Deutsches Institut für Normung

The Connecticut is a State of New England, in the North-East of the the United States. It counts nearly 3,5 million inhabitants. The capital of Connecticut is Hartford, and more the big city Bridgeport. Located immediately at the east of New York, it is a rich state, the first of the United States for the average revenue per capita, and densément populated, 270 inhabitants with the square kilometer.

Name

The name " Connecticut" comes from the Indian word Mohegan " Quinnehtukqut" who wants to say " Site of long the rivière" or " Beside large the rivière."

Geography

Connecticut is located at the North-East of the United States, bordered in the west by the State of New York, in the south by the Long Island Sound, in north by the Massachusetts, and in the east by the State of Rhode Island.

The State is the smaller third of the United States (after the Delaware and the Rhode Island). Connecticut densément is much densément populated than the American average. The major part of the population lives in the center, centers southern, and south-western, at the edge of the coast and in the large valleys of the Connecticut (river), of the Fleuve Housatonic, and the river Thames. There are forests and natural spaces in the North-West and the North-East of the State.

The territory of Connecticut is not rich in natural resources and the ground is traditionally rock -- it is because the old movement of the glaciers which éraflé the landscape during the last Glacial period. Nevertheless, the produced state of great quantities of Corn, sheets of Tobacco, Tomato S, and fruit for the local markets and regional.

Counties

There are 8 counties (regional zones) of Connecticut:

  1. the county of Fairfield

  2. the county of Hartford
  3. the county of Litchfield
  4. the county of Middlesex
  5. the County of New Haven
  6. the county of New London
  7. the county of Tolland
  8. the county of Windham

Contrary to those of the majority of the states of the United States, the counties of Connecticut have neither administrative zone nor government. They are used only geographically to divide the State and for the telephone numbers.

Main cities

  • Bridgeport, the largest metropolis

  • Danbury
  • Hartford, the capital
  • Middletown
  • New Britain
  • New Haven, medical center and educational, sheltering the university of Yale
  • New London, center of a naval port
  • Stamford
  • Waterbury
  • Fairfield

History

Colonial history and of the beginnings

The State of Connecticut was founded by two groups of the Puritains English at the 17th century. Before the arrival of the puritan colonists, the area was explored by the sailor Dutch Adriaen Block in 1614. Since 1624, the Dutchmen made the trade of the furs with several Amerindian tribes of of the area, but the tribe Pequot fought the Dutch tradesmen in some minor wars.

The first English colonists founded the colony of Connecticut in 1633 with the first town of Windsor. The towns of Wethersfield and Hartford were created in 1634 and 1636. In the south, other more puritan colonists founded the colony of New Haven in 1637. The two colonies were separated from the colony of Massachusetts mainly because the puritans of Massachusetts looked at these new colonies like relief valve for the nonconformist people.

During the War of American independence, the State was attacked by the British soldiers. The British destroyed by the fire much cities, including Fairfield and Danbury. After the war, Connecticut was industrialized quickly and became a center of American industry in the first years of the 19th century. Also, the State became stereotyped like a center of the “Connecticut Yankees”, a word for tradesmen without scruples which were often shown to sell the false or shoddy products. One of the fraudulent products that tradesmen of Connecticut were shown sale was the Nutmeg; consequently one of the nicknames of the state is “the state of nutmeg” (the other is “the State of the Constitution” because one of the compromises having allowed the adoption of the constitution of the USA was found by a delegate of this state, Roger Sherman, and bears the name of Compromis of Connecticut)

During the 19th century, also, much of European immigrants arrived in the State. The Irishmen, the Italians, the Poles, the Greeks, Germans, and the Scandinavians populated the industrial towns. The population of the State developed very quickly during this time, and particularly after the American Civil War.

Modern history

At the 20th century, a high number Afro-Americans of the south of the United States, and also of the Porto Rican immigrants, entered the area to work in the factories of the Nouvelle England. These new inhabitants added to the social diversity of the state, but the population of the state started to be stabilized nevertheless.

Both World wars provided to the state an occasion to provide to the government armaments, and to date the State remains a center of the American industry of defense. At the same time, the Hartford capital became the site of many American insurance companies.

Today, Connecticut remains an urban area; however, there are many villages and bucolic forests surrounding the principal cities, and the state recently became a tourist center for casino S. It is a state of contrasts, with its pastoral manors, its old churches and of the poor cities located at a few minutes from/to each other.

Policy

Connecticut is a moderate and liberal State. The governor of the State is a republican , Jodi Rell, but the democratic candidate always obtained there more voice than his republican rival since 1992. The congress of the state is democratic.

In 2004, with the presidential elections, the democratic candidate John Kerry obtained there 54% of the votes compared with 44% with the president George W. Bush, however the best republican score since 1988, last year when a republican candidate gained the State.

The local Congress during the legislature 2007 - 2008 is dominated by the democrats. With the Lower House, 45 republicans deal with 106 democrats whereas the Upper House is divided between 24 Democratic senators and 12 Republican senators.

At the time of the legislature 2007 - 2008, the two senators with the American Congress are the democratic Christopher Dodd and the independent-democrat Joseph I. Lieberman (elected as an independent candidate in November 2006 but attached to the democrats) whereas 4 of the 5 elected officials of Connecticut to the room of the representatives are also democratic. In April 2005, Connecticut was the second State of the country, after the Vermont, to legalize the civil unions between couples gay S. the contractors will profit henceforth from the same rights as the married couples Hétérosexuel S. This same law which legalized these civil unions in addition protected the institution from the Mariage, by defining it by the union between people of opposite sex. It is thus out of the question to open the civil wedding with the of the same people sex as with the Massachusetts what would meet the opposition of the majority of the population of the State.

In May 2005, Connecticut has carried out the first application of the Capital punishment in New England for 45 years.

The May 29th was declared Jour of the Corsair , in the honor of this famous plane, as from 2005

Economy

The State is very prosperous. Hartford remains an important center in the field of the Assurance S.

Culture

Some tourist attractions

Casinos

  • Foxwoods Brings out Casino
  • the casino of Mohegan Sun

Historical centres

  • the Château of Gillette
  • Dinosaur State Park
  • Essex Steam Train and Riverboat
  • the Manoir Lockwood-Matthews
  • Mark Twain House
  • Mystic Seaport
  • Nathan Hauls Homestead
  • New Haven Green
  • Old State House

Arts centres

Universities

  • Academy of the Coastal Guard of the United States

  • University of Connecticut
  • University of Fairfield
  • University of Hartford
  • University of New Haven
  • University of Quinnipiac
  • Wesleyan University
  • University Yale

Sport

Symbols of the state of Connecticut

The tree of Connecticut: the white Oak ( Quercus alba )
The flower of Connecticut: Kalmia with broad sheets ( Kalmia latifolia )
The bird of Connecticut: Blackbird of America ( Turdus migratorius )
The animal of Connecticut: Cachalot ( Physeter macrocephalus )
The hero of Connecticut: Nathan Hauls
The official song of Connecticut: Yankee Doodle

See too

External bonds

  • Official site of the State of Connecticut

  • tourist Official site of Connecticut
  • tourist Information on Connecticut

Beats-smg: Konektėkots Be-X-old: Канэктыкут Simple: Connecticut Zh-min-nan: Connecticut

Random links:Agreement of sixth | Pucca | Pégairolles-in-the Escalette | George Forrest (contractor) | William Aberhart