16 states · 3 divisions · 125,576,562 people · 920,378 sq mi
Southern states map
The Census South is the largest region by population and by number of states: sixteen states plus the District of Columbia, from Delaware to Texas, home to 38% of Americans.
How the region is defined
The Census South has three divisions. The South Atlantic runs down the coast: Delaware, Maryland, the District of Columbia, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. The East South Central is Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi. The West South Central is Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas. The boundary was fixed in 1950 and follows the Mason–Dixon line and the Ohio River, which is why Delaware, Maryland and Kentucky are "South" in federal statistics even though many residents would not describe them that way.
The sixteen states had 125,576,562 people in 2020 — 38% of the national total — on 920,378 square miles (24%). Texas and Florida together hold 50,683,692, about two-fifths of the region. The District of Columbia adds 689,545 residents that are not in the state total below.
States, capitals and largest cities
| State | Capital | Largest city | Population (2020) | Area (sq mi) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama (AL) | Montgomery | Huntsville | 5,024,279 | 52,420 |
| Arkansas (AR) | Little Rock | Little Rock | 3,011,524 | 53,179 |
| Delaware (DE) | Dover | Wilmington | 989,948 | 2,489 |
| Florida (FL) | Tallahassee | Jacksonville | 21,538,187 | 65,758 |
| Georgia (GA) | Atlanta | Atlanta | 10,711,908 | 59,425 |
| Kentucky (KY) | Frankfort | Louisville | 4,505,836 | 40,408 |
| Louisiana (LA) | Baton Rouge | New Orleans | 4,657,757 | 52,378 |
| Maryland (MD) | Annapolis | Baltimore | 6,177,224 | 12,406 |
| Mississippi (MS) | Jackson | Jackson | 2,961,279 | 48,432 |
| North Carolina (NC) | Raleigh | Charlotte | 10,439,388 | 53,819 |
| Oklahoma (OK) | Oklahoma City | Oklahoma City | 3,959,353 | 69,899 |
| South Carolina (SC) | Columbia | Charleston | 5,118,425 | 32,020 |
| Tennessee (TN) | Nashville | Nashville | 6,910,840 | 42,144 |
| Texas (TX) | Austin | Houston | 29,145,505 | 268,596 |
| Virginia (VA) | Richmond | Virginia Beach | 8,631,393 | 42,775 |
| West Virginia (WV) | Charleston | Charleston | 1,793,716 | 24,230 |
| Total (16 states) | 125,576,562 | 920,378 |
Geography
The South divides into three bands running south-west from the Atlantic. The Coastal Plain fronts the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, low, sandy and wet, and includes all of Florida and Louisiana. The Piedmont is the rolling upland behind it, where the fall line at Richmond, Raleigh, Columbia and Atlanta fixed the sites of the early capitals. The Appalachians run behind the Piedmont from Maryland to Alabama; Mount Mitchell in North Carolina, 6,684 ft, is the highest point east of the Mississippi.
West of the mountains the land drops to the Mississippi valley and rises again into the Ozarks and Ouachitas of Arkansas and Oklahoma, then the plains of Texas. The far west of Texas is desert and mountain, with Guadalupe Peak (8,751 ft) the region's high point. The Rio Grande forms the 1,250-mile border with Mexico.
The region has the country's longest coastline outside Alaska: Florida alone has about 1,350 miles on two seas. The Mississippi reaches the Gulf below New Orleans after forming the borders of Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana; the Ohio forms the northern border of Kentucky and West Virginia.
Related maps
- Divisions: South Atlantic, East South Central, West South Central.
- Overlapping informal regions: Southeast, Gulf Coast, Southwest, Mid-Atlantic.
- Test yourself: Southern states quiz (16 questions).
- Time: the Atlantic states are Eastern, the Gulf and western states Central; Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee and Texas are split.
- Geography: Gulf of Mexico, Mason–Dixon line, Rio Grande.
- Other regions: Northeast, Midwest, West, or the regions overview.