List of North Carolina state symbols

Location of the state of North Carolina in the United States of America

The state of North Carolina has 42 official state emblems, as well as other designated places and events. The majority are determined by acts of the North Carolina General Assembly and record in Chapters 144, 145, and 149 of the North Carolina General Statutes.[1] The state's nicknames – "The Old North State" and "The Tar Heel State" – are both traditional, but have never been passed into law by the General Assembly.

The first symbol was the Seal of North Carolina, which was made official in 1871. The original seal also contained the future state motto. It served as the state's only emblem for 14 years until the adoption of the state flag in 1885. Enacted by law in 2013, the newest symbols of North Carolina are the state art medium, clay; the state fossil, the megalodon teeth; the state frog, the Pine Barrens tree frog; the state marsupial, the Virginia opossum; and the state salamander, the marbled salamander.

## Insignia[edit]

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

Type  | Symbol  | Year  | Image  | Source

|
|
|
|

Flag | "That the flag of North Carolina shall consist of a blue union, containing in the center thereof a white star with the letter N in gilt on the left and the letter C in gilt on the right of said star, the circle containing the same to be one-third the width of the union. The fly of the flag shall consist of two equally proportioned bars; the upper bar to be red, the lower bar to be white; that the length of the bars horizontally shall be equal to the perpendicular length of the union, and the total length of the flag shall be one-third more than its width. That above the star in the center of the union there shall be a gilt scroll in semi-circular form, containing in black letters this inscription 'May 20, 1775,' and that below the star there shall be a similar scroll containing in black letters the inscription: 'April 12, 1776.'"  | 1885  |  | [2]
Motto | Esse quam videri
("To be, rather than to seem")  | 1893  | —  | [3]
Nicknames | Old North State
Tar Heel State | Traditional  | —  | [4]
Seal | The Seal of North Carolina | 1871

(Revised in 1983)

|  | [4]

## Flora[edit]

Type  | Symbol  | Year  | Image  | Source

|
|
|
|

Carnivorous plant | Venus flytrap
Dionaea muscipula | 2005  |  | [5]
Christmas tree | Fraser fir
Abies fraseri | 2005  |  | [6]
Flower | Flowering dogwood
Cornus florida | 1941  |  | [7]
Tree | Pine
Genus Pinus | 1963  |  | [8]
Wildflower | Carolina lily
Lilium michauxii | 2003  |  | [9]

## Fauna[edit]

Type  | Symbol  | Year  | Image  | Source

|
|
|
|

Bird | Cardinal | 1943  |  | [10]
Butterfly | Eastern tiger swallowtail | 2012  |  | [11]
Dog | Plott Hound | 1989  |  | [12]
Fossil | Megalodon teeth | 2013  |  | [13]
Freshwater trout | Southern Appalachian brook trout | 2005  |  | [14]
Frog | Pine Barrens tree frog
Hyla andersonii | 2013  |  | [15]
Horse | Colonial Spanish Mustang | 2010  |  | [16]
Insect | Western honey bee

(Apis mellifera)

| 1973  |  | [17]
Mammal | Eastern gray squirrel
Sciurus carolinensis | 1969  |  | [18]
Marsupial | Virginia opossum
Didelphis virginiana | 2013  |  | [19]
Reptile | Eastern box turtle | 1979  |  | [20]
Salamander | Marbled salamander
Ambystoma opacum | 2013  |  | [21]
Saltwater fish | Channel bass | 1971  |  | [22]
Shell | Scotch bonnet | 1965  |  | [23]

## Geology[edit]

Type  | Symbol  | Year  | Image  | Source

|
|
|
|

Mineral | Gold
Aurum | 2011  |  | [24]
Rock | Granite | 1979  |  | [25]
Stone | Emerald | 1973  |  | [26]

## Culture[edit]

Type  | Symbol  | Year  | Image  | Source

|
|
|
|

Art medium | Clay | 2013  | —  | [27]
Beverage | Milk | 1987  |  | [28]
Birthplace of traditional pottery | Seagrove Area  | 2005  |  | [29]
Blue berry | Blueberry
Vaccinium genus | 2001  |  | [30]
Colors | The red and blue of the North Carolina and United States flags  | 1945  | —  | [31]
Folk dance | Clogging | 2005  |  | [32]
Fruit | Scuppernong grape
Vitis genus | 2001  |  | [30]
Historical boat | Shad boat | 1987  | —  | [33]
Language | English language | 1987  | —  | [34]
Popular dance | Shagging | 2005  | —  | [32]
Red berry | Strawberry
Fragaria genus | 2001  |  | [30]
Song | "The Old North State"  | 1927  | —  | [35]
Sport | Stock car racing | 2011  |  | [36]
Toast | The Tar Heel Toast | 1957  | —  | [35]
Tartan | Carolina tartan | 1991  |  | [37]
Vegetable | Sweet potato | 1995  |  | [38]

## See also[edit]

* List of North Carolina-related topics
* Lists of United States state insignia
* State of North Carolina

## References[edit]

General

* "North Carolina State Symbols". North Carolina Secretary of State. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
* "NC State Symbols". North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
* "State Symbols". NCpedia. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
* "Chapter 145 - State Symbols and Other Official Adoptions". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 14 August 2014.

Specific

1. ^ "Chapter 145 - State Symbols and Other Official Adoptions". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
2. ^ "State flag". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
3. ^ "State motto". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
4. ^ a b "North Carolina State Symbols". North Carolina Secretary of State. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
5. ^ "State carnivorous plant". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
6. ^ "State Christmas tree". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
7. ^ "State flower". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
8. ^ "State tree". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
9. ^ "State wildflower". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
10. ^ "State bird". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
11. ^ "State butterfly". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
12. ^ "State dog". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
13. ^ "State fossil". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
14. ^ "State freshwater trout". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
15. ^ "State frog". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
16. ^ "State horse". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
17. ^ "State insect". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
18. ^ "State mammal". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
19. ^ "State marsupial". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
20. ^ "State reptile". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
21. ^ "State salamander". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
22. ^ "State saltwater fish". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
23. ^ "State shell". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
24. ^ "State mineral". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
25. ^ "State rock". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
26. ^ "State stone". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
27. ^ "State art medium". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
28. ^ "State beverage". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
29. ^ "State birthplace of traditional pottery". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
30. ^ a b c "State fruit and State berries". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
31. ^ "State colors". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
32. ^ a b "Official State dances". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
33. ^ "State historical boat". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
34. ^ "State language". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
35. ^ a b "State Song and Toast". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
36. ^ "State sport". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
37. ^ "State tartan". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
38. ^ "State vegetable". North Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved 13 August 2014.

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