State bird
Eastern brown pelican
Sources: Designation & background
Local timeBaton Rouge ·
U.S. States / South · Card 018
Louisiana
The Pelican State
Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve includes separate cultural centers, a battlefield and wetland landscapes.
Louisiana and its surroundings
● State capital · Gold highlights Louisiana.
Map: Natural Earth. Neighboring states use postal abbreviations.
Map: Natural Earth. Neighboring states use postal abbreviations.
At a glance
- Capital
- Baton Rouge
- Postal abbreviation
- LA
- Population
- 4,618,189July 1, 2025 · Census estimate
- Total area
- 135,659 km²52,378 square miles · land and water
- Statehood
- April 30, 1812State number 18
- Region
- South
Sources: Census · population · Census · area
State symbols & traditions
State song
You Are My Sunshine
Sources: Designation & background
State cuisine
Gumbo
Sources: Designation & background
Geography & flag
01
Location
Neighboring states: Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas.
02
Landscape & places
Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve includes separate cultural centers, a battlefield and wetland landscapes. Bayous and wetlands help explain local settlement and livelihoods, while the cultural sites document Louisiana’s different communities.
03
Land and water
The total area includes 111,898 km² of land and 23,761 km² of water, according to Census area measurements.
State flag
A pelican feeding its young on a blue field, above a white ribbon bearing the state motto.
Sources: Census · geographic reference · Census · area measurements · National Park Service · Jean Lafitte
How the landscape works
A bayou and a wetland are parts of a water-shaped landscape, but Louisiana’s story also requires attention to culture. Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve connects natural areas with cultural centers and a battlefield. These sites answer different questions: how the land works, how people live, and how historical events changed their lives. One type of site cannot substitute for all the others.
History
How Acadian migration helped shape Louisiana
The Acadians were French-speaking communities in what is now eastern Canada. British authorities expelled many beginning in 1755. Families were separated and scattered across different colonies and countries; some eventually settled in Louisiana.
In Louisiana, Acadian descendants adapted to new environments and interacted with other communities. Their language and traditions contributed to the culture now called Cajun. Cajun and Creole are not interchangeable labels for every Louisianan. The Acadian cultural centers of Jean Lafitte National Historical Park explain this migration and the customs that developed afterward.
Read more: Historical source ↗
Why this mattered
Acadians were expelled from their homes in what is now eastern Canada during the eighteenth century. Some later settled in Louisiana. Cajun culture developed through that migration and through life and exchange in a new setting. Explaining a cultural identity requires the circumstances of migration and adaptation, not only a place name or a list of foods.
Key dates
-
Louisiana Purchase
-
Orleans Territory organized
-
Statehood · State number 18
Sources: Congressional Research Service · statehood · U.S. Census Bureau · historical geography · National Park Service
People and place
Indigenous history and communities today
The Chitimacha Tribe provides a present-day Indigenous perspective from Louisiana. Cajun history is one important strand of the state’s culture, alongside distinct Native communities with their own histories and governments.
Continue with Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana. This is one starting point, not a complete account of the peoples connected to this land.
Compare
Louisiana and Arkansas
| Measure | Louisiana | Arkansas |
|---|---|---|
| Population (2025) | 4,618,189 | 3,114,791 |
| Land area (km²) | 111,898 | 134,771 |
| People per km² of land | 41.3 | 23.1 |
Louisiana has more people per square kilometer of land. Population density divides population by land area. It is an average across the whole jurisdiction, not a claim that residents are evenly spread out.
Calculated from the Census population series and land-area measurements used on these pages. Rounded figures; water area is excluded. Explore Arkansas.
Economy
Main activities
In 2025, manufacturing was the largest of the broad industry groups compared here by current-dollar output. Other major groups included real estate and rental and leasing, government and government enterprises, and educational services, health care, and social assistance.
Total economic output was $340.1 billion in current dollars in 2025.
Largest industry groups · 2025
- Manufacturing: 17.3%
- Real estate and rental and leasing: 11.6%
- Government and government enterprises: 10.6%
- Educational services, health care, and social assistance: 9.3%
Share of total current-dollar GDP. These figures measure output, not employment.
Sources: BEA · annual GDP by state, SAGDP2
Production, jobs and wages answer different questions
The industry chart measures the value of production. It does not count workers. An industry with a large share of GDP need not employ the most people or pay the highest wages. Employment and wage data would be needed to answer those questions.
Population & economic trends
Population, 2020–2025
Millions of people4.622025 · millions of people
July 1 resident population estimates, using the Census Bureau’s Vintage 2025 series.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau
View data table
| Year | People |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 4,652,145 |
| 2021 | 4,628,595 |
| 2022 | 4,600,892 |
| 2023 | 4,598,777 |
| 2024 | 4,614,878 |
| 2025 | 4,618,189 |
Real GDP, 2010–2025
Billions of chained 2017 dollars259.932025 · billions of chained 2017 dollars
Real GDP measures economic output adjusted for inflation. The chart uses BEA’s chained 2017 dollars.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
View data table
| Year | Millions of chained 2017 dollars |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 253,466.9 |
| 2011 | 241,235.9 |
| 2012 | 242,416.8 |
| 2013 | 236,482.3 |
| 2014 | 243,042.9 |
| 2015 | 239,584.1 |
| 2016 | 235,554.2 |
| 2017 | 239,830.7 |
| 2018 | 245,220.3 |
| 2019 | 246,674.4 |
| 2020 | 225,636.0 |
| 2021 | 242,582.1 |
| 2022 | 240,043.0 |
| 2023 | 248,949.4 |
| 2024 | 257,055.9 |
| 2025 | 259,927.1 |
Read the trend, then ask what explains it
Louisiana’s population decreased by about 0.7% between 2020 and 2025 in this series. That shows the size of the change. The chart alone cannot tell us how much came from births, deaths or migration.
Real GDP adjusts for changes in prices, so it helps compare production over time. Current-dollar GDP includes price changes. Neither measure tells us how income is distributed among residents.
Representation
- Electoral votes
- 82024 & 2028 elections
- Voting U.S. House seats
- 62020 Census allocation
- U.S. Senate seats
- 2
Electoral votes equal the state’s U.S. House seats plus its two U.S. Senate seats. These allocations apply to the 2024 and 2028 presidential elections.
Practice
Test your knowledge
Use the explanations and data on this page to answer ten questions. Hints and links to the relevant sections are available throughout.
10 questions about Louisiana
Show a hint
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Sources & notes
Narrative and quiz updated 5 October 2026. Statistical data prepared 27 September 2026. Population: Census Bureau Vintage 2025, July 1 estimates for 2020–2025. Real GDP: BEA annual state accounts, SAGDP9, millions of chained 2017 dollars; industry shares: SAGDP2, current dollars. Data downloaded 27 September 2026. Area measurements include land and water.
Sources: Census · population estimates · BEA · state GDP · Census · area measurements · Natural Earth · map data
The capital clock shows current local time. Statistical figures are dated estimates and may be revised.
Updated 29 October 2026. Statistics retain the dated series shown in the charts; these are not live figures. Sources are linked beside each topic.