecessary pain, only to die of a heart attack an hour after the injection.
Geography
According to JIBIN123.COM, the state of Oklahoma covers 181,196 km², of which 178,023 km² is land. It belongs to the Central time zone. Oklahoma is bordered to the north by the states of Kansas and Colorado, to the west by New Mexico, to the east by Missouri and Arkansas, and to the south by Texas.
The major rivers are the Red, which defines much of the Texas border, the Arkansas, and the South Canadian. Oklahoma has many larger and smaller lakes, such as Lake Texoma and Eufala Lake.
The southeast of the state is the most hilly, but the highest point is the summit of Black Mesa (1516 m) in the Oklahoma Panhandle (the extreme northwest).
Demography and Economics
Oklahoma had 3,523,553 inhabitants (19.40 per km²), of which about 68% of the population lives in urban areas. The largest cities are the capital Oklahoma City and Tulsa.
The gross product of the state in 2001 was $94 billion.
Administrative division
According to COUNTRYAAH, Oklahoma is divided into 77 counties.
| County | Inhabitants 1 July, 2007 |
County Seat | Inhabitants 1 July, 2007 |
| Adair | 21.902 | Stilwell | 3450 |
| Alfalfa | 5593 | Cherokee | 1437 |
| Atoka | 14.512 | Atoka | 3069 |
| Beaver | 5380 | Beaver | 1406 |
| Beckham | 19.700 | Sayre | 3193 |
| Blaine | 12.475 | Watonga | 5481 |
| Bryan | 39.563 | Durant | 16.161 |
| Caddo | 29.296 | Anadarko | 6337 |
| Canadian | 103.559 | El Reno | 16.286 |
| Carter | 47.582 | Ardmore | 24.625 |
| Cherokee | 45.393 | Tahlequah | 16.419 |
| Choctaw | 15.011 | Hugo | 5445 |
| Cimarron | 2664 | Boise City | 1239 |
| Cleveland | 236.452 | Norman | 106.707 |
| Coal | 5709 | Coalgate | 1873 |
| Comanche | 113.811 | Lawton | 91.568 |
| Cotton | 6299 | Walters | 2482 |
| Craig | 15.195 | Vinita | 6031 |
| Creek | 69.073 | Sapulpa | 20.908 |
| Custer | 26.111 | Arapaho | 727 |
| Delaware | 40.406 | Jay | 3011 |
| Dewey | 4338 | Taloga | 344 |
| Ellis | 3911 | Arnett | 492 |
| Garfield | 57.657 | Enid | 47.008 |
| Garvin | 27.141 | Pauls Valley | 6115 |
| Grady | 50.615 | Chickasha | 17.068 |
| Grant | 4497 | Medford | 1005 |
| Greer | 5810 | Mangum | 2713 |
| Harmon | 2837 | Hollis | 1956 |
| Harper | 3254 | Buffalo | 1078 |
| Haskell | 12.059 | Stigler | 2829 |
| Hughes | 13.680 | Holdenville | 5478 |
| Jackson | 25.778 | Altus | 19.329 |
| Jefferson | 6273 | Waurika | 1795 |
| Johnston | 10.402 | Tishomingo | 3210 |
| Kay | 45.638 | Newkirk | 2130 |
| Kingfisher | 14.320 | Kingfisher | 4499 |
| Kiowa | 9456 | Hobart | 3653 |
| Latimer | 10.508 | Wilburton | 2875 |
| Le Flore | 49.715 | Poteau | 8246 |
| Lincoln | 32.272 | Chandler | 2836 |
| Logan | 36.435 | Guthrie | 11.046 |
| Love | 9112 | Marietta | 2528 |
| Major | 7190 | Fairview | 2554 |
| Marshall | 14.830 | Madill | 3750 |
| Mayes | 39.627 | Pryor Creek | 9239 |
| McClain | 31.849 | Purcell | 6077 |
| McCurtain | 33.539 | Idabel | 6862 |
| McIntosh | 19.709 | Eufaula | 2758 |
| Murray | 12.695 | Sulphur | 4807 |
| Muskogee | 71.116 | Muskogee | 40.015 |
| Noble | 11.124 | Perry | 5042 |
| Nowata | 10.723 | Nowata | 3983 |
| Okfuskee | 11.248 | Okemah | 2934 |
| Oklahoma | 701.807 | Oklahoma City | 547.274 |
| Okmulgee | 39.300 | Okmulgee | 12.630 |
| Osage | 45.523 | Pawhuska | 3473 |
| Ottawa | 32.474 | Miami | 13.364 |
| Pawnee | 16.447 | Pawnee | 2176 |
| Payne | 79.931 | Stillwater | 46.976 |
| Pittsburg | 44.711 | McAlester | 18.232 |
| Pontotoc | 36.571 | Ada | 16.537 |
| Pottawatomie | 69.038 | Shawnee | 30.256 |
| Pushmataha | 11.666 | Antlers | 2484 |
| Roger Mills | 3308 | Cheyenne | 727 |
| Rogers | 83.105 | Claremore | 17.312 |
| Seminole | 24.179 | Wewoka | 3326 |
| Sequoyah | 41.024 | Sallisaw | 8740 |
| Stephens | 43.322 | Duncan | 22.531 |
| Texas | 20.032 | Guymon | 10.574 |
| Tillman | 8148 | Frederick | 3999 |
| Tulsa | 585.068 | Tulsa | 384.037 |
| Wagoner | 67.239 | Wagoner | 7982 |
| Washington | 49.888 | Bartlesville | 35.415 |
| Washita | 11.667 | New Cordell | 2926 |
| Woods | 8319 | Alva | 4738 |
| Woodward | 19.505 | Woodward | 12.206 |
Politics
The executive branch of the state is headed by a governor, who is directly elected by the voters in the state. The 2018 gubernatorial election was won by Republican Party Kevin Stitt. He took office as governor of Oklahoma in January 2019.
The legislature is made up of the Oklahoma House of Representatives (Oklahoma House of Representatives) with 101 members and the Oklahoma Senate (Oklahoma Senate) with 48 members.
