Gallery: State of Mississippi symbols
Quiz: Mississippi, like other states, has official symbols that represent our cultural heritage and natural resources. Challenge yourself with the items below- see how many official state symbols you can name.
(Place your cursor over an Item for the answer.)
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- 1. Answer Beverage
Milk
- 2. Answer Bird
Northern mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos)
- 3. Answer Butterfly
Spice Swallowtail (Papilio troilus linnaeus)
- 4. Answer Dance
Square Dance
- 5. Answer Fish
Largemouth (Black) Bass (Micropterus salmoides)
- 6. Answer Flower and tree
Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora)
- 7. Answer Fossil
Prehistoric Whale (Zygorhiza kochii)
- 8. Answer Fruit
Blueberry
- 9. Answer Gemstone
Mississippi Opal
- 10. Answer Insect
Honeybee (Apis mellifera)
- 11. Answer Land mammal 1
White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus)
- 12. Answer Land mammal 2
The Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)
- 13. Answer Language
English
- 1. Answer Beverage
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- 14. Answer Motto
"By valor and arms" ("Virtute et armis")
- 15. Answer Nicknames
"The Hospitality State," "The Magnolia State"
- 16. Answer Poem
Paul Ott's "I Am Mississippi"
- Access poem
- 17. Answer Reptile
American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)
- 18. Answer Shell
Oyster shell (Crassostrea virginica)
- 19. Answer Soil
Natchez Silt Loam
- 20. Answer Song
Originally, Houston Davis' "Go Mississippi." Replaced in 2022 by Steve Azar's "One Mississippi."
- Access song
- 21. Answer Stone
Petrified wood
- 22. Answer Toy
Teddy Bear
- 23. Answer Water mammal
Bottlenosed Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)
- 24. Answer Waterfowl
Wood Duck
(Aix sponsa)
- 25. Answer Wildflower
Tickseed Plant (Coreopsis)
- 14. Answer Motto
Fun fact: Did you know that the term "Mississippi" was derived from the word "Messipi"? "Messipi" is the French version for either the Ojibwe or Algonquin name for the "Misi-ziibi River" meaning "great river." It is also said that "Mississippi" is derived from the Choctaw expression "Mish-sha-sippurrkie" (meaning "father of waters").