General Information

Nickname: Lone Star State

State bird: Western Mockingbird

State flower: Bluebonnet

Capital: Austin

Date of admission to the Union: 29th Dec 1845

Population: 20,851,820 (2000)

Population density: 30.0/sq km

2000 total overseas arrivals/US ranking: 1,169,000/8

Time: Central (GMT - 6). Daylight Saving Time is observed.





The State: Texas, the ‘Lone Star State’, is the second-largest state in the USA, covering more than 695,676 sq km (268,600 sq miles). Spain was the first European power to lay claim to Texas; the State also flew the flags of France and Mexico before gaining its independence in 1836. Texas borders Mexico along the Rio Grande and embraces vast mountain ranges and canyons to the west; lakes, plantations and pine forests to the east; broad plains to the north; citrus groves, Gulf of Mexico beaches and low-lying alluvial plains to the south; and rolling hill country and clear natural springs at its heart. Its great wealth stems from its vast oil reserves. It has several booming cities: Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio, El Paso and its capital city, Austin.