The state motto of Florida is “In God We Trust.” An inscription of the motto can be found on the state seal, which is shaped like a circle with the “Great Seal of Florida” printed at the top and “In God We Trust” printed at the bottom. “In God We Trust” is a slight alteration of the previous state motto of Florida, which was “In God Is Our Trust.” Florida's motto, which was derived from the motto on the United States silver dollar, affirms a deep faith and trust of the people of Florida in God.
“In God We Trust” is also the official national motto of the United States. Even though the state motto of Florida has been widely recognized and accepted since the late 1800s, it did not receive any official recognition until 2006 when Governor Jeb Bush signed a house bill formally making “In God We Trust” the official state motto. The seal bearing the inscription of the state motto of Florida also features a depiction of an Indian woman spreading flowers on the ground with other images like a sabal palmetto palm tree and sun rays over a highland in the background. Florida's state seal is also incorporated into the state flag, where it is located at the center of the red cross of St. Andrew against a white background.
Florida is officially known as the “sunshine state" because of its usually sunny weather. This nickname was formally declared the official state nickname in 1970 by the legislature. Florida is also known as “the alligator state” due to the large numbers of alligators that can be found in the swamps and streams across the Florida landscape. The state of Florida has other official and unofficial mottoes and nicknames as well.
Another unofficial nickname for Florida is “the orange state,” as huge quantities of oranges are grown in the state for both local consumption and export. Major industries for the state of Florida include tourism and agriculture, with the largest city being Jacksonville. Florida was named by the Spanish explorer, Ponce de Leon, and the name literally means “feat of flowers.”
Florida has other official state adoptions including a state mammal, state bird, state marine mammal, state flower and state wild flower. The state mammal of Florida is the Florida panther, and the state marine mammal is the manatee. The state bird is the mockingbird, while the state flower and wild flower are the orange blossom and coreopsis, respectively.
