The U.S. state of

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

has 27 official emblems, as designated by the

Oregon State Legislature The Oregon Legislative Assembly is the State legislature (United States), state legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. The Legislative Assembly is bicameral, consisting of an upper house, upper and lower chamber: the Oregon State Senate, Sena ...

. Most of the symbols are listed in Title 19, Chapter 186 of the Oregon Revised Statutes (2011 edition). Oregon's first symbol was the

motto A motto (derived from the Latin language, Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian language, Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a Sentence (linguistics), sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of a ...

''Alis Volat Propriis'', written and translated in 1854.

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

for "She Flies With Her Own Wings", the motto remained unchanged until 1957, when "The Union" became the official state motto. ''Alis Volat Propriis'' became the state motto once again in 1987. Originally designed in 1857, usage of the

Oregon State Seal The seal of the State of Oregon is the Seals of the U.S. states, official seal of the U.S. state of Oregon. It was designed by Harvey Gordon in 1857, two years before Oregon was admitted to the Union. The seal was preceded by the Salmon Seal of ...

began after Oregon became the 33rd state of the United States on February 14, 1859. The motto and seal served as Oregon's only symbols until over 50 years later, when the Oregon-grape became the state flower in 1899. Oregon had six official symbols by 1950 and 22 symbols by 2000. The newest symbol of Oregon is

brewer's yeast ''Saccharomyces cerevisiae'' () (brewer's yeast or baker's yeast) is a species of yeast (single-celled fungal microorganisms). The species has been instrumental in winemaking, baking, and brewing since ancient times. It is believed to have been o ...

, declared the state microbe in 2013. While some of the symbols are unique to Oregon, others are used by multiple states. For example, the

North American beaver The North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') is one of two Extant taxon, extant beaver species, along with the Eurasian beaver (''Castor fiber''). It is native to North America and has been introduced in South America (Patagonia) and Europe ...

is also the

state animal State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

of New York, and the

Chinook salmon The Chinook salmon (''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'') is the largest and most valuable species of Oncorhynchus, Pacific salmon. Its common name is derived from the Chinookan peoples. Other vernacular names for the species include king salmon, quinn ...

(sometimes known as the king salmon) is also the state fish of

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

. The

square dance A square dance is a dance for four couples, or eight dancers in total, arranged in a square, with one couple on each side, facing the middle of the square. Square dances are part of a broad spectrum of dances known by various names: country dan ...

and milk are commonly used state dances and state beverages, respectively.

Insignia

Flora and fauna

Geology

Culture

Unofficial symbols and unsuccessful proposals

While most states have an official

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

, the Oregon Legislature never officially adopted one. Oregon's unofficial nickname is "The Beaver State". Unofficial tourism advertising for Oregon has included the slogans "Things Look Different Here" and "Oregon, We Love Dreamers", the latter of which alludes to the "basic sense of idealism" of the state's culture. In the 1950s and 60s, Oregon license plates featured the unofficial motto, "Pacific Wonderland". Several symbols have been proposed for addition to the list of official state symbols but were never adopted. The "Oregon Waltz" was approved as the state waltz by the Oregon House in 1997, but the proposal did not succeed in the Senate. In 2001, legislation designating the Kiger Mustang, a horse breed unique to southeastern Oregon, as the state horse was introduced, but not adopted. It was suggested in 2003 that Oregon have an official state tartan, but the bill never passed out of committee.

References

;General * * ;Specific

External links

* {{featured list

Oregon culture State symbols