The Christmas season in the Philippines lasts for almost half the year.

Decorations start going up in September, and the holiday fervor doesn't end until the first Sunday in January.

Many people hang up paper lanterns called paróls and eat a big family meal on Noche Buena, or Christmas Eve.  

In Japan, Christmas is celebrated in a more secular way than in other predominantly Christian countries.

It's considered a romantic day for couples, and many Japanese families treat themselves to what has become the traditional Christmas meal: a bucket of KFC fried chicken.

Christmas in Poland is celebrated with gift-giving, church services, and fasting on Christmas Eve before a 12-dish feast, which usually features carp for good luck. 

Most people simply buy a cut of fish from the market, but the old tradition was for the lady of the house to keep a live carp in the bathtub for a few days before preparing it for the Christmas meal. 

This tradition is also popular in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Germany, and Croatia.

In Finland (and many other countries around the globe), St. Lucia Day on December 13 is one of the main events of the holiday season.

On this date, the eldest girl in each family sometimes dons a white robe and a crown of candles before serving her family buns, cookies, coffee, or mulled wine to kick off the holiday season. 

On Christmas Eve, many Finnish families visit the sauna to relax or go to cemeteries to remember loved ones who have died before attending midnight mass. 

For Christmas lunch, the traditional meal is a porridge containing a hidden almond — although it's likely that this originated in Sweden. Whoever finds the almond will have good luck for the rest of the year.

Rather than hanging Christmas stockings over the fireplace, families in the UK typically place them at the foot of their beds.

On Christmas Day, families break open crackers filled with small toys, jokes, and paper crowns — which are traditionally worn throughout the midday Christmas meal. 

The reigning monarch gives an annual broadcast speech on Christmas Day, during which they discuss what the holiday means to them. 

Boxing Day, December 26, is also a national holiday in the UK.

Like many places around the world, some Croatian families celebrate Christmas with an Advent wreath made of straw or evergreen.

The wreath has four colored candles that symbolize hope, peace, joy, and love.

On the night of December 5, children in Croatia make sure to clean their boots and place them by the window for St. Nicholas to fill with treats. However, naughty kids might only receive a few twigs from the Christmas monster, Krampus.

Christmas Eve is typically celebrated with a light, seafood dinner in preparation for the heavier feast on Christmas Day, complete with roasted meats and poppyseed rolls. 

Greece is primarily a Greek Orthodox nation, and in addition to attending midnight church services on Christmas, families might also keep their fires burning or sprinkle holy water from a basil-wrapped cross to ward off the "kallikantzaroi" — evil creatures that creep into homes through the chimney and cause mischief.

Around Christmas, many Greek cities also hold a festival called the Night of Wishes where people gather to make wishes and release paper lanterns into the sky. 

Some holiday traditions in Greece also include making Christopsomo (Christmas bread) and decorating boats.

Since December is a summer month in the southern hemisphere, most of Australia is bathed in balmy temps during the holidays.

Accordingly, those in Australia frequently celebrate Christmas with a lunchtime barbecue on the beach. Friends and family gather to indulge in prawns, lobster, and sweets before playing a game of cricket or taking a dip.

In Argentina, many families put up their Christmas trees on December 8 — the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary — and decorate them with cotton balls to look like snow. 

Fireworks are typically launched at midnight on Christmas Eve after a late dinner, and families with children also often light paper lanterns to send into the sky.

Some people continue the festivities and attend overnight parties, so Christmas Day is usually a more relaxed holiday in the country. 

Like many Orthodox countries, Ukraine uses the Julian calendar for its church festivals. This means some individuals there celebrate Christmas on January 7 rather than December 25.

Whenever the festivities begin, it's traditional to delay eating Christmas dinner until the first star in the sky is spotted.

Caroling in the streets and Vertep, the Ukrainian puppet theater, are also common holiday traditions.

Families in the US often leave cookies and milk out for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve in the hopes that they wake up to presents under the tree and in their stockings, which are hung by the fireplace.

Many families also have Christmas dinner complete with ham or roast beef and eggnog.

Cities typically put up lights and other decorations, and it's common for families to do the same in front of their own houses. 

In New York City, people who celebrate Christmas often look forward to traditions like the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree or the Radio City Christmas Spectacular starring the Rockettes. 

Rather than unwrapping goodies on Christmas Day, most families in Spain open their presents on January 6, or Epiphany, which is the day that the three wise men are said to have brought gifts to the infant Jesus.

Many families in Spain decorate their houses with ornate nativity scenes and enjoy a seafood feast on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.

There's also an annual Christmas lottery, called El Gordo ("The Big One"), which is the biggest of its kind. The grand event has roots tracing back to the 1800s.

Much of the holiday celebration in Brazil takes place on December 24, when families and friends will often get together for a party that includes ringing in Christmas at midnight. 

The holiday feast, which is typically eaten on Christmas Eve, is usually packed with hearty portions of pork, ham, rice, nuts, and fruits.

A version of Secret Santa called "Amigo Secreto" is also popular for gift-giving. 

Although Hinduism is the prominent religion in India, the country also has a large population of Christians — which means Christmas is still widely celebrated. 

The holiday is usually observed by attending midnight mass and sharing a meal (and plenty of festive sweets) with family and neighbors.

Like many other festivals and holidays in the country, many towns and cities decorate for Christmas with plenty of lights, streamers, and flowers. 

Families might also hang mango leaves, star-shaped paper lanterns, or nativity scenes outside their homes. Inside, some people even decorate mango or banana trees.

Instead of waking up to presents under the tree, many families in India pack up boxes of sweets on Christmas morning and take them to their neighbors and friends. 

In Russia, New Year's Eve is usually the day of celebration complete with a New Year tree and a visit from the Slavic character Father Frost, who leaves unwrapped presents for children. 

On January 7, some Russian households enjoy a meatless Christmas feast that traditionally includes 12 dishes representing the 12 apostles. 

One Latvian Christmas tradition involves reciting a poem, playing an instrument, or singing a song in exchange for receiving one of your presents.

Christmas markets that sell foods, drinks, and gifts are also popular in the country, and it claims to be the home of the first decorated Christmas tree.

One of the oldest recorded uses of an evergreen tree to celebrate Christmas dates back to the year 1510 in Riga, the country's capital, though it's hard to know if it was indeed the first use of the tradition.

In Kenya, families often see family for Christmas. Many attend midnight Christmas vigils and indulge in a big meal that often includes goat, sheep, and rice.

Instead of evergreen trees, those in Kenya sometimes decorate cypress trees or local evergreen trees with lights and ornaments. 

Though Pakistan is a predominantly Islamic country, Christians often celebrate Christmas by caroling with family and friends or setting up a Nativity scene in their homes and churches.

On Christmas Day, some families attend Bara Din celebrations at church. This festive event calls for spending time with family and feasting on delicious food.

Children carol house to house in Romania, receiving traditional sweets and cakes in return for their efforts.

In some parts of the country, it's also traditional for one person to dress up as a goat with a colorful mask and cause mischief among the carolers. However, in other parts, a similar tradition exists but with one caroler dressing up as a bear. 

On Christmas Eve, many families start decorating their trees and hanging mistletoe in their houses for good luck. 

In Germany, preparing for Christmas often includes strolling through markets while sipping mulled wine. 

Families also decorate their trees with angel ornaments and light candles in their windows. 

A few traditional holiday desserts include stollen, a cake filled with dried fruit and sprinkled with powdered sugar, and lebkuchen, a large spiced cookie that often features a message written in frosting. 

Christmas in France usually involves strolling through festive markets and cutting into a lavishly decorated bûche de Noël cake.

An actual Yule log is also often burned in the fireplace on Christmas Eve after being sprinkled with red wine to make it smell even nicer.

The holiday feast, called le réveillon de Noël, is typically eaten around midnight on Christmas Day, and in some parts of France, it's traditional to eat 13 different desserts.

This story was originally published in December 2018, and most recently updated on December 17, 2024.

Read More:

• 9 UK Christmas traditions that probably confuse Americans
• From hanging stockings to caroling, these 10 holiday traditions have surprisingly bizarre origins
• Incredible photos show how the White House has celebrated Christmas through the years
• Photos show what holidays look like around the world

No, Ferrell wasn't belching on-screen for an impressively long time in the film. Instead, the long burp was recorded by Maurice LaMarche.

Better known as the voice of Brain from "Pinky and the Brain," LaMarche's vocal contributions to the film were uncredited, but his belch will live on in cinematic history.

Although Buddy is one of Ferrell's most well-known roles, Vulture reported that when the script was first circulating in 1993, Carrey was the first choice to play the curious elf.

Many scenes from "Elf" were set in New York City, but a lot of the production actually took place in Canada.

VFX supervisor Joe Bauer told Creative Planet Network in 2012 that "Elf" director Jon Favreau wanted to use "analog techniques" to bring the magic to the North Pole.

The crew used techniques like forced perspective to make Buddy look bigger than the elves around him.

Bauer also told Creative Planet Network that the sets for the North Pole were meant to establish a scale for the elves in the film. The teams worked with a two-thirds scale to allow Ferrell to seem bigger than his elven counterparts.

Afterward, the crew would adjust the height of the cameras and objects to bring the optical illusion to life.

Even though it might not seem obvious, CGI was used in some parts of the film — including the snowball scene.

Naturally, the miraculously long throw during this scene was CGI, as were any snowballs you didn't see thrown by someone.

Actor Peter Billingsley played the iconic role of Ralphie in classic holiday movie "A Christmas Story." He also made an uncredited appearance in "Elf" as Ming Ming the elf.

This story was originally published on November 27, 2018, and most recently updated on December 12, 2025.

"Elf" director Favreau makes an appearance in the film as Buddy's doctor.

"Elf" has a lot of great scenes, but the one of elves playing hockey wasn't meant to be one of them. This scene was cut from the film, but you can still watch it online.

For just a few short weeks at the end of 2010, "Elf" was transformed into a Broadway musical that brought in a reported $1.4 million in just one week.

In a 2015 interview with Good Morning America, Ferrell said he's surprised that "Elf" has continued to be successful years after its release.

He joked that it could have been his last movie, but instead, the film has become a cult classic.

According to Esquire, the famous "throne of lies" scene was filmed in one take. This was due to a tight budget and because production had little time to rebuild such an intricate set. 

In 2006, Ferrell told The Observer he turned down a reported $29 million offer to star in the sequel. He said he didn't want to do it just for the money. 

"I remember asking myself: could I withstand the criticism when it's bad and they say, 'He did the sequel for the money?' I decided I wouldn't be able to," he told the publication. 

Later, in 2013, Ferrell reaffirmed his decision to People, saying he wouldn't make another "Elf" movie. He said it would look "slightly pathetic" if he tried to "squeeze" back into his elf tights.

It took several weeks for the director Chris Columbus and his crew to find the McCallister house for "Home Alone."

Ultimately, they chose a house in Winnetka, Illinois, because they thought it was both warm and menacing.

"I took some pictures and sent them over to John, and I remember John saying: 'This is perfect. This is exactly how I imagined the house,'" he told Entertainment Weekly.

Though the film was ultimately produced by Hughes Entertainment and presented by 20th Century Fox, Warner Brothers initially had rights to the project.

According to an article in Chicago magazine, a budget dispute occurred three weeks before the production of "Home Alone" was set to start.

"The question was, 'Do we lay everyone off?'" the associate producer Mark Radcliffe told the publication. "John [Hughes] said to just hold tight."

Luckily, 20th Century Fox acquired the rights to the film and production continued as planned.

Per Us Weekly, during a 2015 interview on "Watch What Happens Live," Catherine O'Hara told Andy Cohen that she and Culkin had a sweet interaction at an art event.

"I haven't seen him for years and years, but I saw him two years ago — a year and a half ago? — at a Martin Mull art opening, and he was coming out, and he went, 'Mommy!' And I said, 'Baby!'" she recalled.

She added that her husband made them take a picture and that she was happy to see him.

Forbes reported that until 2017, "Home Alone" had the highest single-territory total for a live-action comedy, with $285.7 million.

The film held this impressive record for 27 years, until the Chinese film "Never Say Die" surpassed it in 2017 (without accounting for inflation).

Regardless, "Home Alone" is still one of the highest-grossing live-action comedies in the US.

In his first acting credit, Culkin's younger brother Kieran appeared as Kevin's cousin, Fuller, in "Home Alone."

The brothers appeared together on-screen again in "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York."

John Hughes, who also wrote 1980s blockbusters like "The Breakfast Club," "Pretty in Pink," and "Sixteen Candles," crafted the first draft of the screenplay for "Home Alone" in just nine days.

According to the same Chicago magazine article — which was written by his son, James — the film was written after a family trip to Europe in response to his father's severe traveler's anxiety.

"I was going away on vacation,'" Hughes told Time magazine in 1990, "and making a list of everything I didn't want to forget. I thought, 'Well, I'd better not forget my kids.' Then I thought, 'What if I left my 10-year-old son at home? What would he do?'"

In a 2018 interview with Ellen DeGeneres, Culkin said he couldn't watch "Home Alone" without remembering a bunch of personal context. 

"When I'm watching it, I'm seeing like — I'm remembering that day on set. You know, like, how I was hiding my Pepsi behind the couch," he said. "I can't watch it the same way other people can."

In the same interview, he referred to the film as "background radiation at Christmastime."

Columbus was originally working on "Christmas Vacation" — which was also written by Hughes — but he eventually called the writer to tell him he couldn't work with the actor Chevy Chase.

"John was very understanding. About two weeks later, I got two scripts at my in-laws' house in River Forest. One was 'Home Alone,' with a note from John asking if I wanted to direct," he told the publication. "I thought, 'Wow, this guy is really supporting me when no one else in Hollywood was going to.'"

Columbus told Business Insider's Jason Guerrasio in 2020 that the legendary comedic actor John Candy came on set ready to improvise.

"He was on the movie for only one day, but it resulted in so much great improvisation. None of that stuff was in the script," he said. "The funeral-parlor story, that was all improvised at 4:30 in the morning. We could barely keep a straight face on set just listening to John."

Beyond Candy's cameo, Hughes didn't allow for a ton of improvisation or tweaks to his script, but Columbus had a sweet vision for the character of Old Man Marley that he was able to sneak into the film.

Though the scene in the church was always in the script, the director added to the conversation between Kevin and Marley. 

"I added the moment when Marley talked about not being able to see his granddaughter. I also added the very end of the movie when Kevin sees that Marley is reunited with his granddaughter," Columbus told BI. "That is probably my proudest addition to the movie."

Before Joe Pesci took on the role of Harry in "Home Alone," the production team had its eyes on Robert De Niro.

However, Columbus said, the actor never seriously considered taking the role. 

"It was talked about a little internally, but when Pesci said yes, I was stunned," he told BI.

Kevin's reaction to putting on aftershave is arguably one of the best-known scenes of the film — and it's since become one of the most iconic moments in movie history.

However, Culkin apparently didn't do it the way Columbus told him to. 

"If you put something on your face that burns, most people move their hands right away. So my direction to him was when you pat your face, move your hands and scream. And I think it was the first take, he kept his hands on his cheeks," the director told BI.

He added, "It's funny, the iconic moment from 'Home Alone' was an accident."

When "Home Alone" came out in 1990, CGI wasn't the norm on film sets. Since the movie was already working on a tight budget, the production team had to get creative with special effects. 

During the scene in which Kevin shoots Marv in the head with a BB gun, the pellet is actually animated. 

"We paid a guy living in his mother's basement in Chicago $600 to hand-paint that BB going into Marv's head. So that was an animated effect. A guy with a paintbrush in a basement for six frames hand-painted a BB," Columbus told  BI.

He continued: "This was an $18 million film, so, for our budget, I'm pretty happy how it turned out."

Kevin uses a black-and-white movie called "Angels With Filthy Souls" to aid in his defense plan against the Wet Bandits, and many people — including Seth Rogen and Chris Evans — were shocked when they learned it wasn't a real film. 

The scene was created specifically for "Home Alone," but there's a reason it looks so real. 

"'Home Alone' is one of the last films shot with an old carbon-arc lighting system that was popular back in the 1940s through 1960s for Technicolor films," Columbus told BI.

He explained that they used the same technique for "Angels With Filthy Souls."

"That richness of black and white made it look like a movie from that era, and I think that's why some people think it's a real movie," he added.

A year before "Home Alone," Culkin starred alongside Candy in Hughes' "Uncle Buck."

After watching the actor play Miles Russell, Hughes was inspired to write a film with a young boy at its helm.

Once the idea started taking shape, he thought Culkin would be great in the role. 

The production team shared stories about working at New Trier Township High School in Winnetka, Illinois.

Hughes liked to make his movies in the Chicagoland area, so they set up their production offices in the same building where some of his other classics, such as "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and "Uncle Buck," were shot.

They also ended up building the interior sets for the McCallisters' house in the school's gym, and they inventively built the set for the Murphys' house — which floods at the end of the film — in the swimming pool.

Candy filmed all his scenes during one 23-hour day on set, but he didn't get much in return as far as compensation.

The actor did the cameo as a favor to Hughes, and he received "scale" pay — the minimum pay rate that a studio agrees to.

In the end, Candy ended up making less than Danny Warhol (aka Dan Charles Zukoski), who played the pizza boy.

"Home Alone" was shot in Chicago in February, and the crew was hoping for snow.

Fake snow can eat away at a budget, so when a snowstorm rolled in on the second day on set, everyone jumped at the chance to film the "money shot" where Kevin wakes up on Christmas morning and reunites with his family.

To enhance the natural flurries, the crew used potato flakes to make it look as if snow was blowing around — which was said to be effective but left them with a whole heap of rotting starch when the snow melted a few days later.

Though Culkin, Pesci, and Daniel Stern weren't responsible for all of the falls and hits their characters took throughout the film, their stunt doubles did them for real. 

They didn't use any special-effect tricks, and there weren't any pads built into the ground, so the film crew was under a lot of pressure to get the shots right on the first take. 

Pesci's stunt double for the film, Troy Brown, said on the docuseries that for his first fall on the icy stairs, he "just launched myself as far and as high as I could." 

The film's wild stunts had a long-lasting impact.

"Now when someone does a fall where they get a lot of air, and they fall on their back, they'd call it the 'Home Alone,'" the director of photography Julio Macat said on an episode of "The Movies That Made Us."

"Home Alone" was only the third feature-length film that Columbus directed, but he's since gone on to direct popular movies like "Mrs. Doubtfire," "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," and "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets."

In addition to taking on some fantasy classics, Columbus directed Netflix's "The Christmas Chronicles 2" (2020), marking his return to holiday films.

An earlier version of this story was published in November 2018, and it was most recently updated on December 11, 2024.

Read More:

• 'Home Alone' at 30: Director Chris Columbus talks Trump 'bullying his way' into a cameo and more never-before-told stories
• 13 surprising things you might not know about 'Elf'
• 19 of Netflix's original holiday movies, ranked from worst to best
• 15 of the best and 15 of the worst holiday movies of all time

Perhaps surprisingly, Alabama's unofficial nicknames have nothing to do with the popular rival university cheers, "Roll Tide!" or "War Eagle!"

Instead, both of the state's most common nicknames hark back to the Civil War, with "Yellowhammer" referencing Alabama soldiers' uniforms, which were trimmed with yellow, and "Heart of Dixie" referring to Montgomery, Alabama's position as the first capital of the Confederacy.

Alaska is the largest state in the US, yet it has one of the smallest populations, with fewer than 750,000 residents, according to the 2020 Census.

With so much space and so few people, Alaska was dubbed "the Last Frontier," as there is still so much area to be explored.

More than 4.5 million people visited Grand Canyon National Park in 2023, according to the National Park Service.

The Encyclopedia of Arkansas reported that the Arkansas Parks System started advocating for more tourism in the 1980s, using the nickname the "Natural State."

The nickname became official in 1995 thanks to Rep. Dennis Young, who introduced legislation citing the state's various rivers, streams, lakes, bayous, mountains, and wildlife.

Arkansas Tourism is now a $9.2 billion industry with upward of 48 million visiting the state in 2022, per a press release from the Arkansas Cabinet Secretary.

From the Gold Rush and golden poppies to sunshine and Hollywood, golden has always been the perfect way to describe California.

Colorado became a state on August 1, 1876.

Long before the US Constitution was ratified in 1788, settlers drafted the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut.

The Fundamental Orders were adopted in 1639 and served as a state constitution determining the scope of government.

Delaware ratified the Constitution on December 7, 1787.

With beautiful beaches, a warm climate, and plenty of sunshine, Florida adopted the nickname in 1970.

Peaches may now be widely known as a symbol for Georgia, but the state's attachment to the fruit was actually part of a post-Civil War effort to reinvent its image, NPR reported.

Like so many of the other Southern states, Georgia was primarily known for producing cotton, but after the war, peaches became a new focus as fruit production seemed more "refined and European" than corn and cotton farming.

Hawaii's nickname comes from the Hawaiian language — "aloha" is both a word for greetings and partings as well as a way of life emphasizing principles like kindness, unity, and patience.

In addition to its potatoes, Idaho is known for its many natural resources, including minerals and gems.

Copper, gold, opal, sapphire, and garnet are just a few of the stones that can be found in the state.

The state once had 22 million acres of prairie land, according to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Now, less than 2,300 acres remain.

The word "Hoosier" has been part of Indianans' dialect for more than 100 years, but the word's origins are hard to nail down.

The Indiana Historical Bureau said that one way the word may have gained popularity was from a poem written by John Finley called "The Hoosier's Nest" (originally written as Hoosher), which was published and used as the "Carrier's Address" of the Indianapolis Journal in January 1833.

The origin of the Hawkeyes' connection to Iowa is still unclear, but, according to the University of Iowa, some believe a local judge suggested the name after reading James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans, which features a character named Hawkeye.

The name gained popularity and is now used by the university's sports teams, with Caitlin Clark being one of the most famous Hawkeyes in recent history.

Forget about tornados, sunflowers hold a special place in Kansas' heart — they're the state flower and even on the state flag.

Bluegrass is common throughout the state, especially on horse pastures.

The brown pelican is native to Louisiana, making it the perfect choice for the state's official bird. It also appears on Louisiana's flag, state seal, and in professional sports teams — hello, New Orleans Pelicans.

As of 2021, Maine had over 17 million acres of forests, accounting for 83% of the state's area, the USDA Forest Service reported.

The state is home to a high number of Eastern white pine trees.

George Washington gave Maryland the name "Old Line State." As a general in the Revolutionary War, Washington praised Maryland's regular line troops, who served in many battles throughout the war.

Meanwhile, the "Free State" originally referred to Maryland's abolition of slavery in 1864. A congressman from Georgia later adopted the nickname in the 1920s for an editorial piece criticizing Maryland's refusal to pass an act enforcing Prohibition.

Massachusetts, Nahant, Dorchester, and Quincy are just some of the many bays located in Massachusetts.

Michigan is bordered by Lakes Superior, Huron, Erie, and Michigan.

Ontario is the only Great Lake to not border the state.

Minnesota's motto, "L'Étoile du Nord," was coined by the state's first governor, Henry Sibley, in 1858.

William "Bill" Convery, director of research at the Minnesota Historical Society, told CBS station WCCO in 2023, "You can think of the North Star as a guide, as a way into the future. And I don't know for sure, but I very much guess that's what Sibley had in mind when he suggested that motto for Minnesota."

The magnolia is both the state flower and tree of Mississippi. The flower also appears on the state flag.

While no one can say for certain how the "Show-Me State" originated, Rep. Willard Duncan Vandiver is often given credit.

Vandiver spoke at a naval banquet in 1899, and outlets reported that he said, "I come from a state that raises corn and cotton and cockleburs and Democrats, and frothy eloquence neither convinces nor satisfies me. I am from Missouri. You have got to show me."

Similar to Idaho and its gems, Montana is known for producing a wide variety of minerals like platinum, gold, and talc.

Montana Public Radio reported that the state is also known as "Big Sky Country" or the "Big Sky State" thanks to a 1930s advertising campaign by the Transportation Department. The name gained even more popularity in 1947 after the release of a book called "The Big Sky" by A.B. Guthrie Jr.

The Nebraska Corn Board reported that in 2022, the state yielded more than 1.4 billion bushels of corn to yield almost $10 billion.

The state accounts for 10% of the country's corn production overall.

According to Nevada Public Radio, miners Peter O'Riley and Patrick McLaughlin discovered silver in 1859 at what would be named the Comstock Lode.

The discovery led to a boom in migration to the region and became an important part of the state's economy.

Granite has been important to the state's economy since the 1800s, with the material being used for buildings around the country, including the Library of Congress, New Hampshire Folklife reported.

It added that the state's Concord quarry produces about 25,000 tons of granite each year.

While the nickname originally dates back to the 1870s, the New Jersey state legislature voted to make the name official in 1954, overruling the governor to add "The Garden State" to license plates.

While the state doesn't exactly lend itself to visions of farmlands and gardens, the New Jersey Department of Agriculture reported that the state is actually among the top 10 producers of fruits and vegetables like blueberries, peaches, tomatoes, spinach, and squash, with the state's farms generating nearly $1.5 million in 2022.

Similar to other states, New Mexico's nickname was once used to promote tourism. While "Land of Enchantment" was used on license plates as early as 1941, the phrase didn't become the official nickname until 1999.

The New York Historical Society credits Washington for the nickname, citing a 1785 letter he wrote in praise of the state's Revolutionary War efforts where he described New York as "the seat of the Empire."

North Carolina's nickname stems from the state's early beginnings as a leader in naval industry supplies.

As explained by Carolina Alumni, people working with pine trees to collect and produce materials like turpentine, tar, and pitch often had bare feet during summers, so they would get tar on their soles. As a result, "tar heel" soon became a name for someone working a trade job.

However, during the Civil War, soldiers reclaimed the phrase for themselves, turning it into a celebration of their state, and North Carolina became known as the "Tar Heel State."

The International Peace Garden, founded in 1932, is located along the border of North Dakota and the Canadian province of Manitoba.

North Dakota began using "Peace Garden State" on its license plates in 1956 and the phrase was officially adopted by the state legislature the following year.

A buckeye is a type of tree that was so common in Ohio when the territory was settled that it's also now called an Ohio buckeye. The trees also produce a type of chestnut called a buckeye, too.

The nickname was adopted by the state in 1950 and was adopted as the mascot of Ohio State University in the 1960s.

In 1889, Congress passed a bill allowing people to settle on land that is now Oklahoma. However, all settlers were supposed to make their claims to land in accordance with the federal government's designated land opening.

Those who entered the land early were nicknamed "Sooners." The nickname stuck and now applies to all Oklahoma residents and is used by the University of Oklahoma's mascot.

Beavers were a key aspect of Oregon's economy during the fur trade, becoming a symbol of prosperity.

However, the success of the trade diminished beaver populations so much that the state is still working on conservation and restoration efforts for beavers and their habitats.

Pennsylvania played a critical role in the establishment of the US, serving as the central location for planning the American Revolution, signing the Declaration of Independence, and signing the Constitution, thus earning the nickname the "Keystone State."

Despite being the smallest state in the US, Rhode Island has a 400-mile-long coastline.

The palmetto tree played a crucial role in South Carolina's defense against the British during the Revolutionary War, as trunks were used to build the fort that defended Sullivan's Island.

Since then, the tree has been featured on the state flag and seal and is referenced directly in the state pledge to the flag.

South Dakota is home to the famous landmark that features the faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Teddy Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.

Their faces were carved into the mountainside in South Dakota's Black Hills between 1927 and 1941, but the project was strongly opposed by the Lakota Sioux Native American tribe, who consider the Black Hills sacred.

According to the Tennessee Historical Society, volunteers played a significant role in the Tennessee militia during the War of 1812.

Then, 40 years later during the Mexican American War, a reported 30,000 Tennesseans responded to a call for 2,600 volunteers.

The University of Tennessee continues to use the nickname today for its sports teams, which are also known as the Vols.

Today, the state actually has one of the lower rates of volunteerism in the country. It's ranked 31st among the states based on its volunteer rate (31.3%), per AmeriCorps.

Texas' nickname was taken from the state flag, which was adopted after the state gained independence from Mexico and features a single, "lone" star.

Texas remained an independent entity for 10 years before becoming part of the US.

The Utah State Capitol said, "The beehive symbolizes the Utah community as each person in Utah works together to support and help one another and create a successful industry."

As a result, depictions of beehives can be found across the state.

Vermont's nickname is a literal translation of its modern name, which was derived from the French "les verts monts," meaning "green mountains."

The state is also home to a mountain range called the Green Mountains, which are part of the larger Appalachians.

Virginia's nickname, "Old Dominion," is thought to have originated from two sources: its status as the oldest overseas colony of England or from King Charles II because of its loyalty to the monarchy during the English Civil Wars.

In February, the Washington State Standard reported that the state may finally make its nickname official more than 100 years after it was first used.

Even if the nickname isn't codified, one look at the state's lush evergreen forests will confirm it's not changing anytime soon.

It is the only state located completely within the Appalachian Mountains which is why it was given such a nickname.

It should come as no surprise, then, that the University of West Virginia draws on this fact for its mascot, the Mountaineers.

The nickname was inspired by lead miners in the 1800s who sought shelter in the mine tunnels rather than building homes, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Just over 50 years before the 19th Amendment was ratified, Wyoming became the first state to give women the right to vote and hold office.

Unfortunately, the state has not lived up to its nickname. WalletHub reported that the state ranked 48th for women's equality in 2024 based on factors such as workplace environments, political empowerment, and education and health.