If a person does not know or is unsure of what a resident of a particular state is called, a simple solution is to say that the individual "is a resident of (said state)." But using proper nouns to refer to residents is more concise than using the above catchall phrase and sometimes more colorful.
Rules for Forming the Words
The Gregg Reference Manual (10th edition), citing the United States Government Printing Office Style Manual, presents nine ways or rules for how to form proper nouns that refer to state residents:
- Add n to the state name
- Add an
- Drop the last letter and add n or an
- Add ian
- Drop the last letter and add ian
- Add r
- Add er
- Add ite
- Drop the last letter and add ite
Infoplease presents the same proper nouns as the book menioned above and supplies more too.Following are the names for the residents of all 50 states with the rule governing them in parenthesis.The name following the diagonal is added by Infoplease
The List, A – H
- Alabamian (5)/Alabaman
- Alaskan (1)
- Arizonan (1)/Arizonian
- Arkansan (3)
- Californian (1)
- Coloradan (3)
- Connecticuter (7)/Nutmegger
- Delawarean (2)
- Floridian (5)
- Georgian (1)
- Hawaiian (2)/kamaaina for a non-ethnic person born in Hawaii and malihini for a new resident
The List, I – L
- Idahoan (2)
- Illinoisan (2)
- Indianian (5)/Indianan and Hoosier
- Iowan (1)
- Kansan (3)
- Kentuckian (5)
- Louisianian (5)/Louisianan
The List, M
- Mainer (6) or Mainiac
- Marylander (7)
- Massachusettsan(2)/Bay Stater
- Michiganian (4)/Michiganer, Michiganite
- Minnesotan (1)
- Mississippian (2)
- Missourian (2)
- Montanan (1)
Note: Some residents of Maine use the word Mainiac. Others do not like the word at all. One Mainer explains that some residents might use the term to be funny. But the resident goes on to say that those who do not live there should not use the word because some Mainers think it is "cute" and "condescending."
The List, N
- New Hampshireite (9)
- New Jerseyite (8)/New Jerseyan
- New Mexican (3)
- New Yorker (7)
- Nebraskan (1)
- Nevadan (1)/Nevadian
- North Carolinian (5)
- North Dakotan (1)
The List, O – T
- Ohioan (2)
- Oklahomian (1)
- Oregonian (4)
- Pennsylvanian (1)
- Rhode Islander (7)
- South Dakotan (1)
- South Carolinian
- Tennessean (3)/Tennesseean
- Texan(3)
The List, U – W
- Utahn (1)/Utahan
- Virginian (1)
- Vermonter(7)
- Washingtonian(4)
- West Virginian (1)
- Wisconsinite (8)
- Wyomingite (8)
Technically, the words listed here are demonyms. Broadly speaking, a demonyn is a word that refers to "the members of a people or the inhabitants of a place," says reference.com. It comes from demos, the Greek word for populace, plus the suffix onym. The demonyms cited in this article are derived from placenames. However, some come from the language a people speak, as English for those who live in England.
Source:
Sabin, William A. Gregg Reference Manual: A Manual of Style, Grammar, Usage and Formatting.10th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin. 2005.
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