[331] Known for the vibrancy of its visual and performing arts, the Houston Theater Districta 17-block area in the heart of Downtown Houstonranks second in the country in the number of theater seats in a concentrated downtown area, with 12,948 seats for live performances and 1,480 movie seats. (2020) 29,145,505; (2022 est.) [248] Roughly 30% of the total population spoke Spanish. [301] The Energy Information Administration states the state's large agriculture and forestry industries could give Texas an enormous amount biomass for use in biofuels. This makes it the deadliest natural disaster in U.S. [277] At $7.4 billion or 56.7 percent of Texas's annual agricultural cash receipts, beef cattle production represents the largest single segment of Texas agriculture. The name of the state derives from the Caddo word thecas, meaning allies or friends. (The Spanish spelled the word tejas or texas and used it to describe the area where this Native American tribe lived.) In addition, the legislature established white primaries, ensuring minorities were excluded from the formal political process. [138][139][140][141], From the mid-2000s to 2019, Texas gained an influx of business relocations and regional headquarters from companies in California. Another 5,200 are at the branch campuses in Galveston and Qatar and at the School of Law, Higher Education Center at McAllen . Oligocene volcanic rocks are found in far west Texas in the Big Bend area. It ranks as the largest airline in the United States by number of passengers carried domestically per year and the largest airline in the world by number of passengers carried. [437] The party also attracted some minorities, but many have continued to vote for Democratic candidates. [356][357] Discovery of minerals on Permanent University Fund land, particularly oil, has helped fund the rapid growth of the state's two largest university systems: the University of Texas System and the Texas A&M System. [431], The Texas constitution defines the responsibilities of county governments, which serve as agents of the state. Stretching inland from the Gulf Coast, the Coastal Plains, encompassing about two-fifths of the states land area, range from sea level to about 1,000 feet (300 metres) in elevation. [120], Like most of the South, the Texas economy was devastated by the War. It became the 28th state of the union in 1845. Today 9 to 12 miles (14 to 19km) of sediments are buried beneath the Texas continental shelf and a large proportion of remaining US oil reserves are here. Rice University in Houston is one of the leading teaching and research universities of the United States and is ranked the nation's 17th-best overall university by U.S. News & World Report. Nevertheless, the state also attracted many businessmen and other settlers with more legitimate interests as well. EXPLORE ACADEMICS WELCOME HOME The Aggie family is a friendly community that values diversity and offers endless ways to connect, have fun and serve others. 2022 season schedule, scores, stats, and highlights. [123] In 2017, Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Rockport as a Category4 Hurricane, causing significant damage there. [45] Nine years later, shipwrecked Spanish explorer lvar Nez Cabeza de Vaca and his cohort became the first Europeans in what is now Texas. Students at Texas A&M get a world-class education at a reasonable costand graduate with far less college-related debt than their peers at other universities. The Act allows private citizens to sue abortion providers and anyone else who assists in an abortion, except for the woman on whom the abortion is performed. County government runs similar to a "weak" mayor-council system; the county judge has no veto authority, but votes along with the other commissioners. [148] On April 27, 2020, Governor Greg Abbott announced phase one of re-opening the economy. Except for the secretary of state, voters elect executive officers independently; thus candidates are directly answerable to the public, not the governor. With mineral resources, Texas leads in creating cement, crushed stone, lime, salt, sand and gravel. [285][286] Many petroleum companies are based in Texas such as: ConocoPhillips,[289] EOG Resources, ExxonMobil,[290] Halliburton,[291] Hilcorp, Marathon Oil,[292] Occidental Petroleum,[293] Pioneer Natural Resources, Tesoro,[294] Valero Energy,[295] and Western Refining. Between 2000 and 2010, the total population grew by 20.6%, but Hispanics and Latino Americans grew by 65%, whereas non-Hispanic whites grew by only 4.2%. German and other West Germanic languages were spoken by 49,565 residents; Russian, Polish, and other Slavic languages by 37,444; Korean by 31,673; Chinese 86,370; Vietnamese 92,410; Tagalog 40,124; and Arabic by 47,170 Texans. Texas's economy is the second-largest of any country subdivision globally, behind California. [355], Thirty-six (36) separate and distinct public universities exist in Texas, of which 32 belong to one of the six state university systems. Got a Texas driver license or vehicle registration that needs to be renewed? The conflict between the factions was typified by an incident known as the Texas Archive War. The wriggling course of the Red River makes up the eastern two-thirds of Texass boundary with Oklahoma to the north, while the remainder of the northern boundary is the Panhandle, which juts northward, forming a counterpart in the western part of that state. At the start of its formation, the incipient Gulf of Mexico basin was restricted and seawater often evaporated completely to form thick evaporite deposits of Jurassic age. Uto-Aztecan Puebloan and Jumano peoples lived neared the Rio Grande in the western portion of the state and the Athabaskan-speaking Apache tribes lived throughout the interior. Vegetation in this region consists of thick piney woods. [324], "Texas-sized" is an expression that can be used in two ways: to describe something that is about the size of the U.S. state of Texas,[325][326] or to describe something (usually but not always originating from Texas) that is large compared to other objects of its type. Except for some municipal benches, partisan elections select judges at all levels of the judiciary; the governor fills vacancies by appointment. It is difficult to say who lived in the northwestern region of the state originally. The Texas Rangers were unofficially created by Stephen F. Austin in 1823 and formally constituted in 1835. The region of 60,000 square miles (160,000km2) contains most of the state's largest cities and metropolitan areas as well as 17 million people, nearly 75 percent of Texas's total population. Now theres an even easier, faster, and more secure way for Texans to take care of government to-dos like driver license and vehicle registration renewals anytime, anywhere, and on any device. [224] Of immigrant residents, some 35.8 percent were naturalized U.S. After the Civil War and the restoration of its representation in the federal government, Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation. By the end of the 18th century only a few nomadic tribes had not converted to Christianity. If it were an independent country, Texas would be the 39th-largest. ", "DSHS Announces First Case of COVID-19 in Texas", "Governor Abbott Announces Phase One To Open Texas, Establishes Statewide Minimum Standard Health Protocols", "Coronavirus cases in Texas are soaring again. Texans accused tribes, including the Caddo of stealing livestock despite lacking evidence. [342] The TEA has no authority over private or home school activities. [173] At least 12 species have been introduced and now reproduce freely in Texas. [349][350] The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) ranks the state's public universities into three distinct tiers:[351], Texas's alternative affirmative action plan, Texas House Bill 588, guarantees Texas students who graduated in the top 10 percent of their high school class automatic admission to state-funded universities. Since 2012, Austin's Circuit of the Americas plays host to a round of the Formula 1 World Championship[469] the first at a permanent road circuit in the United States since the 1980 Grand Prix at Watkins Glen International, as well as Grand Prix motorcycle racing, FIA World Endurance Championship and United SportsCar Championship races. These flat, low prairies extend inland to form a fertile crescent that is well adapted to farming and cattle raising. [103] On December 29, 1845, the U.S. Congress admitted Texas to the U.S. as a constituent state of the Union.[104]. [174], Texas plays host to several species of wasps, including an abundance of Polistes exclamans,[175] and is an important ground for the study of Polistes annularis. Purchase your tickets to join the Texas A&M University Bands for an afternoon of music as our students perform both wind band classics and new compositions. 22 TCU wins 75-73 to deny No. Author of. [287][288] Texas has 102.4trillion cubic feet (2.901012m3) of gas reserves which is 23% of the nation's gas reserves. [166], The size and unique history of Texas make its regional affiliation debatable; it can be fairly considered a Southern or a Southwestern state, or both. [358], The state has sought to expand the number of flagship universities by elevating some of its seven institutions designated as "emerging research universities". Set up your free account on TxT, the states official government assistant, and it will remind you when its time to renew. Hardy by nature, but also suitable for slaughtering and consumption, they represented an economic opportunity many entrepreneurs seized upon, thus creating the cowboy culture for which Texas is famous. [402] American Airlines Group's American / American Eagle, the world's largest airline in total passengers-miles transported and passenger fleet size,[403] uses DFW as its largest and main hub. To create your own TxT account, you'll need a personal email address and a Texas driver license or ID. [345] The rate of school corporal punishment in Texas is surpassed only by Mississippi, Alabama, and Arkansas. Renew or replace driver license/ID with TxT, Renew massage therapy/instructor license with TxT, It's government just the way you want it - powerful, personalized, and in your pocket. airport. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the largest nontrinitarian Christian group in Texas alongside the Jehovah's Witnesses.[255]. Influence of Teotihuacan in northern Mexico peaked around AD 500 and declined over the 8th to 10th centuries. Three scheduled routes serve the state: the daily Texas Eagle (ChicagoSan Antonio); the tri-weekly Sunset Limited (New OrleansLos Angeles), with stops in Texas; and the daily Heartland Flyer (Fort WorthOklahoma City). Se recomienda escribir asimismo con x el gentilicio correspondiente: texano. While the United States claimed Texas's border stretched to the Rio Grande, Mexico claimed it was the Nueces River leaving the Rio Grande Valley under contested Texan sovereignty. Omissions? [260] Texas is the fifth-largest Muslim-populated state in the country. [51][52], European powers ignored the area until accidentally settling there in 1685. The Texas Panhandle has an eastern border with Oklahoma at 100 W, a northern border with Oklahoma at 3630' N and a western border with New Mexico at 103 W. El Paso lies on the state's western tip at 32 N and the Rio Grande. Son tambin vlidas las grafas con j (Tejas, tejano), de uso mayoritario en Espaa.". The oldest rocks in Texas date from the Mesoproterozoic and are about 1,600million years old.[168]. [105], The Compromise of 1850 set Texas's boundaries at their present form. [399] All federal and state highways in Texas are paved. The Speaker of the House leads the House, and the lieutenant governor, the Senate. County and state elections are partisan. state. The Interior Lowlands region consists of gently rolling to hilly forested land and is part of a larger pine-hardwood forest. Copyright 2023 State of Texas. [167], Texas is the southernmost part of the Great Plains, which ends in the south against the folded Sierra Madre Occidental of Mexico. [300] The Roscoe Wind Farm in Roscoe, Texas, is one of the world's largest wind farms with a 781.5 megawatt (MW) capacity. It is the home to 65 species of mammals, 213 species of reptiles and amphibians, including the American green tree frog, and the greatest diversity of bird life in the United States590 native species in all.