Facts about the state of North Carolina

State flower :

Flowering Dogwood

State Bird :

Cardinal

State Tree :

Loblolly pine

State Motto :

To be, rather than to seem

• Raleigh is the capital of North Carolina.
• Charlotte is the largest city and the center of the state's most populous metropolitan region.
• North Carolina's name is derived from the Latin word Carolinus, meaning 'of Charles'. The state was named in honor of King Charles I and King Charles II of England by their friends and supporters who were establishing colonies in the southern part of the Virginia colony.
• The state is nicknamed the 'Tar Heel State'. While time has obscured the source of the name, some historians believe it refers to one of the state's major colonial-era products 'tar' which was derived from slowly burning the stumps of longleaf pine trees. More commonly accepted is that the name came about during the Civil War. Some say the name may have originally been used derisively, applied to North Carolina soldiers who could not hold a position against Union troops because they had forgotten to 'tar their heels' and thus could not stick to their ground.
• The state, once the northern part of the original Carolina colony, is also referred to as the 'Old North State'.