State and Province Abbreviations
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- Kategoria: Abbreviations
Traditional abbreviations for states and provinces begin with a capital letter and end with a period.
Except for the abbreviation D.C. when it follows Washington, which may be used at any time, use the abbreviations for states and provinces only in lists, maps, charts, addresses, and informal writing.
Avoid abbreviations for states, provinces, and countries in formal writing--the exceptions are the relatively long U.S., U.S.A., U.S.S.R., and C.I.S. which may be used at any time.
The two-letter postal service abbreviations are all capitals with no periods. They are not set apart by commas. They are only used with addresses on letters, envelopes, and packages to be mailed.
Correct: P.O. Box 203
Shelton, Conn., 06484
(In an address)Correct: P.O. Box 203
Shelton CT 06484
(In an address)Incorrect: He works in Shelton, Conn.
(Standard sentence, do not abbreviate.)Correct: He works in Shelton, Connecticut.
Correct only because it is informal: Was it really the O'Leary's cow that made Chicago, Ill.?
U.S. State Abbreviations
(Canadian provinces follow this list.)
State/Territory | Traditional | Postal |
Alabama | Ala. | AL |
Alaska | Alaska | AK |
Arizona | Ariz. | AZ |
Arkansas | Ark. | AR |
American Samoa | AS | |
California | Cal., Calif. | CA |
Colorado | Col., Colo. | CO |
Connecticut | Conn. | CT |
Delaware | Del. | DE |
District of Columbia | D.C. | DC |
Fed. States of Micronesia | FM | |
Florida | Fla. | FL |
Georgia | Ga. | GA |
Guam | Guam | GU |
Hawaii | Hawaii, H.I. | HI |
Idaho | Ida., Id., I. | ID |
Illinois | Ill. | IL |
Indiana | Ind. | IN |
Iowa | Iowa, Ia. | IA |
Kansas | Kan., Kans. | KS |
Kentucky | Ken., Ky. | KY |
Louisiana | La. | LA |
Maine | Me. | ME |
Maryland | Md. | MD |
Marshall Islands | Marshall Is. | MH |
Massachusetts | Mass. | MA |
Michigan | Mich. | MI |
Minnesota | Minn. | MN |
Mississippi | Miss. | MS |
Missouri | Mo. | MO |
Montana | Mont. | MT |
Nebraska | Neb., Nebr. | NB |
Nevada | Nev. | NV |
New Hampshire | N.H. | NH |
New Jersey | N.J. | NJ |
New Mexico | N.M., N.Mex. | NM |
New York | N.Y. | NY |
North Carolina | N.C. | NC |
North Dakota | N.D., N.Dak | ND |
Northern Marianas | N. Marianas | MP |
Ohio | Ohio, O. | OH |
Oklahoma | Okla., Ok. | OK |
Oregon | Ore. | OR |
Pennsylvania | Penna., Penn., Pa. | PA |
Puerto Rico | P.R. | PR |
Rhode Island | R.I. | RI |
South Carolina | S.C. | SC |
South Dakota | S.D., S.Dak. | SD |
Tennessee | Tenn. | TN |
Texas | Tex. | TX |
Utah | Utah, Ut. | UT |
Vermont | Vt. | VT |
Virginia | Va. | VA |
(U.S.) Virgin Islands | U.S.V.I., V.I. | VI |
Washington | Wash. | WA |
West Virginia | W.Va. | WV |
Wisconsin | Wis., Wisc. | WI |
Wyoming | Wyo. | WY |
Armed Forces, the Americas | USAFA. | AA |
Armed Forces, Europe | USAFE | AE |
Armed Forces, Pacific | USAFP | AP |
Canadian Provinces
See also Commas with Addresses
Province Traditional Postal Alberta Alta. AB
British Columbia B.C. BC
Manitoba Man. MB
New Brunswick N.B. NB
Newfoundland N.F. NF
Northwest Territories and Nunavut N.W.T. NT
Nova Scotia N.S. NS
Ontario Ont. ON
Prince Edward Island P.E.I. PE
Québec P.Q., Qué. QC
Sakatchewan Sask. SK
Yukon Territory Yuk., Y.T. YT