List of Mississippi state symbols

The following is a list of state symbols of the U.S. state of Mississippi , as defined by state statutes in Title 1, Section 3 of the Mississippi Code of 1972 and listed in the Mississippi Official & Statistical Register. ^{[1] [2]}

Insignia

Further information: List of U.S. state, district, and territorial insignia

Type	Symbol	Date	Image
Flag	Flag of Mississippi	2021 [3]
Seal	Seal of Mississippi	2014 [4]
Coat of arms	Coat of arms of Mississippi	2001 [5]
Motto	Virtute et armis (Latin for "By valor and arms")
Nicknames	The Magnolia State, The Hospitality State

Flora

Type	Symbol	Date	Image
Flower	Magnolia	1900 [6]
Tree	Southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora)	1952 [6]
Fruit	Blueberry	2023 [7]

Fauna

Type	Symbol	Date	Image
Bird	Northern mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos)	1944 [8]
Butterfly	Spicebush swallowtail (Papilio troilus)	1991 [9]
Fish	Largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides)	1974 [10]
Fossil	Prehistoric whales ( Basilosaurus cetoides and Zygorhiza kochii )	1981 [11]
Insect	Western honey bee (Apis mellifera)	1980 [12]
Land Mammals	White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)	1974 [13] [2]
	Red fox (Vulpes vulpes)	1997 [2]
Marine mammal	Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)	1974 [13]
Waterfowl	Wood duck (Aix sponsa)	1974 [14]
Reptile	American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)	1987 [15]
Shell	Eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica)	1974

Other

Type	Symbol	Date	Image
Dance	Square dance	1995 [16]
Soil	Natchez silt loam	2003 [17]
Song	One Mississippi	2022 [2]
Stone	Petrified wood	1976
Toy	Teddy bear	2003 [18]

References

1. "State of Mississippi Symbols". Mississippi.gov. Archived from the original on May 27, 2010. Retrieved November 18, 2010.
2. "State Symbols" (PDF). Blue Book. Mississippi Secretary of State. 2004. p. 34.
3. "Mississippi Ballot Measure 3: Voters approve magnolia design as new state flag". CNN . 4 November 2020.
4. "Mississippi Religious Freedom Restoration Act". February 2014. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014.
5. Clark, Eric. "The Government of Mississippi: How it Functions". Archived from the original on 2021-09-12.
6. "Mississippi Symbols". www.harrison.lib.ms.us. Harrison County Library System. Retrieved December 15, 2024.
7. Gray, Jordan (March 13, 2023). "The blueberry is now Mississippi's state fruit". WLBT. Retrieved December 15, 2024.
8. "Mississippi State Bird". Mississippi State Bird: Mockingbird. SHG Resources.
9. State Symbols Archived 2009-11-04 at the Wayback Machine , p. 4. Office of the Secretary of State of Mississippi. Retrieved 2008-03-29
10. "State symbols". Archived from the original on 2007-10-10. Retrieved 2008-05-09.
11. Fossil whale: State Fossil of Mississippi (PDF), Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, 1991, retrieved 2019-05-09
12. State Symbols Archived 2009-11-04 at the Wayback Machine , p. 4. Office of the Secretary of State of Mississippi.
13. Shearer, Benjamin F. & Barbara S. Shearer. State Names, Seals, Flags, and Symbols: A Historical Guide. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2002. 235.
14. "Mississippi State Symbols, Emblems, and Mascots". SHG Resources.
15. Shearer, Benjamin F.; Shearer, Barbara S. (1994). State names, seals, flags, and symbols (2nd ed.). Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN   0-313-28862-3. p. 313
16. "§ 3-3-39. State dance", Mississippi Code 1972 Annotated, retrieved 2020-07-20
17. "§ 3-3-45. State soil", Mississippi Code 1972 Annotated, retrieved 2020-07-20
18. "§ 3-3-43. State toy", Mississippi Code 1972 Annotated, retrieved 2020-07-20