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North Dakota ( /ˌnɔrθ dəˈkoʊtə/ (help·info) ) is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America; on the Canadian border halfway between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. North Dakota is the 19th largest state by area in the U.S.; it is the 3 ^rd least populous, with just over 646,844 residents as of 2009. North Dakota was carved out of the northern half of the Dakota Territory and admitted to the Union on November 2, 1889.

The state capital is Bismarck and the largest city is Fargo. The primary public universities are located in Grand Forks and Fargo. The United States Air Force operates bases at both Minot and Grand Forks. It also has lowest rate of unemployment in the country with a rate of only 4.4% in December 2009.

Most North Dakotans are of Northern European descent. The five largest ancestry groups in North Dakota are: German (46.6%) (298,779), Norwegian (30.4%) (194,886), Irish (8.3%) (52,925), French (4.8%) (30,571) and Swedish (4.5%) (29,098).

2.47% of the population aged 5 and older speak German at home, while 1.37% speak Spanish, 0.46% speak Norwegian, and 0.26% speak French according to the 2000 U.S. Census.

The state's racial composition in 2005 was:

• 94.3% White (non-Hispanic);
• 4.3% Native American/Alaskan Native;
• 1.6% Hispanic, a category that includes people of many races;
• 0.1% Asian/Pacific Islander;
• 0.1% Black (non-Hispanic);
• 0.1% mixed race.

Religion

North Dakota has the lowest percentage of non-religious people of any state, and it also has the most churches per capita of any state.

A 2001 survey indicated that 35% of North Dakota's population was Lutheran, and 30% was Roman Catholic. Other religious groups represented were Methodists (7%), Baptists (6%), the Assembly of God (3%), and Jehovah's Witness (1%). Christians with unstated or other denominational affiliations, including other Protestants, totaled 3%, bringing the total Christian population to 86%. Non-Christian religions, such as Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism, together represented 4% of the population. Three percent of respondents answered "no religion" on the survey, and 6% declined to answer.

The largest denominations by number of adherents in 2000 were the Roman Catholic Church with 179,349; the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America with 174,554; and the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod with 23,720.

According to the website of the Mormon church there were 6,120 Latter Day Saints in sixteen congregations in North Dakota as of 2009. There is also an LDS temple in Bismarck.

Culture

Fine and performing arts

North Dakota's major fine art museums and venues include the Chester Fritz Auditorium, Empire Arts Center, the Fargo Theatre, North Dakota Museum of Art, and the Plains Art Museum. The Bismarck-Mandan Symphony Orchestra, Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra, Greater Grand Forks Symphony Orchestra and Minot Symphony Orchestra are full-time professional and semi-professional musical ensembles that perform concerts and offer educational programs to the community.

Entertainment

See also: Music of North Dakota

North Dakotan musicians of many genres include blues guitarist Jonny Lang, country music singer Lynn Anderson, jazz and traditional pop singer and songwriter Peggy Lee, big band leader Lawrence Welk, and pop singer Bobby Vee. The state is also home to two groups of the Indie rock genre that have become known on a national scale: GodheadSilo (originally from Fargo, but later relocated to Olympia, Washington and became signed to the Kill Rock Stars label) and June Panic (also of Fargo, signed to Secretly Canadian).

Ed Schultz is known around the country as the host of progressive talk radio show The Ed Schultz Show , and The Ed Show on MSNBC. Shadoe Stevens hosted American Top 40 from 1988 to 1995. Josh Duhamel is an Emmy Award-winning actor known for his roles in All My Children and Las Vegas . Nicole Linkletter and CariDee English were winning contestants of Cycles 5 and 7, respectively, of America's Next Top Model . Kellan Lutz has appeared in movies such as Stick It, Accepted, Prom Night, and Twilight.

Popular culture

See also: Cuisine of North Dakota

North Dakota cuisine includes Knoephla soup: a thick, stew-like chicken soup with dumplings, lutefisk: lye-treated fish, Kuchen: a pie-like pastry, lefse: a flat bread made from mashed potatoes that is eaten with butter and sugar, Fleischkuekle, a deep fried entree of ground beef covered in dough, and served with chips and a pickle in most restaurants; strudel: a dough-and-filling item that can either be made as a pastry, or a savory dish with onions or meat; and other traditional German and Norwegian dishes. North Dakota also shares concepts such as hot dishes along with other Midwestern states.

Along with having the most churches per capita of any state, North Dakota has the highest percentage of church-going population of any state.

Native American traditions are practiced by the Native American population of North Dakota, especially on Indian reservations. The North Dakota Pow-wow is held in Bismarck in late summer each year.

Outdoor activities such as hunting and fishing are hobbies for many North Dakotans. Ice fishing and snowmobiling are also popular during the winter months. Residents of North Dakota may own or visit a cabin along a lake. Popular sport fish include walleye, perch, and northern pike.

The western terminus of the North Country National Scenic Trail is located on Lake Sakakawea where it abuts the Lewis and Clark Trail.

Economy

See also: List of North Dakota companies

Agriculture is the largest industry in North Dakota, although petroleum and food processing are also major industries. The economy of North Dakota had a gross domestic product of $24 billion in 2005. The per capita income in 2006 was $33,034, ranked 29 ^th in the nation. The three-year median household income from 2002–2004 was $39,594, ranking 37 in the U.S. North Dakota is also the only state with a state owned bank, the Bank of North Dakota in Bismarck, and a state owned flour mill, the North Dakota Mill and Elevator in Grand Forks.

Industry and commerce

North Dakota's earliest industries were fur trading and agriculture. Although less than 10% of the population is employed in the agricultural sector, it remains a major part of the state's economy, ranking 24 ^th in the nation in the value of products sold. The state is the largest producer in the U.S. of barley, sunflower seeds, spring and durum wheat for processing, and farm-raised turkeys.

Energy

Coal mines generate 93% of the North Dakota electricity. Oil was discovered near Tioga in 1951, generating 53 million barrels (8,400,000 m ³ ) of oil a year by 1984. Western North Dakota is currently in an oil boom: the Tioga, Stanley and Minot-Burlington communities are experiencing rapid growth. The oil reserves may hold up to 400 billion barrels (6.4 × 10 ¹⁰  m ³ ) of oil, 25 times larger than the reserves in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. However, a report issued in April 2008 by the U.S. Geological Survey estimates that the oil recoverable by current technology in the Bakken formation is two orders of magnitude less, in the range of 3.0 to 4.3 billion barrels, with a mean of 3.65 billion.

The Great Plains area, which North Dakota is a part of, is called the "Saudi Arabia" of wind energy, North Dakota has the capability of producing 1.2 billion kilowatt hours of energy. That is enough to power 25% of the entire country's energy needs. Wind energy in North Dakota is also very cost effective because the state has large rural expanses and wind speeds seldom go below 10 mph (16 km/h).

State taxes

North Dakota has a slightly progressive income tax structure; the five brackets of state income tax rates are 2.1%, 3.92% 4.34%, 5.04%, and 5.54% as of 2004. North Dakota is ranked as the 21st highest in the nation for their capitals' total state taxes. The sales tax in North Dakota is 5% for most items. The state allows municipalities to institute local sales taxes and special local taxes, such as the 1.75% supplemental sales tax in Grand Forks. Excise taxes are levied on the purchase price or market value of aircraft registered in North Dakota. The state imposes a use tax on items purchased elsewhere but used within North Dakota. Owners of real property in

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