The U.S. state of Montana got its name from the Spanish word for “mountain.” The Rocky Mountains cover the western part of this large state. Montana is the nation’s fourth largest state.
Because of the many minerals found in Montana, the state is nicknamed the Treasure State. People flocked to the area in the 1860s looking for gold. The state capital is Helena.
Montana is located in the northwestern part of the United States. Montana is bordered on the north by three Canadian provinces: Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia. The U.S. state of Idaho is to the west and southwest. Wyoming is to the south, and North Dakota and South Dakota form the eastern border.
Although Montana’s name suggests a mountainous region, high plains cover more than half of the state. The Rocky Mountain part of the state includes many mountain ranges, including the Bitterroot. Between the ranges are narrow valleys that are good for growing crops. Flathead Lake is in the mountain region. It is the largest U.S. freshwater lake west of the Mississippi River.
One of the country’s great rivers, the Missouri, begins in the Rocky Mountain area of Montana. It eventually joins the Mississippi River north of Saint Louis, Missouri.
Indigenous Population
The Indigenous population of Montana is the fifth highest in the country. Native Americans make up almost 7 percent of Montana’s population. The state is home to eight federally recognized tribes and seven reservations. Most of the tribes live on reservations within their territories. These include the Blackfeet (selfname: Siksikaitsitapi or Niitsitapi), Northern Cheyenne, Crow (selfname: Apsáalooke), and Assiniboine
Others
Whites make up 85 percent of the state’s population. The early white settlers of Montana came from almost every state in the Union. Later, others arrived from many European countries and Canada. People of Hispanic descent akun for 4 percent of the population, and together the Black and Asian American population make up just over 1 percent.