Connecticut State Symbols

State Animal:  Sperm Whale

State Insect:  European Mantis

State Flower:  Mountain Laurel

State Tree:  The Charter Oak

State Fossil:  Eubrontes giganteus

State Mineral:  Garnet

State Shellfish:  Eastern Oyster

State Ship:  USS Nautilus

State Hero:  Nathan Hale

State Song:  Yankee Doodle

State Folk Dance:  Square Dance

Motto:  He who transplanted still sustains.

Origin of State Name:  The name is probably derived from a Native American word, Quinnehtukqut, meaning "beside the long tidal river."

Nickname for State:  The Constitution State.  The official nickname commemorates the colony's adoption in 1639 of the Fundamental Orders, sometimes regarded as the first written constitution.

Nickname for residents:  Connecticuters