Washington (state)

Washington is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington state to distinguish it from the national capital; both are named after George Washington, a U.S. Founding Father and the first U.S. president. Washington borders the Pacific Ocean to the west, Oregon to the south, and Idaho to the east; it shares an international border with the Canadian province of British Columbia to the north. Olympia is the state capital, and the state's most populous city is Seattle.

Washington is the 18th-largest state, with an area of 71,362 sq mi (184,830 km2), and the 13th-most populous state, with a population of over 8 million. The majority of Washington's residents live in the Seattle metropolitan area, the center of transportation, business, and industry on Puget Sound, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean consisting of numerous islands, deep fjords and bays carved out by glaciers. The remainder of the state consists of deep temperate rainforests in the west; mountain ranges in the west, center, northeast, and far southeast, and a semi-arid basin region in the east, center, and south, given over to intensive agriculture. Washington is the second-most populous state on the West Coast and in the Western United States, after California. Mount Rainier, an active stratovolcano, is the state's highest elevation at 14,400 feet (4,389 meters), and is the most topographically prominent mountain in the contiguous U.S.

Washington is a leading lumber producer, the largest producer of apples, hops, pears, blueberries, spearmint oil, and sweet cherries in the U.S., and ranks high in the production of apricots, asparagus, dry edible peas, grapes, lentils, peppermint oil, potatoes and wheat. Livestock, livestock products, and commercial fishing—particularly of salmon, halibut, and bottomfish—are also significant contributors to the state's economy.