Alabama

Alabama is a state in the Deep South of the United States, known for its pivotal role in the American Civil Rights Movement and its warm Southern culture. Its capital is Montgomery, while Birmingham is the largest city. Nicknamed the Yellowhammer State, it stretches from the Appalachian foothills to the Gulf of Mexico.

Alabama descends from the southern end of the Appalachian Mountains in the north to coastal plains and a short but busy Gulf Coast shoreline around Mobile Bay in the south. The Tennessee and Alabama rivers wind through fertile valleys and forests. The climate is humid subtropical, with hot summers and mild winters.

Alabama culture is rooted in Southern traditions of hospitality, church life, barbecue and college football, where Alabama and Auburn inspire fierce loyalty. The state has a deep musical heritage, and its history is inseparable from the struggle for civil rights led from cities like Montgomery and Selma.

Home to Indigenous peoples including the Creek and Cherokee, Alabama became the 22nd state in 1819 and a center of the cotton economy built on slavery. A century later it became a crucible of the Civil Rights Movement, from the Montgomery Bus Boycott to the Selma to Montgomery marches.