SOUTH CAROLINA

State of South Carolina

ORIGIN OF STATE NAME: Named in honor of King Charles I of England. NICKNAME: The Palmetto State.CAPITAL: Columbia. ENTERED UNION: 23 May 1788 (8th). SONG: "Carolina" and "South Carolina on My Mind." OPERA: "Porgy and Bess." MOTTO: Animis opibusque parati (Prepared in mind and resources) and Dum spiro spero (While I breathe, I hope). COAT OF ARMS: A palmetto stands erect, with a ravaged oak (representing the British fleet) at its base; 12 spears, symbolizing the first 12 states, are bound crosswise to the palmetto's trunk by a hand bearing the inscription "Quis separabit" (Who shall separate?). Two shields bearing the inscriptions "March 26" (the date in 1776 when South Carolina established its first independent government) and "July 4," respectively, hang from the tree; under the oak are the words "Meliorem lapsa locavit" (Having fallen, it has set up a better one) and the year "1776." The words "South Carolina" and the motto Animis opibusque parati surround the whole. FLAG: Blue field with a white palmetto in the center and a white crescent at the union. OFFICIAL SEAL: The official seal consists of two ovals showing the original designs for the obverse and the reverse of South Carolina's great seal of 1777. left (obverse): same as the coat of arms. right (reverse): as the sun rises over the seashore, Hope, holding a laurel branch, walks over swords and daggers; the motto Dum spiro spero is above her, the word "Spes" (hope) below. ANIMAL: White-tailed deer. BIRD: Carolina wren. WILD GAME BIRD: Wild turkey. FISH: Striped bass. FLOWER: Yellow jessamine. FRUIT: Peach. BEVERAGE: Milk. HOSPITALITY BEVERAGE: Tea. TREE: Palmetto. GEM: Amethyst. STONE: Blue granite. LEGAL HOLIDAYS: New Year's Day, 1 January; Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., 3rd Monday in January; Lee's Birthday, 19 January; Washington's Birthday, 3rd Monday in February; Jefferson Davis's Birthday, 3 June; Independence Day, 4 July; Labor Day, 1st Monday in September; Election Day, 1st Tuesday after 1st Monday in November (even-numbered years); Veterans Day, 11 November; Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November; Christmas Eve, 24 December, when declared by the governor; Christmas Day, 25 December; day after Christmas. TIME: 7 AM EST = noon GMT.